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Windows Media Center is simply a fantastic media experience using your Windows PC. Most posts here also appear on thedigitiallifestyle.com.

Remotely Possible for Windows Phone 7

So a couple of days ago I started doing experience write ups of using some Windows Phone 7 applications to remote control Windows Media Center. The first app was Big Screen byRemote which is excellent for being able to remotely schedule recordings and otherwise manage your recorded content and EPG. But what about point and do remote control? Something I’ve always wanted to be able to do since getting my Logitech Duo a couple of years ago was to be able to view the content on my Media Center from my remote, then when I found what I wanted to play to…well…just play it.

That’s now possible thanks to apps like Remotely Possible.

As is the way with all these remote applications you need to install a server component onto the Media Center PC and you need to download the Windows Phone 7 application from the Marketplace. Before we take a look at the installation experience we’ll have a quick review of some of the things that are possible with this application:

Remotely view your media* on your phone, select it to play on your Media Center
Remote control your Media Center over WiFi
Launch applications other than Media Center over WiFi and remote control them…Internet Explorer for example.
Also supports the iPhone (if you have legacy hardware around )

The application, at the moment, doesn’t give you access to EPG data on your device or provide any of the remote record facilities that an application like Big Screen byRemote does. Ok I know you’re itching to see it in action so here you go:

Remotely Possible Demo

So how do you go about configuring this thing?

Download the Server from Validbit.com and install it on your Media Center, there’s not much more to it than that. If you don’t fancy remote controlling iTunes you won’t need Bonjour. You will need to set a password which you’ll later need to enter on your Windows Phone 7 device. To make things easy just follow this 2(ish) minute video. I’d also recommend rebooting to get things into a totally stable state.

Install Remotely Possible

Next download the Windows Phone 7 App from the Marketplace or using the Zune software. Make sure you’re connected to your home network via WiFi. Then launch the app and go to Settings, use the + at the bottom to enter the IP address of your Media Center, you’ll also need to enter the password you entered when setting up the server software. Save everything and you’re done.

Final thoughts

Another good application that does a really handy job, I especially love the ability to view files on the phone first and I really, really like the additional meta data that it makes available. That extra meta data improves the usability of the application no end and makes it look delicious on the phone.

On the down side I’ve just spoken to someone else who’s mileage has varied from mine. He couldn’t get reliable skipping during playback or a couple of other things working perfectly. I however did (as the video shows) and I had a great experience. This is one of the best things about Windows Phone 7 you can Try the application before you buy, just like I did. In the trial the fetching of media in your collection is limited to 10 albums / TV shows etc. but it’s plenty to test….indeed it’s plenty to make 2 videos and a blog post from Remotely Possible for Windows Phone 7

p.s. that’s my first video with my new Sony a55, nice isn’t it! Remotely Possible for Windows Phone 7

A look at byRemote for Windows Phone 7

It’s been a while since I’ve written here. You might know the reason but essentially blogging has become my full time job and my exploits with Media Center have taken a back seat. Anyway I thought I’d mark my return by writing a little series on some of the apps that have become available for Windows Phone 7 for remote controlling your Media Center in some way…and there are already quite a few which is a testament to how easy it is to get to doing stuff for Windows Phone 7 with the SDK – especially now that VB.net is a compatible language.

Any way the first app is Big Screen byRemote Ian’s written about it in the past but I thought’s you be interested in the installation experience and using it for a couple of days first hand.

Setup

Well it’s pretty simple, the basic architecture is that you run a server on your Media Center and that provides web / phone access. Whilst that’s the top level view there’s a few key tasks that you’ll need to go through to get it working beautifully.

The best first step isn’t to get the App on your phone…it’s to go to the Big Screen website and register and download the Free Edition (you can also try the Beta for the Pro edition for free too)
When you register you’ll be given a code that you’ll need to enter into the software on your Media Center, but otherwise the setup is the usual next next next type thing. To sort the lincense key bit, once the install wizard is done take the option to launch in browser and you’ll see something like this:

Yes my machine is called MONKEY! Hit Reverify Registration (might be veryify on yours) and enter your code on the subsequent screen then select Begin Registration. And you’re done with your Media Center install.

It’s kinda cool to be able to use this in your house, but you’ll want to be able to do it elsewhere so it’s time to do some router config.

