Let us create a 3D eBook for you!
Let us create a 3d Digital eBook for you! DigyCat.com

 

Home Theater Control - Its The Remote, Stupid!


It's the one piece of equipment that can really make or break your home theater system; the remote control. It's no good to have the latest and greatest gear and world's biggest DVD collection if you can't figure out how to use anything. True home theater nirvana is a fantastic performing system anyone can use with a single button press.

Many of today's home theater receivers and surround processors come with a "smart" remote control. Some of these are actually pretty good too. B&K and Denon come to mind. If you know what you are doing, you can get one of these babies programmed to orchestrate your entire system pretty well. If you haven't the time or inclination for such a project yourself, hire a professional installer to bring everything together for you. A great place to start is CEDIA (Custom Electronics Design and Installation Association). They have member firms in every state, and many foreign countries, that are experts in making complex home theaters easy to use.

Remote controls come in several flavors. The one most people are familiar with comes with almost any electronic component you buy these days. For the most part it does a pretty good job at making the particular component do what you want. Some of these even let you control other components, especially if they are from the same manufacturer. This way, for example, you can use your TV remote to also control your VCR or DVD player.

The next rung up the remote control ladder is the so called "smart remote". This type of remote is able to control multiple pieces of equipment from different manufacturers. Some can control up to 8 or 10 different components. They are usually set to control each piece of equipment by entering a 3 or 4 digit code. Some of these units will learn control functions from other remote controls. This is helpful if the unit you need to control is not in your remote control's internal database. You usually accomplish the learning by entering a "learn" mode on the smart remote, pointing the "teaching" remote at the smart remote and pressing the desired button. Viola! Your smart remote has learned the command from the original remote control.

If you want things even easier than using just one remote to control everything, you need a remote that does macros. These are command sequences initiated by pressing one button. For example, you want to watch a DVD. Typically you would have to turn on your TV, DVD player and surround receiver. Then you would have to switch your TV to the component input and your receiver to the DVD input. With a macro capable remote, this sequence is programmed into the remote. The remote then plays back all the commands in the appropriate order so you don't have to.

If you want a remote that controls everything, you need a remote with a lot of different buttons. This can make the remote a little intimidating. Sure it can do almost anything but make toast, but where to start? If you have the budget, now is the time to get a touch screen remote. With a touch screen, you typically have only a few actual buttons. These are typically the most used functions such as volume up / down, channel up / down, mute and possibly cursor functions.

All other buttons are just icons on a screen that you touch to initiate the desired command. The beauty of this approach is that you only need to have just a few icons on the screen at any one time. This really cuts down on button clutter and confusion. The icons can be graphical representations of the command, which makes everything very intuitive. For example, you can have an "NBC" logo you touch to go to the local NBC station.

Touchscreen remotes come in four basic variations. First there is the choice of color or grayscale. Color looks better and more information can be conveyed more quickly. Grayscale units are much less expensive. Next, the communication with the remote can be one way or two way. Two way communication allows status to be updated on the remote itself. For example you can display album and artist information from a music server or check the status of your security system or thermostats. Two way communication has been provided via a two way radio link, similar to a digital spread spectrum telephone.

The latest two way remote controls being introduced from companies such as AMX and Crestron use WiFi. This allows a whole host of other possibilities. The range is spectacular for one thing. You can roam around your entire home. On some units you can browse the internet too. Imagine, you are watching a game but you want updates from around the league. Just go to ESPN.com on your remote and take a look.

The remote can really make or break your system. You can have an unusable system with 7 different remotes or a slick system that even visitors can use with no instruction. It's all up to you, your budget and your programmer.

Steve Faber has almost 15 years in the custom installation industry. He received his BA from Washington State University. He is a CEDIA certified designer and Installer 2 with certifications from both the ISF and THX. His experience spans many facets of the industry, from the trenches as an installer and control systems programmer, and system designer, to a business unit director for a specialty importer of high end audio video equipment, a sales rep for a large, regional consumer electronics distributor, and principal of a $1.5M+ custom installation firm. He currently is senior sales engineer for Digital Cinema Design in Redmond, WA. He is on the web at http://www.1touchmovie.com


MORE RESOURCES:

Satellite TV - Google News

US Syria envoy posts satellite image on Facebook to prove regime violence - Haaretz


Haaretz

US Syria envoy posts satellite image on Facebook to prove regime violence
Haaretz
By Reuters Tags: Syria Bashar Assad The US ambassador to Syria, Robert Ford, just days after closing the embassy in Damascus, posted satellite imagery on Facebook to show proof of government attacks on residential neighborhoods.
Syria satellite images show government is using artillery and mortars against HomsWashington Post (blog)
US Says Satellite Images Show Weaponry Syria Is Using Against CiviliansNPR (blog)
US envoy posts satellite image as proof of Syria violenceReuters AlertNet
Storyful -New York Times (blog) -CNN (blog)
all 5,735 news articles »

Satellite shot shows Russia's 'moon shot' ice station - msnbc.com (blog)


