Author Topic: Dianemo from CHT - Professional Home Automation  (Read 359875 times)

wombiroller

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Re: Dianemo & Cascade Systems from CHT - Now Shipping World Wide
« Reply #90 on: July 18, 2010, 10:27:54 am »
Hi WR,

Firstly this type of 'off-topic' question would be best posted in this thread in future ; http://forum.linuxmce.org/index.php?topic=8880.msg60443#msg60443
Umm - isn't that this thread ???

The problem is mkv is a container format and can contain a range of encapsulations - many are used in torrent downloads to minimise files sizes etc. We dont see supporting those encapsulations as a mainstream requirement in our Cascade/Dianemo systems and we do no promote or support the playback of this type of media as a company.
Fair enough, though I would have thought it is going to be more and more common (as with my friends example for converting his collection).

The legality is one issue and the other is the headaches we would experience supporting customers to an acceptable level. Reliability & stability is always at the top of our list - if you sell a system to someone then its has to be reliable over everything else.
Not sure how there can be legality issues with supporting encapsulations/codecs....Just like any other format, just because it can be used for illegal purposes - doesn't mean there are not plenty of legal uses.

We are expecting to add BluRay support before the end of this year however as this capability is maturing nicely now under Linux.
That might help - thx.

Anyway - understand it isn't easy - was just posing the question. Thanks for the reply.  :)

Cheers,
WR.


« Last Edit: July 18, 2010, 10:54:03 am by wombiroller »

totallymaxed

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Re: Dianemo & Cascade Systems from CHT - Now Shipping World Wide
« Reply #91 on: July 18, 2010, 11:44:16 am »
Hi WR,

Firstly this type of 'off-topic' question would be best posted in this thread in future ; http://forum.linuxmce.org/index.php?topic=8880.msg60443#msg60443
Umm - isn't that this thread ???
Oops you right... sorry I was replying to someone else at the same time and must have pasted that into the wrong tab!
Quote

The problem is mkv is a container format and can contain a range of encapsulations - many are used in torrent downloads to minimise files sizes etc. We dont see supporting those encapsulations as a mainstream requirement in our Cascade/Dianemo systems and we do no promote or support the playback of this type of media as a company.
Fair enough, though I would have thought it is going to be more and more common (as with my friends example for converting his collection).
Well possibly. But to be frank the vast majority of customers are not asking for this. The most requested capability we get asked for is BluRay in drive playback and to a lesser extent the ability to rip BluRay discs.
Quote

The legality is one issue and the other is the headaches we would experience supporting customers to an acceptable level. Reliability & stability is always at the top of our list - if you sell a system to someone then its has to be reliable over everything else.
Not sure how there can be legality issues with supporting encapsulations/codecs....Just like any other format, just because it can be used for illegal purposes - doesn't mean there are not plenty of legal uses.
Well thats of course true. But if a customer is creating content outside our system in one of these encapsulation formats then we cannot know its origin or be sure of our ability to properly support the playback of the format. When we can support the internal capability to encode or transcode in these formats then we will also support their playback. In that latter scenario we then know for sure that the encode/transcode process is matched to our ability to playback that content.
Quote

We are expecting to add BluRay support before the end of this year however as this capability is maturing nicely now under Linux.
That might help - thx.

Anyway - understand it isn't easy - was just posing the question. Thanks for the reply.  :)

Cheers,
WR.

When we support BluRay playback we will also likely support ripping too shortly after and it is at that time that we may support the option to transcode into another encapsulation format. I say might as this decision is still not taken as for the most part what customers are asking for is full quality BluRay playback and in almost every case transcoding trades-off some picture quality to reduce the footprint of the rip.

