One of the few features missing from Windows 7 Media Center but available in most modern DVR setups is the ability to remotely schedule recordings. This much touted feature of commercial DVR systems such as Direct TV have been sorely missed by many media center enthusiasts who are frequently away from home. Luckily, a third party program from FatAttidtude has been released to address the problem and add support for the feature to your existing Windows 7 Media Center setup. Remote Potato installs a server on the media center system enabling a web based interface for remotely scheduling new recordings, browsing the TV guide and more.

Even more importantly, this third party program requires very little configuration to get setup and working on your home media center system. Most users will find the most complicated portions of the setup to be forwarding the ports of their home router and setup of the xmltv files. Upon first launching Remote Potato youll receive a window letting you know that the server has been started along with a windows dialog to allow the program appropriate rights to the firewall (provided you are using the built-in Windows 7 firewall). Once youve allowed access to the program youll notice a Show Settings button on the main window. Pressing this will reveal the options and setup portions of the program.

For those just getting started with Remote Potato the main settings that need to be set are going to be the TV Guide and the options found under the General tab. In order for the program to obtain a listing of channels and programs youll need to have an xmltv file. To get one of these handy files for your system you can simply follow this guide here on Hack7MC to using MC2XML. Of course this file will need to be updated regularly (every few days is recommended). Doing this automatically is simple enough using Windows 7s built-in Task Scheduler.

Open Task Scheduler from the start menu by entering Task Scheduler into the search box and hit enter (crazy, right?). Then on the right hand side youll notice a number of actions that can be performed. Select Create Basic Task and go through the simple wizard setting a name for the event, choosing Daily (which can actually be set to run every X number of days) and then selecting the shortcut created in the MC2XML guide as the program to run.

Once youve setup your xmltv guide file open the TV guide section of Remote Potatos options and set the Get EPG Data from option to

Yesterday, Dell officially announced availability of the Dell Inspiron Zino HD.

The Inspiron Zino HD is a small PC that packs quite a punch in an 8 by 8 square. Hip to be square, right? Ok enough Huey Lewis, lets talk about what this PC comes (and can be configured) with:

• It comes with Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit or Windows 7 Professional 64-bit*.
• You can customize the PC with 7 solid colors.
• You can customize the PC with 3 designs.
• The Inspiron Zino HD uses AMDs Athlon processor (single or dual core).
• The base configuration is 3GB of RAM, but can be configured with 4, 6, and 8GB of RAM with 8GB being the max.
• Storage shouldnt be a problem with your choice of 500GB, 640GB, 750GB, or 1TB 7200rpm SATA hard drives.
• You can choose either a DVD +/- RW drive or Blu-ray drive.
• For graphics, you can choose either an integrated ATI Radeon HD3200 or discrete ATI Radeon HD 4330 with 512MB of dedicated memory.
• It has HDMI and VGA ports.
• A 4-in-1 media card reader and integrated gigabit Ethernet are both standard.
• It has integrated 2.1 High Definition audio with the choice of going with a Sound Blaster X-Fi High Definition audio from Creative.
• For your wireless needs, you can choose either a Dell 1397 802.11 b/g wireless card or Dell 1520 802.11 b/g/n wireless card.

This little PC starts at just $229 and can be customized to support a variety of configurations depending on your needs.

Matter a fact, Dells Lionel Menchaca talks about a perfect use for the Inspiron Mino HD a Windows Media Center hub with Windows 7. You can connect this PC up to your HDTV via HDMI and play HD Blu-ray movies. You can buy a USB TV tuner to watch and record live TV in Windows Media Center and also stream video content via Internet TV and Netflix.

For a powerful Windows Media Center setup with Windows 7, it is recommended when ordering your Inspiron Zino HD you choose the discrete graphics option (the ATI Radeon HD 4330) for the best experience. With with the storage options you get with the Inspiron Mino HD, you can literally make this PC the centralized hub on your network for all your digital media. And of course HomeGroup in Windows 7 makes it easier than ever to share that content with the rest of your PCs on your network too.

In the coming months Im hoping to pick one of these up and deploy it in my home as my own Windows Media Center hub.

* Base model comes with Windows Vista Home Basic SP1 32-bit.

Photos credit: Dell. See the full set of Inspiron Zino HD photos from Dells official Flickr page.

