Building a Windows HTPC

Передняя обложка
We Got Served, 2 февр. 2014 г. - Всего страниц: 513

Building a Windows Home Theatre PC is We Got Served's definitive guide to planning, building, installing and using a Windows-based home theatre PC.

If you're serious about streaming and managing your music and movies collection, then a Home Theatre PC (HTPC) puts you firmly in control. Sure, you can stream media on Connected TVs, Blu-ray players and other receivers but you have limited opportunities to customise and tailor those offerings to your needs, your family’s needs and the needs of your home. Depending on your choice, you get these services, miss out on those services and are reliant on a benevolent manufacturer to continue adding new apps and maintaining existing apps.

But a HTPC with a small footprint - powerful and silent hardware running slick, easy to manage media center software is not a dream. It’s available for you today. Right now. You can build the hardware you want, install the services you prefer and play the media you love.

In this 513 page guide, we walk you step by through creating a first-class, small and mighty HTPC - you'll plan the specifications, components and form factor you need, select the hardware and learn how to assemble a barebones kit (such as our reference build, an Intel NUC HTPC) or build a PC from scratch.

From there, we deep dive into maximising performance of your HTPC through tweaking motherboard settings and installing Intel's Rapid Start and Smart Connect management applications. We'll install the latest release of Windows and configure the operating system for HTPC use, tailoring settings to support DTS and Dolby Digital audio, then enhancing video support for Blu-ray disc.

With support for Blu-ray on board, you'll be guided through advanced topics like region unlocking and DVD/Blu-ray ripping to a choice of formats, including MKV, BDMV and ISO for streaming in your favourite media center software. We install USB and Network TV Tuners for configuring Live and Recorded TV and use DVBLink to integrate our channels and EPG into a variety of popular media applications.

If you think we're done, then hold on! The guide takes a detailed look at configuring a universal remote control (the Logitech Harmony Hub) for use with our HTPC and look at various ways to download and manage music, video and TV metadata for our media collection. You'll learn the basics of popular file downloaders SABnzbd and uTorrent and we wrap up with a comprehensive review of leading media center packages Plex Media Server and XBMC.

Building a Windows Home Theatre PC is packed with tips, tricks and tutorials to help you build a kick-ass home theatre PC that will last you for years to come!

Chapters

  • Chapter 1: Consider the Environment
  • Chapter 2: Selecting Your HTPC Hardware
  • Chapter 3: Assemble a Barebones HTPC
  • Chapter 4: Build Your HTPC From Scratch
  • Chapter 5: Configure Your UEFI Motherboard
  • Chapter 6: Maximise Responsiveness With Intel Rapid Start and Smart Connect
  • Chapter 7: Install Windows 8.1
  • Chapter 8: Configure Windows Audio for DTS and Dolby Digital Surround Sound Support
  • Chapter 9: Enhancing Windows Video and Blu-ray Support
  • Chapter 10: Rip Your DVDs and Blu-rays for Viewing Any Time
  • Chapter 11: View Live and Recorded TV on Your HTPC
  • Chapter 12: Configure a Logitech Harmony Remote to Control Your HTPC
  • Chapter 13: Manage Your Music Metadata
  • Chapter 14: Automatically Collate and Manage Movie & TV Metadata
  • Chapter 15: Flex Your Media Muscles With Plex
  • Chapter 16: Download Files on Your HTPC With SABnzbd
  • Chapter 17: Install a BitTorrent Client
  • Chapter 18: Using XBMC Step by Step

 

Избранные страницы

Содержание

Installing the WinTV aero Software
251
Configure and Test Your WinTV USB Tuner
252
Enhance Live and Recorded TV on Your HTPC and Home Network
256
Download and Install DVBLink Server
258
Integrate TV Tuner Sources
262
Configuring the DVBLink EPG
266
Stream TV From Your HTPC to an iPad iPhone or Android device
268
Stream TV From Your HTPC to a Device Running Plex Media Server or XBMC
278

