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{{overlinked|date=December 2011}}
{{Mininav|[[Kodi Foundation]]}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2011}}
{{Infobox software
{{Infobox software
| name = XBMC Media Center
| logo = [[File:Logo-transparent bare 256px.png|220px]]
| logo = [[File:XBMC logo.svg|200px]]
| screenshot = [[File:Kodi.gif|300px|link=|Confluence skin home screen]]
| screenshot = [[File:xbmc 911.png|250px]]
| caption = [[Confluence]] skin home screen
| caption = XBMC Media Center Home Screen
| developer = [[Kodi Foundation]]
| developer = [http://xbmc.org/about/team/ Team XBMC]
| released = June 29, 2004
| latest release version = {{Latest stable software release/XBMC}}<!-- Release version update? Don't edit this version, just click on the version number and go to that page to edit it instead! -->
| Stable release = {{Current version}}
| frequently_updated = yes<!-- Release version update? Don't edit this page, just click on the version number! -->
| Preview release = {{Future_version}}
| latest preview version = [[Neutral build]] from [[Git (software)|Git]]
| programming language = ''Core:'' C++<br />''Add-ons:'' Python v3
| latest preview date = [[Nightly build|Nightly]] (codename: "''[[XBMC#Releases|Eden]]''")
| operating system = [[Windows]], [[Mac OS X|macOS]], [[Linux]], [[Android]], [[iOS]]/[[tvOS]], [[BSD]]
| programming language = [[C++]] core, with [[Python (programming language)|Python scripts]] as [[Plug-in (computing)|addons (plugins)]] from [[third-party developer]]s
| operating system = [[Linux]], [[Berkeley Software Distribution|BSD]], [[Mac OS X]], [[Apple TV|Apple TV OS]], [[Windows]], [[iOS (Apple)|iOS]], (and [[MeeGo]] support is in development)
| language = 72 languages<ref name="weblate_lang_list" />
| platform = [[ARM architecture|ARM]], [[PowerPC|PPC (PowerPC)]], [[x86 architecture|x86]] / [[IA-32]], and [[x86-64]], (and [[MIPS architecture]] support is in development<ref>{{cite web|url=http://github.com/xbmc/xbmc/pull/455 |title=Add mips arch |publisher=Github.com |date=30 September 2011 |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref>)
| language = [[Internationalization and localization|International (40+ languages to date)]]
| genre = [[Home theater PC|Media Center]], [[media player (application software)|Media Player]], [[Digital media receiver]]
| license = [[GNU General Public License|GNU GPL]] ([[GNU General Public License Version 2|GPLv2 or later]])
| website = [http://xbmc.org xbmc.org]
}}
}}
'''Kodi'''® (formerly known as <span style="font-weight: 600;">XBMC</span> or <span style="font-weight: 600;">Xbox Media Center</span>) is an award-winning, free and open source media player/entertainment hub application that runs on an exhaustive list of computers, mobile devices and HTPCs (Home theater PCs) which natively use no less than seven (7) different operating systems. It follows a [[wikipedia:10-foot user interface|10-foot user interface]] design specification which targets usage as a media player in a living room setting—or any other space where groups of people consume media without having someone seated near the player controls—using a handheld remote control as the primary input device. Its graphical user interface allows the user to easily browse and view videos, photos, podcasts, and music from local file storage, optical discs, the local network or the internet using only a few buttons. The Kodi project is managed by the non-profit '''[[Kodi Foundation]]''' and developed by volunteers located around the world. As of Summer 2022, more than 1,600 software developers have contributed to Kodi (in the form of 111,800+ individual changes to the codebase, which opened in 2003),<ref name="openhub" /> with roughly 60 core developers whose regular participation helps to steer it. Now, thanks to the generosity and dedication of over [[Translations|200 volunteer translators]], Kodi is available in 72 languages and useful no matter which continent you're on.
'''XBMC Media Center''' (formerly '''[[Xbox]] Media Center''') is a [[free and open source software|free and open source]] [[cross-platform]] [[digital media hub]] and [[Home theater PC|HTPC (Home theater PC)]] [[application software|software]] with a [[10-foot user interface]] designed to be a [[media player (application software)|media player]] for the living-room [[Television|TV]] using only a [[remote control]] as the [[input device]]. Its [[graphical user interface]] (GUI) allows the user to easily browse and view videos, photos, podcasts, and music from a harddrive, optical disc, local network, and the internet using only a few buttons.<ref name="XBMC is the best media center application. Period.">{{cite web|url=http://www.instantfundas.com/2009/08/xbmc-is-best-media-center-application.html |title=XBMC is the best media center application. Period. |date=2009-08-08 |author=Kaushik |work=instant fundas}}</ref><ref name="XboxMediaCenter Review">{{cite web|url=http://www.tvharmony.com/blog/archives/2004/09/xboxmediacenter.html |title=XboxMediaCenter Review |date=2004-09-16 |author=Timmeh |work=TVHarmony.com, Inc.}}</ref><ref name="Modding The Xbox Into The Ultimate Multimedia Center">{{cite web|url=http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/modding-xbox-ultimate-multimedia-center,807.html |title=Modding The Xbox Into The Ultimate Multimedia Center |date=2004-11-05 |author=Patrick Schmid |work=Tom's Hardware}}</ref><ref>http://xbmcmediacenter.com xbmcmediacenter.com an unofficial fan site for XBMC</ref> The XBMC project is managed by the non-profit technology [[consortium]] '''XBMC Foundation'''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://xbmc.org/prae5/2010/12/10/the-xbmc-foundation/ |title=The XBMC Foundation |publisher=Xbmc.org |date=10 December 2010 |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://xbmc.org/about/ |title=About XBMC |publisher=Xbmc.org |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://xbmc.org/about/friends-and-sponsors/ |title=XBMC Friends And Sponsors |publisher=Xbmc.org |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref>
Kodi® ''(then called "Xbox Media Center")'' was originally created as a media center application for the first-generation Xbox game console (no longer supported) but is now officially available as a native application for [[Android]], [[BSD]], [[Linux]], [[Mac OS X|macOS]], [[iOS]]/[[tvOS]], and [[Windows]] operating systems, running on most common processor architectures.