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Today, Windows 7 controls my home entertainment experience in my living room. It does so through Windows Media Center. I am using the same setup I blogged about here in 2007 with Windows 7 and its an amazing experience. Because of how well it works for me, I wanted to highlight 7 great things you can do with Windows Media Center in Windows 7. Windows 7 can easily be the center of your home entertainment experience just like it is with mine.

#1: Watch Live TV on your Windows 7 PC.

If your Windows 7 PC has a TV tuner, you can use Windows Media Center to watch, pause, and rewind live TV directly on your PC! If youre Windows 7 PC doesnt have a TV tuner, you can always add one they are quite inexpensive.

Windows Media Center in Windows 7 supports High Definition TV (HDTV) capabilities as well. Earlier last month, we announced support for Switched Digital Video (SDV). We also announced that customers will now be able to add a digital cable tuner with CableCARD support to their PC. Previously, digital cable tuners with CableCARD support were only available on new PCs from OEMs that supported the configuration. Digital cable tuners with CableCARD support differ from standard TV tuner cards as they support digital cable through CableCARDs rented from your cable provider for digital cable channels. Assuming you have the right subscription, this enables you to access the full line-up of channels offered by your cable provider, including the premium channels.

There are also TV tuner cards that support over-the-air HDTV (ATSC) with an antenna as well as Clear QAM.

#2: Turn your Windows 7 PC into a DVR (Digital Video Recorder)!

Windows Media Center lets you schedule recordings of TV shows and movies. You can even schedule to record all instances (new episodes) of your favorite TV show! Windows Media Center also makes it very easy to view all your recorded content.

I talked about HDTV and the use of digital cable tuners with CableCARD support above. Microsoft and CableLabs are working together to allow people with digital cable tuners with CableCARD support more portability with their recorded digital cable TV. Recordings that are marked as copy freely (CF) will now be able to play on other PCs and portable devices.

#3: Easily find the TV shows and movies that you want to watch.

Windows Media Center has great search capabilities built-in so you can easily find all your favorite TV shows and movies. This makes it easier to schedule recordings.

#4: Access all your personal media in one place – no matter where it is.

Windows Media Center brings in all your digital media photos, movies, music, and recorded TV shows into one place. Windows Media Center also takes advantage of HomeGroup in Windows 7 and allows you to access digital media content from other PCs!

With recorded digital cable TV content marked as CF you can share this content throughout your home network of Windows 7 PCs using HomeGroup (see #2 above). You can even access it when you are away from home with Remote Media Streaming in Windows 7.

#5: Track your favorite sports, players, and leagues.

If youre a sports nut, you can use Windows Media Center to track your favorite teams and leagues. Windows Media Center lets you track scores, players, and leagues natively within Windows Media Center. You can also see quickly jump to sports on now and check sports coming on later in Windows Media Center too.

#6: Access your recorded TV and digital media where you want: on the PC or on the TV.

Windows 7 supports a variety of high end displays including HDTVs. You can connect your PC to your HDTV and use Windows Media Center to watch and view all your media. Of course this works with a standard PC monitor too. But because Windows 7 makes it easy to share your digital media, you can have 1 PC connected to your HDTV in your home for Windows Media Center and bring in content from all PCs on your home network to that single PC connected to your HDTV. You could also use the Extender for Windows Media Center technology built into your Xbox 360 to access the same Windows Media Center menu you are used to using on your PC.

#7: Watch movies and TV episodes instantly from Netflix in Windows Media Center in Windows 7.

Watch streaming Instant Play movies and TV shows from Netflix! Also add movies to your DVD queue if Instant Play is not available. Full control of your Netflix account right from Windows Media Center!

I hope these 7 great things about Windows Media Center give you some great ideas on how to bring your home entertainment together using Windows 7!

Sean Alexander recently posted a good tip for Windows 7 Media Center users which is something that some of you may have overlooked: turning on color-coded program categories in the on-screen guide. With this option, you can easily see at a glance which channels are Sports, which are News, which are Movies, etc., just like what you would see in the guide on your home television. To turn this option on, go into Settings>TV>Guide Page Options, and click the first checkbox option which is “Apply colored backgrounds to shows, based on their category”.

After turning this option on, your channels will be identified with the following colors:

• Green – Sports
• Purple – Movies
• Light Blue – Kids & Family
• Orange – Special
• Yellow – News

While youre in the settings there, you can also set channels to display by name instead of number an especially useful option for identifying which channels are which if you cant remember them by number.