All the best


Andrew
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totallymaxed

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Sky Box 2-way Control now available in Cascade & Dianemo
« Reply #92 on: July 21, 2010, 07:47:10 pm »
Our Sky STB support has just been updated to enable us to display the Sky Box 'state' info emitted from the Sky boxes rs232 port. The Sky box is controlled either by IR or by injecting control commands into the Sky boxes RF2 video port and the channel number, channel name, program name, start time and program information is returned in real-time over the Sky boxes rs232 port. The data that is emitted from the RS232 port is;

channel number
channel name
program name
start time & current time
program information

On the Orbiters screen a fixed information panel then relays back the current active program information. Our update to our Sky Control package will deliver this info to the touch based controllers ie when you select a SkyHD box from your iPad you will see displayed on it screen the information relating to Sky box being controlled.

This update willl be a major upgrade to our Sky user experience and will be free to existing customers and included as standard on new systems shipped after Aug 1st.

This update is compatible with UK Sky Digibox, Sky+ & SkyHD STB's.
Andy Herron,
CHT Ltd

For Dianemo/LinuxMCE consulting advice;
@herron on Twitter, totallymaxed+inquiries@gmail.com via email or PM me here.

Get Dianemo-Rpi2 ARM Licenses http://forum.linuxmce.org/index.php?topic=14026.0

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totallymaxed

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New Free iPhone, iPod Touch & iPad Orbiter App available in early Nov
« Reply #93 on: October 09, 2010, 03:20:13 pm »
We will be releasing an iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad Orbiter App for Dianemo in early Nov. The App will be a free download from the Apple App store. This new App is about 40% faster than the existing Web Orbiter 2.0 running in Safari and runs full screen on all iOS devices.

New Cascade & Dianemo systems will ship with support for the new Orbiter 2.0 App built. Existing customers will get an update pushed to their systems to update them to support the new iOS Orbiter 2.0

We will post an update here when the Orbiter 2.0 becomes available from the App store.

All the best


Andrew
Andy Herron,
CHT Ltd

For Dianemo/LinuxMCE consulting advice;
@herron on Twitter, totallymaxed+inquiries@gmail.com via email or PM me here.

Get Dianemo-Rpi2 ARM Licenses http://forum.linuxmce.org/index.php?topic=14026.0

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RayBe

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Re: Dianemo & Cascade Systems from CHT - Now Shipping World Wide
« Reply #94 on: October 10, 2010, 11:33:54 am »
Andrew,

great news!
does it also use the same proxy_orbiter as the weborbiter 2.0?
is this http://wiki.linuxmce.org/index.php/RoamingOrb the same thing or do you guys have your own version?

can you post some teaser screenschots :)?

thanks a lot,
br,
Raymond
« Last Edit: October 10, 2010, 11:41:07 am by RayBe »
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totallymaxed

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Re: Dianemo & Cascade Systems from CHT - Now Shipping World Wide
« Reply #95 on: October 10, 2010, 12:43:09 pm »
Andrew,

great news!
does it also use the same proxy_orbiter as the weborbiter 2.0?
is this http://wiki.linuxmce.org/index.php/RoamingOrb the same thing or do you guys have your own version?

can you post some teaser screenschots :)?

thanks a lot,
br,
Raymond

Hi Raymond,

Yes the current proxy_orbiter is used with the iOS Orbiter - all our future Orbiters will be coupled to proxy_orbiter or enhanced versions of it. iOS Orbiter is itself based broadly on the ideas and code in Touch Orbiter. We plan to enhance proxy_orbiter over time to support new UI capabilities and iOS Orbiter (and other Touch Orbiter based Orbiters) will be updated to exploit these new features as they are available. The ultimate objective is to be able to exploit increasing amounts of the local devices UI capabilities in the Orbiter ie dynamically scrolling or swipe scrolling a media list.

Our iOS Orbiter is based on the same code as RoamingOrb and Foxi352 is the lead developer of both versions - and he has done a fantastic job I have to say. Foxi352 will continue to be the lead developer and the two versions will continue to share many commonalities but our iOS Orbiter will diverge in some areas where we have slightly different requirements or needs. But I expect that both versions will remain broadly compatible for the immediate future - but if your connecting our iOS Orbiter to a Cascade/Dianemo system then you will probably see some additional features/capabilities in the future that are not available in the RoamingOrb.