It is a popular alternative to [[Microsoft]]'s [[Windows Media Center]] and [[Apple Inc.|Apple]]'s [[Front Row (software)|Front Row]] for [[Home theater PC|HTPC]] use.<ref>{{cite web|last=Won |first=Brian |url=http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/guides/2010/12/htpc-guide-1 |title=Ars Technica HTPC Guide: December 2010 |publisher=Arstechnica.com |date=7 December 2010 |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref><ref name="Hive Five Winner for Best Media Center Application: XBMC">{{cite web|url=http://lifehacker.com/5105649/hive-five-winner-for-best-media-center-application-xbmc |title=Hive Five Winner for Best Media Center Application: XBMC |date=2008-12-09 |author=Adam Pash |work=Lifehacker}}</ref><ref name="Five Best Media Center Applications">{{cite web|url=http://lifehacker.com/5103464/five-best-media-center-applications |title=Hive Five Best Media Center Applications |date=2008-12-07 |author=Adam Pash |work=Lifehacker}}</ref><ref name="Most Popular Free Mac Downloads of 2008">{{cite web|url=http://lifehacker.com/5111727/most-popular-free-mac-downloads-of-2008 |title=Most Popular Free Mac Downloads of 2008 |date=2008-12-16 |author=Adam Pash |work=Lifehacker}}</ref><ref name="XBMC 9.04 delivers impressive media center experience">{{cite web|url=http://arstechnica.com/open-source/news/2009/05/xbmc-904-delivers-impressive-media-center-experience.ars |title=XBMC 9.04 delivers impressive media center experience |date=2009-05-10 |author=Ryan Paul |work=Ars Technica}}</ref><ref name="Which Media Center Is Right for You: Boxee, XBMC, and Windows Media Center Compared">{{cite web|url=http://lifehacker.com/5462275/which-media-center-is-right-for-you-boxee-xbmc-and-windows-media-center-compared |title=Which Media Center Is Right for You: Boxee, XBMC, and Windows Media Center Compared |date=2010-02-02 |author=Jason Fitzpatrick & Kevin Purdy |work=Lifehacker}}</ref> Similar to competing software like [[MediaPortal]] and [[MythTV]], it has a [[skin (computing)|skinnable]] as well as user-configurable interface and [[Plug-in (computing)|plugin]] support.<ref name="Customize XBMC with These Five Awesome Skins">{{cite web|url=http://lifehacker.com/5198009/customize-xbmc-with-these-five-awesome-skins |title=Customize XBMC with These Five Awesome Skins |date=2009-04-05 |author=Jason Fitzpatrick |work=Lifehacker}}</ref><ref name="XBMC 9.11 makes your open source home theater look shinier">{{cite web|url=http://arstechnica.com/open-source/reviews/2009/12/xbmc-911-makes-your-open-source-home-theater-look-shinier.ars |title=XBMC 9.11 makes your open source home theater look shinier |date=2009-12-29 |author=Ryan Paul |work=Ars Technica}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mediasmartserver.net/2010/09/07/guide-getting-started-with-xbmc/ |title=Guide: Getting Started With XBMC |publisher=Mediasmartserver.net |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref> The latest stable release of XBMC also have an integrated [[digital distribution]] platform 'app store' / 'app market' called "''Addons Manager''" that has a growing list of community driven addon [[Plug-in (computing)|plugins]] for online content like YouTube, [[Hulu]], [[Netflix]], [[Grooveshark]], [[Pandora Radio]], as well and [[Theme (computing)|themes (skins)]] and more available from a common official [[Repository Open Service Interface Definition|repository]], while still enabling third-party developers to also host their own unofficial repositories for addon plugins that any user can choose to add themselves if they like.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://xbmc.org/theuni/2010/12/18/xbmc-10-0/ |title=XBMC 10.0 |publisher=Xbmc.org |date=18 December 2010 |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://lifehacker.com/5715145/xbmc-10-dharma-makes-installing-add+ons-and-skins-much-easier |title=XBMC 10 Dharma Makes Installing Add-Ons and Skins Much Easier |publisher=Lifehacker.com |date=20 December 2010 |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://lifehacker.com/5714949/xbmc-updates-to-100-dharma-rocks-awesome-add+on-support-and-improved-graphic-acceleration |title=XBMC Updates to 10.0 Dharma, Rocks Awesome Add-on Support and Improved Graphic Acceleration |publisher=Lifehacker.com |date=18 December 2010 |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.engadget.com/2010/12/19/xmbc-10-0-dharma-now-available-to-download-with-improvements-g/ |title=XBMC 10.0 'Dharma' now available to download with improvements galore, add-on manager and Apple TV support |publisher=Engadget.com |date=19 December 2010 |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref>
== Introduction ==
=== Overview of features ===
:{{Main|Features and supported formats}}
{{#lst:Features_and_supported_formats|intro}}
XBMC was originally created as a media center application for the first-generation Xbox game console<ref name="XboxMediaCenter Review"/><ref name="Modding The Xbox Into The Ultimate Multimedia Center"/><ref name="Review of XBMC in Hardcore Gamer Magazine">http://www.o-sd.com/hardcoregamermag/publicPDF/HGM_Aug.pdf Review of XBMC in Hardcore Gamer Magazine</ref> but is now, since 2010, officially available as a native application for [[Linux]], [[Mac OS X]] ([[Mac OS X v10.6|Snow Leopard]], [[Mac OS X v10.5|Leopard]], [[Mac OS X v10.4|Tiger]]), [[iOS (Apple)|iOS]] ([[iDevice]]s that are [[iOS jailbreaking|jailbroken]]), [[Apple TV]], and [[Microsoft Windows]] operating systems, running on most common [[processor architecture]]s.<ref name="FLOSS Media Center State of the Art">{{cite web|url=http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-softmod-your-xbox...for-FREE/ |title=How to softmod your xbox...for FREE |date=2007-01-18 |author=VzjrZ |work=Instructables}}</ref> Also available is a bootable [[Live CD]] and [[Live USB]] standalone version referred to as "''[[XBMC Live]]''" which is made for easy setup on [[Bare-metal restore|bare-metal installation]]s and to be used for [[Demo (marketing)|interactive demonstrations]].<ref name="XBMC Live 9.11">{{cite web|url=http://linux.softpedia.com/get/System/Operating-Systems/Linux-Distributions/XBMC-Live-53804.shtml |title=XBMC Live 9.11 |date=2010-01-19 |work=Softpedia}}</ref><ref name="XBMC Live Atlantis Beta1!">{{cite web|url=http://xbmc.org/lcapriotti/2008/09/18/xbmc-live-atlantis-beta1/ |title=XBMC Live Atlantis Beta1! |author=Luigi Capriotti |date=2008-09-18 |work=xbmc.org}}</ref><ref name="XBMC Live 8.10 (Atlantis) released">{{cite web|url=http://xbmc.org/lcapriotti/2008/11/15/xbmc-live-810-atlantis-released/ |title=XBMC Live 8.10 (Atlantis) released |author=Luigi Capriotti |date=2008-11-15 |work=xbmc.org}}</ref>
=== Add-ons ===
:{{Main|Add-ons}}
{{#lst:Add-ons|intro}}
