The HDFury...I assume not number two one are going for sixty to ninety dollars.
are they fake? bad? horribly obselete? I'm finally pretty thrilled to get a G70 and like now it feels if I don't get a $400 Moome card with gamma correction and other neatos I'm getting a significantly inferior BluRay experience?

I'm confused by a lot of things about these ultra HDMI adapters. For example it says if I don't get one I will be limited to 480 p. Because I use an "HTPC" and Blu Ray player. I thought I was watching 1080i on my VPH 1271. Does my PC already do what these cards do?
I certainly have some annoying raster distortions with various higher resolutions.
Most are minor now. If I had HDFury, like first edition and one of them gamma toys snaps on is that everything a boy needs? Does it do something more and better than my computer. Again is my computer software doing gamma for me as well. I play BluRay but not from an external set top player.

At

An HTPc could pretty much do anything that a VP would. (In theory and with proper deployment of course!)

... You will require a lot more "tuning".. also forget about having two displays on a windows PC. (One head to a monitor and another to the CRT. ...and this has been just my experience !)

A linux box HTPC on the other hand will do that!

I (...and others here!), long ago gave up the HTPC route for a standalone video processor/Moome/BR or SDI DVD player! (...much simpler and you get better results...keep in mind that the color spaces are different for a PC and a Video device....although some folks would disagree on that also!)

You can always go for a prior generation Moome card that had DVI/Component on it, (but no gamma correction...for that you can always get one of those gamma push boxs that are available!)

Keep this in mind also:

In order to have our PC player output properly at its highest resolution you will need a HDCP enable Video card and display termination point. (...being a moome card/fury! ...or a monitor itself!)
Otherwise with the serial BD players you will be stuck at the 576 ceiling without it!

..all of the mentioned hardware brings the cost of an HTPC solution pretty close to a stand alone "used" VP!

Not only will you be able to do all this in one box but also do it properly!

I do realize that you are going to be using a G70, and assuming you are in for the long haul then you will need the proper gear...
On that note you can go for a HD-SDI route and forget about this whole HDCP debacle! (...You will require a HD-SDI input on your Vp and a modified BR player for that! Both of those cards could cost as much as a used VP!)


You see all of us here pretty much started with a lower end devices and then we started seeing the benefits of proper hardware/setups! Then slowly started spending more and more on the proper gear! (On the other hand some of us jumped straight to the mega bucks setups with someone's help that was more experienced in all of this ...and sorta never looked back!)

It is a learning curve and I must say that it is addictive! So weigh your options before you start into this "hobby"

Hope this was helpful

Martin

There are fake furies out there, buddy of mine got one a while ago, and it did not perform as it should. Can no longer find his topic regarding the matter on another forum, detailing the naming scam and showing pictures of the fake unit.

also forget about having two displays on a windows PC. (One head to a monitor and another to the CRT. ...and this has been just my experience !)



Eh??

Total bollucks.

I've been running extended desktop (one display for the PC stuff, one running the video) for years now, from my 1251 through the Xtras now to the XG (and about 4 different PCs).

It works fine.

The HDFury...I assume not number two one are going for sixty to ninety dollars.
are they fake? bad? horribly obselete? I'm finally pretty thrilled to get a G70 and like now it feels if I don't get a $400 Moome card with gamma correction and other neatos I'm getting a significantly inferior BluRay experience?

I'm confused by a lot of things about these ultra HDMI adapters. For example it says if I don't get one I will be limited to 480 p. Because I use an "HTPC" and Blu Ray player. I thought I was watching 1080i on my VPH 1271. Does my PC already do what these cards do?
I certainly have some annoying raster distortions with various higher resolutions.
Most are minor now. If I had HDFury, like first edition and one of them gamma toys snaps on is that everything a boy needs? Does it do something more and better than my computer. Again is my computer software doing gamma for me as well. I play BluRay but not from an external set top player.



