[NCLUG] MythTV Presentation on Feb. 12

[Brian Wood]

Paul Hummer wrote:
> I would actually like to use a remote control with my machine rather 
> than a keyboard (not so interested in having the internet on my TV).  

You are not alone, most people use a remote. I have both an IR remote 
and an RF wireless keyboard but I find myself using the remote most of 
the time.

While you may not want "the internet" on your TV set there are some 
subsets of it that work well. The World Wide Media project, Shoutcast, 
Highway web cameras, YouTube videos and other media-type things are very 
nice to have on your TV at the push of a button, and these can be 
interfaced to a remote control easily.

> What remote controls could be used,

If you purchase a Hauppauge PVR series capture card it comes with a 
pretty nice remote, as well as the IR receiver (also an IR blaster). The 
IR receiver circuitry is built-in to the capture card, so you just plug 
the receiver "eye" into the card. This remote is very well supported by 
MythTV.

Many other remotes will work with MythTV, have a look at:

http://www.mythtv.org/wiki/index.php/Category:Remote_Controls

(note the paragraph at the top about using wireless keyboard codes)

> and can I pick one up at Best Buy?  

I think a lot of the remotes mentioned in the above link can be had at 
BB, although I suspect you could get better prices elsewhere.

> Can I use a generic IR receiver with it?

Yes. Note the "Homemade serial receiver" section. Working IR receivers 
can be had for well under $20. The IR receivers built in to some cases 
usually work as well. The IR receivers on some motherboards generally do 
not work, they use a different protocol.

The remote controls for MythTV are handled by LIRC, which is interfaced 
to the Myth code.

http://www.lirc.org/

Basically any remote that will work with LIRC will work with Myth. This 
includes remotes sold for use with Windows MCE and using M$'s USB 
interface, and most of the high-end Logitech units. Note especially the 
remotes known to NOT work with LIRC.

It is very easy to edit the config files for remotes so that buttons can 
be made to do whatever you want them to do. I actually have a single 
button that will automatically burn a program to a DVD (though I haven't 
figured out how to get it to insert the blank disk yet).

One of the big topics on the Myth lists is the "WAF" (Wife Acceptance 
Factor). A remote control is a good example of a high WAF device, as 
most non-geeks expect a TV appliance to have a remote control, not a 
keyboard.

Hope this answers your question, if not feel free to ask more.


Brian Wood
beww at beww.org