So a few weeks ago we asked you to let us know what you thought should be in the finals of our first ever Using Windows Home Server Readers Awards.
The emails have been flooding in and the finalists are shown below.
Please click on your choices to register your votes.
The winners will be announced early in the New Year.
So come on, get voting now!
Well I am very happy to say that I have finally finished my Netbooks book! Its run a little over but I am very happy with the final result.
My book, Netbooks in Easy Steps, will be published around the end of January 2010 by In Easy Steps Publishing.
It is a 216 page, full colour guide to Netbooks and Windows 7 and makes a great gift for anyone who just got a netbook for Christmas.
I will giveaway a few copies of the book as usual when they are ready, or you can pre-order it right now 🙂
After a bunch of beers on Thanksgiving Day, and 20% Bing Cashback, I ordered a Zino HD from Dell. Well, I am already a Dell guy so it was not like I drunk-dialed. Anyway, after a month of waiting it finally arrived this week! The cost after Bing was $199.
So, what do you get for $200 from the Dell Zino HD?
When you buy the Inspiron Zino HD you get a nice, clean, small PC that should work well for a HTPC. In fact, the main reason I bought the Zino HD was as a Christmas present for my sister. The Dell Zino HD should go well with her 50” and her LX195.
For those of you on “the edge” of buying a PC for your living room this might be the one to push you over. It is small enough not attract the attention of your spouse, inexpensive enough to not stand out on a credit card bill and quiet enough to sit behind the poinsettia without getting noticed.
As you can see, on the order shown below, I ordered the Zino with just the basic drive and memory but opted for Windows 7 Premium and the wireless card. I would not usually recommend the purchase of the $30 wireless upgrade but I wanted her to be able to use it right away. We can run a patch cable under the house once the weather warms up. In addition, the size of the drive was not important since she has the WHS to take care of any video and media storage.
The basic model currently starts $249 but they have sales about once a month and you can get one for the same price with a few upgrades during these special deals.
You can also get different colors for the plastic top. Um yeah. It already looks like a stack of mouse pads. Lets not make it look dumb.
If you get a Zino HD nicely equipped (Win7 Premium, 4GB, 1 TB, 512MB Video) you are looking at about $633. Ouch. Not worth it on the higher end model unless you just love the size and style…of a stack of mouse pads.
Oh, and the Blu-Ray is no longer in the configuration options. WTH? It is mentioned on the website but not available to order now. Are there some issues Dell? I know my one year old Studio Hybrid had a boatload of BR issues up front and still stutters on some movies. Come on Dell. Everyone else is getting it right.
It is about 8 inches square and looks like (wait for it…) a stack of mouse pads. It has a nice glossy finish but that cannot be seen in the picture since I did not remove the protective plastic.
Two USB connections, one audio and a SD card reader on the front.
The back has a HDMI port that is under the VGA I connected to my test stand. There are two USB and two eSATA connections along with the gigabit network connection and audio jacks. I am not sure why Dell would have eSATA connections. I mean it is nice but I would have rather had an audio optical out.
The plastic top pops off without tools. Inside you can see the two antenna for the wireless.
Remove a couple of screws and you are inside the unit. There is a slim DVD drive with the hard drive underneath.
For the size, I expected to see a laptop drive but there is actually a full size hard drive inside. There is not any room inside for anything else.
The Zino HD does well for what it is. You are not going to game on the Zino, or render fur, but you can watch some decent HD content and chill with some good 2.1 music through your entertainment center and WMC. It has an AMD Athlon processor and a 780G chipset that should keep you going freeze free for most of what you need.
Also, keep in mind that this is Energy Star® compliant so the performance is proportional. In fact, my new EVGA video card at idle will still use twice the electricity as the entire Zino HD does under load.
The Dell Tech Specs can be found at:
http://www.dell.com/us/en/corp/desktops/inspiron-zino-hd/pd.aspx?refid=inspiron-zino-hd&s=corp
and the manuals can be found at:
http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/insp400/en/index.htm
The out of the box the rating is 3.2, limited by the basic Radeon HD3200 graphics.
Again, I got the basic Zino HD configuration but it should be more than enough for DVDs, Hulu and Windows Media Center. Viva WMC. Seriously.
