yawor
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Posts posted by yawor
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The Wake button is for waking PC from sleep. It doesn't operate the power button connection to the motherboard. You need to use command line utility (flirc_util) the way you've mentioned in your post to record the power button, which is currently not available in GUI. In OS X you just drop the .exe extension. I don't know OS X specifics so I don't know if the flirc_util is in PATH and can be accessed from anywhere or if you need first to change the working directory to one containing the executable.
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To be honest I'm using 1.3.6 for quite some time now and I don't have any problems with it. I don't know what's the reason why it doesn't work for some people.
Anyway if it works well for you then keep it on 1.2.6 unless there's some really great change and functionality added that you can't live without in some future releases. There's no reason to upgrade for the upgrade itself.
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I think it may depend on keyboard support implementation in some BIOS-es. I don't know what would be the reason in grub unless it also depends on the BIOS support. There are some real keyboards that are also incompatible with some bootloaders for example. To be honest I don't know how good is the HID implementation in the Flirc. It's something Jason would had to comment on as he's the one who implemented all of it. Also whole USB support in Flirc is software only so maybe it's some timing issue and BIOS implementation is not flexible enough.
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Yes, you are right. It's not possible with the Flirc alone. But you still can use it with either an universal remote where you can configure different devices for different software and then record it separately with different mappings or you can use software solutions like AutoHotKey or EventGhost to listen on keyboard events and then control the software you want directly. You can find my thread about using Flirc as a generic HID device with EventGhost. Just keep in mind that solution is not officially supported. It won't break your Flirc but if you have any problems with it then ask only in that thread.
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Hi,
You need to contact Jason via the contact email for the downgrade solution. The mail should on his forum profile and also on the main Flirc web page. If you search for downgrade on the forum you should also be able to find some informations.
I'm sorry to disappoint you but I don't think that SMS type input is or will be supported anytime soon. Even if it will be in some future firmware version then I don't know if it is even possible to have any visual feedback on the screen given that Flirc is "just" a keyboard device and doesn't know anything about what's going on in the system itself. With "visual feedback" I mean that when you press once you immediately see first character which is then replaced on next press in a short time and you skip to the next character after some timeout. I think the most you would get is that you need to count presses by yourself and then wait for character to show up. But still this is still not supported in the firmware. This is more of an USB HID keyboard standard limitation than the Flirc itself.
You can emulate this in the software if you're using Windows or Linux based HTPC for example. There are multiple solutions for this.
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I don't own Harmony so what I'm saying below is not based on my own experience but on what I've been reading here and there. This may include my own personal opinions and anyone is welcome to comment on this (just no flame war please :)).
The Harmony has some nice features. For example ability to modify mappings of most of the keys. Of course this may not be that valuable when you just need to control some (HT)PC with Flirc as you can just map whatever you want to each of the buttons anyway in the Flirc itself. But when you also want to control other appliances like the TV receiver and/or audio equipment with the same remote then having the ability to mix and match profiles on a single remote layout is really nice feature. Another cool feature is something called Activities. Depending on the model you either have already few Activities predefined (and hardwired to some buttons) or you can define your own (in models with LCD screens). You can assign a different layout to each Activity (for example have volume buttons control the TV receiver or amplifier but the rest of the key control only Flirc or some DVR) and also add some macros when you start the Activity or end it (so you can for example turn on TV, Amp and HTPC when you start Watch Movie Activity and turn them off when you end it).
I've read a lot of opinions and comments about the Harmony as I was about to buy one but one thing threw me off. It seems that they are just slow compared to other simpler remotes. The CPU in the remote has a lot to do and it is not very fast anyway. In a remote that costs that much it is something I can't ignore. Maybe the newer models are better but I'm out of loop as I don't look to buy one anymore.
I've been looking for some other remotes that would be simpler and cheaper but still allow great configurability, preferably with option to configure them from the PC. I've found one remote that I'm really happy with: OneForAll Simple 4 (URC-6440). It has backlit keys, allows configuration from PC and is able to mix devices on a single layout (I can still control volume on the TV when I use some other device profile that I've recorded in Flirc). It is also extendable (read below if you are interested).
