Hi all:

 

I am in the process of building a media server. It is in a full tower case and once I have added the RAM it will be ready. My plan is that this is gonig to be attached to a router and shared throughout the house yet stored in a closed cupboard out of the way because it clearly won't look nice.

 

I then hope to use video senders to transmit the computer image to several screens including my b&o CRTs

What I would like to know is if there is a wireless remote/keyboard available that will operate the server if I am in the lounge and the computer is housed in the cupboard? I am quite happy to tinker to find a solution. If it is possibe to use a Beo5 to do this then I would be happy to find a cheap interim solution before buying a Beo5.

 

 

Thanks

 

Graham

B&O has recommended using TVIX 6500 to access and control the media from the server. The TVIX 6500 would be connected to the TV and controlled via the PUC using the Beo4 or Beo5.

Another solution would be connecting an Apple TV loaded with Boxee. This, too, would be on the B&O PUC list.

From the top o my head, i think it will be difficult to fin wireless mouse and keyboard that have a range long enough.

 

What media do you plan on using? A hacked Apple TV for each room connected to the central might be a good choice as you get around the wireless video and will not need a keyboard or mouse to boot.

 

Cheers

JK

Do you really need to distribute your computer's screen image?

If not, I think the best way to distribute media is the increasingly popular DLNA (it works with PS3, Xbox 360, PCs, Macs via a software, and almost every recent TV except of course B&O).

You just have to plug a NAS (like this one for instance, I'm very satisfied with it : http://www.wdc.com/en/products/Products.asp?DriveID=587 ) to your network, and every PC/Mac can see it as a shared drive, alowing to put media on it (the iTunes server is pre installed, so iTunes also see the music inside), and every DNLA-enabled system see it as a media source (I can play HD movies with it and my PS3).

The real advantage is that it works as a media server AND a network hard drive. B&O promise to put support for NAS on the next BS5 update, so it will also be of interest. And the good thing is that it's cheap and allows you to use the functionality of your existing peripherals (if you have something DLNA compatible) without having to set up a new peripheral, with its high power consumption and its own remote...

Hi gents:

 

Thanks for all your replies. The reason why I want to distribute the screen image is born out of boredom. About a year ago I decided that I wanted to build a server (to serve exactly what was unknown to me at the time). I had loads of bits of old computers lying around and as I worked in an IT department, there was a big full tower case going begging. I hit upon the idea of building a media server so that I could dump all my VHS tapes of the X files and some of my laserdiscs onto it. At the time everyone was telling me to just buy a network HD as this is easier. However, this did not fit the bill as:

 

1. There was no construction element in this project - I wanted to build something out of all the junk I have collected.
2. I plan to hack my Tivo box at a later date so rather than start messing about with my main PC, I would rather partition or put a Linux HD in the server and mess around with that.
3. I got a credit note from Maplin that I needed to spend so the whole thing is not costing me any extra money.

Apple TV is not really something I want to get involved with at the moment, due to the expense and because that will form part of my next project.

Would it therefore be theoretically posible to get a really long USB extension and wire the IR reciever to the various locations? I wanted to avoid this but saw a remote control with a keyboard that was about the size of a Nokia communicator on the Gadget Show once and this looked like quite a nice device.

 

Your thoughts....

 

Graham

 

Hi Graham,

I am currently putting one up myself.

If your pc has wifi, why not use ipod touch or iphone to control it ?

Would that help ?

 

Don't know if this is at all what you're after, but do you really need a remote keyboard / mouse / display for full OS control, or just a way to control some application that will take care of playing what you want to see/hear?

I have had for years a Linux PC running VDR that takes care of my television recording needs. For control, it is using LIRC with a home built IR receiver. Once I got this B&O disease, I modified it with a TSOP7000 receiver chip which can receive the 455 kHz B&O remote carrier, and now I can control the operation with a Beo4 with no problems. I even wrote a script to have a Beo4-controlled internet radio player in the same box (connected to A.TAPE2 on my BS6500).

LIRC is available for Windows, as well. I've never tried that, but I believe there are ways to hack together such a system that you can use it to control any Windows application. There is also a LIRC plugin for Winamp.

Hi:

 

I like both the Ipod touch and the Linux VDR option, possibly the latter slightly more as that involves some kind of construction (of the kind discussed above). If at all possible, I would probably like to get fully away from Windows and I do have some place a copy of Urbuntu. As this is a version of Linux I guess I could get it to run VDR. I really like the idea of getting the Beo4 to control stuff as I have several of these. How much electronics knowledge would I need to build a board to do that? Is there a kit of some kind?

 

I am planning at some point to get a Mac Mini as this seems to be a cheap way to get into the world of Mac. So perhaps the Ipod touch idea would be best. However, I am slightly reluctant as I have been with PCs for such a long time and know how to mess about with them. I know there is the argument that the messing about derives from necessity and this won't be the case with Macs as they just work. However, I don't think that rule really applies to me because I really like fiddlng around and getting things to work - there is a sense of achievement that comes from doing so. I find Mac OS to restrictive i this regard and a pain.