This is the same ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 3200 that is found in laptops. It has the HDMI so you are good to go with basic HD video. The GPU should be enough to drive your flat screen.
As with all of my setups, I get everything installed and tested prior to delivery. Windows Media Center worked great and the HD samples were clean and clear.
My basic install set always includes:
Microsoft clips are available for download at:
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/musicandvideo/hdvideo/contentshowcase.aspx
The Dell Zino HD is really tight, clean, small and would make a good addition to any living room entertainment center.
As for a WHS? No. It would never be any better than the LX195 which is already cheaper from the start. A Dell Zino HD with the same compliment as the LX195 and a WHS OEM would be $443. Ouch.
As a sole entertainment PC, adding the AMD dual core and the video upgrade starts to get expensive at around $500, so play around with the configurations as you compare.
That being said, if you are looking for a quick and inexpensive way to get Windows Media Center (via HDMI) to your TV then the basic unit is something you should consider.
Of course you could always go bigger…
Happy Holidays to all of you.
See you next Friday night,
Tim
Dave over at the Home Server Show has released podcast number 69.
This week’s show is nice a long, just under 90 minutes – so way to go Dave!
Here is what Dave has to say about show 69:
The Home Server Show 69
This week’s show is FULL of news. I am joined by Jim and John and we go over tons of news items. Enjoy and have a Merry Christmas!
HP’s Software update
A Retraction. AVAST’s false positives.
Time Machine to WHS
PP3 and OpenDNS
Add-In: Lights Out
Add-In: P80
D-Link Camera Solution for WHS
More camera surveillance with WHS
Add-In: Perfect Disk for WHS
PP3 TV Archive and AC3
My Movies new release and trial link
Artigo A2000 Review
Remote Desktop for Windows7 versions that do not support RDP
WGS Reader Awards
The Digital Lifestyle Awards
Using Windows Home Server Reader Awards
Click here to listen to the show – and thanks Dave for the various mentions!
I just wanted to take this opportunity to wish all our readers a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Next year looks like being very interesting on the Home Server and Media front, so expect lots of news, reviews and of course our giveaways 🙂
If you haven’t yet read it, take a look at Tim’s Christmas post, it’s brilliant:
https://moviesgamesandtech.com/2009/12/24/twhsas-the-friday-night-before-christmas/
And if you are based in the UK, don’t forget there is still time for you to enter our Sandberg Streetblaster headset giveaway:
https://moviesgamesandtech.com/2009/12/17/sandberg-streetblaster-headset-giveaway/
So everyone have a safe and joyful Christmas and thank you for making Using Windows Home Server.com what it is.
Andy over at CloudBerry has been in touch to say that they have an updated version of their CloudBerry Online Backup Add-in.
CloudBerry Online Backup for Windows Home Server provides a powerful Backup and Restore program designed to leverage Amazon S3 storage to make your disaster recovery plan simple, reliable, and affordable.
Windows Home Server is a great way to protect your data. However you are still vulnerable to physical disk failures and inadvertent deletions. As a result your data might be lost forever. CloudBerry Backup for Windows Home Server provides you with another level of protection by copying your data to secure online storage powered by Amazon S3
A little fable for your enjoyment…
‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house,
Not a creature was stirring, not even a Microsoft Wireless 6000 Mouse;
The computers were sleeping on the network with care,
In hopes that Windows Home Server Backup soon would be there.
–
The children were nestled all sung in their beds,
While visions of Windows Media Center danced in their heads;
And the wife with her netbook, and mine removed from my lap,
Had just settled our brains for a long winter’s nap.
–
When inside the office there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to hear a clicking hard drive platter;
Away to the laptop I flew like a flash,
Remote Desktop the server, to diagnose the crash.
–
Admin and password and the trusty Console,
Gave the hope that this sound, away it would go;
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a glowing red error and file conflicts listed here.
–
With an outdated driver and firmware SD1A
I knew in a moment it must be the Seagate;
More rapid than eagles the conflict errors they came,
It hummed and it clicked while I called it bad names.
–
Now, sh&#head, now f*&kstain, now d*$kwad and a$$*ole,
On restart, on error log, on to disk manager I go;
To the side of the server, to the bay of the drive,
If I do not stop cursing I will wake up my wife.
–
As shiet that hits fans would then start to fly,
I shut down the server and unplugged the drive;
So out to the garage, the slippers and I flew,
To a drawer full of old IDE drives, I hope a SATA one too.
–
And then, in a twinkling, I saw in the drawer,
An old My Book World Edition that I had dropped on the floor;
As I drew in my head, and was turning around,
To the work bench I went with the drive I had found.
–
It was made in all white, from head to rubber feet,
And the sides were slightly scratched from being dropped on concrete;
A bundle of power cords were attached to the back,
Crap, this might not work, as I heard plastic crack.
–
My eyes – ah who cares, garage damn cold and I so weary
My cheeks were like roses, my nose like a cherry;
A little drool from my mouth was about to ice over,
Onto the beard of my chin, well it is a goatee, a summer leftover.
–
So the Craftsman screwdriver was jammed, tight in plastic teeth,
The cover would not budge, I would have to get underneath;
But then I remembered, there had to be a trick,
And it shook when I opened it, with just one simple click.
–
Inside was the 500GB SATA, a trusty WD drive,
And I laughed when I thought it could be brought back alive;
A shake and a turn and a twist of a screw head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.
–
I spoke not a word, and went straight back to the case,
And removed the old drive, this one in its place;
Replacing the cables and side cover I arose;
And giving a nod, Power On, here it goes.
–
As she sprang to life once again, the drive gave me a whistle,
And away flew the error messages, like the down of a thistle;
And the wife heard me exclaim, as I turned off the light,
Disk Duplication for all, and to all a good-night!
* * *
Happy Holidays To Everyone!
So you made a backup. Now what? What do you do with it?
I wrote a few weeks ago about creating a simple backup in Windows XP. The article is at:
https://moviesgamesandtech.com/2009/12/09/tech-tip-on-a-tuesday-windows-backup-or-restore-wizard/
The result of the backup is one HUGE file. Having all of the data in one file is very simple and easy to manage!
You can also restore the ENTIRE PC if you want. OR, although the backup creates one large file, you can actually restore any part of the back up.
It is really easy. Let me show you how I restore a folder I deleted a few days before.
Open the Backup and Restore Wizard.
Click on Restore files and settings.
Choose the Backup ID (date and file name) that want to restore from. Remember that you can restore all or any part of the file!
Double click on the Backup ID and it will open up like a regular directory. You can see that i have my data and System State. I just want a folder that was on the Desktop so I will go and find it.
I click on folders until I get to Documents and Settings>tdaleo and then I see the Desktop folder.
I double click on the Desktop folder and then see all of the folders that were on the Desktop the day of the backup. My folder was in one of those folders.
I check the box of the folder I want to restore. This is way too easy.
You can see that the Backup will be restored to its original location and replace the files that are there now.
I will click on Advanced to show you your other options.
You could restore this to another location if you want.
Click on Next.
You could leave the existing files or replace them. Your choice!
Click on Next.
I would not suggest changing security or volume data! Click on Next.
You are ready to restore. Click on Finish.
The restore process is very quick. My backup file is on a USB drive.
196 MB restored in 29 seconds. Very fast!
All done. So simple. Thank you Microsoft.
See you next Tuesday,
Tim
This weekend fellow UWHS writer fasthair gave me the secret decoder ring for our AC3 filter issue. After a quick installation, my WHS was creating copies of new Recorded TV for my Zune and placing them in my WHS Videos folder. The functionality of Windows Media Center, Windows Home Server and Zune is now working! Thank you fasthair!
With WHS, WMC and TV Archive we want to integrate our portable media. Microsoft has given us the tools but we all have the same unfortunate issue.
The issue: We cannot use the “create a compressed copy” feature for WHS. The check box is there but it will not work. Huh?
Let me explain…
Once your TV show has recorded in WMC, WHS and TV Archive will copy the file to your Recorded TV folder. As added functionality, if you want WHS to create a smaller version of the show for your portable device, you can choose in the settings to have WHS save this smaller copy to the Videos folder. This is a great idea but it does not work.