There's a forum called JP1 forums that is focused on remotes from a UEI (which is also behind OneForAll). There is really great group of people that maintain the forum and work on an opensource software for those remotes. They also create something called Extenders. It is basically a firmware hack that add extra functionality to the remote. When I've bought the remote it was still not supported by JP1 software. I've spent really quite a lot of time working with them to get into inner workings of this remote which even included opening it and soldering serial port to connect it to PC to dump the firmware and then analyze it (I probably have the only one Simple 4 remote with serial port installed :P, normally it comes with just USB port). We've managed to crack their security measures and added support to the JP1 software. A really great guy from the forum was even able to create an Extender for this remote that adds a lot of features (for example it adds shift button and doubles the amount of devices you can setup from 4 to 8). I think it may have some functions that even Harmony doesn't have :P.
The best thing is that there is a choice with the remotes and this is what Flirc is really good at :).
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Yes, I agree that documentation is heavily lacking. But it's no reason to be rude to someone who tries to give you some tips.
Have you looked at the FAQ (https://flirc.zendesk.com/hc/en-us)? It is linked from the support pages at flirc.tv.
The issue with the distance from remote to Flirc is not showing every single time. It happens to some people and it has been mentioned multiple times on the forum. I see it's not mentioned in the FAQ. I'll bring this to attention to the person who's maintaining it.
I'm also not a fan of mentioning Flirc as working with every single one remote because it can't do that. This is mentioned in the FAQ and some Microsoft remotes are mentioned as not supported (the list is not closed).
My suggestion for not using MCE remote profile is not because it is not supported at all. It's because it uses RC6 protocol which has some quirks and requires spending more time setting up in Flirc. RC6 protocol has one or more bits in the signal which alternates every time you press the same button. This creates a situation where Flirc sees every second button press as a different button and you need to record each button at least two times for each function.
Personally I prefer profiles which use NEC family protocols like LG or Samsung TV receivers (I have LG TV receiver so I'm using Samsung profile to control Flirc). As I've mentioned before my Flirc is hidden behind the TV and works very well even without straight line of sight between remote and receiver.
Still, sorry you had such a poor experience with Flirc.
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Did you point the remote directly at the Flirc from short distance during the programming? If yes then this is probably the cause of your issue with poor reception. The signal from the remote is too strong. Try recording remote buttons by pointing the remote in different direction, for example at the ceiling (so the signal is weakened by being reflected from it).
I have my Flirc behind my TV plugged into Raspberry Pi 2 with OSMC.
BTW I would suggest to not use MCE remote profile for Flirc.
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No. At least not alone. Flirc works as a keyboard so it sends keystrokes to the app in focus. Windows doesn't allow you to assign a specific keyboard to a specifc app.
You could do this using some 3rd party software like AutoHotKey or EventGhots. If you search on the forum you'll find my thread about using Flirc as a Generic HID device in EventGhost. That way Flirc doesn't send standard keyboard key codes and you can intercept them using EventGhost and control Kodi using XBMC/Kodi plugin.
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Hi,
Sorry, you can't do that with Flirc. Flirc works as an USB keyboard where you record a button from the remote and assign a key (optionally with modifiers) to it. It all happens in hardware so after programming you don't need any additional software installed on a target system. All it needs is to be able to be controller from a USB keyboard.
There's no mode where the IR signal is just forwarded to the system.
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I think that may be some problem with the profile on the Harmony itself. Are those page up and down buttons you've added from the Flirc/Kodi profile? Or from some different one? As I've mentioned above I don't have Harmony so I don't know how exactly this works.
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I'm using page up and down keys from keyboard controller just fine on my Raspberry Pi 2 with OSMC/Kodi. I'm not using the built-in profile at all as I don't have Harmony, but you should be able to use built-in profile and record extra keys without problem.
In your case I would first confirm that the remote is actually sending any codes at all. Start up the camera app on your phone, point the remote at the camera and press a button. You should see bright flashes on the screen if the remote is sending anything. First try with a key that you know is working and then press the page up or down key to verify that they are actually sending anything.
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Hi,
Just start the Flirc GUI, go to keyboard controller (in the GUI) and record your page up/down keys to the page up/down keyboard keys.