If you have a PC capable of running Bluray then you do not need anything else. I run RGBHV from my PC to my XG-LC. I've tried 2 Moome devices and a HD-Fury, and they are no better than RGBHV.

Gamma can be tricky, it depends on whether you use commercial software or not. I don't and remux my BDs to MKV, allowing playback with proper, usable HT software, which respect the desktop Gamma settings.

At
It is a learning curve and I must say that it is addictive! So weigh your options before you start into this "hobby"

Hope this was helpful...

Martin
Thanks Martin and Donald for excercising your brains and fingers on my behalf.
Kinda helpful but I'm still trying to get my head around these little guys and wondering how badly I need them.
This response is to scattershot responding to random items in Martin's post.

I have a love hate relationship with my HTPC. The hate part means
eventually I want to have set top blu ray to make playing a movie less of a a hassel. My internal Blu Ray is sooo temperamental. It always works now but its often a hassel.

I resent needing one of these adaptors. I got angry when I had a good buy on a 100 HDDVD player at Walmart 18 months ago and saw I needed a 200 HD Fury to take advantage of it. I was so resentful at the concept of having to pay more than the player for the price of something that looks like something I should get for free in the box. I thought what a rip off. At the same time I'm sick of player updates and reboots and slightly distorted/shifted rasters and playing around with Powerstrip settings. So now I am trying to curb my resentment
and make the smartest decision.

My video card has DVI outputs. Thats all I know which I guess are as high def as HDMI and adapt easily and cheaply into an HDMI cord I guess.
Right now my card goes from dvi adapts to VGA of some sort and then passes through a small gray box and becomes RGBHV and plugs with Bin cables into the back of my VPH1271.

I would say I am tempted to get an HDFURY2 at the hundred fifty dollar price but don't know if it gives me better picture or sound in the bargain than the HD Fury. I don't even have a Blu Ray player yet. I know I will never pay 400 for a Moome.

Does the Fury help out a PC?

And are those gamma push boxes a good thing? Is my projector really going to crush blacks as bad as in their sample photos? Makes me feel like my G70 and or the blu ray player is going to be some POS.

I'd love to do a Linux install but every time I try to learn how to set up drivers and install software on Ubuntu or something I can't figure it out.

Eh??

Total bollucks.

I've been running extended desktop (one display for the PC stuff, one running the video) for years now, from my 1251 through the Xtras now to the XG (and about 4 different PCs).

It works fine.

I had to question this one thing myself. I am not doing it right now but I have faith the second output on my ATI card using the ATI Hydra software is fully functional.
Its theater mode is designed to do exactly what we expect out of a second screen. And its very established tech.

Mark

I don't doubt the fact that you will get a picture out of that second/third/or forth head form that video card!

...what I was trying to say that they are temperamental! (...and i am sure that the ATI hydra's "cinema mode" is made specially for that purpose, but we are talking about "consumer grade" hardware here and most of us are trying to get a "pro grade" use out of our displays/setups! so just because it works does not mean it is the only/best way to go if you want a decent "headache free" way of using your setup!)

...At least with windows! (A Linux box is a whole different beast! it runs forever and does not get "amnesia" when it comes to your hardware profiles and such! ...from time to time when you need it the most... Specially when there are friends waiting around in your theater for the "picture quality" that you have been "raving" about for so long!!! Windows Vista embarrassed Bill Gates with a BSOD at the vista "debut". and that was the owner/CEO..just imagine what it would/could do to you!!! LOL :) )

Personally I like the "one box" made for "one purpose" stuff when it comes to all this!

AC...a standalone video player is the way to go...and I do agree about 400 bucks being tooooo much for a Moome card...but sometimes you have no choices! (yeah maybe with that Fury 2!!! I have no experiences with the "Fury line" so can't comment there...just what I have been reading here and there from users!)

