If you are too lazy to scroll down, you will want to check out the Windows 7 Media center preview info we posted yesterday.
Gotta love that
Keeping wires out of site is an absolute neccesity in the WAF department. It is a good thing that CEPro has an article up on how to feed wires through inulated walls .I read the article and I am still not brave enough to tackle drilling up walls.
You may not need to anymore! I saw this on an episode of DIY's Cool Tools (awesome show, BTW... my wife doesn't want me watching it anymore, though). Anyhow, check out FLATWIRE for some absolutely awesome technology. It applies like tape to the wall (spray adhesive), apply the wire, then you spackle like normal and paint or wallpaper right over it. It's currently only available for low voltage connections, but they're in the process of getting UL/NEC approval for their 120v product. Very impressive stuff.
Quote:Remember that little Xbox 360 announcement with Netflix? It got a little better with the announcement of Netflix having 300 HD movies on tap for streaming when the new UI launches.
....droool...absolutely excellent news 
Damn straight that's awesome news! They can only expand the library from there. All the people that were bashing Netflix streaming in the last announcement thread can't really complain now.
Anyhow, check out FLATWIRE for some absolutely awesome technology. It applies like tape to the wall (spray adhesive), apply the wire, then you spackle like normal and paint or wallpaper right over it.
Yeah I've been keeping an eye on this stuff for awhile now. Found out about it a year or so ago while doing some research online about running cables. Dunno how I managed to miss it on HGTV since I love that channel. Since I'm still in the market for a house, I'll definitely be considering using this instead of drilling into walls if I can help it. Although I'm not too keen on how it looks at the hookup spot (such as the wall box).
Although I'm not too keen on how it looks at the hookup spot (such as the wall box).
My thinking was that the box would most likely be behind whatever I'm plugging in, such as speakers, subwoofers, a TV, etc. The sconces they sell are Flatwire compatible, so it would plug in behind the wall plate of the sconce itself. If you don't use a sconce that's Flatwire compatible, then I could definitely see an issue with a wall wart!
I'm curious some uses for the ethernet. For example, you go from a switch, using a regular ethernet (patch or solid) cable, route that through the crawl space, etc., all the way to where you want to begin the flat wiring in another room. Plug the cable into their box and run the flatwire around the wall(
to wherever you want the ethernet jack. I'm just slightly concerned about signal degradation using that method. But, it has my interest.
skirge, not sure if this is linked off the site you'd mentioned, but this is what I had bookmarked and it's got a lot of pics and tips.
Yeah I found out about FlatWire stuff a few years back, it's pretty neat, but I haven't personally used it yet.
About the wall boxes - personally I think I'd prefer to run the flat wire to a standard "remodel electrical box" (which can be set inside the wall, flush with the surface (like all the other electrical outlets) without much fuss) rather than use one of their wall mount boxes.
Behind a wall mount speaker probably wouldn't require such a thing. But for LAN connectors, speaker connections near the reciever, and/or TV/Cable connectors - I'd probably get them into a remodel box and use a "regular faceplate" made for those items. I have an aversion for wall-mount boxes. (even telephone jacks...)
It looks like FlatWire retails for about $2/ft (ranging from $1.50-2.50 depending on quantity and gauge). You also have to purchase the connectors ($25 for 2 sets), spray adhesive ($10/spray can), and tape ($6/50-ft roll).
I'm not complaining (in fact I think it's pretty cool)...I just wanted to give folks a rough idea of cost for estimation purposes.
If you're running low voltage wiring, such as coax for satellite or cable, telephone, speaker, video, or ethernet, then all you need is a low voltage mount available at any Home Depot or other home improvement store. It's nothing more than a plastic frame that mounts in an opening you cut in the drywall. Just cut the hole, insert the frame, and tighten the wing clamps to the back of the drywall with a screwdriver. The frame accommodates any standard wallplate and comes in single, double, or triple-ganged configurations.
The only issue with running this type of wiring in a wall is whether you can access the top or bottom of the wall plate to feed the wiring through. Just drill a hole through the wall plate and drop the wire down in between the studs or up through the floor plate. The opening for a single box is large enough to put your hand inside the wall and grab the wire. If you've got big hands then a bent coathanger generally works well.
If you're doing this on an outside wall that contains insulation then that's another ballgame entirely. Your best bet is to run all of your wiring through internal walls that are all open between the studs. If you have a 2-story house with a basement like mine then you need to find somewhere that allows you to run cables between the basement and the attic. This allows you to drop cables into a 2nd floor room from the attic and come up through the basement ceiling for any 1st floor connections. A drop ceiling is an absolutre must for a finished basement. Otherwise, you'll be forever patching holes in the basement ceiling everytime you want to run a new wire.
I bought my house new about 22 years ago. I prewired the entire house for an alarm system, cable TV, and phone lines in every room prior to the drywall going up. Since then I have rewired the house for satellite (RG59 -> RG6), rewired again for mpeg4 satellite (copperclad steel RG6 -> solid copper RG6), installed ethernet cable (CAT5), upgraded to gigabit ethernet (CAT6), added 2nd ethernet lines to some rooms, installed an antenna for HD OTA locals (more RG6), and run 2nd coax lines to every room for dual-tuner DVRs (even more RG6). I'm installing all new windows (27 of them) which are doublehung (the originals were only singlehung), which requires additional alarm wiring. Without having some method to run wiring between floors, none of this would have been possible.
http://gizmodo.com/5070851/xbox-360-netflix-hd-wont-work-on-non+hdcp-dis...
F*CK F*CK F*CK F*CK F*CK!!!!
/cry
(my LCD is not HDCP compliant, it's too old)
F*CK F*CK F*CK F*CK F*CK!!!!
/cry
(my LCD is not HDCP compliant, it's too old)
How will this apply to Component? I thought that Component was immune to HDCP...
F*CK F*CK F*CK F*CK F*CK!!!!
/cry
(my LCD is not HDCP compliant, it's too old)
This should work with analog connections though such as VGA and component.
The giz articly only talks about DVI.. not analog connections.. Again, it should work with component and VGA. No one should be left out here.
It does not talk about disabling analog connections all together. HDCP is not part of analog copy protection.
http://www.engadget.com/2008/10/30/debunk-xbox-360-streams-hd-netflix-ov...
Hey I beat Engadget to the punch..
Hey I beat Engadget to the punch..
... I was just going to post that.
Well once I get the new TV I intend to hook everything up with HDMI anyway. I'll just deal with SD until then I guess, or switch to VGA.
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....droool...absolutely excellent news
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To Do: Finish Re-ripping my music collection - While Playing FF XIV