How to build your own HTPC

mertesnmertesn I am Bobby MillerYukon, OK Icrontian
edited November 2011 in Science & Tech

Comments

  • edited November 2011
    Hey Nick,

    Thanks for the great article.But do you know the XBMC's new edition ? They're calling OpenELEC and really faster than XBMC.Can you write an article about OpenELEC ?
  • SnarkasmSnarkasm Madison, WI Icrontian
    edited November 2011
    I hadn't even heard of that. I'd be interested in trying it, except that it appears there's no way to dual-boot it with an existing install. That'd mean wiping out my current work, which I haven't decided is worth it yet. I also kind of like having a functioning Windows PC that I can take anywhere (my HTPC is tiny).

    Now you've given me something to think about, Yousef. Thanks.
  • mertesnmertesn I am Bobby Miller Yukon, OK Icrontian
    edited November 2011
    Haven't heard about OpenELEC. I'll have to look into it.
  • KwitkoKwitko Sheriff of Banning (Retired) By the thing near the stuff Icrontian
    edited November 2011
    To clarify, OpenELEC != XBMC. OpenELEC is an embedded OS designed to run XBMC specifically for embedded platforms, which is awesome. It allows most any hardware to run like an appliance.

    I just finished setting up XBMC, but I think I'm going to try out OpenELEC. My thanks too, Yousef, for bringing it to our attention.
  • KwitkoKwitko Sheriff of Banning (Retired) By the thing near the stuff Icrontian
    edited November 2011
    Snarkasm wrote:
    it appears there's no way to dual-boot it with an existing install.

    Snark, did you see this on their site? http://www.openelec.tv/find-help/documentation/howtos/system/item/67-multiboot-with-openelec
  • SnarkasmSnarkasm Madison, WI Icrontian
    edited November 2011
    I had not found that, nice catch. Kind of lulzy how much extra work it is, but I've got free time this week, I might give it a shot.

    Win 7 boots ridicufast as it is, but hey, I guess it could always be faster.
  • boasistboasist Troy
    edited November 2011
    I don't see any mention of control though.

    I used the HP USB IR box before I broke some apples off and have been using those since.

    You'll certainly want to think about how you're going to interface with your HTPC from the couch. There are a bunch of options though.

    Or are you already waiting to publish that article and I'm just not patient enough?
  • KwitkoKwitko Sheriff of Banning (Retired) By the thing near the stuff Icrontian
    edited November 2011
    I'm using an MS MCE keyboard/remote combo. Works perfectly using EventGhost. My next challenge is getting my old Logitech Harmony 628 working with EventGhost.
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    edited November 2011
    Or any smartphone, including miserable-ass blackberries.
  • KwitkoKwitko Sheriff of Banning (Retired) By the thing near the stuff Icrontian
    edited November 2011
    That's true. Forgot about the Official XBMC Appâ„¢
  • boasistboasist Troy
    edited November 2011
    Yeah I had the MS media center combo keyboard for a little bit. The one with the nub mouse up in the right corner.

    That was nice, because if I put a full on PC on my TV, I want to use it as such. Not just a media frontend. Plus, if you're using it to watch TV via cablecard or what not. You can't use those smartphone apps with Media Center. XBMC and Boxee, yes you could there.

    With the IR kit I had, I was able to train my harmony remote on all of the media center functions and eventually use only that, and then I was king.
  • mertesnmertesn I am Bobby Miller Yukon, OK Icrontian
    edited November 2011
    There are also WiFi keyboard/mouse apps for Android and iOS. Those work pretty well.
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