Oppo is coming out with their "latest/greatest" bd player and I have one on order! (I was around 400 bucks shipped! which is a great deal, considering that Denon has something comparable in their flagship players section that runs 4ks!)

If all goes well I will make use of my "new" AJA made SDI/Moome type card that was made specially for this customer of mine's VDC marquee!

He was switching to a Bluray player solution so no longer wanted/needed it! :)

After that it will be a HD-SDI chain all the way...but for now this lowly SDI card will have to do...(although I am debating whether I should still run it through my SDI video processor of feed it straight from the player to this aja card that is in my M9500LC right now!!! I haven't tried either way yet.)

I am still waiting on the SDI kit for my player, since the last one died!!!)

So as of latest count I have just bought a BD player and a SDI kit for my regular Oppo! (I think I will be sticking to a 1080i resolution for the regular dvd's. ...from the player to the aja card!)

See what I was saying about this being an addiction???

Good luck with your newely aquired G70

Martin

If you have a PC capable of running Bluray then you do not need anything else. I run RGBHV from my PC to my XG-LC. I've tried 2 Moome devices and a HD-Fury, and they are no better than RGBHV. I had the exact opposite experience, a Moome card and STB with HDMI direct was a big improvement.

I have a love hate relationship with my HTPC. The hate part means eventually I want to have set top blu ray to make playing a movie less of a a hassel. My internal Blu Ray is sooo temperamental. It always works now but its often a hassel. . getting rid of my HTPC improved my HT exerperience a great deal. Be sure to read the reviews on the different STB though, some of them have almsot as many problems as a PC. AFA gamma, I used Theatre Tek software and it was useless for adjusting the specific low end of the gamma curve that a CRT needs.

I resent needing one of these adaptors. I got angry when I had a good buy on a 100 HDDVD player at Walmart 18 months ago and saw I needed a 200 HD Fury to take advantage of it. I was so resentful at the concept of having to pay more than the player for the price of something that looks like something I should get for free in the box. that's a really strange way of looking at it. A Walmart player is a mass produced item built in the millions. A Moome card is a specialized piece of equipment that fits ONLY a marquee or Sony CRT and it's built in batches of 50.

All bluray/HDDVD players do 1080i out of component signal.
To be honest you need a high CRT for 1080p and then you also need someone to get the best out of it for you.

Caspian, I think you are mistaken on that one. Component out on any hd-dvd/BD device is limited to 480p, not 1080i as you stated. That was what infuriated all of the early adopters of hdtv when these players came out. The early adopters only had rgbhv or component inputs and not hdmi so they couldn't see a hd picture unless they had something like a fury device. They were limited to SD from component outputs.

I had the exact opposite experience, a Moome card and STB with HDMI direct was a big improvement.

getting rid of my HTPC improved my HT exerperience a great deal. Be sure to read the reviews on the different STB though, some of them have almsot as many problems as a PC. AFA gamma, I used Theatre Tek software and it was useless for adjusting the specific low end of the gamma curve that a CRT needs.

that's a really strange way of looking at it. A Walmart player is a mass produced item built in the millions. A Moome card is a specialized piece of equipment that fits ONLY a marquee or Sony CRT and it's built in batches of 50.

Then there was something wrong with your Analogue path. Possibilities range from bad DACs through bad cables, to bad input circuitry.

And you don't adjust the gamma in the playback software. You set the playback software to use any-other-renderer-than-overlay, and adjust it for the desktop. VideoEqualizer will allow you to then get whatever curve you like.

Caspian, I think you are mistaken on that one. Component out on any hd-dvd/BD device is limited to 480p, not 1080i as you stated. That was what infuriated all of the early adopters of hdtv when these players came out. The early adopters only had rgbhv or component inputs and not hdmi so they couldn't see a hd picture unless they had something like a fury device. They were limited to SD from component outputs.
Only SD DVD is limited to 480p in bluray but it is all wide open with HD material via component.