As for screen shots...well on a Cascade/Dianemo system it looks just like the current Orbiters do except that it runs full screen (ie there is not menu bar at the top of the screen). Performance wise it is about 40% faster overall and importantly will allow us to do some cool integration on iOS with other Apps etc in the future.

The App will be free for download by either our Cascade/Dianemo customers, LinuxMCE users or indeed anyone with an iOS device.

All the best


Andrew
Andy Herron,
CHT Ltd

For Dianemo/LinuxMCE consulting advice;
@herron on Twitter, totallymaxed+inquiries@gmail.com via email or PM me here.

Get Dianemo-Rpi2 ARM Licenses http://forum.linuxmce.org/index.php?topic=14026.0

Get RaspSqueeze-CEC or Raspbmc-CEC for Dianemo/LinuxMCE: http://wp.me/P4KgIc-5P

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http://www.dianemo.co.uk

brake16

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Re: Dianemo & Cascade Systems from CHT - Now Shipping World Wide
« Reply #96 on: November 22, 2010, 04:49:19 am »
Andrew

A few questions about the NerveCentres. 

NC30
  • Will it be upgradeable to 10.04 when available?
  • How is it limited to up to 2 Media Managers?  Is it by on-board NICs?  Couldn't more than 2 be added by using a switch?
  • Similarly, how is it limited to 2 iPad/etc?  Why won't 3 or more work?

Are there any differences between the NC300 and the NC200R besides these:
  • 300 - standalone; 200R - rackmount
  • 200R - 7" LCD panel
  • 200R - bonus expansion pack (DVB kits or ZWave kit)

How much is shipping across the pond?
I've seen a few references to 7.10/8.10/9.10.  Which is the current standard for Cascade systems?

Thanks
Bryce
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totallymaxed

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Re: Dianemo & Cascade Systems from CHT - Now Shipping World Wide
« Reply #97 on: November 22, 2010, 07:46:57 am »
    Andrew

    A few questions about the NerveCentres.  

    NC30
    • Will it be upgradeable to 10.04 when available?
    Re Above
    Yes it will.
    Quote
    • How is it limited to up to 2 Media Managers?  Is it by on-board NICs?  Couldn't more than 2 be added by using a switch?
    Re Above
    The NC30 ships with one on-board gigabit NIC and one USB 10/100 NIC (used for the WAN side connection). The MM's are always added via a network switch or switches. You can add as many MM's as you like. However the NC30 is optimised for smaller installations and to maintain adequate performance we suggest 2 MM's as optimal.
    Quote
    • Similarly, how is it limited to 2 iPad/etc?  Why won't 3 or more work?
    Re Above
    Again you can add as many iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch Orbiters as you like. There are no restrictions in adding more at all. However each MM & Orbiter you add will require more processing during a Regen and therefore to maintain reasonable Regen times etc we suggest 2 is optimal.
    [/list]
    Quote

    Are there any differences between the NC300 and the NC200R besides these:
    • 300 - standalone; 200R - rackmount
    • 200R - 7" LCD panel
    • 200R - bonus expansion pack (DVB kits or ZWave kit)
    The NC300 uses a new enclosure design which improves cooling & serviceability/access to internal upgrades. The NC300 also uses a different server grade motherboard to the NC200R in addition to the differences listed above. Both models are rack mountable by using a rack shelf.
    Quote
    How much is shipping across the pond?
    This varies by city/location. If you PM me your shipping address then I can confirm shipping costs to you.
    Quote
    I've seen a few references to 7.10/8.10/9.10.  Which is the current standard for Cascade systems?
    We currently ship our systems based on 7.10. But we have back ported most of the changes incorporated into the LinuxMCE 8.10 beta builds and there are also a range of updates/enhancements that we ship that have not been included in the LinuxMCE 8.10 builds yet.
    Quote

    Thanks
    Bryce

    No problem - hope the above answers all your questions.

