Orbiters
An Orbiter is a high-tech remote control that you use to control your LinuxMCE system.
It can be a laptop, a Blackberry, a handheld remote control (such as a Windows MCE remote control, a Fiire Chief, or a Bluetooth remote control), or even a universal infrared remote control (connected by USB-UIRT). The functions of the Orbiter remote control are displayed on the local video monitor in an Orbiter User Interface (UI).
Obviously, for an Orbiter device to connect wirelessly, you must have a wireless access point (or wireless router with the DHCP turned off) within the home automation/multimedia LAN. The Wireless Access Point/Router must be connected to the Core server.
While you can administer the LinuxMCE system through a Media Director, you can control the system from many other Orbiter devices as well.
Contents
Types of Orbiters
Web Orbiter
A wireless-capable laptop, a wireless PDA or webpad, and a wireless-capable Tablet PC are some examples of devices that act as Orbiters.
A Web Orbiter is any laptop (or other PC) on the LinuxMCE system. A standard browser interface is used to make that laptop or PC into a virtual remote control.
Telephone-based Orbiter devices
- Mobile phones can be made to work as orbiters.
Orbiter Setup
Setting up an Orbiter from a LinuxMCE administration screen
Here you add all the orbiters you want to use in your house, no matter what type. This includes the mobile orbiters (ie mobile phones), the regular orbiters (like wireless webpads and tablet pc's), any orbiters you want to run on a normal PC, as well as the on-screen displays. Every Media Director displays an Orbiter on screen as well. All the orbiters connected to the system anywhere will appear on this page.
Room: is where the room where the orbiter is normally kept. For mobile orbiters this selection isn't important since you carry them everywhere. For regular orbiters, whatever room you choose is the room that the orbiter will use until the user selects something else.
Leave Monitor on for OSD: OSD (On-screen display) refers to the orbiters that run on the media directors. These are a little different since the media director is normally connected to a tv. If you want to use the Orbiter on a media director using a keyboard/mouse or infrared remote control, check this box. It means that when media stops LinuxMCE won't turn the tv off right away so you can continue using the Orbiter using the Media Director's keyboard or mouse, or the infrared remote. The TV will turn off only when the screen saver starts, or if you touch the 'power' button and 'turn off display'. If you always control the Media Director using another orbiter, like a web pad or mobile phone, you can leave it unchecked. Then the TV will come on only when you're going to play media or watch TV, and it will turn off immediately when you stop watching media.
This device uses a Wi-Fi connection Is useful for webpads and pda's with a wi-fi signal. Since wi-fi is rather unreliable, the core and Orbiter will constantly 'ping' each other so they both know the connection is still strong enough, and the Orbiter software will automatically exit when the Orbiter goes out of range.
No Effects: Many screens have special effects, like animated buttons, fades, and so on. If the orbiter has a slow processor, this can make it take longer to respond. Choose this to disable any special effects on the orbiter so it runs as fast as possible.
Language: All the text on the screen will appear in this language, if possible.
NOTE: You can create your own menus and translate screens into other languages using Designer.
Size: Choose the screen size you want. If this is an on-screen orbiter (an orbiter that appears on a media director), this will also set the media director's screen resolution.
Skin: There may be several skins, or motif's, to choose from, like 'Wood', 'Marble', etc.
User: Is the person who normally uses this orbiter.
Quick Regen: To make the orbiters respond quickly, all the images you see on their screens are pre-rendered. The User interface is "built" by the program Orbiter Generator. This will cause Orbiter Generator to re-generate the user interface for this orbiter, but it will only regenerate the screens that appear to have changed.
Full Regen: This will cause Orbiter Generator to re-generate every screen on the Orbiter.
Reduce image size by %: This will cause Orbiter Generator to add some padding to the screens. This is useful if the screen margins are being displayed outside of the TV screen. Developer info: although it may sound intuitive that the corresponding DeviceData is also called "Reduce image size by %", it is in fact called "Spacing". The PK_DeviceData for it is 150. The text "Reduce image size by %" comes from the DeviceTemplate_DeviceData table and it's the meaning of the device data in that specific device context
Offset: This will cause Orbiter...
System concepts for Orbiter Implementation
Here's a simplified UML for Orbiter (pocketfrog implementation).
Integrating custom controls in Orbiter
Orbiter refactoring - the new design
Devel notes:
