On 02/05/03 02:11, Gromit said...
The 2104 is available locally,
for $60 Canadian, which seems a touch expensive.
I don't know the exact exchange rate, but that does sound quite high.
First of all, my gear:
It might be worth your effort to search the archives of Pronto CCF files and JP1 upgrades for exact matches on those devices. If you gave URLs for what you found, someone could tell you what level of support you could get from built in setup codes in the three different models you're considering. (If you get a JP1 cable, you don't need to worry about the built in support).
I've read several folks saying the lcd screen
isn't that important, they don't care for it,
etc. Just what exactly is displayed on the screen
and when? Modes, channel numbers, errors?
It shows the "device mode" (which device key you last pressed) and the setup code assigned to that device key, and I think it shows the time. During programming the remote, it shows some rather cryptic prompts that seem (by the questions that get posted) to generate more confusion than the blind programming (9XX commands) in the non LCD models.
A favourite button steps through
each of the channels that I have marked in the
box as a favourite, currently about 50 or 60
channels.
The default behavior of the fav key in UEI remotes is quite stupid. I don't know in those three models whether you can make the fav key just send the signal to trigger the box's fav feature, rather than have the fav key do the stupid operation built into the remote. With the extender, you can get that right. I think without the extender you probably would need to select some other key to send the fav command.
With the TV, the primary button used is the closed
captioning that rotates between four choices
A command like that won't be built in. You can learn that to some key (provided you don't need to learn so many signals that you run out of learning memory). If you know the EFC and the setup code handles EFCs then you can program it more effitiently.
I'm a bit confused over the difference
between extenders and JP1. 8811 has an extender,
but 2116 doesn't? Both have a JP1 connector though,
so is the lack of an extender a problem?
JP1 lets you create new setup codes if you have a device for which there is no built in setup code or the built in setup code has the wrong functions. On the 2116 JP1 lets you put macros on device keys. JP1 lets you program EFCs (once you know them) effitiently even for setup codes that normally don't permit EFCs. It also lets you examine learned signals to discover the EFCs.
The extender (8811 or 2104) lets you suppress the stupid built in functions of the Fav key or SLEEP key or any other key with restricted built in behavior so you can use those keys however you like. Without an extender such keys are nornmally wasted. It lets you have faster macros and put them on any key. There are many other ways it lets you customize the remote more than you could with just JP1.
