The Logitech Harmony One Remote Software and Device Database

In my last post, I gave some quick first impressions about the Logitech Harmony One universal remote control that I got from BzzAgent.com.

I've had it for a while now and have been using it, so I can give a lot more detail about it. I'll be spreading this out over a couple of posts because I can tell this is gonna get long. So this post will mostly be about the amazing device database.

I spent the first day charging it up:



The next day, I quickly set it up using the software that comes with it. The remote itself plugs into your computer via USB and the software connects to a huge user-editable database of devices that it programs the remote with. So if your device isn't in the database, you can program it manually and then it'll be added to the database for any other users who may have the same device.

On that note, I have a neat story related to the device database. I own an Adaptec Gamebridge TV, AVC-1410 with remote control. It's a USB video capture device that also lets you watch TV on your computer. Anyway, the remote I had that came with it only worked for me for about a day and then completely stopped working and I had no way to exchange it because the store I bought it from was completely out of stock. :(

So then I had an idea... why not see if I can program my Harmony One remote to work with my Gamebridge? Brilliant, huh? I thought so! :P So I searched the device database and, unfortunately, the Gamebridge wasn't found. Instead, it found a "similar device" so I gave that one a try. And... it also didn't work. :( Bummer.

That gave me another idea, I made a post on CAG, that said exactly this:

I have a request for any of you who have the Harmony One and a Gamebridge TV (AVC-1410 that comes with a remote). Can you program your Harmony One with the Gamebridge remote so that it can get added to the database?

I have a Gamebridge TV, but the remote has been broken for a while now. I tried adding "Gamebridge TV" or "AVC-1410" to the Harmony One, but it wasn't in the database and the similar remote it found doesn't work with my Gamebridge. It'd be nice to be able to use a remote with it again.

There's probably a really slim chance that someone reading this has both, but just thought I'd ask anyway.

I know a bunch of CAGs bought some Gamebridge TVs and I figured maybe some of them would also have the Harmony One Remote, so it was worth a shot.

Within the next hour, the Gamebridge showed up in the device database and it totally worked!!! So that's a really awesome way to use the device database. Make a request, and who knows what'll happen? Maybe you'll finally have a replacement for that broken/lost remote too!

That's one thing I didn't like about all of the other universal remotes that I've owned before. It either had the built-in programming for your remote or it didn't. Some of them you could program manually by teaching it the IR commands, but if your remote is lost or broken, then what? You're pretty much SOL. The internet & Logitech's device database completely came to my rescue! Thanks, Logitech and to whoever that person was who added the Gamebridge!

If you have any questions about the Harmony One, feel free to leave comments! I'll try to answer them in my upcoming posts.

That's all for now, stay tuned to this blog for more!

My new Logitech Harmony One Universal Remote Control

Thanks to BzzAgent.com, I've got a new toy to play with. Woohoo! I love gadgets and this is definitely one that I have a need for.

The BzzCampaign that I'm a part of now is for the Logitech Harmony One Universal Remote Control. Looks pretty sweet, doesn't it? Well, it's great for me since I've got a whole bunch of remote controlled electronics around the house.

Anyway, UPS finally delivered my BzzKit today and I'm so excited to give it a try! Here are a couple of pics.

Here's the box:



And here's everything once you take it out of the box:



It includes the remote, charging cradle, AC adapter, USB cable, touch screen (YES, a touch screen!!) cleaning cloth, a bunch of documentation in clever packaging, and the installation CD-ROM compatible with PC and Mac.

I have it charging right now, so I haven't really used it yet, but I can't wait to get it all set up and working! Initial impressions without using it yet: it's the coolest looking remote control I've ever owned. Feels really great in your hand and seems to have really good ergonomics and button placement. It seems very well designed.

That's all for now. I'll post more once I have a little more experience with it.

Loquats!

We have a few fruit trees in our backyard. Lemons, Chinese pears, oranges, persimmons, and loquats. Our loquat tree has some good fruit right now.



Yum!!

The new guest bed

Since my brother moved out, we've had almost no furniture in two of the rooms in the house. But since people still visit, we decided we needed a bed for people to sleep on instead of putting them on the Aero Beds.

So we went mattress shopping and got this amazing deal on a new mattress. We looked at a few places before finding this:





Before we bought that one, we were at Sleep Train and ended up putting in a C.O.D. order on a completely different mattress. Good thing we hadn't paid for that other one already because this mattress felt so much better. We ended up cancelling our Sleep Train order.

The one we ended up with is a Stress-O-Pedic brand, which we had never heard of before, but who cares when it feels this great? The mattress store was clearing out the 2007 models and all they had left was the floor model, which is why it's kind of dirty on the sides (but who sleeps on the sides of a mattress, right?). I sprayed it down with fabric spray first before putting sheets on it.

The pillow top is made from memory foam, so that's nice. I think this is the one we bought (pic here). It's normally a $799 mattress, but we got it for half price, including the box spring, frame (normally $35-45), and FREE delivery (normally $40). So I'd say that's definitely a sweet deal.

After our guests leave, we're gonna swap it with the mattress in my room. I can't wait! It's so much nicer than my old mattress. But for now, our lucky guests (my bro and sis-in-law) will get to sleep on it.

New couch!

Our new couch was delivered yesterday. It's much more comfortable than our old one.



Since we couldn't donate the old one anywhere (nobody takes ripped, torn, stained, or damaged items as donations), we just took it to the disposal center and kept the pillows from it.



Yeah, so they don't match the new couch at all, but we'll just make some new covers for them. And we probably won't use them all for the couch, we might use some for other purposes.

So, that's the new couch, it's nice to have one that's not ripped anymore.

Furniture shopping

Well, I figured since this is home.blogspot.com, I think I'll write about things in my home.

First is the couch in the family room. It's so old (as old as our house, which is 15 years old this year) that the fabric on it is all torn. I might post a picture or two later.



Both of the cushions are torn, so even if we flipped them over, it wouldn't make a difference. So, to fix it, we've put a blanket on top of it just to hide the rips.



So we went to take a look at furniture to get a new couch, and maybe a bed for one of our spare rooms, or maybe just a sofa bed/sleeper sofa for now until we decide what to do with the spare room.

Anyway, we went to Mor Furniture since they were having a New Years sale... it seems like they always have a different sale every week, so that was the sale for that day. For a place that claims to have "more furniture for less" they really didn't seem to have that wide of a selection. Maybe it was just the store that we went to, so I wonder if their other store will have more inventory.

It was kind of disappointing. Nothing we looked at was a must buy and the prices weren't really that great either.

After that, we went to check out some other furniture stores in the area. There were limited places that were open, especially on New Years day and at almost 8 PM at night. We just peeked through the windows of the Jennifer Convertibles store and then checked out Lane Home Furnishings next door.

Picking out furniture is hard! I think we should just go on one of those TV shows on HGTV or TLC and just have a designer redo our whole family room, not just replace our couch. Maybe I should apply to be on While You Were Out or something.

Ever have a dream...??

Have you ever had a dream that you knew was really cool after you woke up, but then you couldn't remember any of it? I had a dream last night that was all over the place, but the only thing I can remember from it is that it started off with me playing Zack & Wiki for Wii (because I played it for about 4 hours before I went to bed last night). I can usually remember most of my dreams really well, but this one's kind of giving me a tough time.

I wish I could go back in time to this morning when it was still kind of fresh in my mind. Oh well, it's long gone now, unless something triggers my memory of something that happened in the dream, then that'll get my brain going. But for now, nothing's coming to mind.