Let me explain further…
Again, the functionality of saving a smaller copy does not work. What basically happens is that TV Archive will start to process the Recorded TV show, and if the show has AC3 audio like most shows, the process will stall. Your recordings will never make it to your WHS. Microsoft did not include the ability to decode the AC3 audio stream so WHS will just stop and not process any of the files. With the functionality turned off the TV Archive functions properly and does not stall.
Many of us have been frustrated by this issue and have not a solution for getting Recorded TV to our mobile devices.
Mental note: I guess if the show did not have AC3 audio then it would work but most shows have it.
There have a been a few other options for a solution to our issue recently but none have been as easy as what you about to read about!
fasthair sent me message over the weekend saying he had found a fix for the AC3 encoding issues we have all had when trying to create compressed copies. You can read about the fix directly at:
Problems Transcoding Recorded HDTV and Window 7 Media Center TV Archive
A big thank you to fasthair for finding this quick and easy solution!
According to the website http://code.google.com/p/ac3filter/
“AC3Filter is a high quality free audio decoder and processor filter. It allows media players to playback movies with AC3 and DTS audio tracks. Also it can process any audio track, much of processing options allows to adjust the sound in almost any way. It is possible to upmix any audio source to 6 channels. Filter can do multi-channel and digital (SPDIF) output. It can encode any audio source to AC3 on-the-fly and send it over SPDIF to the receiver.”
The site is a part of http://ac3filter.net/ although at the time of writing this I could not access the site.
Download the file from: http://ac3filter.googlecode.com/files/ac3filter_1_63b.exe
Installation is quick and easy. Close Windows Media Center and download the file.
Click on Next.
Click on Next.
Click on Next.
Click on Next.
Click on Next.
Click on Finish. All done!
Below is the video for the setup.
If you have not already done so, map your WHS Videos folder to your Zune so you can view the compressed files immediately!
I have my video files set to manual so to add it to my Zune I just right mouse-click and select Sync with jpltim30.
After a couple of minutes to Sync I am ready to take my Recorded TV shows on the road!
If the show you are recording is NOT protected then the compressed copy is created right after the show finishes recording. I recorded the jury part of Survivor last night and WHS created my Zune file.
For some reason the second part of Survivor was “Copy Protected”. You can see the notation on the bottom of the screen. If a Recorded show is Copy Protected is will NOT create a compressed copy.
You can see my video folder has the first Survivor show but not the second copy protected show. The files are much smaller and the video quality is great.
Now, why one show was protected and the other was not does not make sense, but it is Charter and CBS that make that determination. Most of the shows on Charter are not protected so I can still enjoy most of my shows on Zune.
This solution works great. Thank you fasthair again for finding this easy filter for the AC3 issue. If you have not tried this functionality I would seriously suggest trying it!
See you next Friday night,
Tim
Earlier this month I did a post about a great deal that HP were doing on the HP MediaSmart EX490 Windows Home Server’s that included a free M&S Christmas Hamper here in the UK.
I even ordered one myself as the deal was too good to pass up, especially with the Christmas hamper.
At the time I placed the order, the system showed 36 in stock for immediate delivery. My order confirmation said something similar about delivery in a few days.
A few days turned into a week and it hadn’t arrived. I called HP to be told they had none in stock, even though their website said there was stock, and in fact at that time STILL showed stock.
I was told that there was a large shipment coming in that day and my box would be shipped that night and would be with me by the weekend (just gone).
I called this morning, and after being on hold for over 20 minutes, I was told that they don’t have any stock and that they now don’t even have a date for when the stock will be coming in and so did I want to cancel my order!
I have left it on order just to see when I will get it.
This is very poor show HP – how can you advertise something in stock when you don’t have it, then make several promises that you know you cant deliver on.
Oh, and the Christmas Hamper offer needed to have the paperwork in by the 17th, along with information including the serial number of the unit – so obviously that didn’t happen! Although they now say you can have a “seasonal” hamper instead.
Did anyone else order one and are currently getting the run around?
How does HP expect to sell any MediaSmarts in the UK if we only get one model (the lower specification of the two EX49x series) and then no one actually has them in stock)?
