One of the casualties of Microsoft's new operating systems has been Windows Media Centre, an incredibly easy way to watch and record TV as well as stream your own media. What does one do with that old HTPC, once you have finally moved on from an old Windows version that supported WMC? This is the question that this Tech Report writer has answered in this article. With the help of some old hardware and a new HDHomeRun Connect Quatro can he create a similar solution to his dear departed Media Centre? How can the old .wtv files be saved? Find out by clicking that link.
"I figure I'm on the tail end of converts from ye olde Windows Media Center, but I know there are diehards still out there lamenting their loss or maybe still fighting to get Windows Media Center working on Windows 10 in a post-April Update world. To those of you good people, take a deep breath and listen to my tale. Maybe it will help you find peace."
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WMC: One of the few great
WMC: One of the few great apps to come out of Redmond
When WMC first came out it
When WMC first came out it was years ahead of its time, with an interface that was perfect for sofa surfing.
Sadly, MS never developed it beyond its initial release. 3rd party apps virtually never got going. Basically it was dead for years before MS finally killed it off.
I never understood why MS did this. If you added something like MyMovies.de to WMC you ended up with an incredibly powerful and genuinely useful media centre.
I always suspected that the media industry pressured MS to stop developing WMC (and thereby killing it) – good call guys, you directly led to Kodi and the rise of 3rd party add ons streaming pirated copies of just about everything
When windows 10 came out it
When windows 10 came out it was reported that the Win10 Upgrade would remove WMC from 7 or 8.1 I started looking for alternatives. I had tried Plex before but the hot thing at the time was Kodi (Xbmc) so I tried that for a while.
Due to some of the shady things available in Kodi I decided to try and get Plex back and running.
The Plex client interface is pretty easy and I like it nearly as much as WMC. The major advantage is the availability of the Plex client on multiple devices.
Now I’ve moved my Plex/media server to a Synology NAS, and have a HDHomerun Prime recording from cable and everything is running very well.
I personally have been using
I personally have been using (XBMC)now called Kodi for more than 10 years. I used it when it was first made for the first xbox and have when they made it for the PC I used it there as well.
I found it worked 100% better than WMC for my own needs at least. I tried WMC for a while and yes it worked some what but it was a pig to get working the way you needed it to. At least for my needs that is. Maybe others had better luck with it than I did. Someone mentioned they stopped using it because of some shady things you can get for it.
I guess you can get some off beat things for it but that does not mean you have to go and install those types of plugins if you have issue with that. Just my own 2 cents on the topic.
I really need to get off my
I really need to get off my arse and resurrect my Q6600 into a Plex/Media/PVR at some point so I can play with this. Betting my old Hauppague card isn't compatible anymore though.
From the article: “…wait,
From the article: “…wait, you’re still running Windows 7? Oh boy, I am not qualified to tackle that. Seek professional help, friend.”
Still using win 7 media center as a pvr backend with PVR.WMC addon to handle the front ends on Kodi.
Pay $0 for the guide per year as it’s still working
That new Odroid-H2 is a sick piece of hardware but reports of it costing more than $100 maybe $150 kind of sucks. Would be better to just grab a cheap Chinese laptop with the same hardware with memory & m2 already built in for $300
I’m still running Windows 8.1
I’m still running Windows 8.1 on a system in the living room strictly for WMC. I’ve yet to find a replacement that works with my silicondust cable card tuner and passes the WAF.
I’m not a fan of the guide on a lot of other options, if the family can’t easily read it from across the room, its useless.
Haven’t used WMC for years,
Haven’t used WMC for years, but still feel its loss. I was never as happy with any of the alternatives.