Topics

16

Developers / Experienced User seeks dev assisting work

« on: March 20, 2013, 02:27:56 pm »

I doubt I require much introduction...

My first linuxmce experience was 7.04, if my math is not too far off that would be approximately 5.5 years ago.  I have taken several breaks from regular forum interaction but for the most part have maintained some form of working system all of this time.  Due primarily to my financial limitations I have dug probably quite a bit deeper into the inner workings of the project in attempts to do the unsupported or use ancient hardware.  I have donated on occasion, gone through periods of heavy testing and reporting, skinned, wiki updating, etc, but I do not feel I have contributed at all compared to the massive effort this project requires.

Parcel delivery depending, this week will mark an important milestorm for me.  With the delivery of my z-wave thermostat I will have finally populated all of the major orbiter rows, and with a little more time to troubleshoot my VOIP account should be able to place my first call using my recently delivered cisco 7970.  Future expansion of my system at this point is limited by my available gig ports and the lack of any true need to expand beyond 4 AV rooms, 3 audio areas, and a scattering of other lights, security, climate, automation devices.

I am ready to contribute. 

I have coding skills...   My experience with linuxmce as I said has been a lot of figuring things out that others (without backgrounds in programing) might not have bothered with.  I have put together very rudimentary scripts and made them exicutible using googled bash commands,  I now own several books on programing that I am very clear on the systematic result orientated mindset of C++.  In other words I know what I want a program to do, I know the input and the output, I understand how to define the necessary formulas (and possibly databases to store and recall portions).  Regretably though I can not make the progression into programing.  Possibly beyond the unfamiliar commands, I become stuck in command thinking when I am faced with addressing hardware via hardware.  Yes, a keyboard is input & a monitor is output, depending on the keypress a circuit is closed on specific pins of a chip that understand NO becoming NC means the user pressed "a".  To then imagine that input as a value which can be added to the screen, combined to string an instruction or anything else just makes my head spin.

I would require so much assistance in completing basic development that my participation could actually decrease productivity on the project.  This is my limitiation and my honest approach to offering my assistance, if through continued breakthroughs that changes I will happily mention so and take on a few time-consuming tasks to free you gentlemen up.  In the meantime though I am able to assist in any way possible and request that to come to me for anything you feel I am capable of assisting with.  Even to use me as a whiteboard or to get my opinion on appearance or possible avenues for improvements.

Thank you all once again for the years of hard work that has given me such enjoyment.  I look forward to becoming more of an asset to the project were able.

jeremy mcdiarmid 

17

Users / Respond to event that acts as a custom scenario

« on: March 20, 2013, 01:40:56 pm »

I have read quite a few topics here regarding advanced scenario creation and some information on event criteria however, the challenge I currently face seems to require the control parameters of both.

My D-Link 930L is night-blind.  As a otherwise very reliable wireless camera (from sunset to sunrise) it lacks the ability to see little more than headlights in the evenings.  Instead of replacing it or pulling a piece of AV equipment off of a capture card I decided a good solution would be to install a generic floodlight in that area.  -Interesting how uncommon a 'plain' fixture is, I actually saved money by buying a dusk/dawn sensitive unit and rewiring it to bypass that circuit and connect with a grounded plug to a standard Z-Wave recepticle.
This direct wiring gives me more control over the light setting as I also have a motion detector in the area.  Once configured I can hopefully link the motion detector, light and camera, but still be able to create individual Lighting and Security Scenes. 

Interfaces = Aeon Labs Z-Stick, X10 Technologies CM15A
Lights = Z-Wave Recepticle (named Flood Lights)
Security = M16 X10 Motion Detector
Room = Driveway

Working Events and Scenes:
event: sensor is tripped/security mode check/turn on light
scene: flood light on, flood light off (available on all orbiters)
auto generated: security scene Driveway (camera view)

Desired Event Details:  Regardless of current light status, I would like "begin viewing camera" to fire the light on command to this device.  Likewise an event of "stop viewing camera" should send the off command.  - for simplicity of this event I didnt want to add check for current light status although it would be easy with z-wave.  I also didn't want commands taking too long to poll, compare, respond when I just want the area illuminated when the camera view screen comes up.    