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There are a few points to take into consideration:
1. All Flirc can do is emulate USB keyboard, so it is able to only send keys (including modifiers) and multimedia keys. This means that the application you want to control using Flirc must have some way to be controlled purely by the keyboard and shortcuts. If there is some function you want to use but it doesn't have any keyboard shortcut assigned then Flirc can't do anything about this (at least not Flirc alone).
2. All MCE remotes are using RC6 protocol which alternates some bits in the Infrared signal sent on consecutive key presses on the remote. Flirc recognizes both signals as separate ones, that's why you need to record each button twice.
3. Some MCE remotes send signals with base frequency outside the range of what Flirc is capable of receiving. Most consumer equipment remotes are operating at 38kHz base frequency and IR receiver built into Flirc is tuned so it works best with frequencies around 38kHz. Some MCE remotes are using 50 something kHz if I remember correctly. Such remotes will have poor performance with Flirc or even won't work at all.
4. Flirc GUI doesn't remember which controller was recently used because there is no need to. Flirc doesn't store such information. All Flirc can store is a mapping between IR signal hash and what keyboard keys have to be pressed. Media Center controller in the GUI (and most of the other controllers like XBMC/Kodi) is just a panel where most popular keys for the application are grouped together. So if there is no key for some specific function in the WMC controller in the GUI but you know the keyboard shortcut that can be used to invoke the function then just switch to keyboard controller and record the key combination there.
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People at Kodi forum are right. If you use a remote for your current TV and map its keys in Flirc, then every time you press a button on the remote then both Flirc AND your TV will react. For example, when you are watching TV and press a directional button (for example if you are in the TV main menu) then Kodi will also receive the presses from directional buttons. If you press OK then you'll select an option on both devices.
Unfortunately LG remotes don't have universal remote functionality where you can control another device. I would strongly suggest getting some universal remote. You can go for Logitech Harmony but in my opinion they are overpriced. I'm using One-For-All Simple4 remote (URC-6440) and I'm satisfied.
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Hi,
I've already explained this. It's a matter of Kodi keymap configuration. Please look here
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I don't think Flirc on Windows 10 has been tested in any way yet. You can do some tests by recording simple keys like just letters and then try to "type" them in the notepad using the remote. Have you tried switching to different USB port yet?
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That's the problem with RC6 remotes (MCE and XBox). Another problem is that some MCE/Xbox remotes are using unsupported base frequency. I think it's 56kHz instead of 38kHz which Flirc supports.
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Hi,
Have you followed the tip correctly from beginning to the end? If yes then it should work. Remember to record the same button at least two times. For example press Up in GUI, press Up button in the GUI and repeat the procedure for the Up right away (without pressing any other key on the remote in the meantime). You can try repeating more than twice (you need to get "already recorded" error everytime you try to repeat recording for the button).
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I'll let Jason know about the problem.
In the meantime can you try working with CLI util? It's in the Flirc installation dir and it's called flirc_util.exe. Because of some strange bug you need to use full exec name in CMD (flirc_util.exe instead of just flirc_util). You can fully program your Flirc using the CLI.
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Can you try reinstalling VC++ runtime?
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=14632
Uninstall it first from the system.
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I'm sorry you've had such experience so far, but to be honest I don't remember anyone reporting such issue before. There may be something on your system preventing application to start. I have Flirc software 1.3.6 installed on my Windows 7 and it works very well.
If you can please share more details on your OS (32 or 64 bit, which edition). Is it fully updated from Windows Update?
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AFAIK it is only a toggle and there is no power state detection involved at the moment. I've made a suggestion some time ago to also add discrete on and off buttons with power state detection but it's not implemented yet and I don't think it will be any time soon.
Is it Flirc or me?
in Remote Controls
Posted · Edited by yawor
I see that this is a universal remote so you should be able to change a device assigned to the device button you want to use with Flirc to something else than it is now. Try a few of them and select one that works best with Flirc. Try setup codes for Samsung or LG TV receivers. The recent ones are using NEC protocol which works very well with Flirc.
Of course you need to re-record the keys in Flirc after changing setup codes (not always if you just change to different setup code for the same equipment type from the same manufacturer). So format your Flirc and for testing purposes record only volume keys after each setup code change and test if they are repeating properly.