Thinkpads Forum

I am trying to get a Universal Remote to work with the IR port on my T30. I want to be able to control Winamp, WinDVD and WMP (for netflix) from across the room.

The Remote Control Unit (RCU)
I have tried a number of software solutions and different Remote Control types. The remote is a Radio Shack 15-2148 programmable remote that can be configured for any two of over a hundred TV/DVD/VCR devices from different manufacturers. It can even be programmed on a per button basis.

The IrDA port -
I understand that the port itself is not the same type as that used by ordinary RCs. However, it IS supposed to be possible to use the SIR capabilities of the port to recognize the RC IR signals.

I have tried most of the software on this page. Including WinLIRC and Girder.

The most promising so far has been a program called IrDA Remote Control. It seems effective and appropriate, but I am having difficulty training all the buttons and I am not sure why.

I have tried setting the max baud rate for the port to 115k using the Device Manager even though this should not be necessary.

(note: that i was able to train a couple of buttons means that the reciever is working and receiving)

I am on a T30 running WinXP/SP3, 1Gb RAM, 60gb HD

(I am also running Kubuntu on another partition, but the solution I am looking for is for Windows)

I could not find any posts on thinkpad.com specifially addressing this issue. There a quite a few people on the web trying to do this, so I thought that any solutions that arose might benefit many.

thx

---------------------
some links:

IrDA Org
Microsoft XP IrDA Config
ThinkWiki - Thinkpad IrDA for Linux

There is a nice listing here:
http://www.papyrus.co.il/FAQ/infrared_(irda).htm

tsultrim wrote:I am trying to get a Universal Remote to work with the IR port on my T30. I want to be able to control Winamp, WinDVD and WMP (for netflix) from across the room.

The Remote Control Unit (RCU)
I have tried a number of software solutions and different Remote Control types. The remote is a Radio Shack 15-2148 programmable remote that can be configured for any two of over a hundred TV/DVD/VCR devices from different manufacturers. It can even be programmed on a per button basis.

The IrDA port -
I understand that the port itself is not the same type as that used by ordinary RCs. However, it IS supposed to be possible to use the SIR capabilities of the port to recognize the RC IR signals.

I have tried most of the software on this page. Including WinLIRC and Girder.

The most promising so far has been a program called IrDA Remote Control. It seems effective and appropriate, but I am having difficulty training all the buttons and I am not sure why.

I have tried setting the max baud rate for the port to 115k using the Device Manager even though this should not be necessary.

(note: that i was able to train a couple of buttons means that the reciever is working and receiving)

I am on a T30 running WinXP/SP3, 1Gb RAM, 60gb HD

(I am also running Kubuntu on another partition, but the solution I am looking for is for Windows)

I could not find any posts on thinkpad.com specifially addressing this issue. There a quite a few people on the web trying to do this, so I thought that any solutions that arose might benefit many.

thx

---------------------
some links:

IrDA Org
Microsoft XP IrDA Config
ThinkWiki - Thinkpad IrDA for Linux

There is a nice listing here:
http://www.papyrus.co.il/FAQ/infrared_(irda).htm

Forget it, it is not very useful because the range is too low for the transceiver and you need to have a very precise direction to hold the remote. We've tested it as well. You will end up with frustration.
Why don't you get one with RF or bluetooth? They are dirt cheap and work across the room.
There are excellent ones from Logitech, even with own LCD for iTunes browsing or cheaper ones with universal control.

I used to be a member in the IrDA consortium. Man, that't a long time ago... 1995/96. We built in Cupertino the first working SIR with 115 kbits and heard that the folks in Palo Alto succeeded with a 4 Mbits prototype which made us jealous. As soon as i heard from the first bluetooth spec from my colleague I knew IrDA is dead in the water.

R.I.P. dear IrDA

I have an experience of pixelview pcmcia tv card which comes with an IR remote unit. Works very well from a dist of 10-15 ft thru the IR port of my TP. Will try to configure it thru the sphinx application & post results.