I have not been able to associate viewing the camera with the state if this light.  Regardless of sunset/sunrise and adding devices using the advanced or lighting wizard the single_cam_view pk_screen as specific media does not allow me to send a command to device.

How is viewing of a security camera acknowledged by dcerouter if it is not media?  Because it gets the video through a browser interface I considered tying this event to firefox but could not define a specific site as criteria.  Has anyone successfully handled such an event outside of GSD? 

Note about the motion detector:  Though it may seem odd at first, the motion detector in this area does not actually point in the direction of the driveway and does not detect persons approaching the door.  The front door to my home is a patio door on a breezeway.  Guests are welcome to enter through this door where a more secure door await out of the weather.  When designing our system it was decided that a "security event" should be (of course based on house status) held back until a person actually begins to enter the home and passes the first door.

18

Installation issues / manual MD manipulation

« on: March 17, 2013, 01:26:19 am »

I have a troublesome Media Director I am trying to get working.  I realize that my problems are caused by attempting to use my existing hardware in that room and its limited connectivity.  If I spent a couple hundred on a decent TV I know this card/hardware will output audio via DVI to HDMI cable easily.

Environment:  
Dell Inspiron 531S (onboard video via VGA bios disabled), XFX HD 4350 PCIe (DVI, VGA, S-Video), RCA P52955 (ancient rear projection TV limited to S-video input), Denon AVR-1082 (S-Video capable of overlaying vol, etc on its monitor out S-Video), USB-UIRT 0038

Desired Setup:  Typical newboot environment and ACPI functions, output from MD being S-Video and 5.1 audio via multiple 3.5mm jacks to RCA multichannel inputs of the Denon, USB-UIRT sending IR commands "on/off" to RCA TV since it is only a monitor, IR commands to Denon which will announce changes with its' own on-screen overlays.  

Future Plans:  
I would like to be able to add additional AV pieces to this location and use the Denon's inputs and multiple output options, ie - lmce ir controlled VCR connects to AV1 on denon which outputs rca AV to a capture card.  I have a fairly small house and few users so the chances that more than one piece of AV gear is needed from this location are slight.  If that changes I would move the AV gear to the server rack and add a capture device for each to the core or MD.



"Shoot Me in the Face" Issues:    
AV Wizard crashes and does not produce a xorg.conf.
I likely have problems due to aticonfig/flgrx problems, multiple graphics cards being present, S-Video passing bad EDID information during setup, etc.
Rebuilting/reconfiguring this MD via web-admin or ssh has resulted in several broken installs that I have had to delete.  These additions although gone from web-admin and orbiters are still present in tftboot type locations and pluto-main under the MAC address.  
I would say that I am very familiar with the lmce environment, vague on basic linux environments and admittedly clueless on coding/programming.

Current Configuration:
To get media to that location I am booting the Dell via GeexBox on USB.  This loads a setting saveable XMBC interface which accesses media on the lmce network via SMB shares.  I have not been able to get IR commands working but I am not investing time and research into other software when I could be working on/learning lmce better.


/breath


What I would like to setup and and am hoping for help on:

Copy init, xorg, boot, etc configuration from the working USB and implant it into lmce under /usr/pluto/diskless/, tftboot and related locations.
Again, if I could code I would figure out what is breaking and fix it to make this a supported setup.  What I have though is a working configuration and a desire to patch it into a semi-supported server/client core/md setup.

After backing up lmce and then cloning my core just to be complete, I plan to boot this dell as an MD which will then generate all the needed folders and devices.  After it fails I then want to open /usr/pluto/diskless/ and begin replacing items and overwriting configurations to match what works under GeexBox.  With what hopefully are non-system breaking changes I hope to boot this equipment under lmce and get full MD capabilities.  More than likely I will need to set up this moon### with unique and unsupported boot scripts to avoid having these bandaids detected and overwritten.

I am currently looking for guidance in getting started on this, specifically if you were attempting the same what settings would you move over and how would you go about it?  Once I have a start I will be on my own to google, wiki, study, etc until I am capable to ./make and compile the necessary changes myself.
Following my success and psuedo-coding I will share the what-works with the devs for their consideration and review.  Perhaps something I discover may be helpful in making troublesome hardware work more smoothly ootb in future releases...  