So you want to watch Blu-ray movies on a computer? Then PowerDVD Ultra 9 is the program for you. The latest version of Cyberlinks media player, at a cost of $99, is all about high definition movies and Blu-ray, plugging the hole left Vistas lack of native Blu-ray support. PowerDVD Ultra 9 is a solid step in the right direction. Nothing revolutionary but improvements all around.

PowerDVD Ultra New Features
Cyberlink was kind enough to provide me with a release candidate version of PowerDVD Ultra 9 to review for this article. From the press materials they provided me, the following features were added to PowerDVD:
TrueTheater Technology up-scales DVD for playback on HD displays
Cinema Mode provides seamless Blu-ray playback to Microsoft Windows Media Center PCs
Up-to 8-channel high-definition audio is supported for Dolby Digital and DTS surround sound
systems
FancyView enables easier, more pleasurable navigation of DVD titles, chapters and movie information.
Library features allow information to be stored about both DVD and Blu-ray titles
MoovieLive.com enables sharing of stored movie information, personal ratings and reviews.

The Good
For me, PowerDVD Ultra 9 offers two main upgrades over version 8: tight integration with Windows Media Center and DVD upconverting through its new TrueTheater settings. Support for HD Audio codecs is once again included, as it was in version 8 (note: hardware is still not available to actually listen to these HD audio codecs and wont be until Q3 of 2009).
Media Center integration works well. No dropping to the desktop or anything funky like that. The experience is almost seamless. Just dont hit the back button too many times or you will get kicked out of Media Center. Third-party plugins are able to piggyback on to PowerDVD. This means programs like Open Media Library and Media Browser are able to launch ripped movies from the media center UI. Finally.

PowerDVD Ultra had been losing market share in the media center word to TotalMedia Theatre by Arcsoft, mainly because TotalMedia Theatre was integrated better with Windows Media Center. Cyberlink had worked with OEMs like Velocity Micro PC to develop a media center plugin but it was never made available to the public. PowerDVD 9 rectifies this and once again appears to be the top choice for watching Blu-ray movies on a PC.

The Bad
PowerDVD suffers from an odd design choice, the inability to play ripped Blu-ray movies. You have to rip movies as an ISO file and then use a virtual drive to load the discs. For media center users, playing digital movies from a hard drive is essential. This has nothing to do with piracy. People just want to organize their movies like they organize their digital music files.
Out of Cyberlinks control, the copy protection for Blu-ray movies can be a real pain, especially on a computer. You have to have a video AND a monitor that both support HDCP. If you have a monitor or video card older than two years, you are most likely out of luck. I use a 24 Dell monitor to watch Blu-ray movies on my desktop. I have to use AnyDVD HD to strip out out the content protection since my monitor does not support HDCP.

Moovielive.com also seems kind of pointless. I really am not too interested to see what other PowerDVD users are watching. It seems like everyone is trying to add social networking to their products. Moovielive.com information should be made available though the media center interface.

Conclusion
With Blu-ray drives now easily found for under $100, high definition movies are more attainable than ever for the home theater computer crowd. PowerDVD Ultra 9 is an evolutionary product that should be looked at by any media center user, especially those with Blu-ray drives. If you are just looking for a software DVD player, PowerDVD is overkill, with cheaper options available.

The Innoventions Dream Home sits inside Disneyland’s Tomorrowland and uses Windows Media Center in Windows Vista – along with hardware from HP and others – to combine technology available today with technology we might see in our future.

Ian Dixon reports that the Media Center Team recently received a visit from the well-known photographer Thomas Hawk. He took a tour of the offices and snapped some pictures which are now available on Flickr. He also had some nice things to say about the working environment:

First, I was surprised what a relaxed environment they all work in. For some reason I’d always pictured people working for Microsoft wearing business casual polo shirts and Levi’s Dockers behind desks that all looked pretty much the same. Each person on the team had their own workspace and each had it pretty much set up however they wanted. Couches, futons, very cool music space set ups that looked more like a DJ stand than corporate offices. And while I didn’t see any dogs or Foosball tables, the set up reminded me a lot more of a Silicon Valley start up than the corporate behemoth that is Microsoft.

Thomas also said that hes been a big fan of Media Center in fact, it was his very first photo he ever posted to Flickr. He really heaps on the praise saying that Media Center represents the very best home entertainment system available on the market today and sits head and shoulders above AppleTV, TiVo and other home media platforms.

Wow, thanks Thomas!

You can see all the photos from his visit here. (Including the one that accompanies this post!)