HD-mini Hardware and Connections
The HD-mini chassis includes a number of connections and ports. This includes:
•
HDMI
– Outputs video to the screen. Note that the HD-mini will do an EDID auto-
detect upon power up to ascertain the screen’s optimal resolution and adjust its
output resolution accordingly.
•
Ethernet
– Hardwire network connection. DHCP is enabled by default.
•
USB
– There are several open USB ports. Earlier version of the HD-mini included
Wi-Fi dongle. Newer versions have WiFi internal.
•
Power
– Included is a MicroUSB power supply rated at 5.1V, 1A.
Order of Operations
The HD-mini supports DHCP to obtain an IP address and other networking information,
as well as HDMI EDID negotiation with the monitor. These are obtained at boot-up.
Therefore out of the box, it is suggested to connect the following in order:
1. HDMI
2. Networking
3. Power
Turning On / Off
The HD-mini is powered on simply by plugging in the MicroUSB power supply. In general
it takes about 30 seconds or so to boot. Occasionally it will run some internal
diagnostics, so boot time may vary. It will immediately begin playing the current
Project
.
The HD-mini device is running an operating system (Linux) and like other computers and
operating systems, behaves better with a graceful shut-down. There is no power switch,
so pulling the plug will work and generally should not cause any problems. However the
recommended shut-
down method would be to use the “
Shutdown ChyTV
” button found
in
ChyTV Tools 2
under
Options / Settings
. See more on
ChyTV Tools 2
below.
The device takes 20 seconds or so to shut down completely. Occasionally
(approximately every 30 drive mountings), some extra time booting will be required verify
drive consistency. In this case, booting may take several minutes to complete.
Note: When power is removed, the ChyTV HD-mini may still retain a small amount of
power from a combination of the HDMI and Ethernet cables. If the HD-mini is unplugged,
it is generally a good idea to wait 20 or so before reapplying power again.
General Work Flow
Like all standard ChyTV devices, content is created, updated and managed using the
ChyTV Tools interface. The ChyTV Tools software is run on a separate PC and connects
to the ChyTV HD device via the network. ChyTV Tools works hand-in-hand with ChyTV
Author, a WYSIWYG content layout tool.
