Please help me !! (1 Viewer)

[max1108]

Hi All

I have just recently seen the wonders of MP, and I am a total novice in this world. But I want to ask some questions.

I want to make a media center at home from scratch. I would like to have one computer turned on all 24 hours a day with all my music, videos etc.

I would like to have 1 LCd-screen i my livingroom and 1-LCD i my kitchen. I want to be able to control MP from each of these screens, and have the possibility to do different things at the same time (watch tv on screen 1 and play games on screen 2). The ideal scenario also includes a normal tv in my bedroom also atached to my computer. I have read some topics, regarding problems with more than one screen, but is it not possible perhaps to have MP running seperatly to each of the LCD-Sreens???

If it is in any way possible, please answer, it does not matter what the hardware requirements are. If anyone can give other setup posibilities please give me an input.

 

[mrkaras]

might not be what you are after but what you could do is:
- high-ish spec PC in your living room, this will be the real mediacenter.
- lower spec PCs in your kitchen and bedroom
- Living room PC ruining the new TV server and all 3 running a mediaportal client.
the living room PC would store all your media and TV tuners and the others would use its resources VIA a network.
the 2 lower spec PCs would still need to be reasonable but the time shifting would be done on the living room box so the speed would not be such an issue.

 

[max1108]

Thanks for your answer mrkaras

The problem with that scenario is that there is 3 PC´s running at the same time. Think of the electrical bill.
I see the problem in the fact, that I can't run the MediaPortal client 2 times at the same time on the same computer (one for each screen). If anyone knows how to do that please let me know

 

[mrkaras]

There may be ways to do that with multipul user accounts and fast user switching, special software (maybe) or windows server but how would you controll these? no PC would mean no keyboard/remote wouldn't it?

on my previous sugestion only one would be running always and the other 2 as needed, but still at times there would probably be all three going.

 

[max1108]

Hey mrkaras
That idea with the multipel user account might just work. I have just testet 2 accounts, and it's possible to launch MP twice at the same time. About the controll: I plan to make extendet cables from the computer to the livingroom etc. so that the wireless keyboard/ remote will funktion.

The only thing missing is to assign user 1 to screen 1 and user 2 to screen 2. Both operating at the same time

 

[Marcusb]

You can do that in XP. It's the same as Terminal Services in Server systems. To do it, you need to replace the regular remote desktop connection dll with once from a server machine.
By Default, XP will not let both users work at the same time, but Termianl Services does.
It's still a lot of messing around and may not give you great results.

My suggestion is similar to MrKaras. For the kitchen machine, make it a low specced machine that spends it's idle time in suspend or hibernate. It doesn't have to be on when not in use, does it?
In my house, we have the main PC that is networked and on 24/7. It's a fairly efficient machine too, with AMD C'n'Q.
Then we have the other machine downstairs that is networked to it and it spends it's idle time asleep.

DirectX really doens't like two systems using it at the same time and the way you want to set it up may result in bad quality on fast moving TV (and especially any games)

 

[max1108]

Hi Marcusb
You might be right in saying that the end of it all will be the scenario with more than one PC. But could you please take your suggestion step by step.
If have 2 Graphic Cards, will I be able to have 2 seperatly desktops from the same pc ??

 

[mrkaras]

something like this may be what you need:
http://www.dansdata.com/easyclone.htm

 

[max1108]

I have found something that might be the answer:
http://www.thinsoftinc.com/product_pc_sharing_betwin.aspx
And
http://www.download.com/BeTwin/3000-2064_4-10395380.html?tag=lst-0-2
This software can be the one I have been looking for. I have downloaded a trial version, so i just have to test it.

 

[mrkaras]

Let us know how it goes, if it goes well I might want to do the same.

it may be difficult to find graphic cards to fit PCI slots though, they will need to be directX (9 i think) compatible, surely they must exist but they would be pretty unusual.