CBC.ca

Satellite shot shows Russia's 'moon shot' ice station
msnbc.com (blog)
An image from DigitalGlobe's WorldView 1 satellite shows Russia's Vostok Station in Antarctica, the site of a drilling operation that has just reached a subglacial freshwater lake. Lake Vostok may have lain undisturbed for 20 millions of years more ...
How Lake Vostok could transform our understanding of life as we know itChristian Science Monitor
20 years, 3km of ice: Russia hits lakeIndependent Online

all 416 news articles »

Italian satellite to help measure space-time warp - Spaceflight Now


Tecca

Italian satellite to help measure space-time warp
Spaceflight Now
BY STEPHEN CLARK Scheduled for launch from French Guiana on Monday, Europe's first lightweight Vega rocket is packed with nine small research satellites, including a unique Italian craft designed to help make an elusive accurate measurement of a ...
Italian satellite is a laser disco ball for scienceTecca

all 3 news articles »

US squeezes French satellite maker over China - Reuters


Yahoo!7 News

US squeezes French satellite maker over China
Reuters
By Jim Wolf | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States has threatened action that could disrupt a French-led satellite maker's supply chain, spurred by suspicion that it illegally used US know-how or parts in spacecraft launched by Chinese rockets.
Reuters Science News SummaryChicago Tribune
Exclusive: US squeezes French-led satellite maker over ChinaDemocratic Underground

all 7 news articles »

Vega rocket set for maiden voyage - BBC News


SatNews Publishers

Vega rocket set for maiden voyage
BBC News
It will carry nine satellites into orbit but the object of the mission is really to prove the rocket's systems all work as designed. Vega has been developed to assure European access to space for payload classes weighing less than 2.5 tonnes.
Europe's Newest Rocket to Launch on Maiden Voyage MondaySpace.com
RUAG Space... Follow This Fairing And You'll Find Vega (Systems)SatNews Publishers

all 4 news articles »

Satellite partnerships can help with emergency tweets - VatorNews


Tecca

Satellite partnerships can help with emergency tweets
VatorNews
Well as of this week, Twitter has launched its satellite service that can be utilized in emergencies or in countries where Wi-Fi and broadband aren't as reliable. Twitter announced in its blog, that it has partnered with two of the world's largest ...
Twitter expands SMS service to satellite phonesChannel 6 News Online
Twitter now available in emergencies with satellite providersZDNet (blog)
Twitter partners with satellite providers to ensure continued flow of tweetsThe Sociable
Tecca -WebProNews
all 12 news articles »

Satellite telephony not secure - Disaster News Network


Help Net Security

Satellite telephony not secure
Disaster News Network
Satellite telephony thought to be secure against eavesdropping because of encryption is unsafe, say German researchers who cracked the encryption. Researchers at the Horst Gortz Institute for IT-Security at the Ruhr University Bochum said they've ...
Satellite Phones Hacked! – Eavesdropping On James BondWebProNews
Satellite telephony encryption crackedHelp Net Security
Some satellite phones vulnerable to eavesdropping: researchersmsnbc.com (blog) (subscription)
NewsFactor Network
all 6 news articles »

Satellite Internet Company Launches 1.8m Trailer - Sacramento Bee


Satellite Internet Company Launches 1.8m Trailer
Sacramento Bee
9, 2012 -- /PRNewswire/ -- January marked the official launch of Skycasters' 1.8m trailer, making it the largest such satellite Internet system released by the industry leaders to date. Engineered to be fast, tough and smart, Skycasters' mobile ...

and more »

NASA Receives New Atmospheric Data From Suomi Satellite - InformationWeek


Wired News

NASA Receives New Atmospheric Data From Suomi Satellite
InformationWeek
Advanced instrument on polar-orbiting satellite is helping scientists better forecast weather and study the climate. By Elizabeth Montalbano InformationWeek A new infrared instrument aboard NASA's newest earth-observing satellite has started sending ...
Infrared sounder on NASA's suomi NPP starts its missionPhysOrg.com
How NASA Makes Those Incredible High-Res Images of EarthWired News
The Blue Marble 2012, an Incredible Image of the Pale Blue DotUnion of Concerned Scientists (blog)

all 23 news articles »

Satellite data shows sea level rise - TG Daily


Daily Mail

Satellite data shows sea level rise
TG Daily
While glaciers globally are shedding billions of tons of ice each year, the Himalayas aren't, a study shows. A University of Colorado Boulder study shows that the Earth's glaciers and ice caps outside Greenland and Antarctica are shedding roughly 150 ...
NASA satellites reveal colossal ice melt, greenhouse gasses blamedChristian Science Monitor
Himalayan ice melt estimates get a major downsizingmsnbc.com
New satellite data reveals that glaciers are melting far more slowly than UN ...Daily Mail
The State Column -Health Care News -Space.com
all 134 news articles »

Click here for Best Buy In-Store Pickup

StreetSideAuto.com

Looking For Royalty Free Photos for your Website, Business or Advertising?

My Life Through The Lens

YourFree.biz Domain Is For Sale - $5,000 For Enquiries eMail Us

© www.YourFree.biz 2011

home | site map | links

eXTReMe Tracker