SkipJam iMedia Center ™
User’s Guide
Revision 1.03
Page 1: ...SkipJam iMedia Center User s Guide Revision 1 03...
Page 2: ...gerous voltage within the product s enclosure that may be of sufficient magnitude to constitute a risk of electric shock to persons The exclamation point within an equilateral triangle is intended to...
Page 3: ...io frequency energy and if not installed and used in accordance with the instructions may cause harmful interference to radio communications However there is no guarantee that interference will not oc...
Page 4: ...Device and System Control 9 SkipJam iMedia Windows Client 10 Requirements for SkipJam Windows Software 10 Getting Started 11 Requirements 11 Packing List 11 iMedia Center Setup 12 Connecting the cabl...
Page 5: ...evice s Power On Off 26 Automatic On Off 27 Using the iMedia Controller to Control Other Devices 27 Controlling a Session 28 Controlling a Specific Device Devices Menu 28 Accessing Your Digital Media...
Page 6: ...Device Status 47 Free up Device 47 Look for media files 47 Common Tasks 48 Add a new device 48 Watch video source device 48 Watch a recorded video 48 Listen to digital audio media 48 Listen to Radio...
Page 7: ...ireless Networking 61 Mixed Network Environments 62 DHCP and fixed IP addresses 63 Network Security 64 HomeView Access Away from Home 66 Using a VPN 66 Using an iMedia HomeView Server 66 Dynamic IP Ad...
Page 8: ...se Authorization RMA and instructions on the procedure for return No returns will be accepted without an RMA If you ship us a unit without an RMA we will charge storage fees until you provide payment...
Page 9: ...SING FROM ANY BREACH OF ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTY FOR THIS PRODUCT THIS DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY AND LIMITED WARRANTY ARE GOVERNED BY THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK EXCEPT TO THE EXTENT PROHIBI...
Page 10: ...lace until you are certain of the location You may need an IR Blaster cable not included for Projection TV screens that do not have a visible IR receptor see Infrared Emitters on page 23 2 Install the...
Page 11: ...nu back and forth between the display on the TV and the display on the remote If you don t see the menu press Home then Back For more on this see page 19 To use the iMedia Center universal remote capa...
Page 12: ...l your home entertainment making all your media both digital and analog available everywhere The iMedia Center also provides a unified control system that learns stores and distributes remote control...
Page 13: ...various functions The menu is accessible via the SkipJam iMedia Controller on TV screens through an on screen display OSD menu and through any browser on a PC or PDA on your home network Overview of...
Page 14: ...hat all you need are speakers You can control the whole system from any room using an IR controller an iMedia RF Controller an iMedia Touch Panel or from any PC or PDA using the iMedia Browser interfa...
Page 15: ...M audio coax and optical connections A total of 10 independent audio sources four digital six analog can be attached Four of the RCA audio inputs are located next to four video inputs however you can...
Page 16: ...k shares is performed during setup of the unit You can also manually modify this setting from the Setup menu See page 29 Accessing Your Digital Media for more information on sharing your media files W...
Page 17: ...dia Network via the iMedia browser menus The SkipJam iMedia Windows Client also provides the SkipJam iMedia Player for Windows which allows your PC to play any streamed content from any device on your...
Page 18: ...our A V equipment to the iMedia Center s input Packing List The SkipJam iMedia Center comes with the following components 1 x SkipJam iMedia Center 1 x RF Remote control 1 x Rechargeable NiMH batterie...
Page 19: ...will suffer if you connect both Connect audio and video cables from your components to the input connectors on your iMedia Center These are the video input connectors Connect only one from each pair...
Page 20: ...This is the simplest setup and you may wish to start in this configuration until you get the hang of the system Basic Configuration In an intermediate configuration the TV is used for images and a se...
Page 21: ...itching center universal remote control and phone and even as a digital video recorder if you add a firewire hard drive By default the iMedia Center expects an external DHCP server to provide it with...
Page 22: ...pack and install it in the battery compartment of the iMedia Controller You must plug in the battery pack into the battery connector located in the battery compartment You may use the RF remote while...
Page 23: ...nd set up the control codes for the TV see Understanding the iMedia Universal Remote Capability on page 22 Pressing Home will also bring up the iMedia Home Menu over any video or photo session current...
Page 24: ...aster walls and does not require a line of sight to the iMedia Center because it operates using Radio Frequencies RF like a cordless phone This lets you hide your Audio Video components out of sight T...
Page 25: ...mote Key Up Down Left Right Joystick press lightly in the direction Up Down Left Right arrows Select Blank left or right buttons on either side of joystick Center of arrows key marked diamond Page Up...
Page 26: ...stick Use the blank left and right keys to select These keys also function as left and right mouse buttons when accessing your PC When navigating the SkipJam iMedia menus the left and right select key...
Page 27: ...page 22 Select a Room Name Select a room name for your iMedia Center Each iMedia Center and the devices connected to it are identified by the room name For example a device might be known on the iMed...