I had been wanting a universal remote control for sometime. Just to watch a DVD required three remotes and many buttons pushed to change settings for inputs and so on before I even could begin to enjoy the flick. Even if I wanted to just listen to the radio it was far from one click with one remote to hear the music. Universal remotes have been on the market for years and they all kind of, how do I put it? Sucked! Some giving a new meaning to the word. Just programming them was an exercise in patients and tedious. Clearly there had to be a better way. Enter the modern remote part of the modern digital connected home.
After some research reading reviews until I was blurry eyed I knew what I wanted and what the remote must do. It had to be easy to program using a PC, have a lighted key pad, control the six components in my house and have one touch operations. The last thing is it had to be easy to use, oh and not cost a small fortune. While I know there are many out now that can do some if not all of these things the Logitech Harmony 700 fit my budget and all of the things on my short list were checked.
The Unboxing Thing
As is popular for reviews of this nature it seems everyone likes to do the whole unboxing thing. Well here in the fasthair household about the only thing I care about is how easy and fast I can get it out of the box and start pushing buttons. As long as it’s not busted I’m a happy camper.
Software and Programming
With that out of the way it was time to start pushing buttons. Install the included rechargeable batteries, connected the included USB cable and Windows 7 X64 loads the drivers without issues just the way it should be. Oddly enough there is no software setup cd. Are you kidding me? Dig out the quick guide (I don’t need no stinkin’ instructions!) to discover you must go to Logitech’s website and setup an account before they will even let you download the software. Are you kidding me? While I don’t mind having to go to the web to get the software, which is something I prefer to do so I have the latest and greatest stuff, but forcing me to create an account really kind of irks me.
With the software installed it it was time to get down to business of programming the 700. The first screen wants to check for updates for the remote and after few minutes the new firmware is installed and it is time to tell the remote the devices name and model numbers of all my stuff. This is where the setup really shines. Using easy to use drop down menus you click the brand of the device and then key in the model number. I was amazed at the database that Logitech has for hardware. Boosting 200,000+ devices in their database it was a real no brainer getting the devices programmed into the 700. All of the functions for 99% of my hardware worked without some much as tweaking a single setting. The 1% that didn’t work, and it came as no real surprise, was my remote for my USB TV tuner. The setup wizard even made learning from the remote used to control the USB tuner as snap to get basic functions programmed into the 700. That’s right, the 700 can even control my Media Center, just too cool.
Activities and Custom Programming
With the basic functions programmed into the 700 it was time to move on to what was the biggest reason for choosing the 700, the one touch functions or “activities” as Logitech calls them. Activities do all of the things it took me three remotes and too many clicks just to watch a movie to do. Now with one touch of say the Movie button the 700 turns on my TV tuned to the correct input, turns on the sound system again tuned to the proper input and turns on the DVD player with the play command sent. There are four default buttons to program these activities which include Watch TV, Watch a Movie, Listen to Music and More Activities. This last item has six other default activities displayed in the color LCD screen. While it now takes two clicks to listen to say a CD it is a far cry from what it took before. This part of the programming does take a good bit of time and requires that you know how all of your components are connected to each other. All of these default buttons can be programmed for any function you may want. When you get done with this part you can do all the basic activities and can probably stop here.
Device Settings and IR Learning
On the Device page you change the settings of each device to further customize their functions and learn some of the commands from your original remote for any device that Logitech may not have in the database. This was the case with my remote for my USB TV tuner. Again the wizard guides you through this and allows you to pick what buttons to do what function. I have of yet to get all of the functions and commands programmed into the 700 for the tuner. It is however easy to connect the 700 back to the PC and modify/add any one or more commands. This is the part that I’m not sure I will ever be done with. It’s not that it is hard to do, it’s just time consuming and the options seem almost endless on what you can do or change. This might be always a work in progress with such a highly customizable and high tech remote. I would much rather have too many option then come up short on choices.
Conclusions
I have been more than satisfied with the functions of the Harmony 700 the few days I’ve owned it. However it does have a few things that seem real short sighted on Logitech’s part. First the remote does not charge from the USB port of the PC and must be plugged into the wall with the included adaptor that you plug the USB cable into. There is also no way to tell the state of charge of the batteries without plugging it back in to the wall. It would have also been nice to see a clock displayed on the LCD too. 
