Line Rate

I love Windows 7 Media Center.  I like having high-def recorded TV via cablecard, my encoded DVD Library, Music, Pictures, etc. all in one place, on one screen, without having to futz with multiple inputs on a receiver or the TV.   

I use handbrake to convert my DVDs and it's the perfect tool for the job.  It's free, it's quick, and its awesome. 

I recently started using an Xbox 360 as a Windows 7 Media Center Extender and it works pretty well.
One thing that has bugged me for quite some time is the (lack of) codec support on the 360.  When running in Media Center Extender mode, it doesn't seem to support much and there are a lot of files in my library that won't play.   

Last night I took a DVD and ran it through a handful of handbrake encoding presets to figure out which one(s) work.

So far, the Apple TV2 built-in preset does a bang-up job.  Since my TVs are only running 720p right now, I'm happy with that.  When I embrace 1080p and blu-ray, I'll probably revisit the topic to see what other options are out there for the 360s and the higher resolution.

Hope this helps someone else out there who runs into the same problem.  That's why we blog, right? 

We use Windows Media Center at our house. It's currently Vista Media Center, but as soon as my Ceton Cablecard Tuner arrives, I'll be switching to Windows 7 Media Center.

I love the Microsoft Learning Remote Control and was quite disappointed when they discontinued it. I picked up a box of 10 on eBay, just for a day like today. It's been 3 days since we last saw the remote. I'm sure the couch ate it or the baby threw it in the garbage.

In any event, I pulled a new one out of the box and had a horrible time trying to get it to learn a Vizio remote control. I finally got the proper sequence of learning down:

1.) replace the batteries with fresh ones, both remotes
2.) use a dark room
3.) hold DVD MENU and OK button on MS remote until light turns off
4.) press button on MS remote that you would like to train (TV PWR, VOL UP/DOWN), it will flash once.
5.) Press and hold the corresponding button on the Vizio remote.

If it flashes twice, you're good. If it flashes 4 times quickly, you must start over at step #3. I also found it helpful to move the remotes closer together/further apart during the actual learning process. Hope it helps someone out there.