Consumer Electronics Installer Blog : Windows Media Center

MCIA installation case studies

kollenkark — Sat, 30 May 2009 20:31:00 GMT

The Media Center Integrator Alliance has just published two case studies demonstrating two approaches for installing Windows Media Center. The first case study out of Florida is a fully automated showcase home coming in under $50,000 with Windows Media Center at the core of the experience. The second installation is the winner of the Ultimate Install Contest and truly a reference design for best practices for how to integrate Windows Media Center into a customer's home.

See the case studies and their companion videos at http://www.mediacenterintegrator.org/media_center_ecosystem/installation_case_studies.

Microsoft @ CEDIA EXPO 2008

cei — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 23:22:00 GMT

Microsoft heads to CEDIA EXPO 2008 with some exciting announcements and new initiatives for custom installers. Last year at the show, the Windows Media Center team showcased the latest hardware from their channel partners and engaged integrators in education and training. Planning to continue this momentum in the CEDIA channel, Microsoft, located in booth 410, will highlight new scenarios for the Media Center platform and continue to encourage installers to learn more about the benefits of Windows Media Center as a whole-home entertainment solution.

Through CEDIA training courses, Microsoft will be instructing installers on everything from the very basics of Windows Media Center installations to the setup and configuration of Windows Home Server. Below is a listing of the four separate classes and the times they are being offered during the show.

CEDIA Training

Date/Time	Session	Location
Thursday 9/4 4p – 5:30p	Introduction to Windows Media Center in Custom Installations	Hyatt – Capitol 7
Friday 9/5 12:00p – 1:30p	Setup and Configuration of Digital Cable TV Tuners for Windows Media Center	Hilton Garden Inn – Platinum
Saturday 9/6 10:00a – 11:30a	Introduction to Windows Media Center in Custom Installations	Hyatt – Capitol 3
Saturday 9/6 2:00p – 3:30p	Setup and Configuration of Windows Home Server	Convention Center – 608
Saturday 9/6 4:00p – 5:30p	Setup and Configuration of Digital Cable TV Tuners for Windows Media Center	Hyatt – Capitol 3
Sunday 9/7 10:00a – 11:30a	Adding Value to Windows Media Center with Windows Home Server, Extender and Zune	Convention Center - 505

Windows Media Center Ultimate Install Contest
In addition to dedicated education initiatives at the show, Microsoft will also be announcing the winner of the 2008 Windows Media Center Ultimate Install Contest – Microsoft's exclusive competition for custom installers. Now in its second year, the Ultimate Install Contest seeks to recognize the residential integration business that best utilizes Windows Media Center (WMC) in a custom home installation project

The contest, announced earlier this year at EHX Spring in Orlando, FL, closed entries on August 1. The winning entry will be announced at on Saturday, September 6, 2008.

Media Center University: Whole House Integration of Media Center Systems – Part 5

cei — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 18:42:00 GMT

The second half of Todd Rutherford's presentation on integrating Windows Media Center into a whole home solution focuses on content acquisition for the customer.

Topics covered include:

Content
- Online - Download / Streaming
- Personal media
- Other

Download: iPod | MP3 | WMA | WMV | WMV (high) | Zune

You can download the white paper presentation from CE Pro's web site and follow along with the video. Please keep in mind that while Microsoft is posting these videos, the presentations were recorded by Microsoft at the express, written approval of EH Publishing. The content and presentations are not the property of Microsoft and are for information purposes only. No guarantees, expressed or implied, are provided to the accuracy of the content provided.

Media Center University: Whole House Integration of Media Center Systems – Part 4

cei — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 17:21:00 GMT

Our very own Todd Rutherford builds on previous Media Center University topics in the first half of his presentation by providing guidance on integrating WMC with automation systems and designing the right WMC solution to meet the needs of the customer.