In addition, as a leader in [[niche market]] of media center software, the [[source code]] from XBMC is used as an [[open platform]] [[Software framework|application framework]] and [[technological convergence]] platform for others projects to base their [[Smart TV]] entertainment system, [[set-top box]]es, [[hotel television systems|interactive television for hotels]], or [[Home theater PC|home media center]] software on for [[over-the-top content]] use and more, and today at least [[Boxee]], [[MediaPortal]], [[Plexapp|Plex]], 9x9 Player, and [[Voddler]] are separate [[derivative work|derivative products]] that are all openly known to initially have [[fork (software development)|forked]] the GUI engine and media player core parts of their [[Computer software|software]] from XBMC's source code. While still using their own brand and customized interface, a few like [[Boxee]] and 9x9 Player, are also [[affiliate marketing]] their software/devices as "'''''Designed for XBMC'''''" and "'''''Powered by XBMC'''''" with official XBMC logo by certified approval from the XBMC Foundation and the Team-XBMC developers.<ref name="XBMC is the best media center application. Period."/><ref name="XBMC 9.04 delivers impressive media center experience"/><ref name="Voddler använder XBMC">{{cite web|url=http://www.xbmc.nu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=177:voddler-anvaender-xbmc&catid=37&Itemid=2 |title=Voddler använder XBMC (Bekräftat!) |author=Richard Skalsky (a.k.a. GrandAnse) | language=Swedish |date=2009-07-02 |work=xbmc.nu}}</ref><ref name="CrunchGear Interview: We talk to the lead developer of Plex Media Center for Mac OS X: It was doing Boxee-like stuff before Boxee was cool">{{cite web|url=http://www.crunchgear.com/2010/01/15/interview-we-talk-to-the-lead-developer-of-plex-media-center-for-mac-os-x-it-was-doing-boxee-like-stuff-before-boxee-was-cool/ |title=CrunchGear Interview: We talk to the lead developer of Plex Media Center for Mac OS X: It was doing Boxee-like stuff before Boxee was cool |date=2010-01-15 |author=Nicholas Deleon |work=CrunchGear}}</ref><ref name="Thinking inside the box">{{cite web|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2009/oct/07/boxee-web-video-software |title=Thinking inside the box |date=2009-10-07 |author=Kevin Anderson |work=The Guardian |location=UK}}</ref>
For additional information about specific add-ons, see the '''[[:Category:All add-ons|All add-ons]]''' category.
==Overview==
=== Video demos ===
XBMC (which has officially been [[Rebranding|rebranded]] to simply "''XBMC''" from its previous old name; "''Xbox Media Center''") supports most common audio, video, and image formats, playlists, audio visualizations, slideshows, [[weather forecasts]] reporting, and third-party plugins. It is network-capable (internet and [[Local area network|LAN]] shares). Unlike [[proprietary software|proprietary]] [[Home theater PC|media center]] applications like [[Windows Media Center]] from [[Microsoft]], or other free-software media center applications such as [[MediaPortal]] and [[MythTV]], XBMC Media Center does not yet include native [[Live TV]] or [[Digital video recorder|DVR/PVR recording functionality]], nor an [[Electronic program guide|EPG TV-Guide interface]] of its own, it does however offer the possibility to integrate such functionality through third-party plugins<ref name="XBMC is the best media center application. Period."/><ref name="XBMC 9.04 delivers impressive media center experience"/><ref name="XBMC 9.11 makes your open source home theater look shinier"/><ref name="FLOSS Media Center State of the Art">{{cite web|url=http://www.telematicsfreedom.org/en/flossmediacenter |title=10 most prominent FLOSS projects compared |date=2008-09-18 |work=Telematics Freedom Foundation}}</ref> and an official native unified DVR/PVR frontend with EPG which via a common API will support multiple backends via PVR client addons is under development, with experimental builds already available.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?t=28918 |title=Unified PVR frontend (DVR/HTPC client GUI with EPG) and Addons API for PVR backends |publisher=Forum.xbmc.org |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref>
Check out this excellent introduction video (1m 36s) by Lifehacker:<ref name="lifehacker" /><br />
::{{YouTube|T970YM3w1LY}}
Through its [[Plug-in (computing)|plugin]] system, which is based on the [[Python (programming language)|Python programming language]], XBMC is expandable via add-ons that include features such as television program guides, YouTube, Hulu, Netflix, [[Veoh]], online movie trailer support, and [[Pandora Radio]] and [[Podcast]] streaming. XBMC also functions as a gaming platform by allowing users to play mini-games developed with [[Python (programming language)|Python]], on any operating system.<ref name="XBMC is the best media center application. Period."/><ref name="XBMC 9.04 delivers impressive media center experience"/><ref name="FLOSS Media Center State of the Art"/><ref name="XBMC-Addons on Google Code">http://code.google.com/p/xbmc-addons/ XBMC-Addons on Google Code (Addon plugins for XBMC)</ref><ref name="XBMC Zone">http://www.xbmczone.com/ XBMC Zone (third-party Addon extensions for XBMC)</ref><ref name="Passion XBMC">http://passion-xbmc.org/ Passion XBMC (third-party Addon extensions for XBMC)</ref>
A Kodi beginners guide (13m 27s) by forum user fredphoesh:<ref name="fredphoesh" /><br />
::{{YouTube|2O4fCGrwrqw}}
XBMC [[source code]] is distributed as open source under [[GNU General Public License|GPL (GNU General Public License)]],<ref name="FLOSS Media Center State of the Art"/> it is sponsored via the [[Tax exemption|tax-exempt]] registered non-profit organization, XBMC [[Foundation (non-profit)|Foundation]], and is developed by a global [[free software community]] of [[volunteering]] people working on XBMC for free in their [[spare time]] without being motivated by financial or material gain.<ref name="XBMC Zone"/><ref name="Passion XBMC"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://xbmc.org/forum |title=XBMC official community forum |work=xbmc.org |accessdate=2010-02-13}}</ref><ref>http://xbmc.nu xbmc.nu – Swedish XBMC fan site and community</ref><ref>http://xbmc.fr xbmc.fr – French XBMC fan site and community</ref><ref>http://xbmc.de xbmc.de – German XBMC fan site and community</ref><ref>http://xbmcfreak.nl xbmcfreak.nl – Dutch XBMC fan site and community</ref><ref>http://xbmcsvn.com xbmcsvn.com – Nightly Unofficial Builds from SVN All Branches</ref>
=== Language support ===
{{See|Language portal}}
Kodi includes full support for many different languages by default. Kodi's structure is such that if the language is not available, or not up-to-date, it can be created by signing up at the [https://kodi.weblate.cloud/accounts/register/ Kodi Translations Project].