This last one really bugs me though and I can’t believe this slipped by the design team and it has to do with the lighted buttons on the remote. One of the cool things is the remote knows when you pick it up and lights up the buttons and the LCD display. What it don’t light up are the buttons you will use the most and they are the one touch and the sub-activity menu buttons. Basically all the buttons from the bottom of the LCD up are not lit. While it’s not a deal breaker and I’m sure I will learn the “feel” of where these buttons are it just baffles me that Logitech missed this in such a big way. While on the subject of feel. The 700 fits my hand with a nice balanced feel and the buttons have nice “soft click feel” to them for that positive feedback.
The unlit buttons aside the 700 is a more then capable of controlling its six device limit in ways you might not ever think of until you start to see just how much you can customize it to do. It sure beats the old days of remotes scattered all over the place. Short of the USB TV tuner remote I haven’t had to pick up one of the old remotes… yet. I’m sure a time will come when I need to grab one but then it is just a matter of connecting back to the PC and programming in the missing function. So yah the Logitech Harmony 700 is a keeper.
fasthair
We got sent this tonight by fellow WHS MVP Martin Rothschink :
Lights-Out – Green IT for Windows Home Server has been released in version 1.0 today.
What’s new?
· Support for non WHS clients like Macs, Xbox, streaming clients
· Support for process, file, cpu and network load monitoring
· Scheduled wake-up, backups and a client option to shut down after backup
· Localized for English, German, French, Spanish and Chinese
· Polished GUI
Starting with version 1.0 the Add-In is available in 2 editions:
· A free community edition
· A licensed edition
More information is available on the Add-In page http://addins.home-server-blog.de/verwaltung/lightsout/#en
I have noticed a issue people (Timothy?) are reporting when using Media Center to trans code recorded HDTV on the fly to Windows Home Server. Since I have no hardware to use this feature with I never played with it. It appears that when trans coding HDTV content there is no sound in the file that is made. Seems kind of dumb that Microsoft wouldn’t have worked out some sort of license agreement to include an AC3 decoder with the networks so that this feature would function. What is ever dumber is that Microsoft even included such a feature when they knew it wouldn’t work. As long as you don’t trans code the HDTV recorded with Media Center the sound works fine during play back.
I have a SiliconDust HDHomeRun network TV tuner I use to record HDTV with. I will be doing a post on this very cool product shortly. Anyway HDHomeRun comes with an app called Quick TV that is software used to view TV from the tuner. I installed it and gave it a whirl. No sound! I went to the SiliconDust very good users forums and they knew all about this problem and had a link to a free download that enabled the sound. This free download was a “AC3 filter” according to their website. I installed this and everything was just ducky, I now had sound using this app. I never gave it further thought after that.
So where am I going with all of this? I was reading the forums at We Got Served (sorry Andrew :)) and ran across a post from a guy who had this no sound issue mentioned above. On a whim I post a link to this AC3 Filter not knowing if it would fix the problem or not. I figured it was worth a shot to at least try it. Well the gentlemen gave it a shot and reported back. It worked! Needless to say I was pretty surprised.
So I’m posting this here to see if other who are having this problem (Timothy?) want to give this a shot and report back on if it works for everyone or not. This would be really cool if it does. I make no guarantees that this will work. All I can promise is this software shouldn’t mess system. At least it hasn’t mine and if it doesn’t work you can always uninstall it.
Download Link to the open source AC3 Filter
Link to the open source website for further information and maybe make a donation if it works for you.
fasthair
Following on from the announcement from HP quite a few months ago about the software update for owners of the EX47x and EX48x series of HP MediaSmart Windows Home Servers, the update was supposed to be released in December.
Obviously it is now December 18th and the update is not available.
We got this from HP to share with you all:
In the latter stages of testing our 3.0 software update, a couple of issues were discovered with the upgrade disks. One was related to compatibility with PowerPack 3 and the other with the media streaming software. Both issues have fixes and we are now going back through our build and testing process. As a result, the 3.0 software update DVD availability will now be in February. While this delay was unexpected, we remain committed to providing this upgrade path for owners of our EX470/475/485/487 products. As previously communicated, these upgrades will be available as a server recovery solution.
The cost of the upgrade DVD has been finalized and will be US$25 or €25.
So, more information when we get it sometime in early 2010.
