All of those things are fantastic points, fitbrit, which actually dovetails nicely into what I was going to say next.
My other half is definitely not a techie, but loves 3D TV at home on our TV.
This is what I wanted to go into, and all of fitbrit's and RoderickGI's points above fit completely into this theme as well.
While I have a (nice) 3D-capable TV (and receiver and the whole bit) we've never used these features on the TV aside from "playing with it for fun". I only have the one set of active goggles from Panasonic, and I've never bought additional ones. Actually, while playing with it, I discovered that my TV does have a pretty serious issue with the IR emitter on the TV not working right and the goggles losing sync when the TV's face (even only the bottom where the emitter is, or even the glasses) is in direct sunlight.
I'm the first to admit that using my fancy TV (which is plasma) in direct sunlight is a pretty crappy deal anyway. However, that's how my house is shaped and that's where the TV needs to be, and I have south facing Windows. We don't regularly watch TV during the day. Quite infrequently, honestly. But to a "normal" it is a deal-killer if it has weird "bugs" like this. It "feels" broken (because it is). They should have used RF. But, I digress...
That is a big thing for acceptance. And that brings me to the quote above.
My wife is no tech slouch. She can (and does, sometimes) teach me a thing or three about Excel. And she can manage multiple monitors with the best of them (I've taught her to love multiple monitors). But, she's also in no danger of ever being recruited by the IT department at work. She's no technophobe and not clueless at all, but she's no techie. In other words, a "normal" by my definition.
She
loves MC and Theater View. Enthusiastically. She would
never in a million years want to go back to the regular way of watching TV (or even, shudder, use a cable company DVR) like an animal.
But the reason she appreciates this thing I've built, and can use it so effectively, is because
I live here. It's definitely
not because I'm special or a man or whatever dumb things, and not because she's incapable (she is), but because she
wouldn't do it. It isn't in her realm of interest to get it all set up "just so". And without it all set up "just so" then she certainly wouldn't use it, because it would be chaos and have nowhere near the level of usability that I've built.
So, she loves Theater View, but for her it is easy because
I get everything set up "Just So" and prepare the experience (I don't drive it for her, but I do all of the setup and care and feeding behind the scenes). If I were to get abducted by aliens tomorrow and she and my daughter were on their own, would she still use it?
I think she'd try. But she has over 10 years of experience now, and she'd be starting with things as I've left them. And I don't know how long she'd stick with it at all.
So, I'm
sure your family and friends (everyone in this thread, or on this board, really) appreciate the experience at your house, because you're nerds like me and you've meticulously crafted the experience and made sure not to buy a TV that has cruddy goggles (or bought third party ones and maybe even tried a few or read nerdy forum posts about them). You have seriously impressive hardware and a fine-tuned system for playback that is all hand picked by someone who is, at least compared to mortals, an
AV expert.
Do I wish I could go listen to a system set up by mwillems? Heck yes. Would most "normals" be impressed by it too? Heck yes!! Maybe not to the same degree as another expert, but so much of how we experience these things is tied up in things other than the actual movie and the actual media, at those points.
Now... That brings us to whether it matters or not what "normals" would use. JRiver certainly must consider less experienced and savvy users. Selling exclusively to nerds like us on the forums is a nice dream, but we'd have to pay a much higher price.
That said, JRiver's Media Center is also an unapologetically
premium product. It is a $50 media player in a market dominated by free software and
failed specialty products (like TMT and BeyondTV). It isn't "enterprise class software" (thank god) and isn't in the "super-premium" or quite in the "pro" space. But it also isn't just an iTunes for everyone else that hates Apple. It is
for people who want
more. Not just nerds, like us, which is a niche, but also not for everyone. And that's okay.
So, considering that market, I think there is a very good argument to be made for implementing features just like 3D playback, because it appeals to customers who want a more premium product and experience. The discussion is absolutely, 100%, completely worth having. And it is worth having again from time to time, to check to see where the situation stands.
That said...
Everything is a tradeoff. If JRiver had magical infinite resources, then yes, it would be a no-brainer to throw a huge pile of hours at the project. But they don't, of course, so we're looking at what features do you do and what do you cut. What can you get done, now, with what you have on hand, and where is the return on that investment.
I don't think it is there for 3D. I think this because, among other things (like is discussed above)...
I am that nerd. My whole family knows it, and extended family, and friends everywhere. I'm "the guy" that you'd go to in my circle if you have trouble with your TV or any kind of av or computer need. I'm the guy that you ask how to make your VCR stop blinking 12:00 (throwback nod). I know, because it is included in all but the lowest end TVs now, that most of the people in this circle probably now have HDTVs with 3D features, and have in most cases for some time. A whole bunch, but not all, of them have BluRay players.
No one has asked me how to do it. At all. No one.
It is one data point, but I don't think it is an irrelevant one. 3D isn't a complete failure in the home, but it sure as heck hasn't been the kind of success the industry hoped for. If it were, we'd have 3D screens everywhere like we now have touchscreens everywhere (even places they don't make any kind of sense). But, we don't. TVs yes, but not computer monitors or phones or tablets or whatever. The only major 3D device out there, other than TVs and theater systems, that has had substantial general-consumer penetration is the 3Ds, and that was glasses-free and most people I know who have one play it most of the time with the effect turned off (and only on for certain games).
So, it isn't irrelevant. But is it more important than, say, BluRay menu support? I'm not a fan of those either, but I think it is easy to say those are a much less niche feature, for something that probably requires a similar amount of developer time to implement. Is it more important than handling streaming formats and "gardens" better? Is it more important than the WDM driver?
I think it is clear where I fall on that spectrum. If the "open source" community gets closer to being able to implement it more easily (so things like VLC also have easy-to-use support), then... Sure. Probably worth it then because you can use their stuff. If it does somehow reverse course and becomes an important checkbox for a Minimum Viable Product? Sure, but I think we're pretty far from there (see basically all the other popular players, and the array of carcasses of licensed software BluRay players).
So, that's where I stand. I'm not opposed to it, per-say. But I'm pretty skeptical there's a ROI.
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Topic: What do I need to watch 3D TVs/movies? (Read 10645 times)