Even though the original XBMC project no longer develops or supports XBMC for the Xbox, XBMC on the Xbox is still available via the [[third-party developer]] [[Brand extension|spin-off]] project "[[XBMC4Xbox]]", who forked the Xbox version of the software have completely taken over the development and support of XBMC for the old Xbox. The ending of Xbox support by the original project is also the reason that it has officially been renamed to simply "''XBMC''" from the old from "''Xbox Media Center''" name.<ref name="Farewell XBOX">{{cite web|url=http://xbmc.org/theuni/2010/05/27/farewell-xbox/ |title=Farewell XBOX |date=2010-05-27 |author=theuni |work=xbmc.org}}</ref><ref name="XBMC Discontinues Xbox Support">{{cite web|url=http://hardware.slashdot.org/story/10/05/28/043243/XBMC-Discontinues-Xbox-Support?art_pos=1 |title=XBMC Discontinues Xbox Support |date=2010-05-28 |author=Timothy |work=Slashdot}}</ref><ref name="XBMC Drops Support for the Original Xbox">{{cite web|url=http://lifehacker.com/5550225/xbmc-drops-support-for-the-original-xbox |title=XBMC Drops Support for the Original Xbox |date=2010-05-28 |author=Adam Pash |work=Lifehacker}}</ref><ref name="XBMC4Xbox">{{cite web|url=http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/31/xmbc-bids-farewell-to-its-progenitor-the-original-xbox/ |title=XBMC bids farewell to its progenitor: the original Xbox |date=2010-05-31 |author=Sean Hollister |work=Engadget}}</ref> The Xbox version of XBMC also had the ability to launch console games, and [[homebrew (video games)|homebrew]] applications such as [[Console emulator|emulators]]. Since the XBMC for Xbox version was never distributed, endorsed, or supported by [[Microsoft]], it meant that XBMC for Xbox always required a [[modchip]] or [[softmod|softmod exploit]] to be able to run on the Xbox game-console.<ref name="XboxMediaCenter Review"/><ref name="Modding The Xbox Into The Ultimate Multimedia Center"/><ref name="Review of XBMC in Hardcore Gamer Magazine"/><ref name="FLOSS Media Center State of the Art"/>
Currently the existing supported languages are: Acadian French, Afrikaans, Albanian, American English, Amharic, Argentinian Spanish, Armenian, Asturian, Australian English, Azerbaijani, Basque, Belarusian, Bosnian, Brazilian Portuguese, Bulgarian, Burmese, Catalan, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dari, Dutch, English, Esperanto, Estonian, European Portuguese, Faroese, Finnish, Galician, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hungarian, Icelandic, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Kannada, Korean, Latvian, Lithuanian, Macedonian, Malayam, Malay, Maltese, Maori, Metropolitan French, Mexican Spanish, Mongolian, New Zealand English, Norwegian, Ossetian, Peninsular Arabic, Peninsular Spanish, Persian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Serbian (Cyrillic), Serbian (Latin), Silesian, Sinhala, Slovak, Slovenian, Swedish, Tajik, Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Uzbek, Vietnamese and Welsh.
===User interface screenshots from XBMC===
== Hardware requirements ==
All XBMC user interface to date are specifically designed for being controlled from far away with a remote control as the only input device.
:{{Main|Supported hardware}}
<gallery>
{{#lst:Supported hardware|intro}}
Image:xbmc_911.png|Home Screen of the "Confluence" skin.
Image:Screenshot000.png|Home screen of the "PM3.HD" skin.
XBMC has greater basic hardware requirements than traditional 2D style software applications: it needs a [[3D computer graphics|3D]] capable [[GPU|GPU graphics hardware controller]] for all rendering. Powerful 3D GPU chips are common today in most modern computers, and even some [[set-top box]]es and XBMC is designed to otherwise be resource efficient. It runs well on what (by [[Intel Atom]] standards) are relatively underpowered [[OpenGL|OpenGL 1.3]] (with [[GLSL]] support), [[OpenGL ES|OpenGL ES 2.0]] or [[Direct3D|Direct3D (DirectX) 9.0]] capable systems that are [[IA-32]]/[[x86]], [[x86-64]], [[ARM architecture|ARM]], or [[PowerPC]] ([[PowerPC G4|G4]] or later) [[CPU]] based.<ref name="XBMC is the best media center application. Period."/>
{{See|Releases}}
Full featured versions of Kodi are available on a number of operating system platforms. Team Kodi strives to keep a consistent feature set and include the full Kodi experience for all versions, even those on low-powered devices.
When software decoding of a [[Full HD]] [[1080p]] [[high-definition video]] is performed by the system [[CPU]], a [[multi-core processor|dual-core]] 2 [[GHz]] or better CPU is required in order to allow for perfectly smooth playback without dropping [[Film frame|frames]] or giving playback a jerky appearance. XBMC can however offload most of the video decoding process onto [[GPU|GPU graphics hardware controller]] that supports one of the following types of hardware-accelerated [[video decoding]]:<ref name="XBMC Architecture Overview by Telematics Freedom Foundation">{{cite web|url=http://www.telematicsfreedom.org/en/2009/10/28/xbmc-architecture-summary |title=XBMC Architecture Overview by Telematics Freedom Foundation |date=2009-10-28 |work=Telematics Freedom Foundation}}</ref> Intel's [[VAAPI]], Nvidia's [[VDPAU]], AMD's [[XvBA]], Microsoft's [[DXVA]], Apple's VDADecoder/VideoToolBox, [[OpenMAX]], and [[Broadcom#Products|Broadcom Crystal HD Enhanced Media Accelerator]].<ref name="phoronix1">{{cite web|url=http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=MTAyODU |title=XBMC Project Implements AMD XvBA Interface |publisher=Phoronix.com |date=2011-12-14 |accessdate=2012-01-24}}</ref> By taking advantage of such hardware-accelerated video decoding, XBMC can run well on most inexpensive, low-power systems which contain a modern GPU. However, [[Intel Core]] CPUs with integrated-GPU (or [[Accelerated processing unit|APU]]s) are [http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?t=69306 not properly supported yet].
=== Windows ===
:{{Main|Windows}}
''Kodi for Windows'' runs natively on Windows Vista and higher. It is a 32-bit application but runs on 64-bit Windows and hardware as well, however it is not yet optimized for that architecture so there is no performance gain when running on 64-bit Windows. 1080p playback can be achieved on Windows based computers either via software decoding on the CPU if it's powerful enough, or by hardware accelerated video decoding.
