[This is Part IV of a series on building your own HTPC]

Once you've assembled the hardware, and collected the software, it is time to begin your install. You can expect this entire process to take between one and two hours to complete. Please follow these instructions:

1. Install Windows
   It is assumed that you partitioned your hard drive as specified in the previous post. When the Windows install is complete, don't forget to format the D: drive with 64K block size. You will also need to disable User Account Control, and the Windows firewall to save yourself some headaches later on.
   
2. Install Hauppauge software
   Insert the CD that came with the Hauppauge tuner, choose your language and then install both the drivers and WinTV (although WinTV may actually be optional, I'm not sure) and then reboot
   
3. Install Gigabyte motherboard drivers
   Download the latest drivers from the Gigabyte web site. It is assumed that you have already done this on a different machine with internet access, since without the LAN driver installed, you will not be able to connect with the HTPC. So download these drivers in advance and either burn them to a CD, or put them on a thumb drive. Specifically, you will need the Realtek HD Audio, which provides Dolby Pro Logic II support through both the HDMI connection and the optical digital audio port (if your receiver has one). You will also need the chipset driver package which includes the ATI Radeon 4200 HD video driver necessary if you are driving a true 1080p HD display. Install both of these drivers and then reboot.
   
4. Install GBPVR
   Early on, I had some issues with GBPVR crashing. If while configuring it, you run a channel scan, and for some reason it does not detect all of your local channels and you force a rescan, there is a bug that causes it to crash when you start mapping the channels to your Electronic Programming Guide. I recommend you join the GBPVR forum. There is a wealth of support information there which is publicly available, however, the search function is a lot easier to use if you are a registered user and logged in. The Boxee forum uses the same software, so the same is true for it. I recommend joining both.

   I also recommend joining Schedules Direct and paying the $20 annual fee for their TV guide data. There are a couple of free sites out there, but I can't vouch for the quality of their data, and I can say that Schedules Direct is already integrated into GBPVR, so setting it up to pull your TV listings every night is a snap.

   Download GBPVR (I am assuming version 1.4.7) and install it, and follow these instructions to configure it.

   Now install the Visual J# redistributable, followed by the WizRecordingRename utility, which you will install into the GBPVR folder. This utility allows automatic renaming of the recording files that GBPVR creates. This is important because Boxee will automatically catalog the recordings and download IMDB data about them, but only if the files follow Boxee's particular naming convention. Once you have installed these two items, copy the PostProcessing.bat and the WizRenameRecording.xml files into the GBPVR folder.
   

5. Install Boxee
   In order for Netflix to work within Boxee, you will need to install Silverlight, so do that first. Also, to make sure you are using the version of Flash that Boxee expects, go to http://www.boxee.tv/flash and install it from there. I can tell you how critical it is that you get the right version of Flash. There are a lot of versions out there, but only one that makes Boxee work. Lastly, install the Boxee beta (I am assuming version 0.9.20.10711).
   
6. Install EventGhost
   I struggled with getting the Hauppauge-included MCE remote to work correctly. The source of the problem is that the IR receiver plugs directly into the Hauppauge card, and is not a USB device, so it uses special drivers and Windows does not natively recognize the events that are generated when you push buttons on the remote. As it turns out, you don't need anything beyond the drivers on the Hauppauge CD. You just need to disable the IR program that gets installed with WinTV, by removing it from the Startup folder, and then install EventGhost. Run EventGhost and go to File -> Options and set it to autostart and minimize to the system tray when closed. Then copy the HTPC.xml file to your Windows 7 user folder and load it into Eventghost (File -> Open...) -- it then becomes your default config file and will be loaded automatically every time you start the machine. I have it set to autostart Boxee too, but you can remove that if you like.
   

[Stay tuned for Part V, The Results...]

[This is Part III of a series on building your own HTPC]

I started out thinking this would be a Linux-based PC, but two things changed my mind. First, I've written before about my travails with Linux. I want to like Linux, I really do. But I can't. Mabye I'm just not geeky enough, or maybe I'm just lazy, but configuring the guts of an operating system is not enjoyable, and I will avoid it every chance I get. If that means I buy Windows, so be it. Second, and more importantly, at the time of this writing streaming Netflix movies to a Linux box was still not an option -- this was a deal-breaker.

So I began with an old OEM copy of Windows XP for this build. Let me say that you can get this build to work with XP SP2 (I know because I had it working, but then got lazy about my configuration management and wound up in tweak hell that I couldn't seem to back out of), but you might be better off avoiding the hassles, and investing in an upgrade to Windows 7. This is the path I chose, and for the purposes of this guide, I am assuming the Windows 7 OS. But if you choose to go the XP route, I'll just point out that SATA support is not native in XP. So you will need to obtain SATA drivers from the motherboard manufacturer, and create either an install floppy with these drivers, or a slipstreamed XP install disk with the drivers integrated. I won't go into details here on how to do this, but I used a free tool called NLite, and it was relatively painless. It even allows you to remove all of the unnecessary Windows components, and I was able to get my install time down to about 18 minutes.

An important thing to keep in mind when installing Windows is that you will enjoy better performance by creating at least two partitions and putting Windows on one and storing your media on the other. I partitioned the 500GB drive into a 20GB C: drive and a 480GB D: drive. After your install, the first thing you should do is format the 480GB partition with a 64K block size (4K is the default). The larger block size lends itself to fewer and less frequent drive accesses, which will prevent jerky or choppy video when you play back recorded HD content, and drive fragmentation becomes less of a problem as well.

There are two main software components that you will be installing and configuring: Boxee and GBPVR. My goal was to integrate these two as much as possible since they are both free, relatively mature, products with more or less mutually exclusive, but highly complimentary, features. GB-PVR is, as the name would suggest, a Personal Video Recorder that uses the TV tuner card to record over-the-air television to the hard drive, and Boxee provides everything else from my list of requirements. These two packages were not designed to work together, but I've found that they can be made to play nice with each other, and perform satisfactorily -- at least until something better comes along.

One caveat right up front: if you install Windows 7 and think you might want to play around with Windows Media Center, do that first. When you're done playing with it, reinstall Windows and never run it again because when you run it you will be prompted to install all manner of helper apps that Media Center needs to function, and one or more of them prevent Boxee from working correctly. I learned this the hard way. Let me add that I like Media Center. I like it a lot. The user interface is the slickest and most sophisticated I've seen, configuration was painless, and it does everything! With one exception: the Internet TV module is severely limited and was enough to convince me that Boxee was a better choice. Although Boxee is still in beta testing, all you have to do is install it and play with it for a few minutes to see that it has far greater potential for future expansion.

[Continued in Part IV, The Install...]

[This is Part II of a series on building your own HTPC]

Let me start by saying that I did not compile this entire list of hardware through trial and error. Most of it came from Jay Taylor's excellent blog over at AMD, and a big thanks to him for starting me off in the right direction. I bought all the necessary parts for the base system following the links he provided. This includes the chassis, motherboard, memory, CPU, hard drive, and optical drive. Beyond that, I started experimenting. Buying my own tuner cards, remote controls, antennas, etc., and returning a lot of it until I found the right mix.

While evaluating antennas, I tried an RCA amplified antenna that cost about $20. I was unimpressed. The signal was strong enough in a few locations, but it was generally a crap shoot. I then considered going to the other extreme and purchasing a Channel Master 4221, which got great reviews everywhere I looked. I even entertained the idea of building my own out of coat hangers. Both of these still might be future options, but in the end, a Terk amplified antenna in the $40 range seemed to serve my purposes. For those of you who have not yet jumped on the Digital TV bandwagon, I'll point out that with the transition to digital, the channel numbers of your local stations have likely also changed. Most have migrated to UHF in the 20-40 range, so don't expect to find them in their old locations.

My choice of tuner card was driven by both positive user reviews and the strongly desired feature of a dual-tuner on a single card. Not only was the Hauppauge 2250 cheaper than buying two separate tuner cards, but it takes less power and space inside the PC chassis. I also don't have to worry about a splitter to feed two antenna leads because the splitter is internal to the card. This is a very attractive design. The card worked very well with the included WinTV software, however, I did struggle to get the included Windows MCE remote to work. I will cover this in more detail in my next post on software, but the problem is that the IR receiver plugs directly into the Hauppauge card, rather than a USB port, so the included drivers do not make the remote work exactly like a Microsoft branded remote would.

