Blackmagic cards running in linux

[Yves De muyter]

We need enough people to make some noise to get Linux drivers.

I’m really sure Linux drivers would be profitable for BMD but they need some more people requesting it. I understand that he Linux community is not at all on Creative Cow but elsewhere.

There is also a question about what we, Linux user want in the first place. Do we basically do video IO or do we mostly do keying?

For video IO a video4linux2 interface would be good enough, other people (like https://www.gstreamer.net will do all the userlevel library/applications) but this interface does not do any keying…
For keying they might look at hauppauge’s PVR350 ivtv interface for how you can do it?

-Yves

[Octavio Gasca]

[Yves De Muyter] “There is also a question about what we, Linux user want in the first place. Do we basically do video IO or do we mostly do keying?”

I do IO. Looking for stable editing platform.

[Chris Borjis]

[Octavio Gasca] “Looking for stable editing platform.”

OS X isn’t stable enough?

[Yves De muyter]

And which application do you intend to use? Cinelerra, kino, pitivi?

-Yves

[Octavio Gasca]

I think Cinelerra and Kino would be the aplications to use so far.
But I’ve read (DV magazine) that Smoke with Aja Kona cards are running under Linux.
Things are moving in a interesting way.

Octavio

[Yves De muyter]

I’m not really familiar with AJA boards since they don’t let me have the SDK: you need to sell at least some 100 boards a year before they let you have the SDK, made me angry because that is completely unrealistic here in Belgium, furthermore I’m sure Spectsoft does not have such turnover so I guess it must be more of a corporate politics thing. For that matter, BMD is much more honest to say that they think the cost of a Linux driver is too high.

Does Smoke use the regular video4linux interfaces or have they implemented it directly on top of the custom AJA driver?

-Yves

[Sean Oneil]

A while back, there was a company that sold turnkey Linux NLEs. I forget what they were called. I think it was “Linux Media Arts” or something like that. Check the Linux board here on the cow.

The systems used Cinelerra and an SDI capture card. Don’t know what card it was or where the drivers came from.

[Octavio Gasca]

Any words from the Blackmagic people?

[Kristian Lam]

Hi,

We currently do have plans for Linux support but we are keeping our ears (and eyes) open. We did have something in the pipeline a long time ago but that was shelved due to the lack of interest from customers.

regards

Kristian Lam
Blackmagic Design

[Yves De muyter]

Kristian,

How do you define “lack of interest from customers” if there is no driver yet?

Please understand: linux users are not on Creative Cow, they have their own world on internet. Go and ask Gstreamer.net, v4linux2, cinelerra mailinglist or even the BBC R&D guys about Linux in the broadcast.
Of course, some of the demand had been fulfilled by AJA, DVS and Deltacast. All 3 of them need to sign an NDA to get to the SDK (I signed the DVS NDA and about to sign the deltacast NDA as I did not find a perfect board yet).

-Yves