19

Installation issues / DB-9 to RS-232 assistance (process initialize)

« on: February 27, 2013, 10:20:23 pm »

Control:
MD Serial port 0
Sharp LCD TV - RS-232 port

Audio:
out - MD HD Intel 3.5mm
in - Sharp LCD TV - 3.5mm (paired with video signal from HDMI 6)
out - Sharp LCD TV - Red & White phono jacks
in - Sony STR-K850 Receiver

My TV responds to PWR1 commands and all other commands such as change input, volume etc.  Occassionally however although the TV's onscreen display registers volume changes, the speaker volume does not change. 

There is a setting on the TV that changes audio output from fixed to variable which I have selected.  This when working is preferable as I can see on-screen evidence that my command was received.  Though I am sure it is more technical, it seems as though the TV is sending audio at different volume? to the receiver, making the volume at the 5.1 speakers go up or down without the receiver volume setting changing.

Through the resend A/V codes menu I have found that when the on-screen displayed volume does not move with the speaker volume, I can send the code "process initialize" to re-sync everything.  Sending this code resets the TV onscreen display volume to 24 and for the next few hours makes the audio commands work as desired.  This does not fix it permanently however and I hate pressing buttons I don't understand like this.  Is anyone familiar with A/V console commands who could offer me some assistance or explanation of what "process initialize" is actually doing?

Thank you.

20

Users / [Solved] Generic USB gamepad - mirrors remote?

« on: February 26, 2013, 12:41:29 am »

I have on one of my media directors the following USB devices properly working.  I believe my issue may be with button mapping or with improper installation due to multiple gamepads being connected.

Gyration GY3101 USB remote dongle
USB Bluetooth Dongle (not currently paired with anything)
USB-UIRT 0038 - sending IR to Sony STR-K850 Receiver
Serial1 - connects to Sharp Aquos TV via RS-232

Connected a USB wired (GameStop branded) Xbox 360 controller.  I found the analogs to be far to sensitive for gameplay so I detached the gamepad and deleted the device.

A mistake was made here as I didn't reload router.

I then connected a "USB GAMEPAD" Gamers Factory model G60310A.
My issue now is that the gamepad behaves like a remote and I can not remap buttons in a fashion that does not bring up my onscreen UI.  While I imagine I could play Atari games that only need 1 command button, I am unable to play anything that requires a second.  "Jump" button bringing up the UI, etc.

I am willing to help any way that I can by either creating a specific template and PnP detection range for this model or experiment with usb_gamepad button mapping.  Meanwhile though I am looking to purchase a 2 or 3 button gamepad to enjoy the older systems that did not include analog joysticks and need of advanced features like accelerometers and 10+ triggers.  Would someone please recommend one, or an adapter I could use to connect any of my retro controllers via USB.  Quite literally I have over 30 different retro game systems with the original controllers in my personal collection.

21

Users / Episode lists

« on: February 19, 2013, 03:06:49 am »

Looking for a little assistance with tagging episodes under a single title in my on-screen video orbiters.

/home/public/data/video/931.25GB/Breaking Bad Season 1/

Is my file location where I have several .avi files.  To get each episode to show the Season 1 DVD cover art I applied the amazon tags recursively.  What I would prefer is to have the entire season show up in the primary videos data grid as a single entry that would expand when selected like a CD would with its track listing.

How have others tagged multi-episode grouped shows?  I 'acquired' these files so they are in .avi format.  I imagine that if I personally ripped them from a DVD box set then 3-4 episodes would show up as Season 1, Disc 1,  how could each DVD then be joined?

22

Installation issues / Multiple sound cards, selected at random?

« on: February 04, 2013, 09:20:58 am »

Hello again everyone!

I am still as I posted in my last visits as busy as ever.  I actually decided for 2013 to make my little tinkering projects my business and got serious about advertising myself as an IT Tech and custom builder.  Old timers to the forums who have been done wrong when someone gets $ for eyeballs should know I don't sell or even mention LMCE to my customers.  I didn't build it, I understand it enough to keep my own equipment running and it's bad business all around.

I haven't been around much so tossing this problem out and hoping someone had a few spare minutes to look it over.  I am troubleshooting it slowly but my only fix currently impacts other parts of my installation.