Depending upon what router you have go to your router config page, quite often it’s 192.168.1.1 like mine is.
Next locate something like a Servers or NAT select and you’ll need to map your internal Media Center IP address to your external IP Address and map the ports used by byRemote to an internet facing port. byRemote uses port 83 by default so you can probably just set that up for external use.
You might need a router reboot.
Now you should be able to access your byRemote server using the external address of http://bit.ly/geamtd which will be the Silverlight client. You need to replace myip with your IP which you’ll be able to get here

Ok that’s pretty cool, but you can make it easier to use yet. You could do with a nice friendly name, if you’ve got a home server that will sort it out for you, hopefully just pop in your home server address with :83/sl at the end. If you don’t then a service like DynDNS will help. This basically updates DNS with a name for your home network and they have a client that you can run on your PC to keep the service constantly updated. My router actually does this for me.

So with that little lot done it’s time to get the phone going.

Grab your Windows Phone 7, open Market Place and download Big Screen byRemote – the easiest way is to start market place, press the search button and type byremote into the search. When you find it download the app (you can buy it immediately or try it first).
Next you need to plug in a couple of details. When you start the app scroll through the panorama to more…
Tap manage hosts then the + icon
Finally enter the details of your host. It’s all very simple.

Now you can enjoy the ability to set your TV to record stuff remotely, browse your guide, delete recorded stuff and see how much storage you have available anywhere, including your phone or any PC with an internet connection.

I have to say I love this application, it’s really tightly integrated and after running it on my MC for a week the server component isn’t causing any impact on the box or on the Media Center experience, which some other software I’ve tried has. I would have recorded an awesome video, but Niall already did that…

byRemote

Right, on to some more Windows Phone 7 + Media Center goodness … in the next post we’ll take a look at the experience of using the phone as an actual remote.

“that wasn’t a user group, it was an event!”

Well we did the 2nd Media Center and Windows Home Server User Group meet up in the UK and it was awesome! @iandixon, @garrywma and Andrew Cherry actually did all the work. The speakers explained some of the more advanced Media Center topics and some really interesting dev topics. Amazing Day!

You’ll be seeing photos from me here and from others here on TDL and their own blogs, Ian’s already posted. We videoed most of the sessions too and Garry will be posting them sometime soon, there’s about 5 hours of footage to edit to something watchable so it may take some time. Ian got some superb material for the podcast too and he’ll be releasing that in an upcoming podcast, although probably best to check out his post for details.

Thanks to everyone who made it, you made the day superb and just like Pete Brown said it’s the community that makes Media Center what it is.

I had some great conversations and got to see some really cool stuff. We had Amulet devices there with their awesome voice control remote for Media Center – seriously folks this is amazing – it’s the best thing I’ve seen for Media Center since TunerFree MCE and it was just so impressive. Passive showed off their super high end Evolve units which just look stunning and have B&O amps built in – they gave us a glimpse at building really robust Media Center PCs and a vaguest hint at some of their clientele. I wish I could count myself among that select group.

Andrew Edney gave us a look at WHS Vail and Andrew Cherry gave us a great intro to building apps for Media Center and Garry showcased how simple it is to build Windows Phone 7 apps with the Windows Phone 7 SDK and other free tools. I’ve got no excuse, I need to build a remote IP camera app for both…must get to that. Pete Brown gave us a superb insight into what it’s like running a community like TGB, basically I think we all felt the love…not least because everyone left with at least a USB stick and one guy left very happy with a SONOS S5 and another with a ZuneHD and 10 more peeps left with Xtreamers courtesy of Tranquil and another 12 people got DVBLogic licenses!!

Pete gave away some great Zune originals art work too, which I’d personally have loved for my office, but that’s one of the downsides to not being in the audience. We also got free Pizza courtesy of the NxtGenUg.

Ok without further ado, here are some of the best pictures I took of the day (yep there are lots), they’re uploaded to Windows Live SkyDrive with Windows Live Photo Gallery – if you can’t see them then join the Digitiallifestyle.com Windows Live Group although everyone should be able to see them.

More next year. Looking forward to reading the other guys thoughts, if you attended let us know about it in the comments…we’ll be getting out a survey soon too…

Backyard theatre

I’ve just spotted this on Lifehacker and see the need to share it. Something I really want to do, when we finally get there, is to build a theatre into our back garden for watching movies outside (and wouldn’t it be cool to watch the World cup right now?). Well if I ever need to know anything about it I’ll be going to backyardtheatre.com for tips. The forums are excellent with help from everything to choosing projector screens (water proofing included) to selecting the perfect hot tub to watch movies in and all the way down to what popcorn to go with!

