Need help with using a MacPorts-created .dmg installer for ffmpeg 0.6.2

[Ryan Schmidt]

Eric, I'm sending this reply back to the mailing list so others can see and participate in the discussion. Please use Reply All when replying.


On May 10, 2011, at 15:27, Eric wrote:

> Ryan,
> 
> Thanks ... really good info and advice.
> 
> I'd like to MacPorts-install ffmpeg directly on my iMac that runs Leopard, per your advice, and so I have now (re)installed MacPorts 1.9.2, which goes with Leopard, on the iMac. When I did that previously, though, the ffmpeg build produced ...
> 
> --->  Extracting zlib
> Error: On Mac OS X 10.5, zlib 1.2.5 requires Xcode 3.1 or later but you have Xcode 3.0.
> Error: Target org.macports.extract returned: incompatible Xcode version
> Error: Failed to install zlib
> Log for zlib is at: /opt/local/var/macports/logs/_opt_local_var_macports_sources_rsync.macports.org_release_ports_archivers_zlib/main.log
> Error: The following dependencies were not installed: libsdl xorg-libXext xorg-libX11 xorg-libxcb python27 openssl zlib readline sqlite3 xorg-libpthread-stubs xorg-xcb-proto libxml2 xorg-util-macros xorg-xcmiscproto xorg-xextproto xorg-xf86bigfontproto xorg-xtrans xorg-libXrandr xorg-randrproto xrender xorg-renderproto libtheora libvorbis libvpx yasm schroedinger orc speex texi2html x264
> Error: Status 1 encountered during processing.
> 
> ... apparently since my Xcode Developer Tools are 3.0, not 3.1.

That's correct. Xcode 3.0 had some bad bugs that we don't want to have to deal with support requests about, which were fixed in 3.1.


> But when I tried obtaining more current Xcode Developer Tools, I was told I now have to do that through the App Store app, which only runs under Snow Leopard, not Leopard ...  Catch-22!
> 
> I am currently copying the Xcode Developer Tools 4.0.2 I put on my Snow Leopard MacBook Pro (using the App Store app)  to my Leopard iMac to see if they improve matters, but my understanding is that they are not Leopard-compatible.
> 
> If that doesn't fix me up, do you have any idea how I could get a 3.1 Xcode package?

Apple loves promoting only the most recent version of things, currently Xcode 4, available from the App Store. Xcode 4 only works on Snow Leopard, and also costs money. Earlier versions of Xcode are free and available on the developer connection web site. We have links to them here:

http://guide.macports.org/#installing.xcode


> Also, if I ever succeed in the above, you've suggested using a symlink in Subsonic's transcode folder to refer to the ffmpeg executable. Is a symlink the same as an alias, or do I have to do something different to set up a symlink?

A symlink and an alias serve similar purposes, but are entirely different types of objects, and software that understands one won't necessarily understand the other. Usually it's the alias which is in greater danger of not being understood, since it is a Mac OS-specific invention, and so can only be used by programs using Mac OS file APIs, whereas a symlink is a concept that exists on every UNIX-like operating system I know of, and should work using any file API.

You create a symlink using the "ln" command with the "-s" flag. For example:

ln -s /opt/local/bin/ffmpeg '/Library/Application Support/Subsonic/transcode/ffmpeg'

This would create a symlink "ffmpeg" in /Library/Application Support/Subsonic/transcode/ pointing to /opt/local/bin/ffmpeg. (Not sure if that's the correct location for the ffmpeg symlink to be; you'll have to consult your program's documentation or do some trial and error testing.)


> Thank you very much for your help.
> 
> Eric Stewart
> Catonsville, MD