===Language support===
=== Android ===
XBMC includes full support for many different languages by default. XBMC's structure is such that if the language is not available, or not up-to-date, it can be made by editing simple [[String (computer science)|strings]] in an [[XML]]-file, which can then be submitted to XBMC's [[project management]] and [[bug tracking system]] tool for use by others. Currently the existing supported languages are [[Afrikaans]], [[Basque language|Basque]], [[Brazilian Portuguese]], [[Bulgarian language|Bulgarian]], [[Catalan language|Catalan]], [[Simplified Chinese]], [[Traditional Chinese]], [[Croatian language|Croatian]], [[Czech language|Czech]], [[Danish language|Danish]], [[Dutch language|Dutch]], English, [[American English]], [[Esperanto]], [[Finnish language|Finnish]], French, German, [[Greek language|Greek]], [[Hebrew]], [[Hungarian language|Hungarian]], [[Icelandic language|Icelandic]], [[Indonesian language|Indonesian]], Italian, Japanese, [[Korean language|Korean]], [[Maltese language|Maltese]], [[Norwegian language|Norwegian]], [[Polish language|Polish]], [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]], [[Romanian language|Romanian]], Russian, [[Serbian language|Serbian]], [[Slovak language|Slovak]], [[Slovene language|Slovenian]], [[Spanish language|Spanish]], [[Mexican Spanish]], [[Swedish language|Swedish]], [[Thai language|Thai]], [[Turkish language|Turkish]] and [[Ukrainian language|Ukrainian]].<ref name="Modding The Xbox Into The Ultimate Multimedia Center"/><ref>[http://trac.xbmc.org/browser/trunk/language ]{{dead link|date=October 2011}}</ref><ref>https://github.com/xbmc/xbmc/tree/master/language language at master from xbmc / language – GitHub</ref>
:{{Main|Android}}
''Kodi for Android'' is a full port of the complete Kodi application to Google's Android operating-system, was first announced and its source code released publicly on 13 June 2012. This is a full port of Kodi's C++ and C source code with all its dependencies to Android with a build-system that was designed to handle multiple processor architectures, like ARM, MIPS, and x86 with the Android NDK (Native Development Kit for Android) without using a single line of Java, and the Kodi.APK is running natively under Android as a Native Activity application.
==Features==
=== iOS ===
===XBMC's Addons Manager and addons===
:{{Main|iOS}}
XBMC features several open [[Application programming interface|APIs]] to enable [[third-party developer]]s to create capabilities which extend XBMC with a multitude of [[Plug-in (computing)|addons]], such as audio and video streaming plugins for online sources, widget scripts, skins/themes, visualizations, screensavers, web scrapers, weather forecasts, web interfaces, and more. XBMC developers encourages users to make and submit their own addons to add additional media content and [[value-added service]]s accessible from within XBMC.
''Kodi for iOS'', which is a full port of Kodi to Apple's [[iOS]] operating-system, was first announced and released publicly on 20 January 2011. It supports both 720p and 1080p hardware accelerated video decoding of H.264 videos, and is compatible several Apple's [[IOS|iDevice]]s that uses Apple A4 or higher SoC processors with a jailbroken iOS operating-system.
XBMC's latest point-release, (codename: "''Dharma''"), features a new Addons Framework architecture and Addons Manager GUI client that connects to a [[decentralized]] [[digital distribution]] service [[Platform (computing)|platform]] that serves add-on apps and [[Plug-in (computing)|plug-ins]] which among other things provide online content to XBMC, the "''Addons Manager''" (or "''Addons Browser''") inside XBMC allows users to browse and download new addons directly from XBMC's GUI.
=== Mac ===
:{{Main|Mac OS X}}
''Kodi for Mac'' runs natively on [[Mac OS X]] with Intel processors with hardware video decoding for H.264.
Many of these online content sources are in [[over-the-top content]] high definition services and use video streaming sites, such as [[Adobe Flash]] based content. XBMC has extensibility and integration with online sources for both free and premium streaming content, and offers content from everything from commercial video, to free educational programming, and media from individuals and small businesses.
=== Linux ===
:{{Main|Linux}}
''Kodi for Linux'' is primarily developed for Ubuntu Linux. Third-party packages for most other Linux distributions are however available, and it is also possible to compile Kodi from scratch for any Linux distribution as long as the pre-required dependency libraries are installed first.
====Plugins and scripts (apps/gadgets/widgets)====
== Third-party forks and derivative work of Kodi ==
XBMC features a [[Python (programming language)|Python Scripts Engine]] for addon extensions, WindowXML [[application framework]] (a [[XML]]-based [[widget toolkit]] for creating a GUI for apps / [[widget (computing)|widgets]]) in a similar fashion to Apple Mac OS X [[Dashboard (Mac OS)|Dashboard Widgets]] and [[Microsoft Gadgets]] in [[Windows Sidebar]]. Python [[widget (computing)|widget]] scripts allow normal users to add new functionality to XBMC themselves, using [[Python (programming language)|Python]] [[scripting language]]. Current [[plugins|plugin]] scripts include functions like [[Internet television|Internet-TV]] and [[trailer (film)|movie-trailer]] browsers, [[weather forecasting|weather forecast]] and cinemaguides, [[Over-the-top content]] video streaming services like YouTube, [[BBC iPlayer]], [[Hulu]], [[Netflix]], [[Veoh]], [[MLB.tv]], Internet-radio-station browsers (example [[Pandora Radio]], [[Xm radio]], [[Sirius Satellite Radio]]), online picture sharing sites like [[Flickr]], [[Electronic program guide|TV-guides (EPG)]], e-mail clients, [[instant messaging]], train-timetables, [[home automation]] scripts to [[Front-end and back-end|front-end]] control [[Personal video recorder|PVR]] software and hardware (like: MediaPortal, MythTV, [[TiVo]], [[ReplayTV]], [[Dreambox]]/[[DBox2]]), [[Peer-to-peer|P2P]] file-sharing downloaders ([[BitTorrent (protocol)|BitTorrent]]), [[IRC]], also [[casual games]] (sometimes also referred to as [[Minigame|mini-games]] or [[party game|party-games]]) such as [[Tetris]], [[Snake (video game)|Snake]], [[Space Invaders]], [[Sudoku]], and much more.<ref name="XBMC is the best media center application. Period."/><ref name="XBMC 9.04 delivers impressive media center experience"/><ref name="XBMC-Addons on Google Code"/><ref name="XBMC Zone"/><ref name="Passion XBMC"/>
:{{Main|Forks}}
====Scrapers (web scraping for metadata)====
== History ==
XBMC has the built-in optional function to automatically download [[metadata]] information, [[cover art]] and other related media artwork online through its [[web scraping|web scrapers]] that looks for media in the user's audio / video folders and their sub-directories. These "scrapers" are this way used as [[Importer (computing)|importers]] to obtain detailed information from various Internet resources about movies and television shows. It can get synopses, reviews, movie posters, titles, genre classification, and other similar data. XBMC GUI then provide a rich display for audio and video files that the scrapers has identified.
