[seanbrwn427]

Ok,

I have read and read and read. Searched and Searched. Has anyone put together the pieces to make a remote control out of the PC. The concept here is a Touch Screen or UI that allows you to send IR or Commands Serialy to different component. Imagine the Macro Capabilities!! Any ideas? I cannot find anything out here. I see alot of stuff out there on using an IR remote to control the PC but not the PC to control AV components! Any ideas?

 

[jriver]

Can you give an example of what you want to do?


There are IR transmitters that can be used with a PC.


I use a PC to play music through an ordinary audio amplifier.

 

[seanbrwn427]

What I want to do is set up an IR transmitter on my HTPC and have an interface that is like a FULL screen remote. VOlume, DVD selection, Changing channel on the Satellite receiver, programming Replay stuff etc etc. This is absolutely a cool idea especially with the configurability of this conceptually. The software is the missing component.

 

[jriver]

Our software, Media Jukebox, has elements of this and we're interested in adding more. If you will give a complete description of it on our Interact forum, we'll take a look. It's at:

http://www.musicex.com/cgi-bin/inter...rd&Board=inter


Have you investigated Girder? I'm not sure how close you can get with it.

 

[Phat Phreddy]

This can be readily accomplished by using a combination of two programs that are already available...


By using Girder and an IR out transmitter you accomplish the act of controlling the equipment that you want to do. Then for creating a graphical layout to give a GUI to interact with I would recommend Talisman (you can see some HTPC user interfaces from the link in my sig).


This style of setup could offer a really nice 'house control' system with lighting, heating, audio distribution screens all integrating with a house control computer and X10 based around floorplan images of the home etc...

 

[Phat Phreddy]

I forgot to mention that Girder also has an RS232 plug in so that you can communicate via serial to equipment with this option as well as via IR... Of course you will need to have the details of the control codes for the equipment you are trying to control and I am unsure of the user friendliness of this option but it is there if you want to do it...


Girder may be a little unintuative but it really is the one stop shop when it comes to command capture, control and macro tasks on the PC.

 

[seanbrwn427]

Thanks for the Posts Phat Phreddy!

THis is exactly what I was thinking about. I will download Girder and the UI stuff you mentioned. INtergration as a plug in to the Time Delay software so that scheduled recording could change channels on a Satellite Receiver is the last link. This could be a complete solution / alternative to a TIVO or Replay. With the benefit of lots of inputs. I'll do some checking to see if there is a way to pull all of this together. Integration of X10 stuff is REALLY cool as well. Anyway. If anyone else has interest in this sort of stuff let me know.

 

[kchad]

How does Talisman talk to Girder? I have been using Girder with an IR interface. I would like to have buttons on the desktop that when clicked would send commands to Girder. I was thinking about writing my own application and using the TCP/IP plugin as the interface to Girder. But if Talisman could already do that then maybe I could use it.

 

[kchad]

I guess Talisman might use the Girder command line interface to pass events to Girder.

 

[Phat Phreddy]

Exactly you can use the CLI technique for local user function but my grand plan would be to be using multiple thin clients communicating with a central server machine via the TCP/IP plug in...


I am thinking wall mounted TFT touchscreens with graphical whole house control.. Multiple thin clients (cheap with EPods and wireless NICs but no talisman support) this is crestron territory at pennies on the dollar of what they charge. Plus (although I have never been able to play with a crestron setup) I would believe more flexibility..

 

[kchad]

i'm hip to your grand plan. it's so close to being achieved. the proof-of-concept work is already done:
http://www.avsforum.com/ubb/Forum12/HTML/013090.html

all i need is some funds for the windows CE devices and the wireless ethernet adapters - and some time to get it all working.

 

[flavioleoni]

Where are these softwares available for download?

 

[Phat Phreddy]

Girder = www.girder.nl

Talisman = www.lighttek.com/talisman.htm


I have steered clear of the CE devices (Epods etc) as I dont have the skill to code the GUI from the ground up and so would really like to find some kind of cheap i-appliance that was hackable for a slim win9x style build just for the shell interface...

 

[mcody]

You mentioned a few days ago about getting Talisman to work with Girder via CLI (command line interface, I assume).


I am going to be using a slink-e and their EZ-learn software instead of girder /IRman. What would be the best way to create an Talisman overlay that could execute the slink-e commands? Apparently, I can create shortcuts on the desktop that can be executed to perform macro's with the slinke.


Forgive my ignorance but can Talisman lauch a shorcut when one button is pushed, then go to a new screen layer? I am thinking of hitting DVD on first Talisman layer (whole macro executes), then having it go to a screen layer that shows the DVD and volume contols.

 

[boykster]

mcody,


I don't know how the Talisman CLI (command line interface) works, but I you can run slink-e commands using the command line by using "slcmd" (included with the cdj distibution).


Also, I have written a small vb app that I use for all my IR/slink/X10 control...I can help you get started if you need some help...


From the slink-e/cdj help file:


Some applications are unable to utilize the SlinkX ActiveX control, but are able to execute a command-line application. Examples of these include:


Home automation programs

Batch files / scripting languages

CGI scripts running on a remote Windows web server

For this reason, we have created a simple command-line interface called slcmd which uses Slinkeserv and mimics much of the functionality of the SlinkX ActiveX control. With slcmd, you can


Add devices which will persist until slinkeserv is closed

Delete devices

Send commands

Note that slcmd is not able to receive messages from slinkeserv, however.



HTH,


Cheers,

 

[kchad]

mcody,


i have been using slink-e w/ Girder. it has been working great. You need to download a Girder plugin for slinke. i use it to send and receive IR and x-10. You should try it out.


I haven't tried Talisman yet.

 

[K-Wood]

Phat, et al:


Phat:

Have you upgraded any of your Talisman themes to the new Talisman version 2.0? I've tried working with Version 2.0 and found, strangely enough, that I like Version 1.7 much better. I've been using a modified version of Lester Jacobs' DigiCasa theme for awhile.


Others:

I'm very interested in using Talisman to execute Girder commands, esp. to send RS232 codes to my equipment. Both my plasma and my TiVo box have RS232 ports. The owner's manual for the plasma (a Panny 42" industrial model) lists the RS232 codes, but I'm not aware of any such listing for the TiVo units (its a combined DirecTiVo box). Have anyone heard of any source of RS232 codes for TiVo units?


I've designed buttons in Talisman to open up applications, but not to send specific commands. I suppose that it would be fairly easy to do, though. I suspect you could design a button to open a new Talisman page with buttons for specific functions (play, pause, stop, etc.) dedicated to executing specific functions in particular apps. In theory, Talisman could replace the GUI of all of the apps, although I'm not sure why it would necessary, except for simplicity's sake. Taken further, you could design the Talisman GUI to look exactly like each of your Pronto screens (or vice versa), and use Girder to execute the corresponding commands with each button press.


Has anyone made any progress along these lines?


- Ken

Theater Home Page

 

[kchad]

FYI

Girder CLI:


-hide

-show

-eventstring


more info here:
http://www.girder.nl/phpBB/viewtopic...ic=403&forum=2