RE: Re: Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 - UK Launch

["Andy Laurence" <andy@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

From: Mal Lansell [mailto:mlansell@xxxxxxx]
> The Exstreamer has a web-based UI.

IIRC, it also has an xPL interface, which could be used with Xlobby or
something similar.

> The MediaMVP is controlled via a TV menu.

The MVP presents a TV menu, but is controlled by an IR remote.  You could
use Girder or similar to interface with your common GUI.

> A Media Center PC would no doubt have both.  Throw in some other HA
> devices and you have a right mish-mash of interfaces.  What I would
like is
> a unified front end that ideally would run on something a bit bigger
than a
> PDA (but a PDA would have to do for now, I suppose).  The xPL stuff is
> heading that way, but it's going to be a while before it's at the
stage of
> being as polished as Xlobby.

I'm no hardware know-it-all, so I'm not aware of a device a little bigger
than a PDA.  However, to have a unified front end, you need a GUI with a
flexible back end.  Xlobby does do this (on a PC screen and a PDA screen),
and can interface with almost anything.  There's nothing that will just
work though.  It will require some work to get it right.  Of course, if
everything is xAP/xPL, you should be able to plug'n'play, especially with
the xAP interface in the pipeline for Xlobby.

Cheers,
Andy
--
http://www.andylaurence.co.uk