:{{Main|History of Kodi}}
Scrapers use sites like [[themoviedb.org]]<ref>http://simonpena.com/blog/mswl/butaca-imdb-and-tmdb/ Butaca IMDb, and TMDb</ref> or [[imdb.com]] to obtain [[thumbnails]] and information on movies, thetvdb.com for TV show posters and episode plots, [[CDDB]] (via [[freedb]] and [[Discogs]], etc.) for audio CD track listings, and [[Allmusic|AMG]] for album [[thumbnails]].<ref name="XBMC Architecture Overview by Telematics Freedom Foundation"/>
== Kodi Foundation ==
:{{Main|Kodi Foundation}}
{{#lst:Kodi Foundation|intro}}
====Skins (themes)====
== Awards ==
Same as the majority of most applications that originated from a '[[homebrew (video games)|homebrew]]' scene, is [[skin (computing)|skin]]-ability in the tradition of modifications and customization very popular among XBMC users. "Confluence" and "Project Mayhem" are the two official [[skin (computing)|skin]]s; "Confluence" is the default since version 9.11, and "Project Mayhem" was the previous default which is now in its third version, commonly known as "PM3.HD" (''PM III High-Definition'').<ref name="XBMC 9.11 makes your open source home theater look shinier"/>
Users can also create their own skin (or simply modify an existing skin) and share it with others via public websites that are used for XBMC skins trading and development.<ref name="XBMC is the best media center application. Period."/><ref name="Passion XBMC"/><ref name="XBMC Skinng Project">{{cite web|url=http://sourceforge.net/projects/xboxmediacenter |title=XBMC Skinng Project |work=Sourceforge.net |accessdate=2010-02-13}}</ref><ref name="XBMC Black Market">{{cite web|url=http://blackmarket.ictcsc.net |title=XBMC Black Market |work=Blackmarket.ictcsc.net |accessdate=2010-02-13}}</ref><ref name="teamrazorfish.co.uk">http://www.teamrazorfish.co.uk MediaStream</ref
Kodi is a non-profit and free software community driven open-source software project that is developed only by volunteers in their spare time without any monetary gain. The team of developers leading the development of Kodi, ''“[[Archive:Team Kodi|Team Kodi]]”'', encourage anyone and everyone to submit their own source code patches for new features and functions, improve existing ones, or fix bugs to the Kodi project.
|style="white-space: nowrap;"| [[Garden of Eden|Eden]]
|
* iOS port for Apple TV 2G, iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad
* Dirty Regions rendering for texture support to skinning engine<ref>{{cite web|author=Working with dirty regions 19 June 2011 theuni |url=http://xbmc.org/theuni/2011/06/19/working-with-dirty-regions/ |title=Working with dirty regions |publisher=Xbmc.org |date=19 June 2011 |accessdate=20 November 2011}}</ref>
* Efficiency improvements to reduce high cpu/gpu usage
* Default skin changed to a horizontal home layout
* New RenderCapture type to the Python script framework
* Combined Files and Library mode for videos
* Playback of ISO image files for Blu-ray Disc support
* Slingbox playback over the network support
* Peripheral manager controller under settings
* [[Consumer Electronics Control|Consumer Electronics Control (CEC)]] support for HDMI
* Improved Apple VDADecoder Video Acceleration support
* Improved Touch / Gesture API and Mouse support
* Improved ARM processor architecture support
* Improved OpenMAX Video Decoding Acceleration support
* Improved OpenGL ES and EGL support
* Improved JSON-RPC API compliant with JSON-RPC 2.0 specs
* Improved VDPAU performance
* VDPAU HQ Upscaling support (require NVIDIA's capable GPU)
* H.264 accelerated video decoding via Apple's VideoToolBox API
* JPEG accelerated video decoding via Apple's VideoToolBox API
* Added basic [[Dynamic range compression|DRC (Dynamic Range Compression)]] volume limiter
* AirPlay/AirTunes target support
* Extended Addons API adding extension points for Service Addons
* Ability for all addons to provide their own web interface
* Removed native weather forecast scraper, use weather addons instead
* Added support for multiple simultaneous HID device mappings
* MIPS processor architecture support ([[Sigma Designs]] reference)<ref name="github2"/>
* DirectFB via Mesa and DRM for OpenGL ES 2.0 support<ref name="github1"/>
* BSD port FreeBSD, PC-BSD and other similar BSD platforms
* Unified PVR front-end with seamless DVR and EPG client GUI
* Unified PVR back-end framework and API for multiple PVR servers
* New unified "AudioEngine" audio abstraction framework and API
* Combined Files and Library mode for music
* Combined Files and Library mode for photos
* Extend Addons API to support (closed source) binary addons
* Add [[WebSocket]] support for JSON-RPC and to Addons API<ref>https://github.com/xbmc/xbmc/pull/511 add websocket support for JSON-RPC</ref>
* Optimize the GUI rendering engine of XBMC for embedded devices
* Add Bluetooth settings to the GUI<ref>https://github.com/xbmc/xbmc/pull/369 Add Bluetooth settings GUI</ref>
* Add WiFi and network configuration settings to the GUI<ref>https://github.com/xbmc/xbmc/pull/303 Wifi improvements</ref><ref>https://github.com/xbmc/xbmc/pull/131 Network enhancements</ref>
* Add [[MySQL]] database settings to the GUI<ref>https://github.com/xbmc/xbmc/pull/451 Mysql gui</ref>
* [[Direct Show]] based video player for Windows operating systems<ref name="github3"/>
* Blu-ray HDMV menu support (but not [[BD-J]] / [[BD-Live#BD-Live|BD-Live]] menus)<ref>https://github.com/xbmc/xbmc/pull/464 Hdmv menus support for bluray</ref>
* Native [[XvBA]] accelerated video decoding for AMD/ATI GPUs<ref name="phoronix1"/>
* Upgrade FFmpeg (libavcodec and libavformat) libraries
* Remove the old HTTP API in favour of the new JSON-RPC API
| ?