    All the best


    Andrew
    « Last Edit: November 22, 2010, 05:09:14 pm by totallymaxed »
    Andy Herron,
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    For Dianemo/LinuxMCE consulting advice;
    @herron on Twitter, totallymaxed+inquiries@gmail.com via email or PM me here.

    Get Dianemo-Rpi2 ARM Licenses http://forum.linuxmce.org/index.php?topic=14026.0

    Get RaspSqueeze-CEC or Raspbmc-CEC for Dianemo/LinuxMCE: http://wp.me/P4KgIc-5P

    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dianemo-Home-Automation/226019387454465

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    brake16

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    Re: Dianemo & Cascade Systems from CHT - Now Shipping World Wide
    « Reply #98 on: November 22, 2010, 07:39:32 pm »
    Andrew

    Thanks for the answers.  I figured most others interested in Cascade would be interested in the answers so I put them as their own posting.  I apologize in advance for this next list of questions.  Feel free to take your time answering as there are a few more arcane ones in here.
    • Does Cascade support the Haupauge 1212?
    • Am I correct that the NC200R and the NC300 are solid cores, no hybrid function?
    • On at least one occasion, a reference is made to accessing Cascade through the internet.  Is DynamicDNS needed, or how is that handled?
    • I noticed that cameras were integrated into a Cascade system on Youtube.  Does Cascade support any alarm panels?
    • Along the same line, are smoke/heat detectors supported?
    • Are there certain cameras that are supported by Cascade, or any limitations on types/brands of cameras?
    • Same type of question on motion sensors?
    • Is there any sort of firewall filtering (ie: dansguardian or squid) implemented within Cascade?
    • Are phones implemented?  If so, any restrictions on VOIP carrier and/or hardware?  Currently I have ViaTalk.
    • Would Cascade use VOIP to call me during an alarm event?
    • Is fail2ban implemented in Cascade?
    • I see you have WebDT 362 listed as supported for orbiter.  Any word on WebDT 366?  I have one 366GX and two 366LXs.
    • I see many references to ZWave.  I thought I saw Insteon listed once, somewhere between the Cascade and Dianemo websites.  Are there issues with Insteon or is it fully supported?
    • Any projections about climate interaction?  I currently have Aprilaire components (thermostat, humidifier, external thermocouple).  Any ideas/comments?
    • Any ideas about supporting lawn irrigation?  I particularly like the idea of automatically turning on my sprinklers when some uninvited individual starts poking around my home in the middle of the night.
    • Is flash supported?
    • Is hulu supported?
    • Any support for any internet radio stations built into Cascade?

    Thanks
    Bryce
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    totallymaxed

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    Re: Dianemo & Cascade Systems from CHT - Now Shipping World Wide
    « Reply #99 on: November 22, 2010, 08:25:12 pm »
    Andrew

