Hi.
The issue of codecs has changed a lot in recent years. Some patents have expired, openh264 is provided…
For example, I see that in the official repos we have gstreamer-plugins-ugly, but in packman we have gstreamer-plugins-ugly-codecs. What’s actually in packman that isn’t in the official one?
Thanks.
@karlggest it provides the x264 encoder, that’s all…
Yes, but is an example of thing we didn’t have some years ago. So there’s a lot of things we do as we did since openSUSE 10.x, but today, is all necessary?
If a package is in opensuse repos and in Packman, do I have to install it from packman?
@karlggest The openSUSE package does not contain the x264 encoder, that’s all the Packman package provides to supplement that specific plugin…
So if your not x264 encoding, then not needed…
The short answer is: NO. Install from Packman only those packages that are needed to perform something you really need and is not provided by OSS.
For most users that means a dozen packages or even less; unless you need a coder or an unusual format e.g. to stream videos, you may be just good to go with the official repos plus openh264.
As I understand it, the question is not about a specific package (in this case the one that provides x264 support), but about the use of the Packman repository in general to enable all codecs.
Being nitpicking, the issue is the definition of “all the codecs”.
For instance, limiting to ffmpeg, try ffmpeg -decoders and ffmpeg -encoders.
The Packman version of ffmpeg returns 550 lines for decoders and 240 lines for encoders.
I can place a sure bet that most users did never ever encounter most of those decoders/encoders.
If you have the OSS version installed, you can check how many of those lines are missing (too lazy to disrupt my current setup here 
)
If the definition is “all the codecs in widespread use that most users need”, then all you need is OSS + openh264, the latter being a notable addition needed for .mp4 videos.
That is my question.
A regular user, including me, may want to access content from platforms (Dazn, Disney+, or whatever you prefer), listen to music from Deezer, Spotify, etc., watch videos on YouTube or Twitch, or even use alternative platforms from the fediverse. Is this possible with the oss packages (and h264)?
yes, it is
Generally speaking, yes, since major platforms provide at least one format that is supported. If a specific format for an unusual platform does not work, ask here and we (as in “the Community”) might be able to help.
Why not simply test it? If you can play your content without packman, all is good. If you encounter an error, you can install the needed codecs from packman. This is faster than creating such a thread imo.
As nobody knows what special content you use, a general advise is impossible. It needs tests by yourself.
This isn’t a specific issue for my specific case. If you tell me that the most common streaming format on video platforms is only available in Packman, then the general installation scenario would require Packman. If, on the other hand, you tell me that if you want to create a video in a very specific format because someone asks you to, and that video might require a very specific codec, and that requires Packman’s, then including Packman isn’t a general installation scenario.
Quick update. Fired up a Leap 16 RC VM, OSS only (Packman doesn’t exist yet) and ffmpeg returns 474 lines for decoders and 195 for encoders, so by and large 10% of decoders and 20% of encoders are missing.
On first sight missing decoders seem to be in the h264, HEVC, VC1 area (but openh264 is supported).
So if you just need watching / listening you are pretty good with OSS + openH264.
But as end-user I simply want that it “plays” when I click on it. I have no idea what is x264 (or any other x…), It just should function.
Thus as system manager I would want to know if I need to switch to Packman to offer this to my users. I interpret the original question in this way. And when I miss-interpret, I still would like to have an answer on this.
As background information. Since many years of openSUSE, I just do the “switch” for every install. Never had a problem in “playing” sound or movie. Telling all people here on the forums that came with questions about not functioning multi-media to do “the switch” in 99% of the cases solved their problem. Is this still the quick and easy and total solution or not?
Sorry for my poor english. When you say “switch”, Are you saying “drop the Packman repo and all the packages that only are there”?
It is still quick and easy but is overkill, and if the switch brings in Mesa as well we are going to see a number of threads asking for help (at least on Tumbleweed).
@hcvv Not really, I would recommend NOT to use Packman, this is really due to the lack of resources when the hardware or software goes foobar and inherent delays on a snapshot release and the potential for Packman/openSUSE repositories to get out of sync…
Flatpaks with suitable permissions set via Flatseal should suffice, this is all the likes of Aeon and Kalpa uses…
No, “doing the switch” here means “install everything in the version available from Packman”, so even packages that may not be needed like Mesa.
The “switch”, more complete "vendor switch to Packman is:
zypper ar or using YaST > Repo Management);zypper dup --from <id of the Packman repo> --allow-vendor-change.This will result in installing all packages that exist in Packman and that already are installed on the system from OSS will be overwritten with the Packman versions. And thus would result in replacing the multi-media license restricted software elements by the full capable versions.
Who is Mesa and what is he/she a multi-media overkill?