Backyard Theatre via Lifehacker

Bathroom Mirror Tech

I just happened across this bathroom mirror (yep you read that right) and just had to share it with everyone. I’ve seen kit like this before, and there’s some really expensive bathroom mirror monitors on the market but this is the first mass market item I’ve seen. It’s a neat touch screen mirror with built in FM radio and the ability to connect an MP3 player. What’s most interesting though is that it’s made by Roca – these guys normally make toilets and sinks – so this represents a bit of a move to the mainstream for bathroom tech.

This has got me thinking, I’d be really interested to see what people have got installed in their bathrooms in the way of tech. I’ve seen at least one very cool Media Center install in the past, but I’d really like to know what people are doing. I’ve got a bathroom to remodel in 3 months! So throw some links to your installs in the comments.

Via Dornob.

What remote are you using?

Hi folks, it’s been a while since I’ve been able to blog properly – ‘tons going on, not the least of which was getting married, going on honeymoon and getting stuck thanks to a massive volcano. It’s all good though and I’ve got some good stuff to share about some IP Camera’s that I’ve been integrating and the trials and tribulations of that, but I’ll cover that another time…right now it’s this is about remotes.

I’ve been a sucker for wanting some super cool looking touch screen job for a while now, but the price has made me hold off. I now have a new excuse and it’s one that I’d never really considered. Simplicity.

We had a load of guests staying during the wedding and a major problem was that I kept getting asked to turn on the TV, change the channel or something else. What the ! it’s easy right? … Wrong, no one could work the remote, it was scaring them. It’s just a Logitech Harmony 520 which I’ve been really happy with and I though was pretty simple. Apparently people weren’t used to holding the screen and they didn’t want to break it. I know I was shocked too.

This lead me to thinking, what do I really want in a remote? I’ve narrowed it down to:

Easy to use
Controls everything

That’s it, I’ve taken “looks cool” off the list. I went in search of something that fits the bill and the Harmony 300i, a super simple remote looks to be the best fit and I’m a bit shocked about that, no touch screen nothing cool looking. I’m getting a review unit in soon, so look out for a review. It also got me thinking, what' else is new…does anyone have anything cool?

I really like the Amulet device and I can’t wait to get one of those in my hand too…I’m thinking given the above experience it might be too complex though but I’ll have to wait and see.

So what’s your remote, why do you like it and would you recommend it?

The coolest one box Media Center ever

Great design is something I’m into, I love things looking beautiful and I’m a believer in the need for form to follow (actually to lead) function. Having come across this it’s something I just had to share.

The image on the left is a one box media center (notice the small m & c) that incorporates everything you need (one obvious exception) to enjoy your entertainment experience. The one box incorporates the speaker, the TV, the media player – BluRay and all the wires and fuss. That’s superb design.

Oh yeah and it turns into the picture below, and it can even store your CDs and DVDs in original format.

The only thing that would make this better is if it actually held a Media Center.

It’s from a collection by Boxetti that includes beds, offices and kitchens all collapsible to boxes. Perfect if your a serious minimalist or live in a very small house or even a container.

The price tag is only Euro 5520 or about $7550 or £4989

So, has anyone developed something similar themselves?

[via Doornob]

Hi pigeons, here’s the cat…

Ok I was watching Steve B speech at Washington U yesterday and heard this…it shocked me a little and I tweeted it…people picked it up and found it interesting so here it is, it’s take from Microsoft’s transcript of the event:

In the case of the TV we’ve got both strategies. We actually have a TV implementation in some senses built into Windows. It works really well for small screen TVs that you might call a PC, but for that big screen device here’s a piece of hardware that we build, there’s no diversity. You get exactly the Xboxes that we build for you. We may have more form factors in the future that are designed for various price points and options, but we think it’s going to important.

Now to say something about this. It doesn’t matter folks. He was addressing a question about strategy and placing things in boxes that most people understand and he’d just show off SkyTV on the Xbox. Steve was demonstrating how far ahead of the pack they are with their TV strategy and with Media Center being a poster boy (yes the above quote does that) it’s not going anywhere any time soon. It might change a bit, I dunno.

What I do know is that we have the best TV experience anywhere and I love Media Center.