|}<ref>{{cite web|url=http://trac.xbmc.org/roadmap |title=XBMC Roadmap |publisher=Trac.xbmc.org |date=25 September 2010 |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://trac.xbmc.org/timeline |title=XBMC Trac Timeline |publisher=Trac.xbmc.org |date=19 May 2004 |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref><ref>http://xbmc.org XBMC Blog</ref>
==Legality==
{{Globalize|section|date=September 2010}}
The "''XBMC Foundation''", the non-profit organization behind the XBMC project, is legally represented by the [[Software Freedom Law Center|SFLC (Software Freedom Law Center)]], which assists XBMC project and its developers legal matters such as [[copyright]], trademark, and branding questions, as well as economic issues such as handling [[donation]]s and [[Sponsor (commercial)|sponsors]] that help the project with [[expense]]s for [[dedicated hosting service]], and activities such as going to [[trade fair]]s and [[computer expo]]s to [[tech demo]] XBMC, meeting with potential new developers, gain publicity to attract additional users, and more.<ref>{{cite web|author=XBMC Gains Representation 27 April 2010 theuni |url=http://xbmc.org/theuni/2010/04/27/xbmc-gains-representation/ |title=XBMC Gains Representation |publisher=Xbmc.org |date=27 April 2010 |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://xbmc.org/theuni/2010/02/17/welcome-sponsor-9x9-networks/ |title=Welcome Sponsor: 9x9 Networks |publisher=Xbmc.org |date=17 February 2010 |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://xbmc.org/team-xbmc/2009/07/04/results-of-xbmc-developers-conference/ |title=Results of XBMC Developers Conference |publisher=Xbmc.org |date=4 July 2009 |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Team XBMC |url=http://xbmc.org/team-xbmc/2008/05/30/announcing-xbmc-dev-con-2008-hosted-by-boxee/ |title=Announcing XBMC DEV CON 2008 hosted by boxee |publisher=Xbmc.org |date=30 May 2008 |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref>
===Copyright===
XBMC's [[source code]] for all its supported platforms is made publicly available by Team XBMC under the [[open source]] [[GNU General Public License Version 2]] [[license]]. The group currently maintains a [[Git (software)|Git]] [https://github.com/xbmc/xbmc repository] for this source code.
Back when Team XBMC supported it, [[executable]] versions of XBMC for Xbox could not be legally distributed. This is because XBMC for Xbox required Microsoft's [[Xbox Development Kit]] in order to be compiled. The only publicly available [[executable]] versions of XBMC for Xbox were compiled and distributed by [[Third-party developer|third parties]]. This limitation was given as one of the reasons the group eventually dropped Xbox support from XBMC.<ref name="Farewell XBOX" /> XBMC binaries for all other platforms that XBMC supports (Linux, Mac OS X, Windows, and iOS) are legal to distribute by the XBMC project.<ref name="XboxMediaCenter Review"/><ref name="Modding The Xbox Into The Ultimate Multimedia Center"/><ref name="Review of XBMC in Hardcore Gamer Magazine"/><ref name="FLOSS Media Center State of the Art"/><ref name="XBMC Architecture Overview by Telematics Freedom Foundation"/>
===Other===
XBMC can also optionally be compiled with [[libdvdcss]] to support playing back [[DVD-Video]] movies encrypted using the [[Content Scramble System|CSS (Content Scramble System)]] encryption. Since it is not a member of [[DVD Forum]], the XBMC project is not contractually obliged to insert [[user operation prohibition]] such as disallowing fast-forward or skipping during trailers and ads in [[DVD-Video]]s. However, without membership in the DVD Forum, the project also cannot make XBMC play [[DVD-Video]]'s [[encryption|encrypted]] with [[Content Scrambling System|CSS (Content Scramble System)]] except by using the [[libdvdcss]] library, which code was created by reverse-engineering. The legal status of libdvdcss is thus questionable in several nations, the distribution of [[executable]] versions of XBMC containing which was built with this library is likely to run afoul of the [[Digital Millennium Copyright Act|DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act)]] in the U.S. and the [[EU Copyright Directive]] in [[European Union]] member countries which have incorporated it into national law. For example, many [[Linux distribution]]s do not contain libdvdcss (for example [[Debian]], [[Fedora (operating system)|Fedora]], [[SUSE Linux]], and [[Ubuntu (operating system)|Ubuntu]]) due to fears of running afoul of DMCA-style laws, however they still often provide the tools to let the users install it themselves.<ref name="XBMC 9.04 delivers impressive media center experience"/><ref name="XBMC Architecture Overview by Telematics Freedom Foundation"/>
==See also==
Kodi's source code for all its supported platforms is made publicly available by [[Archive:Team Kodi|Team Kodi]] under the open source GNU General Public License, Version 2 (or later) license. The group maintains a [https://github.com/xbmc/xbmc public Git repository] on GitHub for this source code.
*[[XBMC4XBox]], a [[third-party developer]] [[Brand extension|spin-off]] project of XBMC for Xbox, with still active development and support of the Xbox.
*[[Home theater PC|HTPC (Home Theater PC)]]
*[[Smart TV]]
*[[Interactive television]]
*[[Enhanced TV]]
*[[Home cinema]]
*[[Hotel television systems]]
*[[Media multitasking]]
*[[Over-the-top content]]
*[[List of video players (software)|List of other software video players]]
*[[Comparison of video player software]]
*[[Comparison of PVR software packages]]
*[[List of open source codecs]]
*[[List of codecs|List of multimedia (audio/video) codecs]]
*[[Comparison of container formats]]
==References==
== References ==
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}
<references>
<ref name="weblate_lang_list">[https://kodi.weblate.cloud/languages/ Languages.] ''Kodi Weblate.'' Accessed on August 18, 2022.</ref>
<ref name="licenses-dir_readme">"[https://github.com/xbmc/xbmc/blob/master/LICENSES/README.md Kodi's licensing rules]." ''[https://github.com/xbmc/xbmc xbmc/xbmc] on GitHub.'' Accessed on August 18, 2022.</ref>
<ref name="openhub">[https://www.openhub.net/p/kodi "The Kodi Open Source Project."] ''[https://www.openhub.net/ Black Duck Open Hub], part of Synopsys.'' Accessed on August 18, 2022.</ref>
<ref name="lifehacker">Whitson, Gordon. 2012. [https://lifehacker.com/create-a-kickass-seamless-play-everything-media-cente-5900626 “Create a Kickass, Seamless, Play-Everything Media Center: The Complete Guide.”] ''Lifehacker Australia.'' April 10, 2012.</ref>
<ref name="fredphoesh">[https://forum.kodi.tv/member.php?action=profile&uid=66118 Profile of fredphoesh.] ''Kodi Community Forum.'' May 21, 2012.</ref>
</references>
==External links==
== Further reading ==
{{Commons category|XBMC Media Center}}
* '''[https://kodi.tv/ Official Website]'''
* [http://xbmc.org XBMC Official Website]
* [[wikipedia:Kodi (software)|'''Kodi''']] on English Wikipedia
* [irc://irc.freenode.net/xbmc XBMC Official IRC Chat Room] (on [[freenode]]'s [[Internet Relay Chat|IRC]] network) (use an [[IRC client]] to join the '''#xbmc''' [[IRC channel|channel]])
Kodi® (formerly known as XBMC or Xbox Media Center) is an award-winning, free and open source media player/entertainment hub application that runs on an exhaustive list of computers, mobile devices and HTPCs (Home theater PCs) which natively use no less than seven (7) different operating systems. It follows a 10-foot user interface design specification which targets usage as a media player in a living room setting—or any other space where groups of people consume media without having someone seated near the player controls—using a handheld remote control as the primary input device. Its graphical user interface allows the user to easily browse and view videos, photos, podcasts, and music from local file storage, optical discs, the local network or the internet using only a few buttons. The Kodi project is managed by the non-profit Kodi Foundation and developed by volunteers located around the world. As of Summer 2022, more than 1,600 software developers have contributed to Kodi (in the form of 111,800+ individual changes to the codebase, which opened in 2003),[3] with roughly 60 core developers whose regular participation helps to steer it. Now, thanks to the generosity and dedication of over 200 volunteer translators, Kodi is available in 72 languages and useful no matter which continent you're on.