Topics covered include:

Automation System Integration
- Controlling Media Center from Control Systems
- Controlling Automation hardware from Media Center
- Hybrid Solution Options
Whole House Entertainment
- Understand the Customer's Entertainment Needs
- Choosing an Architecture and Solution

Download: iPod | MP3 | WMA | WMV | WMV (high) | Zune

Media Center University: Optimizing for Entertainment & Networking – Part 3

cei — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 18:05:00 GMT

In the final segment of Optimizing Media Center for Entertainment & Networking, Mike Seamons walks through Extender set up, network tuning, Windows Home Server and some different deployment topologies. WMC can be installed as a HTPC, centrally in the rack or as a headless Extender server and Mike speaks the benefits and considerations of each configuration including advanced topics like integration into a whole home audio system.

Topics covered include:

Setting Up a Media Center Extender
The 3 Server Solution
Display Connected or Headless
MCX Design Best Practices
HTPC Design Best Practices
Simplifying the Experience

Download: iPod | MP3 | WMA | WMV | WMV (high) | Zune

Servicing and warranty coverage of Xbox360's you resell to your customers

cei — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 21:59:00 GMT

There are many of you who are using Xbox360's as great additions to your custom installed home entertainment solution for your clients. Whether they want an awesome gaming console or a compelling and powerful Extender for Windows Media Center, there is so much an Xbox 360 can do for your consumers.

Concerning the user of Xbox360's for your client's AV solution, we would like to clarify a point that could have an impact on how you service your customers system. Microsoft warrants the Xbox 360s to the end-consumer only.

Ultimately, it is your customer who is purchasing the Xbox 360 and the warranty information must, therefore, be completed with your customer's information (not the installers). The warranty process is set forth in section B of the Xbox360 limited warranty. Failure to follow these instructions may result in delays, cause you to incur additional charges, or void the warranty. You can find the full warranty online at

http://www.xbox.com/en-US/support/systemsetup/xbox360/resources/warranty.htm (US only).

As a custom installer, in order to resell Xbox 360 to your clients, please see the list of authorized distributors at http://www.xbox.com/en-US/retail/distributors.htm.

Media Center University: Optimizing for Entertainment & Networking – Part 2

cei — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 18:01:00 GMT

Mike Seamons continues his presentation of Optimizing Media Center for Entertainment in this second video filmed at EHX Spring 2008. In part two, he discusses the steps he takes to optimize Windows Media Center. He discusses removing all unnecessary software, installing Windows Updates and other configuration. Additionally, he discusses how to integrate Zune with WMC.

Download: iPod | MP3 | WMA | WMV | WMV (high) | Zune

Topics covered include:

Removing all Unnecessary Files
Network and Sharing Tips
Cleaning the Desktop
Setting the Resolution, sounds, and screen saver
Setting Up Windows Media Player
Syncing everything with Zune
Default Content Removal

You can download the white paper presentation from CE Pro’s web site and follow along with the video. Please keep in mind that while Microsoft is posting these videos, the presentations were recorded by Microsoft at the express, written approval of EH Publishing. The content and presentations are not the property of Microsoft and are for information purposes only. No guarantees, expressed or implied, are provided to the accuracy of the content provided.

More Media Center University videos are coming soon...

EngadgetHD Extender Overview

cei — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 18:28:00 GMT

If you are looking to get a better understanding of which Extenders are right for your installations, take a look at Ben Drawbaugh's The Media Center Extender shootout article. He walks you through some of Extender options on the market today, their features and stats.

http://www.engadgethd.com/2008/06/19/the-media-center-extender-shootout/

CGMS-A and Windows Media Center

kevincol — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 19:37:00 GMT

On Tuesday June 10th, 2008, at 10AM PST, Microsoft will release the Cumulative Update for Media Center for Windows Vista (KB950126) that addresses some of the concerns around the CGMS-A flag. More information around copy protection for television broadcasts can be found on the blog post dated June 4th, 2008.

The update will provide a change in behavior for those users with NTSC, ATSC and QAM tuners, who connect directly to their antenna or cable feed without connecting through a set-top box. Content that has been marked as “CGMS-A copy never” will be treated as “CGMS-A copy once” and will be allowed to record on Window Media Center.