AC

Here is a G90 on CL

http://losangeles.craigslist.org/wst/ele/1249377601.html

You see CL does have G90s...

Martin

AC

Here is a G90 on CL

http://losangeles.craigslist.org/wst/ele/1249377601.html

You see CL does have G90s...

Martin

Coolio. Sadly priced out of my league but I just paid for the G70 a few hours ago. I suspect it will be here in a week.

good buy!

..but you see the CRTs are there!

I bet you if you were to show up with 2500 bucks cash...you can possibly walk away with it...aybe not on the same day...but that makes the seller thing.

Martin

I'm sort of in the same boat here as Atomiccow. I'm getting ready to mount my 8500, and I'm at the cross roads of getting a stand alone player and shelving my large movie collection as I have it today, or building a HTPC and creating a movie server so I can have an "on demand" setup and put my collection in a closet. I do watch my movies more than once, and I don't rip them off from the rental store.

Sounds like if you go the standalone player route, you need a Moome or HDFury2 with the gamma x for the HDMI to RGBHV concversion and gamma boost. HTPC provides you with the software ability to adjust gamma, but it can be finicky, especially a windows based HTPC. Does that about sum it up? I agree with Atomiccow, as I look at the price of a BR player, and then the cost of an HDfury2 with gamma x, and that one little cable add on is just as much, if not more expensive that the player itself! However, if it's the most stable way for a professional picture, then I guess we have to bend over the barrel and take it. :eek:

If someone does have stable HTPC out there, can they provide a bill of materials so-to-speak for the rest of us?

Sparky

Welcome

if you look in the HTPC section there a a few builds as to what hardware you will need for a HD capable HTPC...I believe they have a low cost ...mid cost and a high end built there...there are also "recipes" for building network attached storages.

As far as video card and such I would thiknk that anything above a 8800 would do for an nvidia one...Do not get us wrong...most of us still have the HTPCs...they just are no longer connected as the main intput on our CRTs.

I only use mine for pc/HDTV viewing...
Problem with HTPCs is that they are not too friendly when it comes to anyone else wanting to use them...

And all the other stuff like codecs and ffdshow play havok on the system.
As far as a player is concerned I like MPC, very functional and powerful, and when setright will play just about anything correcly!

Do your research and built one...but chances are that at some point down the line you are just gonna get fed up and give it up (...as most of us did!) and move to a standalone device.

Martin

I recently built an HTPC, and am pretty happy with it. I haven't got things fully tweaked yet, but I'm very happy with th HD picture on it. I still have to get SD dialed in right, so that's my only issue right now, but I haven't spent a lot of time on it lately, as my projector had a glycol leak that caused some issues (It was actually cheaper for me to buy a new pj then to fix the old one, as I got a great deal!). Now that I have a new pj, I'll probably be working on it more. I would guess that if you prefer a CRT pj, you would probably prefer an HTPC as it is way more tweakable. It takes more work to get everything set up, though, and if you just want something to plug in, and go, a stand-alone player would be better.

That being said, I went the onboard graphics route, and got this motherboard: Gigabyte with NVIDIA 9400 northbridge (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128363). I'm very happy with it, it has VGA output (which I'm using), DVI, HDMI, and onboard sound. I can upgrade to HDMI if I ever want to. Its an intel socket, so the chips are a little more expensive than AMD chips. Though this MB was really easy to set up. It was almost just hook everything up, turn it on, load software/drivers and go. No issues with set up whatsoever. If you want to do things cheaper, an AMD board/chip with a relatively inexpensive videocard would probably get you more bang for your buck. You can check the HTPC forum for more info on these.

I have not yet purchased a BD player for the htpc yet, as I haven't made the upgrade to BD discs yet, and have a modest collection of SD DVD's. (though the prices of BD drives have recently dropped a little and can probably get one for ~$70 on newegg, but I don't know what quality it is).

