[mythtv-users] Cool idea: Use wireless PDA to control Myth

[Dan Conti]

This is really, really interesting, and i think it has a lot of potential.

One thing that might be useful, should this sort of scheme be implemented,
would be to use upnp. The big advantage with upnp is you can avoid having
control devices (i.e. zaurus) querying the backend to find frontends - it
can just advertise itself as a controller, and all the frontends on the
network would respond.

Another approach completely would be to present a web UI to all control
devices. I haven't looked through how the current UI is structured, but i
have a feeling that doing this properly would be way way too much effort.
At a quick guess the easiest way to do it would be to create the screen
layout in xml or something, then have some other components that could
generate QT calls or the proper html for the screen, depending on who is
viewing it.

Just blabbing.

-Dan

On Thu, 9 Oct 2003, Brandon Beattie wrote:

> I've been designing my dream home in my head with such a remote/zaurus
> (I do own one).  However, Myth needs to probably move to the following
> state before something like that should be done (Or atleast this is just
> my thoughts).
>
> Myth needs to have "profile" or "session"s.  Each session can be a myth
> application in whatever state.  This state either is known by the main
> master server or knows how to redirect requests for that session to
> other locations.  Next you have a two types of clients.  One processing
> the media, and one controlling the media.
>
> In basic use, mythfrontend would start both types of clients.  But you
> can have other controlling clients connect (Mythweb, zaurus, a PC, etc)
> that selects which session (By getting a list of current sessions from
> the main master server) it wants to control.
>
> More advanced use would be that if a myth box running in the living room
> was running a music session and you went into your computer room, you
> could cause your computer to add it's self to watchers for that session
> and also process the music/media so you can here it in that room also.
> And in the future this means watching the same program on any tv or
> computer that has a myth box hooked up to it.  (And mythbrowser,
> weather, and any other myth plug-in.  I can see having a half dozen via
> boards around the home running myth, controlling audio or TV in rooms
> and being able to select, "Connect all media clients to stream this
> music" and having full home sound, for entertaining, the football games,
> etc.  Maybe for art on the walls, college TV's, (I don't think these are
> too far off, except college TV's).  I know videolan does something like
> this, but it really doesn't do this.  Especially with controlling things
> from several locations, and it doesn't have the backend like myth does
> that is the right groundwork for this type of mythical setup. :)
>
> Doing this will require a bit to be added to myth's media transport
> system, and also building sessions into Myth... A lot of work, but
> it would be an interesting project (Sadly, I have the idea but no time).
>
> I personally think this is where Myth will get eventually, but maybe I'm
> putting my thoughts out too early.
>
> --Brandon
>