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Written by Tony Phelps
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Monday, 18 September 2006 |
A relatively recent arrival in the Microsoft scene is its “new” operating system aimed at multi-media, multi-tasking, multi-use home devices. Microsoft Media Centre Edition or MCE is an attempt at getting the computer out of the study or back bedroom and into your lounge, sitting next to your stereo, TV and satellite equipment.
Although based on the Windows XP operating system that most are familiar with, MCE shows a different face and is optimised for quite a different use. Store all your music files on it (or record all your CDs to it), store your camcorder movies and camera photos on it, plug it directly into your TV and/or satellite picture signal, and you have a box that will allow you to play your favourite collections of music (in any room of the house if you add suitable hardware), display a screensaver of your photos on your TV screen, and record a TV or satellite channel even as you watch another one.
Besides such multimedia activities, Windows MCE will also allow you to perform the standard computer tasks such as email and wordprocessing – you can still install the usual applications in the usual way. More interesting is that the hardware that houses all this is now coming out in much more lounge-friendly shapes. No longer that big beige noisy box, you can buy MCE units that match very nicely with the DVD player, satellite receiver, stereo and other such audio-visual equipment. Windows MCE units can themselves become the DVD player and stereo, combining several separate items into the one.
Windows MCE also provides DVR capabilities, or Digital Video Recording. Say you are watching your favourite show on TV and the phone rings – press a button or two, and the show is being recorded for you. Finish the phone conversation, press another couple of buttons, and continue watching the show where you left off – the DVR records the show as it is actually being received, even while you watch it at a point it recorded a vew minutes earlier. No need to wait for the show to finish and “rewind” to where you were interrupted.
The MCE units that are specifically designed for the lounge usually come with a wireless keyboard and mouse and a separate remote control (for example to change TV channel or forward to the next music track, photo or movie). You can also get extender units that enable one person to play their own music in one room while another plays different music in a different room.
The general idea of Windows MCE is that it becomes a more central piece of equipment in the family home, located in the most popular room of the house. This is a theme that is being pursued by a number of technology companies, all eager to break with the “big ugly beige box” syndrome that computers have suffered from for so long. Computers are taking on different shapes, different sizes, becoming much quieter and less intrusive, and less a rat's nest of cabling. They are also continuing to become integrated units – chasing the holy grail of unpack-and-switch-on. Expect to see much more in this theme over the next couple of years.
Questions? Contact us - Merlin Pacific IT provide effective & efficient business IT. Join VIGNET (Vanuatu Internet User Group) email discussions, register at http://tinyurl.com/zcusl
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Last Updated ( Monday, 18 September 2006 )
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