Also, it depends on what you want to do as for parts list. If you just want to play video, You can get a case, a CPU (really only need a modest CPU, nothing too fancy), and a motherboard (the gigabyte has onboard sound with TOSlink out and onboard video), Hard drive, and DVD/BD player. I can tell you that the cost starts to add up as you start wanting more. I added the HDPVR, which runs ~$200, then I I had to set it up to be run off a remote, etc, etc. Next purchase will be the BD drive, and probably another HDD when I get more $$. The price just keeps going up! I started off just wanting something to play movies with, and am slowly adding more and more. I'm running mediaportal and have put all my SD-dvd's on it (which requires a fair amt of storage, but hard drives are pretty cheap these days), all music (and I have to say, playing music through mediaportal with the milkdrop visualization fed to my pj is just amazing!), I got a Hauppauge HD-PVR to pick up HD and SD TV from my cable box and using it as a PVR to save TV to the HDD, internet radio, have the weather set up with radar pics, and linked up to Online Videos. It all runs off a remote, and the WAF is really high. The only downfall right now is that SD TV is a little soft, and would looks better if fed to the pj directly from the STB. The SD DVD's look pretty good, and HDTV looks great. I guess I just haven't worked with it long enough to get fed up yet.

Sorry for the long post, and the fact that its not really on the original topic, but this thread seems to have morphed into something else. Hope it helps a little.

I'm sort of in the same boat here as Atomiccow. I'm getting ready to mount my 8500, and I'm at the cross roads of getting a stand alone player and shelving my large movie collection as I have it today, or building a HTPC and creating a movie server so I can have an "on demand" setup and put my collection in a closet. I do watch my movies more than once, and I don't rip them off from the rental store.

Sounds like if you go the standalone player route, you need a Moome or HDFury2 with the gamma x for the HDMI to RGBHV concversion and gamma boost. HTPC provides you with the software ability to adjust gamma, but it can be finicky, especially a windows based HTPC. Does that about sum it up? I agree with Atomiccow, as I look at the price of a BR player, and then the cost of an HDfury2 with gamma x, and that one little cable add on is just as much, if not more expensive that the player itself! However, if it's the most stable way for a professional picture, then I guess we have to bend over the barrel and take it. :eek:

If someone does have stable HTPC out there, can they provide a bill of materials so-to-speak for the rest of us?


you don't need an HTPC to start a movie server.

get one of the media players and connect a NAS or HD to it.

PopCornHour has a new unit comng out soon, the C-200 that can do Blu as well and only costs US$299

www.popcornhour.com


Michael

Then there was something wrong with your Analogue path. Possibilities range from bad DACs through bad cables, to bad input circuitry.

And you don't adjust the gamma in the playback software. You set the playback software to use any-other-renderer-than-overlay, and adjust it for the desktop. VideoEqualizer will allow you to then get whatever curve you like.

Mark, thanks for mentioning that software I had never heard of it and I didn't think there was any way for me to adjust my gamma once I went to ATI (I used to do it with the Nvidia control panel but had to switch when Nvidia was no longer supported by Powerstrip). You have made my weekend as I do everything with my HTPC so this is prefect.

Secstate

Gamma won't work if you use Powerdvd or Arcsoft TMT on an ATI card - they both use the Overlay, which ignores desktop gamma, and you can't change them. This has to do with the protected video path for HDCP compliance.

You have to use a player like MPC-HC or Zoomplayer. The best way to use them is to convert the disc to MKV, with FLAC audio for the lossless audio codecs. (However MPC-HC will play the main title of a BD disc directly).