Hybrid/Core - ancient 2 Xeon server. Works great
MD1 - dell Desktop, (Inspiron?) it's the small white PCIe/SATA model and runs great and quiet
Squeezebox - installing this kills audio on my hybrid.  So I assume it must grab an available sound card anywhere on eth1 network and use that?

Reinstall
Hybrid up
MD1 added
MD2 brought up with 4 sound cards (intel onboard + 3 pci soundblasters)
Squeezebox up and works.

MD2 however randomly changes its audio output from the onboard intel analog to the 3rd SB digital.  This happens quite often and I have not found a way to lock its output down.
Further and this occurs regardless of the squeezebox being added, mythTV is choosing an output seperate from the rest of the system.  I can watch a movie or play audio/get security alerts but to hear anything from the tv I have to go to the MD and plug/unplug until I hear something.

- pull extra sound cards out means no squeezebox
- I can not add these SB to my hybrid and make it a silent headless as its pci ports are not notched the same (3.5V vs 5V or something)
- I could run a 3.5mm cable from a SB output to the squeezebox line-in but as far as I can tell that disables all control and makes it a amplified speaker only.

I am beyond my annoying insistence on hacking together old hardware to make it work.  In this case if a better method than multiple sound cards keeps the squeezebox playing in the kitchen I will do it!

23

Users / Rumplestilsken

« on: November 17, 2012, 10:31:03 am »

/yawn
/stretch

"what'd I miss?"

 


Is l3mce still breaking anything with hdmi or ___Bridge in the description?  Is tschak909 still plugging away at game-plugin and occasional chiming in on forum threads with brutally accurate bluntness?  I hope so!

I have quite a few pages of unreads to go through, my list of projects to locate, etc but I should be back in full form here in a few days.  My install was from a late August snapshot and appears to work fine (other than no audio on hybrid, which doesn't matter too much as that machine should be headless anyways).  Is there or was there significant changes since August to warrant a reinstall?

24

Developers / Redetection - GYR3103US & Sharp Aquos via RS232

« on: October 07, 2012, 11:41:01 am »

This is not a new topic and although I have not checked I am sure it has been bug reported previously. 

I am willing to do the work on these I just need a little help getting pointed in the right direction so that I understand what is causing the problem.  Once I know the cause (or methods to determine cause) I can experiment with fixes until I have something that works and is shareable.  These are two of my favorite LMCE devices and it's so frustrating of a problem I have them sitting in storage so I won't be tempted into plugging them in.

Both of these devices once connected to LMCE go into a re-detection loop where I am constantly prompted to reload the router.  I can deal with on occasion seeing the message in the top left corner while watching media about "finding" something that has long been there but not full screen messages that a reload is required every 5 minutes.  Yes literally every 5 minutes.

In the case of the remote I think it has to do with the detection properties which I believe is the responsibility of HAL and uses the device data different templates list for recognition.  In the event of my GYR3103US, it is detected and installed as a GC1005.  The remote works with this template, and the gyro functions are better than any other device I have tried.  I don't know if the media buttons work because as I said, it forces a reload router prompt before I can get a chance to press them.  What I think is going on is that after installing as a GC1005 (air-mouse?) it realizes that is has the wrong template, or suddenly detects it 'again' as a GYR3103 and attempts to correct the issue.  I could hardcode my detection .sh or change my PNP fields under device data but that would not help anyone else with this issue.  I may need to find the old Fiire Remote template or rebuild the "**Obsolete** GYR3103"  which is still available in devices.  Does any of this sound like a proper path to resolution?

The next device that has the exact same behavior in my setup is my Sharp Aquos 46" TV.  It is apparent to me that someone has done some updating to this template as I first got this TV a little over 4 years ago when I first tried 8.10.  At that time connecting the TV via RS232 resulted in Sara popping up and saying that she found a Sharp LCD.  When I went into the next step however my input was not listed.  Understanding LMCE now a lot better than I did then I realize that the template must have been created on a similar model but not my exact one.  Now 4 years later when I plug in the same TV to a 10.04 installation I do have all of my ports available during setup-wizard and the RS232 commands are able to control the TV.  However just like the remote above, the price for complete connectivity is once again disappointment as the TV 'redetects' itself every 5-10 minutes and instead of going to a reload prompt it takes me to the detection screen where I see " I found a new device "SHARP AQUOS LCD" I think it's in ____ shall I use it?"  This may actually be a serial port issue and I hate troubleshooting serial connections, if the port on my MB is failing, I could do a USB-to-RS232 version of the AQUOS template and add my specific model number?

