[mythtv-users] Controlling multiple cable boxes

[Erik Karlin]

On Mon, Sep 12, 2005 at 10:14:36AM -0400, Brian Long wrote:
> On Mon, 2005-09-12 at 09:14 -0400, Gerald J. Berg wrote:
> > I have a pvr-350 and a pvr-500 in my MythTV box.
> > 
> >  
> > 
> > An IR Blaster would require multiple serial ports
> > 
> > to control the 3 cable boxes. These days, USB
> > 
> > ports are easier to come by than serial ports.
> > 
> >  
> > 
> > Has anyone heard of a way to control multiple
> > 
> > cable boxes using one or more USB ports?
> 
> I'm hoping to use the CommandIR beta hardware from
> http://www.innovationone.ca.  It is already supported by lirc and
> controls up to 4 separate devices using a single USB port.
> 
Along these lines, does anyone know how to control a cable box via
direct USB connections? I know my cable box has a USB port, and if I
hook up a USB keyboard to it, I can change the channels by hitting the
number keys.

I dug a little into it, and it would seem that I'd need a USB
host-to-host cable, but researching linux that for linux, I really only
came up with drivers that I use for my linux ipaq.

Does anyone have any other pointers? It would hugely cut down on my
channel changing time.