Reminder: How to use decoders that do not show up in the VMCD utility

 

One of the comments that commonly appears in posts about my VMCD utility is "How do i get X decoder to show up in your utility"

For decoders that are XP Media Center compatible this has been explained in this post:

http://thedigitallifestyle.com/cs/blogs/garry/archive/2007/03/21/tip-using-non-mce-compatible-decoders-with-my-vista-media-center-decoder-utility.aspx

I am also working on adding some of the more common but non MCE Compatible codecs such as FFDShow - more later on that

Sites you should know: CITA Ten Foot products

 

A recent post reply to a question by Ian Dixon prompted me to take a look at CITA's Ten Foot package of utilities. This turns out to be a really nice collection of add-ins for both XP and Vista Media Center. They may not be the most cutting edge in terms of user experience design and they do run outside of media center but they really do work.

Quoting from their site:

CITA Ten Foot products currently consist of six modules:

1. Launcher - allows you to launch any of the Ten Foot products and any other programs you want to run. This is not an MCE add-in. The products will work with any Media Centre - or none at all.
2. Browser - displays web pages full screen with the ability to zoom in for detail. Designed to be operated with a standard remote, the Browser includes many features designed to minimise data entry. You even get a cursor you can work with your remote.
3. Mail Reader - tracks all your Email accounts and allows you to read Emails at any time. You can delete Emails you don't need; the rest will still be picked up by your normal mail reader. You can password protect sensitive Email accounts.
4. BitTorrent client - downloads large files (and collections of files) from the Internet and stores them in the right directory ready for you to use them. For example, you can get films, TV programs and music that are published as BitTorrents. The client integrates with the Ten Foot Browser so clicking a link to a torrent starts the download automatically.
5. File manager - allows you to work with files and folders. Great for organising your videos and giving your files meaningful names.
6. Program manager - gives you options for minimising, restoring, maximising and closing windows from your armchair.

You can download them from here.

Well worth a look.