When it comes time to assemble your rig, I am assuming you know how to put a PC together (if not, you will find a bunch of step-by-step assembly videos on Jay's blog), but here are a few lessons I learned that you might find helpful. The chassis is pretty small and cramped inside, so you will likely have to temporarily remove the power supply (it's only a few screws) in order to mount the hard drive. The hard drive will come with a SATA cable that has a right-angle connector on one end. You will want to use this one as the motherboard connectors are pretty hard to get to once the hard drive is mounted. The power supply has a 2x2 power cable for the CPU (which attaches to the motherboard near the CPU socket), but the connector is a 2x4. Don't let this confuse you (like it did me), just plug it into half of the 2x4 connector -- it should only fit one way, so you can't get it wrong.

So here's your shopping list. I'm providing links to all of the hardware below for your convenience. (Disclaimer: this web site and the author are not affiliated with Newegg.com in any way. These links are provided as a convenience. Feel free to shop around!)

[Continued in Part III, The Software...]

When you start the research, like I did, on building your own Home Theater PC, you inevitably come across a page or two that claims to give you all the information you need to build the "ultimate" rig for yourself. Some of these pages do provide a wealth of valuable and useful information, but none of them (that I've seen) actually provide you everything. How do you define everything? Well, if I'm going to make the leap to a HTPC, I'm probably doing it for one of two reasons (there may be more, actually). You either want to build one for the fun of it or just to learn how, or you may be choosing that path to escape the burden of your current cable or satellite company. Coincidentally, NPR just did a story yesterday on the number of people who are starting to tell their providers to take a hike. If it is the latter (like myself), "everything" is defined as the path of least resistance. That is, cost is not the primary driver, as I recognize that if I use it long enough I will eventually make my money back in the savings I will enjoy after I tell my provider to go pound sand. Cost is second to the time and hassle factor of setting up the system. This means that "everything" is not only a foolproof hardware configuration that has been tested, but step-by-step instructions for installing all the necessary software as well.

So you're about to read a page that provides you all of that. I know this is a incredible claim, but when I set out to do this, I promised myself I would do it right, and I would keep detailed notes so that I could then provide this information to others. This is truly a turn-key system -- no bullshit. You buy the hardware I have listed, you follow my instructions for installing the software, and you will have the ultimate HTPC. You will be out $500, but you will still have your sanity. And your hair.

So how do you define ultimate? Well, at the time of this writing, ultimate means a confluence of several established platforms as well as integration of emerging and future techologies. The ultimate HTPC isn't about specs. It isn't about raw CPU horsepower. It isn't about bells and whistles. It is about performance, but without sacrificing aesthetics. The ultimate HTPC will replace cable/satellite as your primary source of television content. There are sacrifices implied in that statement. You are ready to say goodbye to premium channels (like HBO and Showtime), although most if not all of their content is made available on DVD at some point. You are ready to say goodbye to a lot of second-tier channels, although the same is true of most of their content, and a lot of it is also available online. The ultimate HTPC will also replace your standalone DVD player. By the way, my design is not Blu-Ray capable. Blu-Ray, in my opinion, is a solution in search of a problem. It's an industry conspiracy to steal our money, and I'm not participating. If you're like me, standard DVDs are just fine. The ultimate HTPC allows streaming of Netflix movies as well as any other internet content that is consumable through a web browser. The ultimate HTPC is also capable of storing a significant amount of content -- both PVR-style, as well as traditional movies ripped from DVD.

So those are my criteria: use over-the-air HD as the primary source, play standard def DVDs, stream all known content from the internet, and hold at least 500GB of video content either internally or through Network Attached Storage (NAS). If this sounds like the kind of system you would like, and you have the money, here begins the journey.

[Continued in Part II, The Hardware...]

It looks like my prediction about Avatar is on track to come true, but the box office reports today reminded me just how pointless box office reports are. I already know the answer to this question, but why do these reports still use dollars instead of gross tickets sold? Hey James Cameron! Since you're trying to revolutionize the movie industry with your work, how about doing something really revolutionary -- how about you demand that your box office receipts be reported in numbers that actually mean something? Because, if you look at Titanic's box office take, it's based on the cost of tickets in 1997 (about $4.50). Tickets on average today are about twice that much, so when Avatar's take exceeds that, it'll be on half as many tickets. On the other hand, Titanic sold about 95 million tickets in 1997. That number still has meaning today. For example, the original Star Wars in 1977 sold over 160 million tickets in total. So if bragging rights are going to mean anything at all, everyone needs to be using the same standard of measure. Otherwise, just stop bombarding us with meaningless numbers!