The "Freeola Customer Forum" forum, which includes Retro Game Reviews, has been archived and is now read-only. You cannot post here or create a new thread or review on this forum.
OK, I think my Dad is quite serious about doing all this, and the costs look reasonable. I've had a look at all the options, and Windows XP MCE with a MC Extender seems the best as it doesn't require a computer in each room you want the feed going to.
I've been having a look at building the "server" PC which will run the actual XP MCE and also store all our MP3s, digital photos, TV recordings, etc. It's the weirdest thing to do though, cos it just has to be powerful and reliable, but you're not aiming it for games, so you don't need a graphics card of particular note.
I'm looking at going for something along the lines of:
Athlon64 3400+ 939-pin (something around £150)
2GB PC3200 RAM
Reliable PSU
I'm not sure about the Hard Drives though - clearly reliability is an issue so I'm reluctant to go for RAID0, but the speed might be nice. Is there a way of doing a RAID array with 4 HDDs so it works like RAID 1 and RAID 0 combined?
I've been having a look at building the "server" PC which will run the actual XP MCE and also store all our MP3s, digital photos, TV recordings, etc. It's the weirdest thing to do though, cos it just has to be powerful and reliable, but you're not aiming it for games, so you don't need a graphics card of particular note.
I'm looking at going for something along the lines of:
Athlon64 3400+ 939-pin (something around £150)
2GB PC3200 RAM
Reliable PSU
I'm not sure about the Hard Drives though - clearly reliability is an issue so I'm reluctant to go for RAID0, but the speed might be nice. Is there a way of doing a RAID array with 4 HDDs so it works like RAID 1 and RAID 0 combined?
I wonder if the Windows XP Media Centre Extenders are compatible....hehe
Buy a Mac.
Sorry - couldn't resist!
Sorry - couldn't resist!
Hmm... The less you put in, the less can go wrong.
I'm just looking for general advice on how to make a really reliable PC.
I don't know what you just said, but good luck all the same.
OK, I think my Dad is quite serious about doing all this, and the costs look reasonable. I've had a look at all the options, and Windows XP MCE with a MC Extender seems the best as it doesn't require a computer in each room you want the feed going to.
I've been having a look at building the "server" PC which will run the actual XP MCE and also store all our MP3s, digital photos, TV recordings, etc. It's the weirdest thing to do though, cos it just has to be powerful and reliable, but you're not aiming it for games, so you don't need a graphics card of particular note.
I'm looking at going for something along the lines of:
Athlon64 3400+ 939-pin (something around £150)
2GB PC3200 RAM
Reliable PSU
I'm not sure about the Hard Drives though - clearly reliability is an issue so I'm reluctant to go for RAID0, but the speed might be nice. Is there a way of doing a RAID array with 4 HDDs so it works like RAID 1 and RAID 0 combined?
I've been having a look at building the "server" PC which will run the actual XP MCE and also store all our MP3s, digital photos, TV recordings, etc. It's the weirdest thing to do though, cos it just has to be powerful and reliable, but you're not aiming it for games, so you don't need a graphics card of particular note.
I'm looking at going for something along the lines of:
Athlon64 3400+ 939-pin (something around £150)
2GB PC3200 RAM
Reliable PSU
I'm not sure about the Hard Drives though - clearly reliability is an issue so I'm reluctant to go for RAID0, but the speed might be nice. Is there a way of doing a RAID array with 4 HDDs so it works like RAID 1 and RAID 0 combined?