Norway
Looks like a good plan BornToLive, controlling everything you want for the PC should not be a problem with the Harmony, you can set it up to emulate an MS Media Center Remote, although you will need a compatible IR receiver. (I don't know whether there is one included with the Harmony 900?) If not, you can get these with Hauppauge MCE TV-card kits, and they also come with a lot of HTPC cases. A few shops sometimes sell them standalone, but in my experience (in my part of the world), this has been hard to find. You will also get an extra remote if you do this, but as mentioned, you can just program the Harmony to emulate all the keys on the original remote.
The great benefit of using the Harmony is it will be able to control everything, not just the PC, although the better MCE remotes (This thing for example) have 3 programmable buttons, TV power on and volume up/down. I use that one successfully for a far less complex setup, but I do think you'd find it limiting for your more advanced setup
If you do get an MCE compatible receiver, it should work out of the box with MP if you set the Harmony to use MCE codes. If you use a non-standard receiver you may have to use IRSS or Girder to get the results you want. Both the latter also have the advantage of letting you control other programs than MP.
Best of luck! Updates with pics once you get it rolling would be cool
The great benefit of using the Harmony is it will be able to control everything, not just the PC, although the better MCE remotes (This thing for example) have 3 programmable buttons, TV power on and volume up/down. I use that one successfully for a far less complex setup, but I do think you'd find it limiting for your more advanced setup
If you do get an MCE compatible receiver, it should work out of the box with MP if you set the Harmony to use MCE codes. If you use a non-standard receiver you may have to use IRSS or Girder to get the results you want. Both the latter also have the advantage of letting you control other programs than MP.
Best of luck! Updates with pics once you get it rolling would be cool