Re. http://mail-index.netbsd.org/netbsd-help/2002/07/22/0000.html

(Since you forgot to include me in the To: line, I didn't directly see
your message...until returning to the archive site.  Sorry for the delay
in responding.)

I'll probably find time to summarize how to get DVD's playing on NetBS (as
a bonus, it should apply fairly directly to other BSD's, or even to
GNU/LINUX).

To answer your more direct questions:

 * I don't think that MMX is strictly required.  mplayer (I think) is able
   to detect and use these (and corresponding Athlon) features if you have
   them, though.

 * A 233MMX Pentium (Pentium II?) sounds like it is probably enough, from
   what others said.  I'm using an 800MHz Athlon, though.  All I can
   tell you is that it works for me.  (^&

   (I also have a 233MHz Pentium II, but it's a bit of a pain to
   get inside of it, so I don't plan on testing it for playback
   performance of DVD's.)

   So, I guess the main answer you were looking for is "it probably does
   stand a chance, but you'll have to try it to find out."

 * Under MS-WINDOWS, you may be able to take advantage of some special
   hardware to help decoding DVD's, so you might be able to play them
   on your older machine, too.


  ``I probably don't know what I'm talking about.'' --rauch@math.rice.edu