    Thanks for the answers.  I figured most others interested in Cascade would be interested in the answers so I put them as their own posting.  I apologize in advance for this next list of questions.  Feel free to take your time answering as there are a few more arcane ones in here.
    • Does Cascade support the Haupauge 1212?
    Re above - Yes insofar as MythTV supports it.
    Quote
    • Am I correct that the NC200R and the NC300 are solid cores, no hybrid function?
    Re Above - The NC200R & NC300 can be configured as Hybrid's if required.
    Quote
    • On at least one occasion, a reference is made to accessing Cascade through the internet.  Is DynamicDNS needed, or how is that handled?
    As part of your Dianemo system you get 12 months of remote access capability. This uses our Remote Access portal, 128bit encryption over a reverse tunnelled connection and does not rely on DynamicDNS.
    Quote
    • I noticed that cameras were integrated into a Cascade system on Youtube.  Does Cascade support any alarm panels?
    Re Above - We support the Alarm panels that are supported under LinuxMCE.
    Quote
    • Along the same line, are smoke/heat detectors supported?
    Re Above - Any ZWave enabled device should be compatible with Cascade and therefore if smoke/heat sensors are available in your market then they should be compatible.
    Quote
    • Are there certain cameras that are supported by Cascade, or any limitations on types/brands of cameras?
    Re Above - We would usually recommend using Panasonic, Axis or y-Cam IP cameras - these brands are all supproted.
    Quote
    • Same type of question on motion sensors?
    Re Above - Any ZWave motion detector should be compatible.
    Quote
    • Is there any sort of firewall filtering (ie: dansguardian or squid) implemented within Cascade?
    Re Above - our firewall is config is as standard LinuxMCE
    Quote
    • Are phones implemented?  If so, any restrictions on VOIP carrier and/or hardware?  Currently I have ViaTalk.
    Re Above - we support Asterisk 1.4.21 and any SIP phone that is compatible with Asterisk will be compatible. If your provider uses open standards then it should be compatible.
    Quote
    • Would Cascade use VOIP to call me during an alarm event?
    Re Above - yes if that was the telephony service configured.
    Quote
    • Is fail2ban implemented in Cascade?
    Re Above - no not at this time.
    Quote
    • I see you have WebDT 362 listed as supported for orbiter.  Any word on WebDT 366?  I have one 366GX and two 366LXs.
    Re Above - we see this as legacy support and it relies on the WebDT-362 firmware image remaining updated (we do not support the firmware image itself). We would recommend a touch based capability based on one of the many Touch Orbiter implementations (see the Wiki).
    Quote
    • I see many references to ZWave.  I thought I saw Insteon listed once, somewhere between the Cascade and Dianemo websites.  Are there issues with Insteon or is it fully supported?
    Re Above - we do no actively support Insteon currently (although we're open to changing this if customers demand it).
    Quote
    • Any projections about climate interaction?  I currently have Aprilaire components (thermostat, humidifier, external thermocouple).  Any ideas/comments?
    Re Above - we do not currently directly support Aprilaire. However we could create device template(s) for an Aprilaire rs232/rs485 interface if required (we would need to quote you for adding this support). Anything with a control interface and a published protocol can be supported ultimately.
    Quote
    • Any ideas about supporting lawn irrigation?  I particularly like the idea of automatically turning on my sprinklers when some uninvited individual starts poking around my home in the middle of the night.
    Re Above - see my response above - same applies here.
    Quote
    • Is flash supported?
    Re above - yes we support Flash on MD's but to be frank you may not be very happy with the performance currently under Linux due to the lack of support for hardware acceleration in Flash for Linux.
    Quote
    • Is hulu supported?
    Re Above - we would suggest choosing a hardware device that supports Hulu or Hulu Plus. We can then create a device template to control this device using either UPnP AV (if the device supports it) or simply use IR. The hardware player can them be accessed for playback in a single room or have its video output transmitted by HDMI-CAT5 adaptors + an HDMI MAtrix or you could use IP-Transmitters & IP-Receivers. Support for your chosen hardware devices would be quoted for alongside your system.
    Quote
    • Any support for any internet radio stations built into Cascade?
    Re Above - we currently are working on full support for SqueezeServer's internet radio features. We expect to have that in a future software update (these get regularly pushed out to customers from our servers)
    Quote
    [/list]

    Thanks
    Bryce

    No problem. Hope the above helps.

    Andrew
    Andy Herron,
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    For Dianemo/LinuxMCE consulting advice;
    @herron on Twitter, totallymaxed+inquiries@gmail.com via email or PM me here.