 

I don't really need full OS control but the ability to execute commands like [open program], [open file], [exit program]. Perhaps even [open browser], [navigate to predefined favorite].

 

Thanks

 

Graham

Graham1982:

I like both the Ipod touch and the Linux VDR option, possibly the latter slightly more as that involves some kind of construction (of the kind discussed above). If at all possible, I would probably like to get fully away from Windows and I do have some place a copy of Urbuntu. As this is a version of Linux I guess I could get it to run VDR. I really like the idea of getting the Beo4 to control stuff as I have several of these. How much electronics knowledge would I need to build a board to do that? Is there a kit of some kind?

You can actually buy these (they don't work with B&O remotes, though) and they are not expensive. The problem is that the simple receivers need a real serial port (an USB-RS232 converter will not work). See the "hardware" section at www.lirc.org - the receivers are from the easier end of the DIY electronics spectrum.

VDR is strictly for digital tv so you would need a supported DVB card / USB stick for that. Ubuntu should have ready-made VDR packages available, but I must warn that it may need endless tinkering to get these to work. I have an ancient DXR3 card (originally meant for hardware DVD support) doing the decoding work so I have good quality S-video out from the PC, completely independent of the normal display hardware, and the 1 GHz Celeron won't even break a sweat doing it. Most people using VDR nowadays have the output on the regular display though, with the CPU doing the MPEG decoding work in software.

Graham1982:

Hi:

 

I like both the Ipod touch and the Linux VDR option, possibly the latter slightly more as that involves some kind of construction (of the kind discussed above). If at all possible, I would probably like to get fully away from Windows and I do have some place a copy of Urbuntu. As this is a version of Linux I guess I could get it to run VDR. I really like the idea of getting the Beo4 to control stuff as I have several of these. How much electronics knowledge would I need to build a board to do that? Is there a kit of some kind?

Why don't you install mac osx aka leopard on your pc (now there's a challenge if you like to tinker ...we have some Dells running like that in my office) It's unix based and runs fairly solid. I have worked with pcs for over 10 years and when we switched last year I have to admit that it's been more than worth it.... Mr gates lost me as a customer..

For playing my itunes I actually have 2 options : 
1) the ipod touch which works just fine but asks a little more interaction and possibilities 
2) My prefered and simplest way is to connect the mac very simply with a special datalink wire run between the mac and the beomaster connected with tape2(courtasy of Ridax who is a member on this site). It's so simple a plug-in version and controls my daily use of playing itunes playlists like a dream. I use it with beolink 1000 or beo4 remotes. So simple and easy if you just want to listen to music. Feels like it's always been part of my B&O
It comes ready mad or as a kit to put together yourself. 

I use the ipod touch to select and play movies through plex or frontrow (Ridax told me he would like to look into having frontrow run with his system. ) Again works just fine but I still prefer handling a beo4.

I am planning at some point to get a Mac Mini as this seems to be a cheap way to get into the world of Mac. So perhaps the Ipod touch idea would be best. However, I am slightly reluctant as I have been with PCs for such a long time and know how to mess about with them. I know there is the argument that the messing about derives from necessity and this won't be the case with Macs as they just work. However, I don't think that rule really applies to me because I really like fiddlng around and getting things to work - there is a sense of achievement that comes from doing so. I find Mac OS to restrictive i this regard and a pain.

We buy ours in the refurb section of the apple store ... 5 computers later we have not encountered a 'lemon' yet.
The ipod touch is wonderful to use with this system .... If it had aB&O label on it I would gladly pay 10x the price I paid for it .... 
Mac osx is a total solution that works .....agreed to that. Certainly is not restrictive imo and I use applescript (or any of a myriad of other programming solutions) to make it do what I want. 

I don't really need full OS control but the ability to execute commands like [open program], [open file], [exit program]. Perhaps even [open browser], [navigate to predefined favorite].

I use apple script for small setups like that . I have one that when the computer starts it connects wireless, loads itunes, opens it in full coverflow.
Took me about 2 minutes to get it work. Mac osx is very flexible in this respect I find. I would never even have tried to do this on a pc....

I know this seems a one-sided point of view but after 12 years of pc misery I am a full apple convert. This platform delivers what it advertises. 

 

Thanks

 

Graham

 

Hi:

 

Why don't you install mac osx aka leopard on your pc (now there's a challenge if you like to tinker ...we have some Dells running like that in my office) It's unix based and runs fairly solid. I have worked with pcs for over 10 years and when we switched last year I have to admit that it's been more than worth it.... Mr gates lost me as a customer..

 

I am planning to do this and have looked at a couple of forums to see how it is done.

 

For playing my itunes I actually have 2 options : 
1) the ipod touch which works just fine but asks a little more interaction and possibilities 
2) My prefered and simplest way is to connect the mac very simply with a special datalink wire run between the mac and the beomaster connected with tape2(courtasy of Ridax who is a member on this site). It's so simple a plug-in version and controls my daily use of playing itunes playlists like a dream. I use it with beolink 1000 or beo4 remotes. So simple and easy if you just want to listen to music. Feels like it's always been part of my B&O
It comes ready mad or as a kit to put together yourself.

