[MEncoder-users] mencoder bug: Trancoding stops without reason and gives no error message

[Peer Janssen]

Am 28.05.2014 22:28, schrieb Carl Eugen Hoyos:
>
>> time mencoder -nosound -ovc lavc -lavcopts
>> vcodec=mpeg4:aspect=16/9:vbitrate=8000000
>> -vf scale=1920:1080 -o timelapse.avi
>> -mf type=jpeg:fps=24 mf:// <at> stills.txt
> FFmpeg now supports a similar input format, see
> https://ffmpeg.org/ffmpeg-formats.html#concat-1
Well, I gave it a try. Many sites suggest something like this:

ffmpeg -r 6 -i "%04d.jpg" -an -vcodec copy out.avi

But my images are timestamped in the file name:
$ ls -1
2014-05-28_11-54-01.jpg
2014-05-28_11-55-01.jpg
2014-05-28_11-56-01.jpg
2014-05-28_11-57-01.jpg
[snip]

So this doesn't work. Ah, there is globbing, and a stern warning (glad I 
didn't miss that one!!!):

Just a note of warning: do not think you can bypass ffmpeg's printf 
syntax and just use *.jpg or something for more complex patterns. It 
will actually overwrite each and every one of your image files with the 
first one! I tried it myself. – Christian

I was stuggeling with this as well. I turns out you can do this but need 
to set the glob style flag. ffmpeg -pattern_type glob -i 
'time-lapse-files/*.JPG' time-lapse.mp4 – arno_v Dec 31 '13 at 12:25

[See here: 
http://superuser.com/questions/249101/how-can-i-combine-30-000-images-into-a-timelapse-movie]

This happened (just testing the option in itself):

$ ffmpeg -pattern_type glob
ffmpeg version 0.8.10-6:0.8.10-0ubuntu0.13.10.1, Copyright (c) 2000-2013 
the Libav developers
built on Feb 6 2014 20:59:46 with gcc 4.8.1
*** THIS PROGRAM IS DEPRECATED ***
This program is only provided for compatibility and will be removed in a 
future release. Please use avconv instead.
Unrecognized option 'pattern_type'
Failed to set value 'glob' for option 'pattern_type'

Ok, do it again with avconf:

$ avconv -pattern_type glob
avconv version 0.8.10-6:0.8.10-0ubuntu0.13.10.1, Copyright (c) 2000-2013 
the Libav developers
built on Feb 6 2014 20:59:46 with gcc 4.8.1
Unrecognized option 'pattern_type'
Failed to set value 'glob' for option 'pattern_type'

Well. I could go into compiling now.
But I'll try the other solution first (upgrading ubuntu), since I have 
to do that anyway.
If it works, problem would be solved without sifting through options and 
compiler options labyrinth.

If I could simply supply my file list, that would be fine. Maybe there 
is such an option, and maybe I'll succeed in unburying it from the 
option jungle. :-)
> (You do know that MEncoder is not an actively
> maintained application for several years that
> should only be used for tasks that FFmpeg cannot
> perform?)
I did not know.
>> libavcodec version 53.35.0 (external)
> This is an intentionally broken version of
> MEncoder, please compile from current svn
> and test again (if you don't want to use
> FFmpeg).
Intentionally broken?

Hmm. There might be reasons for this, but this looks like internals to 
the mplayer/ffmpeg dev community to me, as do some of the other replies.
So, things evolve. That's a good thing in itself, since anything that 
evolves has a chance to get better, contrary to rigid dogma and ideology 
which tend to make live rigid and stuck.
(This happens to be a central message of The Revelation of Arès, see 
http://freesoulblog.net for more info if interested.)

Thank you all so far for the insights,
Peer

-- 
Peer Janssen - peer at pjk.de