Personally I use Zoomplayer, running:

- ffdshow for video decoders (but accessing wmv9 internally for VC-1)
- madFLAC to decode FLAC (Doom9)
- ffdshow to decode all other audio
- Reclock
- madVR Video Renderer (Doom9)
- Vista32 trimmed down (no UAC, no indexing, no error reporting, lotsa services turned off). Optional, but vista is a nightmare otherwise
-Anydvd HD, and I convert to mvk file using eac3to, and I control that uses HDStreamExtractor (all on Doom9)

- Eventghost to control via remote

- And to use Zoom Player with VC-1 you need to create a SmartPlay video decoder profile for VC-1 and paste the stream ID code you get in an error screen into it (or just add the attached files to the MediaAutoGraph folder).
The combination of madVR and Reclock, running a refresh rate of 96hz, is simply stunning. It is unbelievably smooth. I've never seen a PC play so smoothly.

It works very well. But it's not plug and play....

Caspian, I think you are mistaken on that one. Component out on any hd-dvd/BD device is limited to 480p, not 1080i as you stated. That was what infuriated all of the early adopters of hdtv when these players came out. The early adopters only had rgbhv or component inputs and not hdmi so they couldn't see a hd picture unless they had something like a fury device. They were limited to SD from component outputs.

My Toshiba XA2 would output 1080i from component and I used a Key Digital KD-VA5 transcoder with HDMI handshake, then RGB pass-through in my Centerstage 2 out to my projector. It worked beautifully because to playback SD up-convert which is restricted over component all I needed to do was switch the input from Centerstage 2 to component input fed from my transcoder component pass-through. My projector would only handle 1080i or I might have upconverted it to 1080P over DVI assuming that would have worked. I did have 1080i from component working and I checked the frequency to confirm so.

Mark,
I can't remember, but do you run Linux on your other computers? When did you switch to Vista?

I switched to Vista about a year ago I guess.

No, no Linux.....I'm scared of Linux.

Actually, almost all of the applications I run are windows specific (except ffdshow comes from the linux world via ffmpeg).

If you would like to know some peoples personal experiences with input methods and devices for BD HD to your projector, here's mine.

I've used several different HTPC's that I've built, as well as PS3 for BD and currently run an HTPC in the basement, one upstairs, and a PS3 upstairs as well.

Currently I'm using the HDMI output from my MSI Nvidia GEFORCE9400GT to the old HDFury Gamer Edition I bought years ago for $100. used. The output of that goes through an RTC2200 for gamma boost.

I understand your lack of enthusiasm for paying so much to get secondary devices JUST to play back BD, its a bit ridiculous.

I've used the HTPC with VGA output as well, and it works just as good, and looks just as good as the HDMI output. I'm only using the HDMI output because my current setup utilizes an HDMI switcher for simplicities sake.

Also, I'd like to comment about my PERSONAL experience with Moome devices. I've used both several iterations of the Moome stand alone boxes, as well as several versions of the Marquee input cards created by Moome. PERSONALLY, they have NOT been worth the premium price. The image from them is indistinguishable from the image I get from my cheap old HDFury Gamer Edition, and they have generally had MORE issues working seamlessly with my other HDMI equipment(ie. switchers, components, etc). PERSONALLY, I would absolutely NOT recommend you waste the extra cost on a Moome device. Others opinions vary, obviously.

As for gamma, my personal preference is the gamma boost provided by the Beun Crescendo Systems RTC2200, but I also use the gamma available through the Nvidia computer video cards and am quite satisfied with the image.

If you want the SIMPLEST solution for BD playback, do not use an HTPC, even though this will necessitate the purchase of a secondary device to convert the HDMI output to an analog signal, but if you want to experiment a bit, then HTPC is lots of fun and eats up plenty of time and won't cost you anything extra in the way of HDMI converters, you can simply use the VGA output.

I have not purchased an HDFury from ebay, but I know they are available from monoprice, and are genuine articles, just much less than from some other suppliers...

Secstate

Gamma won't work if you use Powerdvd or Arcsoft TMT on an ATI card - they both use the Overlay, which ignores desktop gamma, and you can't change them. This has to do with the protected video path for HDCP compliance.