Page 28: ...ite boxes in a special manner The iMedia System assumes that all cable and satellite boxes in your home are equivalent to each other When you select to view Cable TV the iMedia System will assign the...
Page 29: ...ontrol system which can control all the devices in your home with the iMedia Center s own remote Once you ve set up a device you can teach the iMedia Center the remote control codes for that device If...
Page 30: ...utomatically and you have taught the iMedia Center the codes for your TV your TV will turn on automatically when you press the Home key to view the iMedia Center main menu on the TV After a period of...
Page 31: ...in a sealed cabinet or obscure the front of the device from ambient light sources or obtain an IR shield from the SkipJam web site Note Some devices can be confused by multiple IR signals at one time...
Page 32: ...Remote Database The iMedia Center contains a database of remote control codes for thousands over 7 000 at last count of devices You can have the iMedia Center locate the codes for your device by press...
Page 33: ...e key use the number keys in a Multitap fashion to enter text This name will appear on the iMedia Controller screen as a menu entry once you ve accessed the particular device You can activate the devi...
Page 34: ...he iMedia Controller display allowing you to turn on off the source devices DVDs etc and the TV Because it lacks a screen the SkipJam IR Remote has a single power function which serves to turn off all...
Page 35: ...e active Once you ve started something playing and you have an active session you may press the Home key to get back to the iMedia Menus The shuttle control Play etc number keys and Volume will contin...
Page 36: ...P SP2 Windows XP SP1 or earlier Turn off the firewall From the start menu select Settings Network Settings Select your network connection and click change settings Select the Advanced tab and uncheck...
Page 37: ...e sure the box labeled Don t allow exceptions is NOT checked Select the Exceptions tab and check the entry labeled File and Printer Sharing Enable file sharing both SP2 and earlier Select the folder s...
Page 38: ...ve the password from the main administrator account Macintosh OSX Turn off the Macintosh Firewall Select the sharing icon from system preferences Click on the Firewall tab Select Stop and verify that...
Page 39: ...hoose Build host list to have the iMedia Center scan your network for available servers When this process is complete select the server s on which your files are located And then select the folders on...
Page 40: ...s channel you can play music You can do the same with photos To do this select the video or photos you want to watch Then press the Music select the music and when asked whether you want to leave the...
Page 41: ...ting video stream Keeping in mind that the original video takes 15 GigaBytes per hour a typical DVD requires only about 4 GigaBytes hour to hold the same video Industry standards count video recording...
Page 42: ...amount of time you specify or until you press Stop The resulting mpg file is a standard movie file which you can play on most PCs This is known as DVR recording Digital Video Recording For Example To...
Page 43: ...t you are currently watching If you select use settings automatically the recording will commence immediately using the settings in the Recording Settings menu If use settings automatically is not sel...
Page 44: ...and Satellite Tuner These selections will appear if you have any devices configured as Cable or Satellite devices The TV Tuner selection will appear if you have any of the iMedia Center s internal TV...
Page 45: ...u can view the DVD player in any room by selecting that DVD player from the TV Video menu Using the SkipJam Video Player Once you ve selected a video source the SkipJam remote control buttons can be u...
Page 46: ...Stop Stop playback Fast Forward Fast forward Skip Forward Skip to next track Skip Back Skip to previous track If you are playing an audio device the keys on the remote cause the system to send the co...
Page 47: ...view settings the network share containing the photos must be write enabled The thumbnail view shows thumbnails of 12 of the photos at a time allowing you to scroll between them The following keys can...
Page 48: ...t Broadcast Network Prime Time Reality Show as a category You can then browse the individual shows that match those criteria and then browse the individual episodes which will air within the next week...
Page 49: ...o Right Click Ch Down Zoom Out Skip Forward Next Alt Ch Up Zoom In region Skip Back Back Alt Stop Close Alt F4 Backspace Play Switch Alt Tab Enter Fast Forward Tab A Launch browser Rewind Back Tab B L...
Page 50: ...l ONLY that device This is useful for example if you want to control special functions on the TV while you are watching a DVD Under normal circumstances the menu and shuttle control keys would be sent...
Page 51: ...iMedia PC Clients on the network Scripts This menu accesses the scripts pages which have been set up through the browser menus Please see Browser Interface Menus on page 52 Supervisor functions The su...
Page 52: ...nient You can also set up custom power on sequences comprised of several IR codes see Power on off sequences on page 54 and you can create automation scripts to automate complex functions see Macros a...
Page 53: ...clock settings Display settings lets you adjust settings including the screen saver settings Zip code lets you set your local zip code Network setup Set up network shares lets you define which shares...
Page 54: ...enter Set volume sensitivity lets you set how quickly volume ramps up and down when you press volume up Update Searches for and updates the iMedia Center software Please do not update unless instructe...
Page 55: ...Device Setup Add new device Watch video source device Main TV Video Watch a recorded video Main TV Video Recorded Video Listen to digital audio media Main Music Choose a play criteria or browse Listen...
