Thanks to PDD on having started this thread, I have found the OmniRemote to be a good solution for my remote problem. Therefore I thought I would share my experiences.

I wanted to control my TiVo from another room using another remote. I considered purchasing a 2nd TiVo remote, but this was undesireable for two reasons. First, it would cost $40 to get a 2nd remote from the manufacturer, and second, the LeapFrog IR extender I already had did not work well with the TiVo remote due to the shape of the remote. So getting a 2nd TiVo remote was not really the solution I wanted.

I already have a Pronto, but I did not want to use it in this application for two reasons. One was that I did not want to leave the Pronto remote in the "other" room, the other was that the Pronto remote just seemed to bulky for where I was going to store it.

So after doing some searching on the RemoteCentral site and finding this thread, I found out about the OmniRemote software for the Palm. This solution was perfect for me, because I had a friend how was no longer using her Palm III, and I already had the Leap Frog remote extender, so all I had to do was purchase the OmniRemote software for $20 and I was set.

The OmniRemote software, as it currently is, is definitely limited in many ways as compared to the Pronto, but it is still a very useful and capable learning remote. It seems that all OmniRemote needs is a bunch of software enhancements and it will really be able to give the Pronto some stiff competition. Kudos to them.

Peter, where are you?

Has anyone heard from Peter Sharpe lately? Is he okay? It's like he started this ORDesktop project and then dropped out of sight.

"You can get your PC to control your home theatre too, and have a wireless keyboard as the remote control."

How can you do this?

grfxguy wrote:
> Peter, where are you?
>
I'm still here. I've been travelling lately and this is the first time I've been to this site in about 3 weeks. I usually drop in at least once a day.

ORDesktop is ready to go. That is, the software is done. We are now working on distribution and our website. It is a little behind schedule as you can tell. I hope we will have everything up and running within a few days.

By the way, I picked up a Visor in New York yesterday and I have the OmniRemote Springboard module so I'll be testing that out and I'll post a review here in the next few days. (I haven't looked. Has anyone else posted a review?) Early indications are that the range is excellent. And it is trivial to install and get working. Still needs ORDesktop to ease the customization, though;-)

I'll let everyone know when ORDesktop is finally released.

Peter Sharpe

I'm wondering how you all deal with the small size of the Palm units? Do you only use the Palm for macros, and then switch to a "real" remote for channel surfing, etc.

I can't imagine holding the Palm in one hand, the stylus in another and looking down each time I want to press a button. Is it easy to use so that you don't have to look at the screen?

Thanks,
Brian

Brian wrote:
> I can't imagine holding the Palm in one hand, the
> stylus in another and looking down each time I want
> to press a button. Is it easy to use so that you
> don't have to look at the screen?
>
The 6 Palm buttons can be programmed. So you can program the two right buttons for Channel + and - and the two scroll buttons for Volume + and -, for example, and still have two other buttons for common functions.

Also, you don't need the stylus. You can use your finger to access the buttons on the screen.

Peter Sharpe

I have a Visor Deluxe w/ the Springboard module - It works great. The range is better than most of the dedicated remotes that I have. I love the ability to customize the button size and labels. Sure, it is probably not as "good" as the Pronto as a pure remote - but the Pronto can't read e-mail, hold address files, track to-do's, play games, display calendars, maps, shopping lists, etc. For about the same price as a Pronto, you get a very good remote plus a WHOLE LOT MORE.

PRO's:
Great range.
Macros easy to create and edit.
Timer feature.
$59 is least expensive touchscreen remote I know of.
Backlight doesn't shut off after 90 seconds like Sony RM-2100.
6 hard buttons can be programed.

CON's:
15 screen limit.
6 hard buttons CANNOT be programed differently for each screen (will be fixed in next update).
Need multiple screens for each component to keep buttons at a finger friendy size.

Wanna see how powerful your remote's IR emitter is? If you have a camcorder with a "night shot" feature, take it along with your remote into a darkened room and point the remote towards a wall. View the image through your camcorders viewscreen or viewfinder while pressing buttons. Be sure to turn off your cam's built-in IR emitter if it has one (Many Sony's have them)

I found the Springboard to have an intense but relatively narrow beam, projecting a circular pattern. The dedicated remotes I have are not nearly as intense but the dispersion is more eliptcal, with the pattern more horizontally distributed. In practice the Springboard has a greater range but is less forgiving if not aimed in the general direction of the receiver. Keep this in mind if you don't like "aiming" your remote.

A free trial version of ORDesktop is now available for download at www.ordesktop.com.

ORDesktop is a PC-based desktop companion for OmniRemote. It has many features for creating and editing OmniRemote pdb files including the ability to import the Pronto codes you can find on this and other sites.

The trial version limits you to editing the first four of fifteen categories.