For users with a Digital Cable Tuner connected to a Digital Cable Ready PC, or who are connecting to their Media Center PC via their cable set top boxes, content marked as Copy Never with the CGMS-A flag will not be able to be recorded in Windows Media Center. For Digital Cable Tuners with CableCARD, the content protection behavior is defined in the CableLabs specification. More information regarding this can be found at http://www.opencable.com/downloads/specs/OC-SP-OCUR-I04-060622.pdf and referencing the tables on pages 33-36.

Microsoft will continue to work with partners to address issues such as the incorrect marking of content using CGMS-A, and to help us improve the experience for our users.

Media Center University: Optimizing for Entertainment & Networking – Part 1

cei — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 22:56:00 GMT

Download: iPod | MP3 | WMA | WMV | WMV (high) | Zune

In the first installment of Optimizing for Entertainment and Networking at EHX Spring's Media Center University, Mike Seamons provides guidance on choosing one technology over another. In his presentation, he covers the difference between analog and digital formats, component cables and HDMI, Cat 5 and Cat 6 Ethernet wiring, several TV tuner options, and how to deal with protected content.

Topics covered:

Video, Audio, Network, and TV Technologies
Digital Media Copy Protection

You can download the white paper presentation from CE Pro’s web site and follow along with the video.

Keep an eye out for more Media Center University videos coming soon.

CGMS-A, Broadcast flag and Windows Media Center

cei — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:29:00 GMT

Recently there has discussion regarding copy protection for television broadcasts , we wanted to provide some top level information on some of the various copy protection mechanisms that are used for television broadcasts and the affect on Windows Media Center.

The Broadcast Flag is only used for digital television and the United States Court of Appeals ruled that the FCC had exceeded its authority in creating the Broadcast Flag rule. More high level information on the Broadcast flag can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadcast_flag. Windows Media Center does not enable or utilize the Broadcast Flag.

CGMS-A is a copy protection mechanism used in analog television signals. More high level information on CGMS-A can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CGMS-A. Windows Media Center currently enables CGMS-A.

Last month, some Windows Media center users were prevented from recording one episode of “American Gladiators”. Those users received an error stating that the recording was prevented due to restrictions set by the broadcaster. This was triggered by the inadvertent use of the CGMS-A flag.

Microsoft is investigating ways to reduce this from occurring in the future and will keep the profesional installer community abreast of changes when they occur.

In-room Extender Design Strategy

cei — Fri, 23 May 2008 22:34:00 GMT

One of the simplest strategies for setting up a Windows Media Center (WMC) home entertainment network is to place the Extenders in the same room as the audio and video equipment.

Similar to the centralized Extender design we covered previously, the Windows Media Center (WMC) is still centrally located and on the IP network, but this strategy is less complex because IR repeating and audio distribution are not required. Each Extender is located physically in the same location with the a/v equipment and the WMC experience and content is delivered from the centralized WMC. This configuration is best suited for customers who have five or less displays and are not concerned with having additional equipment in the room.

Integration with an audio distribution system in this design is also possible. You just have to run audio back from an Extender connected back to a central distributed audio solution. While this allows the rest of the home to enjoy the audio of a particular Extender session, this addition adds complexity and is purely optional depending on your customer's needs.

Advantages

Single, simple, consistent remote
Easily scaled up to five display locations using home network
In-room source for each display
Extenders with additional features (e.g. DVD, gaming, etc) available in room
Each Extender has full rights access to protected content on the host PC
No IR repeating system required
No switching systems
Distributed audio integration

Disadvantages

Synchronized video playback in multiple rooms not supported
Heat, noise and space considerations
Additional a/v components in room
Requires additional hardware to re-distribute audio from local Extenders

Other Considerations

Performance – As with other WMC design strategies, the PC should be a single machine dedicated to the entertainment system. Performance requirements of the WMC increase with the number of Extenders connected to the system.

Heat & Noise – Because the Extenders are in the individual rooms, heat and noise should be managed appropriately.