    Get Dianemo-Rpi2 ARM Licenses http://forum.linuxmce.org/index.php?topic=14026.0

    Get RaspSqueeze-CEC or Raspbmc-CEC for Dianemo/LinuxMCE: http://wp.me/P4KgIc-5P

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    http://www.dianemo.co.uk

    totallymaxed

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    New Software release Supports UPnP-AV & WD Media Live
    « Reply #100 on: November 30, 2010, 10:50:44 am »
    As a bonus all our Christmas special offer systems include a Beta release of our new software release that supports the UPnP AV standard and support for adding Western Digital Media WD TV Live HD Media players (http://www.wdc.com/en/products/index.asp?cat=30) and Sonos Zone Players (http://www.sonos.com/Default.aspx?rdr=true&LangType=2057) to your system. This means you can add WD TV Live media players, with their support for 1080P hardware acceleration, wherever you want video/audio in your system and use any Orbiter or Touch Orbiter to control them. The same goes for Sonos Zone Players for audio streaming. Dianemo's new UPnP AV software means that the WD's & Sonos's can be controlled entirely by UPnP over IP...no need to use IR blasting. Just add a WD to a room or entertainment area and stream audio or video stored in your media library, including MythTV SD & HD recordings to it from your Orbiters - even use iPod Touch's, iPhone's or iPad's with our free iOS app as Orbiters. The WD's essentially become light-weight MD's...they just dont run the Orbiter UI or have any rs232 or other ports that can be controlled or accessed by the system.

    We will be announcing support many more UPnP AV devices like the WD's, BluRay Players, TV's, Audio Amplifiers & UPnP NAS's in the near future too. We will also be announcing support for BluRay streaming to UPnP AV players such as the WD early in 2011.

    Best Wishes for Christmas & the New Year

    Andrew
    Andy Herron,
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    For Dianemo/LinuxMCE consulting advice;
    @herron on Twitter, totallymaxed+inquiries@gmail.com via email or PM me here.

    Get Dianemo-Rpi2 ARM Licenses http://forum.linuxmce.org/index.php?topic=14026.0

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    RayBe

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    Re: Dianemo & Cascade Systems from CHT - Now Shipping World Wide
    « Reply #101 on: December 01, 2010, 12:24:02 pm »
    Hi Andrew,

    UPnP AV standard, i would just let you know... WOW my compliments, you really lifted the system to another level.. WOW.
    amazing, think of the possibility's...
    for instance, you can get all your digital content on a UPnP TV with just a CAT6 cable, no extra devices...

    Will the support of UPnP AV standard be included in the main LinuxMCE distribution?

    Keep up the good work,
    br,
    Raymond
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    Re: Dianemo & Cascade Systems from CHT - Now Shipping World Wide
    « Reply #102 on: December 01, 2010, 12:43:49 pm »
    Hi Andrew,

    UPnP AV standard, i would just let you know... WOW my compliments, you really lifted the system to another level.. WOW.
    amazing, think of the possibility's...
    for instance, you can get all your digital content on a UPnP TV with just a CAT6 cable, no extra devices...

    Will the support of UPnP AV standard be included in the main LinuxMCE distribution?

    Keep up the good work,
    br,
    Raymond

    Yes UPnP integration is a really exciting new capability. Of course we've had the Fuppes UPnP server in LinuxMCE (and Dianemo/Cascade) for ages...and of course if you use MythTV you also have a UPnP server internally inside Myth too...but it stopped there really. No integration with the rest of the system...just an 'island' of UPnP in a 'sea' of LinuxMCE :-)

    Well now thats changed and you can add any UPnP-AV compliant NAS and any UPnP-AV compliant Media Render to your system simply and easily - reducing the complexity massively and increasing the capability massively all at the same time.

    ...and yes your right there are a large number of new TV's coming onto the market now that directly support UPnP-AV both as a Media Render and as a Media Server in some cases too. This means as you say that you can plug an rj45 into the back of one of these TV's and stream media and control them directly - no need for any MD's or other Media Players at all!

    For those with TV's that do not have UPnP-AV capability built in then there is an increasingly diverse range of Media Players like the WD TV Live models and many others that can be integrated and work wonderfully well. We also have some big announcements around BluRay support planned for Jan 2011 which will build off the basic UPnP-Av support we have just announced.