Kodi® (then called "Xbox Media Center") was originally created as a media center application for the first-generation Xbox game console (no longer supported) but is now officially available as a native application for Android, BSD, Linux, macOS, iOS/tvOS, and Windows operating systems, running on most common processor architectures.
Kodi can be used to play almost all popular audio and video formats around. It was designed for network playback, so you can stream your multimedia from anywhere in the house or directly from the internet using practically any protocol available. Use your media as-is: Kodi can play CDs and DVDs directly from the disk or image file, almost all popular archive formats from your hard drive. Kodi will scan all of your media and create a personalized library complete with boxcovers, descriptions, and fanart. There are playlist and slideshow functions, a weather forecast feature and many audio visualizations. Once installed, your computer will become a fully functional multimedia jukebox.
An Add-on is another piece of software that can be added to a program to further expand and enhance the features of that program. Imagine a smart phone and all the additional Apps that can be installed to enhance its functionality. Kodi has the same ability and these apps are referred to as Add-ons. Kodi has a growing list of community driven add-ons which can be installed from a common official repository, while still enabling third-party developers to also host their own unofficial repositories for add-ons that any user can choose to add themselves.
For additional information about specific add-ons, see the All add-ons category.
Video demos
Check out this excellent introduction video (1m 36s) by Lifehacker:[4]
A Kodi beginners guide (13m 27s) by forum user fredphoesh:[5]
Kodi includes full support for many different languages by default. Kodi's structure is such that if the language is not available, or not up-to-date, it can be created by signing up at the Kodi Translations Project.
Currently the existing supported languages are: Acadian French, Afrikaans, Albanian, American English, Amharic, Argentinian Spanish, Armenian, Asturian, Australian English, Azerbaijani, Basque, Belarusian, Bosnian, Brazilian Portuguese, Bulgarian, Burmese, Catalan, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dari, Dutch, English, Esperanto, Estonian, European Portuguese, Faroese, Finnish, Galician, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hungarian, Icelandic, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Kannada, Korean, Latvian, Lithuanian, Macedonian, Malayam, Malay, Maltese, Maori, Metropolitan French, Mexican Spanish, Mongolian, New Zealand English, Norwegian, Ossetian, Peninsular Arabic, Peninsular Spanish, Persian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Serbian (Cyrillic), Serbian (Latin), Silesian, Sinhala, Slovak, Slovenian, Swedish, Tajik, Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Uzbek, Vietnamese and Welsh.
Kodi is officially supported on a number of operating systems and hardware devices that are designed to be connected directly to a TV. Kodi runs well on what are relatively "underpowered" systems, thanks to hardware video decoding being common on nearly all supported platforms. These requirements don't include what might be required for some "advanced" features, such as PVR, which might require additional hardware.
Full featured versions of Kodi are available on a number of operating system platforms. Team Kodi strives to keep a consistent feature set and include the full Kodi experience for all versions, even those on low-powered devices.
Kodi for Windows runs natively on Windows Vista and higher. It is a 32-bit application but runs on 64-bit Windows and hardware as well, however it is not yet optimized for that architecture so there is no performance gain when running on 64-bit Windows. 1080p playback can be achieved on Windows based computers either via software decoding on the CPU if it's powerful enough, or by hardware accelerated video decoding.
Kodi for Android is a full port of the complete Kodi application to Google's Android operating-system, was first announced and its source code released publicly on 13 June 2012. This is a full port of Kodi's C++ and C source code with all its dependencies to Android with a build-system that was designed to handle multiple processor architectures, like ARM, MIPS, and x86 with the Android NDK (Native Development Kit for Android) without using a single line of Java, and the Kodi.APK is running natively under Android as a Native Activity application.
Kodi for iOS, which is a full port of Kodi to Apple's iOS operating-system, was first announced and released publicly on 20 January 2011. It supports both 720p and 1080p hardware accelerated video decoding of H.264 videos, and is compatible several Apple's iDevices that uses Apple A4 or higher SoC processors with a jailbroken iOS operating-system.
Kodi for Linux is primarily developed for Ubuntu Linux. Third-party packages for most other Linux distributions are however available, and it is also possible to compile Kodi from scratch for any Linux distribution as long as the pre-required dependency libraries are installed first.
↑Informer Technologies, Inc. 2013. “XBMC: Awards.”Mac Informer. August 1, 2013.
↑Fernández, José. 2013. (Senior Editor, Informer Technologies, Inc.) “Editorial review: XBMC for Mac.”Mac Informer. August 1, 2013. Archived by the Wayback Machine from the original on April 9, 2014. ‘In short, XBMC is still my favorite HTPC app. It looks great, works awesome and it has never caused a problem for me.’
Kodi is a non-profit and free software community driven open-source software project that is developed only by volunteers in their spare time without any monetary gain. The team of developers leading the development of Kodi, “Team Kodi”, encourage anyone and everyone to submit their own source code patches for new features and functions, improve existing ones, or fix bugs to the Kodi project.
Kodi's source code for all its supported platforms is made publicly available by Team Kodi under the open source GNU General Public License, Version 2 (or later) license. The group maintains a public Git repository on GitHub for this source code.
References
↑Languages.Kodi Weblate. Accessed on August 18, 2022.