Logitech Harmony remotes for Windows control (Part 3: Activities!)

Now comes the productive part: creating activities. In this example, we'll be setting up an activity to launch and control Hulu Desktop on your PC, using the Harmony remote.

In order to continue, be sure you have your devices added to the Logitech Harmony Remote Software. Primarily, you'll need your TV and the "Media Center PC" that we added in Part 2.

Note: The following directions were written for Logitech Harmony Remote Software 7.7

1. On the 'Activities' tab of the Harmony software, click the 'Add Activity' button.
2. Choose to manually add the activity.
3. Type of activity is 'Utility'
4. Chose Chose 'Generic Activity (Create a custom Activity)
5. Chose Next
6. Add your TV, as well as the 'Media Center PC'. If you're using some type of sound processor or receiver, you'll want to add it as well (I will not be using one for this example). Chose Save.
7. Chose the proper input for your TV (Input RGB on my Vizio)
8. Chose 'I don't need to set the input on my Microsoft Media Center PC)
9. Verify that in the report your TV is on, set to the proper input, and that no unnecessary devices are powered on. Hit Done.

Now you'll find yourself back at the Harmony Activities page. In the 'Generic Activity' box, click Customize Buttons. Now you'll have to go through and specify what each button on the Harmony is going to do for this activity. Each button must have the device, as well as the command programmed. Keep in mind that you only need to program the buttons you want to use, but that any button you leave unmapped will have no function. My button map looks like the following:

Click to enlarge.

We're almost done. Click the 'Additional Buttons' tab. This is where you can program the screen buttons to perform particular functions. Remember the Ctrl+Alt+A functions that we taught the Harmony earlier? Here is where we'll use those.

Label one Start Hulu, specify the Device to be Media Center PC, and the Command to be Ctrl+Alt+A

Note: Whatever you list as the 'Label' is what text will be displayed on the remote's screen. It's recommended that you keep this screen fairly simple to keep you from having to cycle between screens frequently.


Click DONE. Now you're almost ready to program the remote. In the Generic Activity box, click Settings. Choose Rename Generic Activity, and give it something more appropriate, like 'Watch Hulu'. Hit Done, then you find yourself back at the Remote Software's main screen. Make sure your Harmony is connected via USB, and click 'Update Remote'. Go ahead and minimize the Remote Software while it programs your Harmony.

Now you'll want to download and install Hulu Desktop if you haven't already. Once it's installed, make a shortcut to the application. The install process likely put a shortcut on your desktop, so we'll use that one.

Right click the icon and choose Properties. Click in the 'Shortcut key' field, and press the A key on your keyboard. Windows will automatically append Ctrl+Alt+ in front of it. Click OK.

Click to enlarge.

Now that you're remote is likely programmed, make sure your USB IR Receiver is plugged in, and give it a whirl. Launching your activity should now power on your TV, and set it to the proper input. From there you can launch Hulu by pressing the 'Start Hulu' screen button.

It's possible to combine the 'Start Hulu' function with the rest of everything else when you start the Activity, but as I use my HTPC for more than just Hulu, I like to have them separated.

Any problems, questions, or suggestions, use the comments!

Logitech Harmony remotes for Windows control (Part 2: Command Teaching)

So, by now you've got your Logitech Harmony remote, as well as the remote you'll be using to teach the Harmony how to control your PC.

(See Part 1 if you're lost)

2) Add a new Device in the Harmony Remote Software. Give it the following information:

Device: Computer > Media Center PC

Manufacturer: Microsoft

Model: A90-00007

This is the model number of a generic Microsoft Media Center Edition remote control. For our purposes, it doesn't matter what you put in here, but loading in the profile of a Media Center remote control requires the least amount of clean-up later, and makes it simple to keep the mapping of the functions between the DealExtreme (DE) remote and the Harmony logical.

If you purchased an actual Windows Media Center remote, you'll want to put in your remote's actual model number. If you're having trouble with that, call Logitech for support. You will probably also not need to follow the rest of this guide.