You have to use a player like MPC-HC or Zoomplayer. The best way to use them is to convert the disc to MKV, with FLAC audio for the lossless audio codecs. (However MPC-HC will play the main title of a BD disc directly).


Personally I use Zoomplayer, running:

- ffdshow for video decoders (but accessing wmv9 internally for VC-1)
- madFLAC to decode FLAC (Doom9)
- ffdshow to decode all other audio
- Reclock
- madVR Video Renderer (Doom9)
- Vista32 trimmed down (no UAC, no indexing, no error reporting, lotsa services turned off). Optional, but vista is a nightmare otherwise
-Anydvd HD, and I convert to mvk file using eac3to, and I control that uses HDStreamExtractor (all on Doom9)

- Eventghost to control via remote

- And to use Zoom Player with VC-1 you need to create a SmartPlay video decoder profile for VC-1 and paste the stream ID code you get in an error screen into it (or just add the attached files to the MediaAutoGraph folder).
The combination of madVR and Reclock, running a refresh rate of 96hz, is simply stunning. It is unbelievably smooth. I've never seen a PC play so smoothly.

It works very well. But it's not plug and play....

Mark thanks that post is very helpful I use MPC-HC mostly and PowerDVD only for BluRays. I didn't realize the latter used overlay so that I good to know. I am running a slimed down Vista as well, I upgraded over XP mostly to be able to get newer drivers. I played around videoequilizer and I am very impressed with the results. I was looking at getting one of the gamma boost boxes but now I think I will stick with the HTPC and a software solution.

I switched to Vista about a year ago I guess.

No, no Linux.....I'm scared of Linux.

Actually, almost all of the applications I run are windows specific (except ffdshow comes from the linux world via ffmpeg).


I have to agree, MythTV fans will probably get on my case but as much as I love and use Linux, I don't think HTPCs are its strong point. I much prefer the selection of media software (mostly free) that is available on Windows. In fact my HTPCs are really the only Windows boxes I keep these days plus a virtual instance on my server to run software not available on Linux such as tax software.

Linux isn't all that scary but it does take some getting used too. As a Windows/DOS user when I first converted I felt like a lost child on Linux. After about six months or so I was comfortable with it.

Linux is great once you realize that its only purpose is to recompile kernels, argue with other linux users about appropriate modifications to those kernels, download hundreds of dependencies, and screw around with configuration files, not to actually accomplish any goals! ;)

Linux is great once you realize that its only purpose is to recompile kernels, argue with other linux users about appropriate modifications to those kernels, download hundreds of dependencies, and screw around with configuration files, not to actually accomplish any goals! ;)

:D There is some truth to that even to today (well except for dependences as I cannot remember the last time I had an issue with them). But honestly I tried to convert to Linux many times over the years and always went back to Windows. These days it is quite a bit different. While far from perfect, many distros today are easier to install that Windows (mostly because they come with their drivers included). That said when Linux goes wrong it can go horribly wrong. To me I love the free software, the freedom not to have to deal with WGA and the fact that I can still use a six year old laptop just fine on Ubuntu Hardy that was chocking under XP (or at least all the security software that XP needed, along with the bloatware that seems to infect Windows applications to a greater degree than Linux apps).

you don't need an HTPC to start a movie server.

get one of the media players and connect a NAS or HD to it.

PopCornHour has a new unit comng out soon, the C-200 that can do Blu as well and only costs US$299

www.popcornhour.com


Michael

Thanks Michael. I've looked at the Popcorn Hour products before. I shied away from this option because I'd like to keep my movies in the native format, rather than compressing into an MPEG format. Plus, I figured if I did go this route, I would just get an XBOX or PS3 and at least get my money's worth by having a game console while I'm at it.

I'm gathering from the comments that the HTPC has not improved on it's stability issues (at least those using Windows). Looks like I still need to do some research, especially with Windows 7 releasing, but looks like the cheapest and most stable route is the standalone player like I have now with my standard DVD collection. Bummer :(