Chassis
33
Processor
34
RAM
36
Connectivity
39
Remote Control Keyboard Trackpad
40
Assemble a Barebones HTPC
44
Build Your HTPC From Scratch
56
Opening the Chassis
57
Emptying the Case
58
Install the Power Supply
59
Fit the Motherboard
62
Processor Installation
64
Fitting the Heat Sink and Processor Fan
68
Ram in the RAM
70
Connect Up Your Cables
72
Install Your Hard Drives
76
Configure Your UEFI Motherboard
84
A Lap Around UEFI on the ASUS P8H67I DELUXE Motherboard
85
Updating the UEFI Software
86
ASUS EFI BIOS Utility EZ Mode
95
ASUS EFI BIOS Utility Advanced Mode
97
Configure the System Time and Date
99
Securing PC Boot
100
Maximise Responsiveness With Intel Rapid Start and Smart Connect
117
Create a Hibernation Partition
120
Install and Configure Intel Rapid Start
130
Put Intel Rapid Start to the Test
132
Intel Fast Boot
133
Install Windows 81
136
Which Version of Windows Do I Need?
137
Run the Windows 7 USB Tool
139
Personalize
152
Settings
153
Sign In to Your Microsoft Account
158
How Should We Set Up Your PC?
163
Install Your Hardware Drivers
167
Installing Drivers From Your Motherboards CD
173
Configure Windows Audio for DTS and Dolby Digital Surround Sound Support
178
Install Your Windows Audio Drivers
179
Switch Off Windows System Sounds
182
Check Your Supported Audio Formats
184
Configure Surround Sound Speakers on Windows
185
Testing Audio Playback From Bluray
187
Testing Audio Playback From Other Media Players and Sources
189
Enhancing Windows Video and Bluray Support
195
Install a Free Media Player
211
Install the Windows Media Center Pack for Windows 8
212
Region Unlocking and DVDBluray Ripping
213
Rip Your DVDs and Blurays for Viewing Any Time
215
What File Format Should I Rip My Discs Into?
217
Rip a Bluray to MKV
218
Rip a Bluray to a BDMV folder
223
Rip a Bluray to an ISO file
227
View Live and Recorded TV on Your HTPC
234
Connecting a Network Tuner
235
Installing the HDHomeRun Software
241
Connecting a USB Tuner
248
Viewing Live and Recorded TV in XBMC
284
Installing and Configuring Windows Media Center for Live and Recorded TV
294
Add the Windows 81 Pro Pack or Windows 81 Media Center Pack to Windows 81
295
Optimising Windows Media Center Display Settings
308
Optimising Windows Media Center Audio Settings
313
Configure a Logitech Harmony Remote to Control Your HTPC
318
Select Your Harmony Remote
319
Install andor Check Your IR Receiver
320
Configure Your Harmony Remote
326
Manage Your Music Metadata
361
Download and Install Tag Rename
362
The Tag Rename Application
365
Automatically Acquire New Metadata and Cover Art
366
Edit Various Artists Metadata With Correct Information
369
Swap Metatags Between Fields
374
Find Cover Art for Your Albums
376
Manually Edit Tags for Minor Corrections
378
Get the Best Cover Art Available
380
Automatically Collate and Manage Movie TV Metadata
383
Download and Install Media Center Master
385
Tidy Up Your Media Folders
387
Configure Media Center Masters Media Folders
388
Configure Media Center Master Preferences
390
Fetch Your Movie Metadata
394
Fetch Your TV Metadata
397
Build Your Media Library Metadata
402
Flex Your Media Muscles With Plex
404
Download and Install Plex Media Server for Windows
405
Installing Plex Media Server
406
Configuring Plex Media Libraries
408
Configuring Advanced Settings
414
Plex Home Theater
426
Download Files on Your HTPC With SABnzbd
435
Download and Install SABnzbd
436
Configure SABnzbd
439
Editing the SABnzbd Configuration
442
Test Downloading a File
445
Install a BitTorrent Client
450
Installing the BitTorrent Client
451
Configuring the uTorrent Client
455
Testing the uTorrent Configuration
466
Try Your First Download
468
Launch BitTorrent Downloads From Other Network Devices
470
Using XBMC Step by Step
476
Configuring XBMC
478
The Appearance Menu
480
The Videos Menu
483
The Live TV Menu
486
The Music Menu
492
The Pictures Menu
496
The Weather Menu
497
The Addons Menu
498
The Services Menu
499
The System Menu
503
Adding Media Libraries to XBMC
507
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Об авторе (2014)

Terry Walsh is the Owner and Editor of We Got Served (http://www.wegotserved.com), which he established in 2007 to share his own experiences with emerging Home Server platforms.

Since then, the site has grown to cover a wide range of digital home, consumer electronics, and small business product categories but retains at its core the mission to help users make the most of technology.

Terry graduated from the University of Durham in 1995 with a Bachelor of Arts in English Language and Literature and currently works in the telecommunications industry, writing about technology in his spare time. Prior to starting WGS, Terry cut his teeth online in 1993 building and operating a number of successful alternative music websites and communities for UK artists.

Born and raised in Liverpool, England and now living in Silverstone with his wife and two sons, Terry has been awarded Microsoft’s Most Valuable Professional Award each year since 2008 for his work on We Got Served.

Prior to writing Building a Windows Home Theatre PC, Terry has authored a number of Mac and Windows home server guides, including Windows Home Server 2011 Step by Step, Using OS X Lion Server at Home, Using OS X Mountain Lion Server at Home, Using OS X Mavericks Server at Home,25 Essential Windows Home Server Projects and Building a Windows 8 Home Server. He has also edited a number of titles, including Using Windows Home Server, 25 Essential Windows Home Server Projects Volume 2 and 15 Essential Windows 8 Projects.

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