Page 56: ...a Center From the browser interface you can control playback on your PC as well as anywhere else in the home When the iMedia Center for Windows is running on your PC you can also access the PC from an...
Page 57: ...window which contains the device or file you selected In the upper left of the window a control panel appears allowing you to control the playback directly If you move the mouse off the player control...
Page 58: ...video or audio files Using the iMedia Tag Tool you can associate various information such as Artist name and rating with each music or video file in your collection By setting or changing the rating...
Page 59: ...The browser interface operates very similarly to the TV interface However there are several functions that are ONLY available through the browser interface This section will cover those functions To...
Page 60: ...of a room you must connect directly to that room Use the iMedia Center for Windows rooms menu to access the specific iMedia Center you want to configure by room name or access the iMedia Center direc...
Page 61: ...f commands In either case you would need to use the browser menus to access the device s properties Select Setup Device Setup Then either create a device or modify an existing device You will see a sc...
Page 62: ...watch on a high definition basis on your local HDTV but you wish to watch it on non HDTVs in the rest of the house you would connect the HD output of the cable receiver directly to the HDTV and connec...
Page 63: ...sequences from other remote controls The following options are found for each device in More Supervisor functions Setup Device Setup device Modify device Modify keys individually Enter Hex Codes This...
Page 64: ...will start playing TV and switch to the channel you specified in the script This might look as follows on your TV Screen The browser menu script screen setup lets you configure the script screens and...
Page 65: ...each other At the most complex level the iMedia System can be automated using programming languages such as C and Visual Basic However this is beyond the scope of this document For your convenience th...
Page 66: ...files with the extension sjv and sja These files are then treated as video and audio content respectively and show up in the list of videos or music If you tag these files with the iMedia Tag Tool see...
Page 67: ...uld set up a script which turns on the TV and switches to PBS Kids Once you ve created several such scripts you could then create a screen called Kids Channels with graphical icons for your kid s favo...
Page 68: ...C wirelessly 3 Use 802 11a or 802 11n if possible 802 11a is flat out faster than 802 11g Though both g and a are rated at 54Mbps 802 11g has more overhead built into the communications reducing the e...
Page 69: ...of networking throughout a home In this case some planning and foresight can go a long way towards smooth functioning of the system Here are some general guidelines 1 Use cat 5 or better cabling wher...
Page 70: ...switches or routers instead of hubs Switches allow for direct connection between two nodes without using up bandwidth from the rest of the network 5 Don t skimp on network hardware An unreliable rout...
Page 71: ...wish to keep off to other folders d For maximum security consider a network attached storage device dedicated to entertainment and media 2 Wireless networks are inherently less secure If you must use...
Page 72: ...irus software and anti spyware software on all your PCs and limit family members ability to download and install software 6 Do not use obvious passwords anywhere Don t use names pet names birthdays li...
Page 73: ...is beyond the scope of this manual however the following are the steps needed for those familiar with advanced networking topics One iMedia Center on your home network must be assigned the task of pr...
Page 74: ...iMedia Windows Client will ask you to enter the IP address of your home If you ve set up a dynamic DNS you can simply enter the DNS address For instance myhomeimedia homeip net Otherwise you ll need...
Page 75: ...supported formats As of this printing the iMedia Center supports at least Audio Playback MP3 WAV PCM WMA FLAC OGG M4A M4P Support for M4A and M4P iTunes formats require that iTunes for Windows be ins...
Page 76: ...e you must wake up the remote by pressing the HOME key once before you can use it to send commands Typically the battery can last up to 3 4 days on sleep mode Question What video quality settings are...
Page 77: ...files in the play selection list Answer The media shares are scanned once when the SkipJam iMedia Center first boots up and then once daily If you wish to see your files before the daily scan you mus...
Page 78: ...are operating in an environment away from IR interference sources such as florescent light and plasma and direct sunlight Question I get a black and white picture Answer You ve selected S Video conne...
Page 79: ...satellite and have loop file recording enabled you will be using 2 connections one to record and one to play the recording to the server and count as 2 users To get around this issue Upgrade your syst...
Page 80: ...t to use an external control system to use the iMedia Center you ll need to get an external universal remote and teach it the iMedia Center s control codes Question I don t see any Rooms or Devices fr...
Page 81: ...er User s Guide 74 Connection Checklist Audio Video Output Devices Connection Device Type Device Brand Device Model Composite S Video Video Output Analog Composite Audio Out Digital PCM Out Coax Digit...
Page 82: ...id Video Input 1 Audio Input 1 Video Input 2 Audio Input 2 Video Input 3 Audio Input 3 Video Input 4 Front Audio Input 4 Front Analog Audio Input 4 Analog Audio Input 5 Digital PCM Audio Input 1 Coaxi...
Page 83: ...WMA WAV AC3 AAC FLAC Ogg PCM M4P M4A iTunes Optional PC Requirement x Networked PC running Windows XP or Windows 2000 x 128K MB Memory x 5 MB free disk space Supported Digital Photo File Formats x JP...
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