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Build your own Digital Home
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FEATURE

Build your own Digital Home

by James Morris  on Sep 20, 2006
Tags: Build | your | own | Digital | Home
With the Intel Viiv platform taking Microsoft’s Media Centre Edition to a new level, the first thing you’re likely to want from your digital home is more flexible access to audiovisual content. This will revolve around a home media server. Viiv is currently only available in complete systems, but you can get Windows XP MCE 2005 on its own along with the requisite remote control from a number of resellers, provided you are purchasing approved hardware with it. Virtually any PC would do as the basis, although you’ll have to consider looks and noise if it’s destined for your lounge. Aside from using the DVD drive to play videos and rip your music into a library, you’ll probably want to record TV as well. This will require a PVR-capable TV tuner, of which there are now numerous options, although you’ll need to ensure driver compatibility if you plan to use MCE (check the manufacturer’s website).

While MCE does offer about the best remote armchair experience (or ‘10 foot interface’, as Microsoft likes to call it), it’s by no means the only option if you don’t fancy filling Microsoft’s coffers further still. There are numerous fully featured TV tuners out there, although most come with software that does require the full Windows interface for many functions. A remote able to control simple features such as immediate recording and playback will often be included, but generally you’ll need to resort to a mouse and keyboard to schedule recordings. Keep in mind that MCE doesn’t come with a built-in Electronic Program Guide (EPG), however you can still get access to this all-important feature by subscribing to IceTV.

There are a few exceptions. Leadtek’s WinFast DTV1000 T includes software that’s almost entirely operable with the supplied remote. But most other tuners will require extra software if you want to operate them from the sofa. One option is SnapStream’s Beyond TV, which has a huge range of capabilities, particularly for network media streaming and downloading recordings to portable devices. However, its built-in EPG is US and Canada only.

Alternatively, you could try CyberLink’s PowerCinema 4: it offers one of the best interfaces around, and a trial version is available too, so you can make sure that it works with your PVR card and that you like the interface.
click to view full size image
You can add motion detection to your webcam by buying software such as Active WebCam.
Copyright © 2009 Dennis Publishing
This article appeared in the October, 2006 issue of PC Authority.
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