    As to whether we will make this capability available in the public svn & subsequently the LinuxMCE builds - yes the core libs will be early in 2011. As with other code we commit to the svn it will be GPL and open to anyone to hack/improve/extend as they think fit.

    All the best


    Andrew
    Andy Herron,
    CHT Ltd

    For Dianemo/LinuxMCE consulting advice;
    @herron on Twitter, totallymaxed+inquiries@gmail.com via email or PM me here.

    Get Dianemo-Rpi2 ARM Licenses http://forum.linuxmce.org/index.php?topic=14026.0

    Get RaspSqueeze-CEC or Raspbmc-CEC for Dianemo/LinuxMCE: http://wp.me/P4KgIc-5P

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    nite_man

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    Re: Dianemo & Cascade Systems from CHT - Now Shipping World Wide
    « Reply #103 on: December 01, 2010, 01:25:56 pm »
    Quote
    As to whether we will make this capability available in the public svn & subsequently the LinuxMCE builds - yes the core libs will be early in 2011. As with other code we commit to the svn it will be GPL and open to anyone to hack/improve/extend as they think fit.

    Andrew, I'd like to say a big thanks to you and your company for all improvements you do and give back to community! This is a really good example of relation between open source and business! And of course, the integration with Sonos and WD is awesome!
    Michael Stepanov,
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    totallymaxed

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    UPnP-AV support - some more detail
    « Reply #104 on: December 07, 2010, 11:12:45 am »
    Dianemo & Cascade's new UPnP-AV capability has been designed to be as compatible with your existing ripped content as far as possible while also addressing the issue that UPnP-AV compatibility can vary somewhat from device to device.

    So below is a mini Q&A that will hopefully help clarify things for you;

    Q - Will the new UPnP-AV software work with my existing ripped content?
    A - Yes it will. Anything that you have previously ripped as an .dvd or .iso should play on any UPnP-AV compatible Media Render (eg such as the WD TV Live). ie you might have some media ripped in LinuxMCE as .dvd or .iso files and stored on a hard drive or NAS (the .dvd's will have CSS copy protection). Assuming these files played ok on a standard MD then they should play without problems on any compatible UPnP-AV Media Render.

    Q - Will other files types be usable/playable with new UPnP-AV Software?
    A - The new UPnP software and the media database are compatible with any file/container type and can be easily extended for new ones. So that covers actually storing and indexing the files. The other important issue is what media files the UPnP-AV Media Renderer device itself supports - this will vary from device to device of course. But if the Media Renderer device supports it then we will also support it and you will be able to store/play it from a Dianemo/Cascade system via UPnP.

    Q - What quality & video resolutions are supported?
    A - Again we are agnostic to this issue...if the Media Renderer device supports it then we will automatically support it too.

    Q - Do the UPnP Media Renderer's need to be regenned?
    A - No they dont. Media Renderers do not display the Orbiter UI and therefore need not be regenned when changing resolution or other settings.

    Q - What about audio outputs?
    A - Audio outputs will depend on the physical characteristics of the Media Renderer device. If the device supports it - and you have the right content then it will be supported.

    Q - Will all UPnP-AV devices work?
    A - If the device complies with the UPnP-AV standard then it should work without issue. But some devices are 'less' compliant than others so we will be making available a list of tested devices.

    Q - Does the UPnP-AV Renderer chosen have to support the playback of .iso files?
    A - No it does not. When streaming .iso or .dvd we only send an mpeg2 stream to the media renderer device so essentially any UPnP-AV media Renderer should be able to playback this type of file.

    Q - What are the minimum requirements for supporting a UPnP Media Renderer?
    A - A Media Renderer needs to be MediaRenderer V1.0 (or greater) this is sometimes described as UPnP-AV 1.0 & AVTransport compliant to be compatible.