Simple solutions I will try first before starting from scratch:
Add device data, do not prompt, use immediately, allowed to modify, required, do not use master device data
Add device data, configure without notification, required, do not use master device data

Drastic but should work for everyone with a similar issue:
Disable HAL/PnP engine command from terminal.  I know it kills the smart home idea of buying a device and having LMCE detect it the moment you walk through the door with it powered on, but for issues like this all I would need to do is toggle the HAL/PnP engine back on when I want to be in detect mode.

25

Users / Slim Server Streamer - audio file format?

« on: October 06, 2012, 10:34:37 pm »

I am having some issues with my Squeezebox player since adding media to my core.

I went through my various drives scattered around the house and put all my audio together.  I then opened the shared directory of my core from an Ubuntu 10.04 machine which is connected to the internal network but not as a non-pluto machine. (ip > :.:.80.129).  This audio was in various formats including .mp3, .mp4, and whatever crazy format the iphone uses and Rhapsody converts it to.

When using an orbiter to send audio to the Squeezebox I see my full audio list and I can load playlists, control volume, play all, etc.  The issue is that each track attempts to play for about 3 seconds then moves to the next.  At first I suspected I didn't completely transfer the media and ended up with a core full of dead links.  This is was disproven though as I can play all of these files through other media directors in my home.

I have not checked the Squeezebox Player compatable audio file types as I assumed that the core would handle any needed transcoding necessary to feed its devices.  I would like to ask those who understand LMCE better.  How does the Slim Server Streamer and its child devices access media on the core, where is the decoding performed?  I have just installed 3 PCI Sound Blaster cards in my main (always on) media director and if possible I could designate one of those cards as a dedicated decoder for my Squeeze devices if necessary.

-On a similar topic related to my extra sound cards.  Could someone provide simple instructions on either setting up new Entertain Areas or separate audio zones to take advantage of these cards?  The instructions on the wiki are quite long and I worry may be outdated.  The purpose of these cards is to send unique audio from that media director to a simple stereo and out to locations I don't want electronics other than speakers.

[[ Media Director    | SB Live! |  SB Live! |  SB Live! ]]
                                |              |               |
                          [  stereo ]   [ stereo ]    [ stereo ] - eventually a multichannel stereo
                                |              |               |
             [patio speakers]     [ ent. area ]    [ bathroom speakers ] 

26

Users / Status/Progress/Vital Signs/Updates... etc

« on: September 26, 2012, 03:07:52 pm »

Tehbard and Armorgnome are alive. 

Neither of us are the type to fizzle away or retire to inactivity, sorry but you are all stuck with us!

In all seriousness I really enjoy having my little niche (old hardware, does things the hard way, willing to test, looking to overturn every 0 and 1 of LMCE until I can join the -devel and bother L3top) and the last month I really haven't been doing any of those things.

About a month ago now three pretty big changes happened at tehbard's house; income!, availability of new hardware, an improved internet connection.  Soon afterwards tehbard started showing more interest in the software and got to where his questions were pointed and technical. I pointed him towards the forums.  It had always surprised me that he wasn't more interested.  Looking back at the last couple months I must admit watching someone read code and review hardware all day while continuously bringing in junk computers with the hope of getting media to more locations than my bedroom only to fail and get moody... would not be too awful appealing.  On top of that I constantly talked about "could" and "eventually." 

  > tehBard, "Thanks for not throwing me out. LOL"

As it is much more appropriate for me to provide details on my wiki page than to list everything here I will just explain that my absence from constant testing, breaking, reporting and forum activity is not an indication of inactivity.  It is honestly the lack of time I have now that devices are being added, configured and put into use around the house at a rate that makes "the grand tour" appropriate for even frequent guests.  As I take time to provide this update, I am sure the dry erase board of "parts" and "to-do" is getting new entries.