 

This is something that  I will look into - the ability to control stuff with a Beo4 is inticing.

 

The scripting thing is also something I would like to get into.

 

Now all I need to do is find a strip of DDR RAM.

You'll find ridax's solution on http://home.swipnet.se/ridax/beopc.htm  Works really fine for everday use (if you just want to play playlists)

I can forward you the little apple script to get itunes opening in full coverflow if you want to see the covers on tv.
If you want plex to open at start up, it's very easy on leopard. Just drag the icon into the 'dock', right click and select 'open at login'
It wil start automatically when you switch the pc on ..... no code required. 

Sorry to confuse you even further but another interesting idea would be to downloaded the appletv os disk image and remount it on a partitioned drive in your pc and then include the atv hack to open the os up with vlc etc to play anything you want to throw at it....  makes for a somewhat 'cleaner' system that will work like a real apple tv (unleashed) but I didn't want to go that route as I don't have the time to tincker around too much.... lol

I do like running plex though. It runs stable enough and gives me everything including full control of itunes (though I prefer the stay 'just' in itunes) and even a (continuous updated) weather report at my fingertips ....and allows to start up other software (email, webbrowser etc) if needed. There is an iphone/touch remote control app for it ... 

Good luck with your project....and keep us updated !!!      If you need any more info, you can always find me around beoworld . 

 

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Bit of an update: The server is up and running XP Pro however, it is only running 512mb of RAM as there seems to be an issue with it reading both SIMMS but I will look into this at a later date.

 

The issue I have now is that I cannot visualise how to make this system truly multi-room. As I would like to link the B&O televisions to the server either physically or be able to call up different files on different screens in the house as opposed to distributing the same image around the house, I was thinking that the easiest solution would be to get a bank of four graphics cards (cheap ATI Radeons for example) with composite video out and manage the images on each with a suitable program (such as Ultramon). In fact I have seen some graphics cards with Freeview/PVR built in so I could distribute independent TV around the house also.

 

Perhaps I am over engineering this, can anyone think of another way?

 

Thanks

 

Graham

Bit of an update:

The server is up and running XP Pro however, it is only running 512mb of RAM as there seems to be an issue with it reading both SIMMS but I will look into this at a later date.The issue I have now is that I cannot visualise how to make this system truly multi-room. As I would like to link the B&O televisions to the server either physically or be able to call up different files on different screens in the house as opposed to distributing the same image around the house, I was thinking that the easiest solution would be to get a bank of four graphics cards (cheap ATI Radeons for example) with composite video out and manage the images on each with a suitable program (such as Ultramon). In fact I have seen some graphics cards with Freeview/PVR built in so I could distribute independent TV around the house also.

 

Perhaps I am over engineering this, can anyone think of another way?

 

Thanks

 

Graham

Interesting concept of including several graphic cards. I had 2 video cards in my old pc a couple of yrs ago. Can't say it wasn't without problems, but I'm sure technology must have improved since.

Won't it be hard for a computer to run 4 seperate feeds at the same time? I realize most of the work will be done by the video cards , but stil...

How about something like this ? : http://www.shoptronics.com/5wiauvisetrb.html

I don't know how many links you want to set up or if you want them wired or not.
Wired you could pull several feed cables to each room then use a remote controlled av switcher like this :http://www.nextag.com/RCA-4-X-1-55767333/prices-html?nxtg=ac80a280520-35EDA8FF838F1D59
For wireless application : the apple tv is a good solution. They go for $208 CAD in the apple store refurb section .... make your pc a server with the apple tv (hacked or not) at the receiving end... works like a treat. And B&O tv's often have the puc controller for them built-in. 

Hi:

 

I had thought through the idea you were suggesting with the wireless video senders - that would work if I only wanted to output one desktop image but as I want different desktop images I would need multiple graphics cards and then multiple video senders. As there is only four channels per sender and there is some overlap re signal, there would probably be too much interference.

 

Thanks

 

Graham

Graham1982:

Hi:

 

I had thought through the idea you were suggesting with the wireless video senders - that would work if I only wanted to output one desktop image but as I want different desktop images I would need multiple graphics cards and then multiple video senders. As there is only four channels per sender and there is some overlap re signal, there would probably be too much interference.

 

Thanks

 

Graham

I agree, they are not the best solution. They however work ok on Standard def (As long as you have no portable phones in the house...)
Video requires a lot of data to be moved.  Audio is alot easier.

Basically you will need a pc setup as the main server, then another pc in each room of your multi-room setup. This is the easiest way to control each room individually ( I guess you want different feeds in different rooms ?) This will work for a on-demand kind of system, capable of playing both tv or digital files.

the other option would be indeed have several video cards in your main (server) pc and pull cables from each video card to each room in your multi-room setup as you were suggesting.
Unless you feed each cable continuously (not on-demand), still remains the issue of controlling each video card at this point ...

I ended up spending the extra $210 for an apple tv to make it possible to have a decent extra-room setup that can display video (in good quality !!) from my server (mac mini with (soon) elgato eye tv connection). 

I'm sorry but it seems there is no easy solution for this ..

 

 

 

One last thought : check out www.slingmedia.com