    Q - Can I use any make of NAS that supports UPnP-AV?
    A - Yes as long as your NAS supports SMB shares too - which pretty much all of them do. We only use SMB to access content on external NAS's (or other types of storage device) so your NAS does not need to support UPnP directly (and in fact we recommend not enabling your NAS's internal UPnP-AV server). Once we stream the file from Dianemo's internal UPnP server we then communicate with the Media Renderer using UPnP protocols.

    Q - How do i add UPnP MediaRenderer's to my system?
    A - You simply power up your UPnP-AV MediaRenderer and set its networking options to get a DHCP address from the NerveCentre then connect it to the LAN. Now go to the http://192.168.80.1/dianemo-admin/upnpfind.php page and look for the new device in the list, select a 'Room' or 'Entertainment Area' and use the 'Add' button. The system will them create a new UpnPMediaRenderer device for you and after a Quick Reload your device is ready. Now Regen your Orbiters and your done.

    Q - Will I need to run the AVwizard when adding UPnP-AV MediaRenderers to my system?
    A - The AVwizard is not needed when configuring MediaRenderers. Just follow the video output setup instructions supplied with your MediaRenderer and your done. In our experience these steps are very simple indeed on these devices - they will vary from device to device though of course. In general however they are much more reliable & straightforward than the AVwizard.

    Q - Will I be able to intermix traditional Media Managers & UPnP Media Renderers on my system?
    A - Yes you can intermix them freely. However you should be aware that traditional Media Managers do require more system resources at the NerveCentre than the new UPnP Media Renderers.

    Q - Can I use my Linux/Windows PC as a UPnP-AV Media Renderer?
    A - Yes you can. If you install XBMC on your Linux or Windows PC and enable its UPnP settings so that it can access UPnP services and be controlled by other UPnP devices then you can stream video or audio content to that machine by using your Touch Orbiter, iOS Orbiter, Android Touch Orbiter or even a standard Orbiter on a traditional Media Manager or Media Director.

    Q - Can i use my Sonos Zone Player as part of my system?
    A - Yes you can add as many Sonos Zone Players as you like to your system. They are essentially Music only UPnP-AV Media Renderer's. Any Sonos Zone Players must be connected to your wired LAN via there RJ45 port for your NerveCentre to be able to detect them. Now go to the http://192.168.80.1/dianemo-admin/upnpfind.php page and look for your new Sonos Zone Player device in the list, select a 'Room' or 'Entertainment Area' and use the 'Add' button. The system will them create a new Sonos Zone Player device for you and after a Quick Reload your device is ready. Now Regen your Orbiters and your done.

    Q - Can I use Boxee as part of my Cascade system?
    A - We are testing Boxee currently (Linux/MacOS/Windows) for compatibility and based on our experiences so far it looks like Boxee will be compatible. Boxee is built on top of XBMC so both of these projects have underlying code that is very similar.

    Q - What about the Boxee box hardware....will that be compatible?
    A - We have not tested the Boxee hardware media player - so we cannot say how compatible it will be. However since the Boxee software itself is based on XBMC and our experiences to-date with both XBMC and Boxee software has been very encouraging we would say the likelihood of the Boxee Box being compatible is very high.

    Q - What about the Popcorn Hour C200....is the C200 compatible?
    A - Yes the C200 is compatible and can be used as a UPnP-AV Media Renderer in the same way that a WD Live TV or XBMC/Boxee box can.

    Q - Will Cascade/Dianemo be moving to Kubuntu 10.04?...and if yes when will that be?
    A - Yes we will. We have a number of 10.04 systems in testing and hardware support and config testing are well underway and we are also working actively with the LinuxMCE dev's on the common code areas/features & capabilities and on squashing any remaining bugs. Cascade/Dianemo 10.04 development & testing is moving forwards really well and we expect to make some firm announcements on a release very soon  indeed.
    « Last Edit: January 05, 2011, 11:30:32 pm by totallymaxed »
    Andy Herron,
    CHT Ltd

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