3) Chose 'Learn IR' under the Media Center PC

Plug the Harmony in to the computer running the Harmony software via USB. You can program ANY button on the DE remote to ANY command listed here. You can even create additional commands if you want to use one that's not listed here (we will do that, too).

You don't have to do them all, in fact for my purposes, I only mapped the following commands:

PowerToggle
VolumeUp
VolumeDown
DirectionRight (6 on the DE Remote)
DirectionLeft (4 on the DE Remote)
DirectionUp (2 on the DE Remote)
DirectionDown (8 on the DE Remote)
Back (Backspace on the DE Remote)
Enter (5 on the DE Remote)
FastForward
Mute
Pause
Play
Rewind
Stop

Now for the custom commands, I made 5 of them (Why? Because these Ctl+Alt key commands are great for launching applications!) :

Name: Ctrl+Alt+A
Map to: Blue-green 'A/Music' button on DE Remote

Name: Ctrl+Alt+B
Map to: Orange 'B/Movie' button on DE Remote

Name: Ctrl+Alt+C
Map to: Blue 'C/Photo' button on DE Remote

Name: Ctrl+Alt+D
Map to: Yellow 'D/TV' button on DE Remote

Name: Left Click
Map to: 'L' button on DE Remote

Note: The reason for these names is because these are the key combinations that those buttons on the DE remote are permanently mapped to.

If you're feeling adventurous, you can try to capture the mouse movements from the DE Remote. However, the DE Remote's mouse controlling feature is the worst part about the remote, as it's very difficult to capture absolute directions from it. Even still, using a digital remote to control a mouse is frustrating and slow--even when it works perfectly.

Keep in mind that the command's name is what the Harmony software will use to reference that command, it has no bearing on what the command actually does. For the sake of simplicity, you'll want to map them as directly as you can (DE Power button to the PowerToggle command, DE 0 button to 0 command, etc).

Also, it's a good idea to not have the USB IR receiver plugged in during this process. You don't want the DE remote accidentally telling your computer to shut down while you're teaching the Logitech its commands.

Now that the commands have been taught to the Harmony, we'll have to move on to configuring the Harmony's "Activities", which we'll continue in Part 3.

Logitech Harmony remotes for Windows control (Part 1: Introduction)

Anyone who has used a Logitech Harmony remote knows that while the programming interface is simple, it's no small task to get the remote configured 'just right'. You can fully expect to be in the application a lot for the first few weeks, always mapping a button, or tweaking an 'activity'. Making the remote control a PC is quite a bit more of a headache than I expected, but the end results are quite satisfying.

What you need to make this happen is a bit confusing, as the Logitech Harmony series of remotes are not 'Universal Remotes' so much as they are 'Remote Aggregators'. Chances are unless you've used a Harmony, you're wondering what a 'Remote Aggregator' is. Honestly, I just made it up, but it fits.

With a normal universal remote, you provide some Manufacturer's codes and in a few minutes you're able to power on your DVD player, cable box, and TV within a few seconds of each other.

Harmony remotes work a little differently. It's an "activity" based remote, which means you set up "Activities" (duh) involving multiple pieces of equipment using Logitech's programming interface. Usually you can just tell it the make and model of the device you wish the remote to replicate, and away it goes.

Unfortunately, even though Logitech is a company that is almost entirely based around PC peripherals, you cannot just punch in "Windows Computer" and watch it blow your mind. You have to make it replicate an existing Windows remote. Doing this is not time efficient, but is not too painful.

1) Acquire a PC remote control (yes, you must actually buy a remote to make your Harmony remote work). This is why the $9 DealExtreme remote stands out as such a good deal; you need both a USB IR Receiver, and a Remote to copy commands from. The remote is junk from a quality standpoint, but has a number of nice features, requires zero configuration to work on most computers, and being you only need to use it for maybe an hour, has a nice pricetag. You should be able to use the following guide for ANY remote to teach the Harmony, but an official MCE remote would take the least amount of work (I think, anyway).

2) Wait for the remote to be delivered. Once it shows up, continue on to part 2!