HD Tuner

[torontob]

Hello,

I have been searching the forum to see if my question is answered already but there seems to be too many threads with the same subject but some of them are not what I am looking for. Here in Toronto, Canada, I am using Bell PVR (Two of them) /Satallite to entertain myself. If I were to deploy LinuxMce how would the PVR blend in?

1- Would the PVR be connected to LinuxMCE main server? Hence, do I lose HD quality? Is there an HDMI tuner in that works with current version of LinuxMCE?

2- Should the PVR be connected directly to the TV? Then what happens to the UI? Do I have to change inputs on TV to get to LinuxMCE environment?

3- Mostly, is the LinuxMCe main server used as terminal itself too or would that be just in the basement?

4- Where can I find some more info about the type of Home Automation products that are perfectly proven to work with LinuxMCE? e.g. sensor, lightin switches, temp control, ip cameras, etc...

5- Also, has anyone successfuly tried putting microphones all over the house to use the built-in Asterisk for communication? (or even maybe to use some text2speech to command the TV  )

6- Gyro or Fiire?

Thanks

[Afkpuz]

Can only help with 6.  Fiire remote will be plug and play.  Really nice to not have to worry about button mapping and what not.

[tschak909]

To answer all your questions in a single bit:

Basically, we do not support the Hauppauge HD-PVR capture device, yet. This would be what you need in order to digitize the output of your cable/satellite box so that it could be bounced to the other media directors in the house. Until then, you would need to use a Hauppauge PVR 150/250/500/USB2, with the box connected to the S-Video and analogue audio outputs to get it bounced to the rest of the house. Also, don't forget to get a USB UIRT with a Xantech 286 double emitter so that you can control it, as well as your TV and amplifier which may also be in that area.

-Thom

[torontob]

Thanks for the helpful info. Any idea when HD Tuner In might be supported?

Also, as for the equipment goes, Z-Wave seems to be the choice of this community. I have been looking on their site and the products page has many many different brands of switches and such....What should I exactly look for when it comes to light control?

Thanks

[tschak909]

(1) We have no idea, because that driver is being developed outside our community. It will work when it works.

(2) The good thing about Z-Wave equipment is that it is somewhat standardized, you should buy for what your budget allows. For the NA market I recommend getting the MicasaVerde (MCV) USB ZWave interface and inclusion controller:

http://shop.micasaverde.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=110&products_id=151

http://shop.micasaverde.com/ has a complete set of compatible Z-Wave devices.
http://www.smarthome.com/ is another great site with Z-Wave and other devices too.

Keep in mind, that this system can mix and match HA devices, so long as you have an interface for it, LMCE can control it. For example, I use a mix of Z-Wave devices, and various contact closure sensors and relay based devices running from a GC-100 interface.

-Thom

[torontob]

Thank you again. I would like to see an answer regarding Question # 5 too. Also, I wanted to know if it's possible for the terminals to boot of the server (LAN; diskless) or would they have to have Linux installed too?

[tschak909]

*hmm* do you not read the FAQ?

Yes, This is one of its main features. But you must set up the network as described in the FAQ to do it.

Please read what we've written, we do not like continually saying the same thing over and over to people who refuse to read our documentation. It wastes our time when we could actually, you know, be coding and fixing bugs.

-Thom