Can I transform my Laptop into a universal remote control?

hd2002 · 07-13-04, 03:21 PM

i know there are serval appz that can be used to transform the ppc into universal remote controls, is there a similar application for pc? i want to use my laptop as a remote control.

BTW, mods please feel free to move this tread if it fits better under a diff category.

silentknight · 07-13-04, 04:49 PM

I was looking for the same thing when I first got a laptop a few
years ago, I found that it was not possible, due to IR port,
the IR port on laptops is not consumer grade, meaning you would
have to be with in inches of your TV....

Most PDA's counter this by available 3rd party IR extenders, or including Consumer IR in their device.

hd2002 · 07-13-04, 05:14 PM

Actually i am planning to place one of my laptop within inches of the vcr. What i want to do is to broadcast tv over my 802.11g to my other laptop, this way i can watch live tv ANY where around my house. (that is right, even in the backyard...and bathroom) i already accomplished this by using vlc client on both of my laptops. in fact, I can even watch tv over the internet (i have 1mb upload bandwidth). The last part of the project is to be able to change channel remotely, there are serval ways i could accomplish this:
1:hook the ppc up to my stationary laptop, and use remote access client to control the ppc, thus changing channel.
2:build a simple robot that would sequentially push button on the vcr remote control according to my command.
3: use the ir port that was built into the stationary laptop.

i also have a remote receiver set from xp media center edition, i think i could also use that to send ir signals, but i am too lazy to do any programming for this project. Just want something simple that works instantly.