A full, commercial version should be available for sale within the next week.

Peter Sharpe
http://www.ordesktop.com/

I've been researching universal remotes since receiving the Pronto as a gift last week. This excellent thread tells me that a Palm may be a better solution. As I don't have a Palm I have a few questions though. When I pick up the Pronto and touch the screen it turns on instantly. Can this be made to happen with a Palm and OR? With the Pronto the backlight comes on instantly with the touch of a button. Also the Pronto can be controlled to turn the backlight on automatically when you touch the screen. Can the Palm do this instantly or do you have to press the power on button for a few seconds to get the backlight on? I've read that you can use your finger on the touch screen of a Palm but it seems from other sources that a pick may be necessary. Does the palm really respond well to finger touches?

I was checking out if it is possible to use a Windows CE hand held as a UR. The following link is useful (but maybe out of date) in comparing the Windows CE to the Palm OS. It seems that CE forces greater battery drain and less effective memory. [Link: edecap.com]

I downloaded the trial version of ORDesktop to see how easy it is to use. It is very good at getting started with a new remote. Excellent job PeterS

Mike.

The Palm is not a better solution than the Pronto (in most respects).

The Palm screen responds to your finger, but as Daniel posted somewhere else on this site, you get used to using the back of a finger, as he does on his Pronto.

No, the backlight does not automatically turn on, but can be made to turn on by just wiping your finger from the Graphiti area to the top of the screen. Not too hard to do. And don't forget that the newer b/w screens can have either the new backlighting, or the older style backlighting. Email me if you want to know how to change it.

****The really nice thing about ORDesktop is it's ability to automatically convert codes from the Pronto CCF's on this site, to it's own codes, thereby giving OmniRemote users a VAST resource for their equipment. Peter has done a great job on ORDesktop!!!

But, as I said, while OmniRemote is a good product as is ORDesktop (I beta'd it for Peter), the Palm is not a dedicated remote like the Pronto. There are great things in store for the software (both OmniRemote and ORDesktop) that will make it so much better, but right now the Pronto is the better unit for most people.

By the way, many kudos to Peter for that ability to convert Pronto codes. The OmniRemote people should be giving him shares in their company for that one! Elevates a good product for the Palm PDA, to a very good one! And wait for version 2!!!

Also of note: the Handspring Visor springboard module of OmniRemote doesn't seem to have the IR range problems that most of the Palm's do.

Greg

Why is a sixty dollar product constantly being compared to a three hundred dollar product.The Omniremote software cost twenty dollars.This in it self will not do the job into making the Palm a worth while remote control.You have to go with some type of ir booster or extender to make the Palm work as a remote properly.I prefer the ir repeater that attaches directly to the Palm because it gives me whole house control of my electronic equipment(no line of sight or aiming of the remote required).This will run you an additional forty to sixty dollars depending have good a shopper you are.
When a better remote comes along for sixty dollars or less you still have a Pilot to do the hundreds of other things that it is capable of doing.What are you going to do with any other remote when something better comes along.I have put at least six remotes out to pasture.
It really does not bother me that people think the Pronto is a better remote control,it probably is if you can master Pronto Edit.What bothers me is that Daniel refuses to acknowledge that is better then any remote control on the market under $200.Remember whole house control without aiming for an additional $40 for a total of $60 for the remote control portion of the Palm.Any other short comings of the Palm as remote that you see Daniel please fill us all in ,and please be specific.

What else the Palm can do isn't of concern when we're strictly talking remote controls and how they interact with users and home theaters (those extra features are bonuses). I have stated, in this very thread, "it offers excellent customization of screens for the money and would be an especially good choice for those who already own the handheld."

In terms of creating an elegant and family-friendly remote control, I don't believe it's the best solution under $200 for everyone. But since when is something perfect for everyone? As a note, I have not tried ORDesktop, so I cannot comment on it.

Daniel,

Would you consider creating a separate forum category for this topic? Perhaps a "PDA as URC" category to include both Palm OS and Windows CE devices. I just came across this thread today after visiting your site quite often. Judging by its length (boy, it took a while to read through it) there seems to be enough interest. Also, with all the enterprising programers out there, I expect the innovation to continue.

Just a thought... thanks for the great site.

I would like to compliment Peter Sharpe for the excellent job he did in creating the ORDESKTOP.
The program is a joy to work with.

Dan Tonks you have an excellent site. I completely agree with JoeG on the idea of adding a forum for "PDA as URC". I have a palm and this is huge topic. I think adding this could bring more people to Remotecentral from the win ce and palm os platforms, there is a high interest from what i've read on other sites and this would also expose people to new remotes. I personnally never would have known about the pronto or any other new universal remotes if weren't from your site.

Just a suggestion. Thanks for the great site.