Control – Customers can easily get confused with multiple remote controls in a room. It's easy for them to forget which remote goes to which device. You should consider using programmable or universal remote controls so customers have one simple interface in each room.

CE Pro Remote Guide

cei — Tue, 13 May 2008 17:41:00 GMT

Are you looking to revamp your remote control offering or find new ways to reduce complexity for your customers?

CE Pro just published an article and slideshow that walks through many of the latest remote control options on the market.

Most of the remotes featured can be programmed to or specifically designed to work with Windows Media Center based home entertainment systems.

Windows Media Center experience throughout the house with rack-mounted Extenders

cei — Thu, 08 May 2008 00:31:00 GMT

There are several ways to provide your customers with the Windows Media Center experience. This post covers one of those design strategies simply referred to as centralized Extenders. Like all designs, this approach has certain advantages and disadvantages and it will be up to you, the installer, to determine which is right for your customer’s system.

This solution is particularly advantageous for the customer that wants a minimal amount of AV hardware in each room, or who wants to distribute the audio from their Media Center experience throughout the house using a conventional distributed audio system, or desires the elegance of both.

In this design approach shown above, all five Extenders are located in the rack with the Windows Media Center PC, with the Extender’s video output connected to dedicated, in room, displays. This connection can be done via one of the various methods used to extend video between rooms that exists today (primarily baluns, and in-wall wiring) In addition, the audio from each Extender is routed to an audio switcher and amplifier, then on to speakers in each room.

For the user who simply wants a display with speakers (and no distributed audio speakers) in each room, traditional A/V or cat 5 wiring can be used to bring the audio and video signals to the displays. We highly recommend using HDMI or component video to ensure HD performance on the display. For distances over 25 feet, an HDMI or component video extender can carry the signal up to 150 feet or more (depending on model/mfg used).

Here is a quick list of the various advantages and disadvantages of using the centralized Extender design strategy.

Advantages

Single, simple, consistent remote
Single source to each display
Simple to add an audio distribution system
Central location of equipment simplifies maintenance and servicing
Heat and noise of equipment removed from the local room
Each Extender has full rights access to DRM content on the host PC
Easily scaled up to five Extenders

Disadvantages

No gaming on Xbox used as an Extender
Requires an infrared repeater or IR repeating DA keypad in each room
DVD viewing not supported
Synchronized video playback in multiple rooms not supported

Key considerations

Heat and noise, particularly with Xbox360s and PCs, will need to be managed with adequate ventilation

A powerful and robust PC is needed to effectively stream audio and video to all Extenders

Like all Windows Media Center design approaches, you can combine aspects of centralized Extenders with other designs such as local Extenders (putting the Extender in the room) to meet your customer’s expectations.

Installing Extenders in a centralized rack with the PC is advantageous in certain scenarios and it is easily scalable because the equipment is located together. This option in one way to give the customers the design they want with the functionality of Windows Media Center. Over the next several weeks we will introduce you to other design approaches such as:

Localized Extenders
Centralized and switched Extenders
Localized Windows Media Center PCs
Centralized Windows Media Center PCs

Installing & Configuring WebGuide

cei — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 19:23:00 GMT

In the last WebGuide installment, we gave an overview of the rich feature set that allows users to remotely access content. This installment covers the installation process, including how to configure WebGuide so users can access their Windows Media Center PC from outside the home and you can easily set everything up for them.

Installation

If you visit http://www.asciiexpress.com/webguide/default.aspx and click on the download button you will be directed to another page where there are three download choices. You can download WebGuide 4.1 for Media Center 2005, WebGuide 4.1 for Windows Home Server, and WebGuide 4.1 for Windows Vista. Once you choose the appropriate button and click on it, a window will pop up and ask you if you want to save or run WebGuide. Choose run, then the guide will automatically install and place a WebGuide folder inside the computer’s Program Files. Then open the folder and click on the WebGuide Configuration icon to open the program. When the program is opened, it automatically starts the configuration process. Then after a few minutes you are able to further tweak the program to the customer’s needs. By clicking on the Configure Tab you personalize it using the different sections titled General, Users, Network, Media Sharing, and Localization. Below are the different sections and what each of them can do so as an installer you can set the program up with your clients so they can access their Media Center content from outside the home.

