HTPC Update Late Saturday night, with nary a problem in sight, I set about making sure everything was in running order prior to the cable company coming to install CableCards on Monday. I broke out the keyboard and was really just playing about wondering what plugins I should start installing. I toured around the device manager to ensure everything was […]
Read moreI recently got in somewhat of a debate with a fellow MCE enthusiast over Softsled. I’ve held firm that I don’t believe Microsoft will ever do softsled, even though it’s something I would love and use. I thought I’d take the time to combine my position with my thinking (complete assumptions) as to why it’ll never happen. I’m sure some […]
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I had some time over the weekend to play with Logitech’s diNovo Edge. For a complete review, please read Mike’s review. His analysis of the keyboard is a lot more indepth then I will be. Mike had pretty strong opinion about the touch pad. Perhaps I am a bit more lenient but I did not find it that bad. However, […]
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When last we spoke (er, wrote/read) things were not going well for the electronics in my house. My frontend (client) motherboard had died, my backup/development system was having a tough time picking up the slack with video and audio issues, and my fallback system (my wife’s laptop) was suffering a midlife crisis. Well, today I’m gonna give you a quick […]
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As I mentioned in Episode #1 , I spent sometime integrating the XPS 420 and accessories into my home theater. I decided to snap a couple pictures from my build log to show. Other then that, I really dhaven’t spent much time on my HTPC except to watcha few music videos from Yougle . I had intended to use the […]
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To put a little more organization to my build log I have decided to rename all future posts relating to my personal projects "Alan’s Building Log" 🙂 Episode #1 is mostly an introduction and a project update. Way back on June7th, 2007 I posted a blog titled Getting Started. As it turns out, I didn’t get started. In fact, I […]
Read moreDear President Of Zune Division at Microsoft, First off, I would like to introduce myself. I write to you not as a member of the press and I use that term loosely. I do write to you as a husband. A husband that knows all to well what wife acceptance means to his quality of life. Some may know this […]
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There are many options available for CableCard PCs besides the Dell XPS 420. I went that route for a couple of reasons, chief among them is that this PC is going to be hidden from view and I assume I am not going to need a minimal level of support. HP also has support for CableCard systems with their Elite […]
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I scratched my head when I found out the external digital cable tuners were coming from a different Dell division via a different carrier. DHL finally made it to my house several days after the XPS made it here. Now I can say I am the proud owner of a PC that will allow me to play premium HD content […]
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As I mentioned in my earlier blog, "Drinking The Kool-Aid" I went ahead and purchased the Dell XPS 420 with Dual CableCard option. I still feel a little dirty doing so, but in order to maintain the WAF, you sometimes have to do what you have to do. My configured system, as follows, is mostly the default system with a […]
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