For those I know well and would be interested in knowing.  Updates have just finished running on our second active LMCE 10.04 core.  TehBard has dedicated two of his PowerEdge machines to template creation and general dev duty.  Their architecture is very similar to our active core so it allows him to "break to fix" so that we know exactly how to add these devices to our main network.  As long as we stay on top of keeping that environment current and maintain frequent backups I hope to get into some new template/device/support writing very soon.

Until I run out of dry erase marker or devices to implement or take to Goodwill feel free to drop me a PM or ping me on IRC.  User armorgnome or tehbard.

-current projects,

                        AG : Replace multiple small switches with cisco catalyst 24port - lost in minicom land =/
                               Retro-wire the property and establish new ent. area and rooms
                               Haul away old components and devices that wont work or are not worth the effort
                               Fix CM15a
                               Finish passive cooling system on the server cabinet, expand beyond 21U hopefully
                               Move choice drives to the new NAS chassis, haul away IDE and small SATA drives
                               Home Improvements, general modernization even if not automation at this time
                               GYR3103-US chain reload router problem (gcm1005)
                               Help with StorageDevicesRadar

                  tehBard: Hand telecom duties off to a stand alone FreePBX box, maintain Asterisk a.m.a.p.
                               Develop code for AXXIUM and HP UPS systems, GSD preferably
                               Test CM15a and MS16a - 
                               Evaluate benefits for 1-wire, KNX or proprietary options.
                               Study LMCE and resolve best methods for adding new PLC functions and support
                               "something about a TPM module?" not sure as it seems to be a sore subject
                               As the property owner, have the final say on lights, automation, power usage etc
                               Continue to watch trac tickets and help if possible

27

Installation issues / GC-100-12 Detection

« on: September 19, 2012, 08:41:04 am »

I just received my < 3.0 firmware GC-100-12 and am having a rough time getting it connected.  Here is my setup.

Core (eth1) 192.168.80.1 > 5 port 10/100/1000 switch > GC-100-12.

Attempt 1:

Power off and unplug network cable from GC. Shorted pins 2&7 on first serial port while power was plugged in.  I got the light on sensor 1 flash, then all lights flash, then all lights off.  Powered off device, attached network cables as above and powered on the GC.  From orbiter I used "add GC-100" and it failed.

Attempt 2:

Concerned it was not working or my cable might be bad I grabbed a laptop and a router off the lmce network.  Changed the router to 192.168.1.254 and set range of IP to 2-253.  Connected GC-100-12 and noted it did not show up as a connected device. I entered 192.168.1.70 into the laptop browser and ta-da, global cache web browser!  At least I know it's working.  Now being the armorgnome everyone knows I tried "forcing it" by changing the network ip to .80.100, subnet 255.255.255.0 and gateway 80.1.  I applied settings and returned it to my lmce network.  Nothing...  No detection, no lease given, not able to enter 80.100 into a browser and see it.

Attempt 3:

I contacted Global Cache and requested a test, repair, upgrade quote.  No reply yet.  I will redo the factory reset method again and look at the detection script.  Perhaps even note the MAC and put that into a modified "add gc100" script though that would screw up adding other gc's if I like it and want more.

Help Request:

Add GC100 posts and wiki information goes back to the archives and often confuses me even more.  Could someone who has added a pre-3.0 firmware GC-100-12 in 10.04 provide their methods?  If I get it working I will get with the wiki group about updating the instructions.

28

Feature requests & roadmap / Auto-Follow Me?

« on: September 12, 2012, 09:53:34 am »

I just played around with Follow-Me for the first time and wow, THAT is something I want to show off to friends!  With a single button press I can send music from my room to the kitchen squeezebox.  As I add more media directors the Follow-Me features will be even nicer.

As smooth as it is to tap room on the main orbiter page, I am curious about how this can be made completely button-less and automagical.

If I understand correctly, and please provide me the details otherwise, there was once a working automatic follow-me function based on the strength of a carried bluetooth transmitter such as a mobile phone and the nearest media director.  I believe I read that this feature is no longer supported as the author stopped ... (something).  I also believe that currently there is no way with bluetooth devices for my home to distinguish which room I am in automatically?