General Configuration Tab

In this tab you can set how many rows of the guide you want displayed at a time, and how many recorded shows you want highlighted on your home page. There are also three features that enhance the WebGuide experience. It automatically colorizes the guide into different categories like movies and sports, it includes a remote control add-in allowing you to access Media Center from the WebGuide interface, and it shows the most popular programs scheduled to be recorded in your area. This last feature, however, allows WebGuide to share anonymous data about your viewing habits with a central server. It is the only way it can compile what the most popular shows are in each local area.

Users Tab

WebGuide offers multiple user accounts all with different levels of permissions, so family and friends can be given different levels of access to the content stored in Windows Media Center. For example, you can allow remote family members to access personal media, like your pictures, and videos, but prevent them from recording or watching TV. A user that is an administrator can change permissions for other users, deciding what users have access to and what they do not. By simply checking boxes in the various categories the administrator can decide who can access recorded TV, live TV, music, and pictures.

Network Tab

In order for WebGuide to access Windows Media Center content from the Internet, the router will need to be modified. Luckily there is the Universal Plug and Play protocol which allows Media Center and WebGuide to automatically detect the two ports and router needed. The WebGuide configuration tool automatically scans your network, looking for a router supporting UPnP, and if one is found, WebGuide will display it and offer to automatically configure it. This will create two port-forwarding rules to forward requests to your Media Center PC. In some cases you will need to manually configure the ports and router and the next section explains how to do that.

Port Forwarding / Router Configuration

WebGuide uses two ports, one for the web and one to stream video. At first install, WebGuide will pick a random port (although you can change it to port 80, which is most commonly used port by the web). The Video port is only used when a request for a streaming Video is made. Most of the time users will never need to manually set the router’s port forwarding because of WebGuide’s use of Universal Plug and Play, however, occasionally it is necessary to do so.

Port forwarding is the act of forwarding a network port from one network node to another. This allows an external user to reach a port on a private IP Address.

First you have to determine your router’s static IP address. To find the machine’s address, open a command prompt on the PC ("cmd" from the start menu), type "ipconfig" and the PC will list the network address. The IP address for the router is commonly the “Default Gateway” and usually looks like "192.168.?.?".

Open this address a browser to the address and you will be asked for a username and password. All routers have different usernames and passwords so check the router’s documentation to make sure.

Once you are inside the site, look for a Port Forward or Port Range Forward icon on the web page.

Enter the specified web port and the IP address of the Media Center PC, and click the Save Settings button.

Each brand of router is a little different, so consult your manual on port forwarding before installing WebGuide. This is a straightforward task in most routers, but if you have more questions about this step, please consult your router’s manual or search for more information.

With media sharing you can further choose what you want available and what you don’t want available with WebGuide. This way if you have seven folders of videos but only want five available, then it is easy to do that. In the Localization Tab you can select from 11 different languages and on the web interface, all text is translated into that language.

Media Sharing Tabs and Localization

Media sharing allows you to further choose what you want available and what you do not want available with WebGuide. This way if you have seven folders of videos but only want five available, then it is easy to do that. In the Localization Tab you can select from 11 different languages and on the Web interface, all text is translated into that language.

Network Address Tab

When you select the Network Address Tab, WebGuide displays a personal web address to access the program, and WebGuide is ready to use. Enter in the private IP address, and sign using the username and password you created. Once you are logged in, you have access to the content on the Windows Media Center PC.

Conclusion

WebGuide is simple to setup and is a great way to extend a Windows Media Center based home entertainment system beyond the home. Enabling customers and their family & friends to remotely access personal media presents a good opportunity for happy customers, additional installation margins and a better overall service offering.

More information on WebGuide installation: http://www.asciiexpress.com/wiki/webguide_configuration.ashx
WebGuide Download: http://www.asciiexpress.com/webguide/default.aspx