Windows Media Center or MCE for short is a little shell that sits basically on top of Windows that has a few shortcuts and stuff like for T.V. Word has it that Bill Gates started funding for his personal use back in 1990’s to actually integrate his PC with Entertainment System. Check the screenshots. Free alternatives are FreeVO and MythTV and the best commercial seems to be ShowShifter.
Windows Media Center Edition Beta Screenshots
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Eugenia Loli
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http://www.alienware.com/mce_main_sff.aspx
I had it installed on my pc sometime earlier this year
“Free alternatives are[i] [or [i]include] … and the best commercial program [or one, or similar) seems to be ShowShifter.”
Bother; mucked up my HTML. Between everyone here we might get it right *rolls eyes at self*
Don’t forget http://mms.sunsite.dk if you have a dxr3!
…although I prefer a true PC.
The best commercial (version) would be a TiVO, imho. They cost less than the MCE boxes, do the same things, and fit nicely in with the rest of your AV equipment (can an MCE box control a DirecTV box?).
Building a (from scratch) Linux box to run MythTV or FreeVO, along with the necessary hardware encoder card, etc… is going to run you more than the $199 it takes buy a TiVO. The same can be said for an MCE box.
MCE is just an overpriced PC. $1500, what? And its been out for a long time – but the article refers to the new release. I still can’t tell if they have anything better than the crap NTSC tuner (an ATI?) they were using in thier last release. Not much point in having a bad quality picture from a tuner card output to a plasma or projection set. I had to laugh at the MCE demos at NAB – all using RCA video connections to plasma displays.
I built my own Mini-ITX system in a small black case and stuch a HDTV tuner card in it for half the price. Can’t beat a HDTV PVR (unless you have Tivo, which I have too) :-). If anyone likes, I’ll upload my build pictures.
Also, I don’t get the fascination with all the screenshots of MCE. BFD, because after all this is something you use to watch TV. You don’t spend your time looking at the pretty menus.
I heard there are these devices called TiVO that might do the same thing. I also heard rumours that almost everyone that has one loves the things.
Maybe I was drinking…
they have to have their fingers in every god damn opie don’t they. that’ll be the end of tivo/freevo and the rest then.
they have to have their fingers in every god damn opie don’t they. that’ll be the end of tivo/freevo and the rest then.
Yeah, right, because Microsoft’s “Ultimate TV” was such a contendor against TiVO and ReplayTV. That’s why Microsoft shut the division down—because it was doing so well! (rolls eyes).
Pie boy your a idiot. *sigh* it’s attitudes like that which make me hating reading comments on tech sites.
Snapstream Personal Video Station, is another dope piece of DVR software…in fact, almost better than Showshifter…
http://www.snapstream.com