Not being familiar with Follow-Me or bluetooth technology details I like would like to request some information so that I can investigate some possibilities and possibly posting in the Help Wanted Section for someone to write some necessary features in.

What I want to achieve:
Automatic Follow-Me of media and updates as I move between rooms. -cell phone seems easiest but carrying an Orbiter is an option
Intelligent (well conceived) logic that differentiates between me and my roommate.
Intelligent (well conceived) rules about over-riding media playback of follow-me when I enter a room my roommate is already in.

Ideas on Implementation:
Can class 3 Bluetooth devices be strung around an area via USB?  I am sure somewhere I can buy a case of extremely poor quality bluetooth dongles that only have the 1m connection range.   In an area such as a kitchen I could place several of these tiny dongles under counter-top ledges.  For HomeTheater / Living room areas I could place them between couch cushions etc...

Based on PIR detection (x-10, Z-Wave, etc) most of my sensors and I imagine most everyones are serving a security purpose or for control of lighting devices.  For my personal Follow-Me rules or anyone else who perhaps lives alone or has a SWMBO who doesn't want Follow-Me a special security/lighting setting could exist to allow for Follow-me.  If I am listed as at-home (not armed, not entertaining, not sleeping) then make each area with PIR or recent motion my active room?

As I described the above setting I have higher hopes of getting this working although unfortunately using that method I am sure my roommate would quickly get annoyed at my new automagic detection and of course, the ability to override his media with my own haha.

I am interested in other's ideas and configurations along these lines though.  Since follow me is already a single button press feature once "F" on floorplan is active, I cant help but think there might exist a way to make it automagic.
 

29

Users / "Mostly" Headless Core?

« on: September 11, 2012, 09:08:38 am »

I have acquired my new core and for a few hours a day have been powering down my current hybrid and getting a feel for the new machine.  The process has been really smooth so far as the media directors in my home don't mind having their image rebuilt for a new machine, "most of my network gear either waits for IPs or announce themselves to the location (80.1).  I will do my external devices next to last as the external network ip is different and I need to chane some things such as port forwarding.

My question is.  After I gimp my way through mythtv set up on the new server, could I then create a semi-headless core by removing the onscreen orbiter and occasionally use it for admin site, browser, and IRC? 



The I/O improvements are astonishing, though I can see weak areas where the server's tiny GPU slows total system processes back down.  Regening orbiters if I understand it correctly is handled by the core and I haven't migrated enough of those to the new system to see what happens when a new device addition requires 8 regens...  I also haven't had it running long enough to check top or uptime as it mounts about 18 inches from my bed...

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Users / Transfer core to new physical machine>

« on: September 09, 2012, 11:56:39 pm »

(blah blah's eliminated)

Statements:

Acquired a SuperMicro P4DP8-G2 (2 dual core xeons, 6G ram, 900ish GB raid 5, OS on 40GB separate boot drive, clean)

Ran DVD installer on it and made it through everything without issue, using UI1 of course

Accidentally rebooted via PXE into existing lmce network

Current core recognized it as a Media Director with a large file share.

Disconnected it and removed it from current core devices - mythtv setup had to be rerun as it wanted to write to that array


Questions:

Is there a supported method for transferring core duties and databases to another machine from my current core?

            - (most of my devices install quickly but MD rebuilding with some custom xorg files would need to be redone)

Will installing a 32bit PCI graphics card in one of my 64bit PCI-X slots slow the bus speed of my 3ware raid controller?

           - (working fine as a hybrid/core currently on ATI Rage XL, though I haven't tried mythtv backend setup, I have access to
            a few cheap 32bit PCI nvidia and ati cards)

If I installed a few PCI-X network cards into this machine, could they connect to two other MD machines in the rack? 
 
          - (current nics are eth0 in from external, eth1 out to external switch) I want to save switch ports if able and let the new
            core talk direct to nearby network devices on additional NIC cards.  2-4 port gig NIC PCI-X cards are easier for me to get
            than gig switches through my vendor)

Can my existing core once wiped as setup as MD + network share, also handle mythtv backend duty?

         - (I have quite a few SATA drives on this machine and do not have any issues leaving it on 24/7 in the rack with the new core)