(controversially I also think Steve B is doing a great job leading Microsoft’s leaders – this is the best Microsoft yet)

Windows Phone 7 Series Applications

Microsoft must hate developers…that’s what I’m seeing lots of today. The crux of the issue being that it’s been confirmed that Windows Mobile x (we’ll come to that) applications don’t run on Windows Phone 7 Series devices. Well I have two words for that “Thank you Microsoft” followed by “thank you, thank you ,thank you,thank you, thank you !”

This folks is a good thing, for everyone, even developers and here’s why:

Developing for mobile is about developing for the use experience

If you think you’re developing something for another reason (other than money and for that see below) then you need your eyes tested! The user experience for Windows Phone 7 is wildly different from Windows Mobile and different from other platforms. No one is gonna want that cruddy app that you need a stylus for, no one wants to look at a UI developed in the 90’s that’s evolved like a snail.

From experience, developing an application for mobile is about getting the user experience right, everything else is limited by what you can do with your finger and a small screen. Of course it’s not at all limited because there’s such a rich sensor environment going on, but that requires some innovation and that requires stepping back and looking at the big picture. In Windows Mobile there was a need to build things to a minimum spec and that spec was basically set back in the 90’s.

We have a new spec, a new UI and a new experience and

Customers want a congruent experience

Doesn’t it feel nice when stuff just works together? We love it when stuff looks like Media Center when we launch it from there, when it behaves in the same, predictable way. We get cool stuff that pushes us forward like Media Browser but at it’s core it’s still “on message” with the user experience of Media Center. It’s the same with iPhone, buttons look similar between apps and everything looks nice. Hey it’s the same with books, they look slightly different – that’s down the editor and designer and writer – but they have the same basic way of working.

Windows Mobile lost it. Sense UI on a HD2 is lovely, really cool, until you drop back to Windows Mobile. Then it feels disjointed. This cannot be allowed with Windows Phone 7 Series or it’s bye bye.

Microsoft wants tons of developers

And it’s not doing anything to push them away, other than say, “go do it better” and that’s what customers want. Microsoft has the best developer community on the planet! They offer a true, multi-dimensional platform that covers everything you need using a set of core principles that transcends the tools, the language and by extension most barriers to entry into the platform.

Tons of developers = tons of ideas = tons of innovation = cool stuff!

Customers and Microsoft want innovation

I left Windows Mobile because the developers did – at least the ones that matter did. All the cool stuff went to iPhone…it’s now beginning to go to Android. They were new platforms. The cool dev’s will be back because those other areas now have millions of apps and

Developers want to make money

Or they want fame, they want kudos, recognition something – I wanted eyeballs. By operating in saturated markets (iPhone, Android soon) new developers don’t really get a look in…you need to start with a business plan and then an idea to make money there now. Don’t get me wrong, people do still make it, but it’s hard. For a while Windows Phone 7 Series apps will be easy pickings.

Yes that will deliver some dross – wobbly boobies apps probably – but hey at least it’s using the accelerometer and who’s to say that the student who develops it won’t take it into an app at that makes your driving safer (idea there if someone wants to run with it). The real question though is one that’s been bugging me for a while.

Who do you trust?

There have been cases of phishing apps in the Android market place. Their open model isn’t working there. Apple actually have this right, and it annoys developers massively. They test everything, on an Apple device you can be 90% sure that the app will work and won’t do something naughty like steal your info. On Windows Mobile right now you can’t.

I could, I won’t and I’ve not, right now write an application that would steal your stuff. Do I need to access every nook and cranny on your phone to do it? No.

Windows Phone 7 Series is all about the cloud, like Steve B said yesterday. As a result your identity is in the cloud, all I need is to write an application that asks for your Facebook username and password, or your Twitter username and password, or something and then sends it back to me. Simples. On Windows Mobile anyone could just get it and install the CAB file. They’d have to trust where they got it from, and frankly some are good and some are bad sources.

Trust is absent, it needs to come back.

Epilogue

So do you still think not being able to use TwitterMyFlicker on your Windows Phone 7 Series phone is a bad thing? I don’t. Giving developers a fresh start, a new competitive field where they can innovate and be damned is critical here. Giving customers the best experience is critical to the developer experience and I’m gonna embrace this new challenge…when I find the time.

Sky Player deal

Just spotted this and it’s worth sharing. UK Money saving site Quidco (get an account and you’ll make loads of money – I do) have got a deal on SkyPlayer at the moment. You can get 3 months for the price of 2 and £20 cash back through the site, the total saving is about £55 give or take and it’s a nice way to try the service (it will cost you about £38.50 a month I think) and it works on your 360 and Media Center (although the content differs).

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