Windows Media Center Expert Zone Chat (June 19, 2008)
Chat Topic: Windows Media Center Expert Zone Chat
Date: Thursday, June 19, 2008
Please note: Portions of this transcript have been edited for clarity.
Introductions:
mikefos_msft (Moderator):
Welcome to today’s Windows Media Center Expert Zone Chat!
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Hi, my name is Todd; I am a program manager working on Media Center Extender technology
Nick [MSFT] (Moderator):
Hello, everyone, I'm Nick - a Developer on the Media Center Extender team.
Start of chat:
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: What can you tell us about the beta that’s out right now (I think it’s called Fiji)?
A: Our beta programs are covered under a non-disclosure agreement, so the short answer with respect to anything that may be happening in this area right now is “no comment”. The best way to find out what is happening as part of a beta is to join future betas. Information regarding Microsoft betas can be found at http://connect.microsoft.com/
Nick [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: How does the new HP extender differ from the current D-Link and Linksys models? Anything significant?
A: Each of our OEM partners creating Extenders uses the same core Extender technology, but the devices will differ in form factor, local UI used before connecting to Media Center, and other features that they may offer in addition to Extender. The HP MediaSmart TV is a TV that has Extender technology built in, as opposed to the standalone boxes from D-Link and Linksys. There are other differences in terms of their functionality separate from Extender. For details and to help you make a decision, I'd encourage you to visit each OEM's web site and explore the features of their specific device.
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: Hi. I just bought a AVerTV Combo PCIe (Media Center Upgrade Kit). Dual tuner, Analog Cable and OTA ATSC. The cable tuner works great in MCE 2005/Rollup2. However, the HD ATSC has a frame rate of maybe 1/sec & no audio . AverMedia player works great.
A: The first thing I would check are the specs/driver on your PC’s video card as this behavior could be caused by an old/slow card or out of date drivers. Beyond that, troubleshooting this issue is something that would require a great enough level of back and forth and information gathering that doing so here today is difficult. Instead, I recommend posting your experiences to the Microsoft.public.windows.mediacenter newsgroup (available here <http://www.microsoft.com/communities/newsgroups/en-us/default.aspx>)
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: I am having a hard time getting my cable box to be operated by the Media Center remote. I have tried to have it memorize the codes but it doesn't seem to help. Is there something else I can do? I have a picture it just won't change channels.
A: Are you using an IR blaster from your PC to control your cable box or are you trying to control the box directly with the Media Center remote? If you are doing the former, is the little black bud on the IR emitter cable stuck on the cable box on top of the IR/remote control input?
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: Todd- That is correct. I have tried both ways directly with the Media Center remote and also using the IR Blaster with the bud near the cable box
A: The best way to do this is to use the IR bud. When placing it, ensure that you stick it on the front of your cable box right where the remote control/IR input is. A neat trick to see if it’s emitting IR light is to point a digital camera at it as you are testing things. The digital camera will convert the infrared light into something visible to the human eye, so if you look onscreen on your camera you should see flashing as you push buttons on the remote. If you see this, it means that either the PC is sending the wrong IR codes or the cable box isn’t listening. If you don’t see any light, it suggests that the IR blaster isn’t working. Either way, this is another good question to dive into more detail regarding in the Media Center public newsgroup (see link in my previous answer above)
Nick [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: What about the recent issue with MCE not recording certain shows despite not being legally required not to?
A: I'm not positive what issue you're referring to. If you're referring to a question in a previous month's chat about our support for CableCard devices, we continue to evaluate our requirements with CableLabs and other partners and as those requirements evolve, we'll make updates to match them appropriately.
Nick [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: I have used windows movie maker many times, I have no changed my burner or anything. I am now having a problem, I press save to dvd, it goes through what it calls "saving to computer so can save to dvd" When It reaches 100% it disappears!
A: Unfortunately, Windows Movie Maker isn't part of Windows Media Center and none of our experts here today are experienced with that software. Please try the Expert Zone newsgroups or a chat related specifically to that product for assistance with your issue.mikefos_msft (Moderator):
A: In addition to what Nick mentioned, you may want to check out: http://windowsmoviemakers.net and http://www.papajohn.org.
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: It’s wonderful that MCE is more widely available in Windows Vista, and presumably in later releases. What are you going to do in order to make more people aware of MCE in July?vA: We’re pretty happy with that too (we’re now at over 100 million copies of Media Center sold). We continually are evaluating the best ways to get the Media Center message out even further, and in the past have run online marketing campaigns, done joint marketing with our PC OEM partners, etc. I can’t comment specifically on any marketing plans that are currently on the drawing board other than to say that we’re excited about Media Center and always looking for ways to get the message out.
Nick [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: After MCE pops up a tray icon complaining of a recording conflict, how can I view where the conflict is in the schedule? The tray icon offers generic help or to open MCE, nothing more useful
A: The easiest way to do this is to launch Media Center, go to Recorded TV, then select "View Scheduled". Sorted by date, you should see an icon next to any conflicting recordings and you can resolve that conflict from this page.
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: Now that MCE is buried in Vista do you think it'll lose some of its following?
A: Media Center is available directly from the Start Menu, so I wouldn’t classify it as buried :-) Regardless, Media Center usage has continued to increase following the introduction of Windows Vista, which is something we’re very happy to see.
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Thanks everyone for coming.
Nick [MSFT] (Moderator):
Thanks for coming, see you all in a future chat!
mikefos_msft (Moderator):
Thank you for joining us today for our Windows Media Center Expert Zone Chat! We hope that this was a good use of your time. If we weren’t able to answer your question of if you have others, please don’t hesitate to check out our public newsgroups: <http://windowshelp.microsoft.com/communities/newsgroups/en-us/default.mspx> A special thank you to the Microsoft experts who came out to help! We’ll see you again for another chat next month, please check <http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/chats/default.mspx> for the list of upcoming chats.
