HDTV
Bye File Server, hello NAS
Nov 20th
NAS, or Network Attached Storage is finally affordable to use at home. For a few weeks I have been running two $70 Coolmax
CN-550 devices:
This is an external USB drive with an RJ-45 ethernet
port. My devices both have 320GB hard discs and allowed me to dismantle a dedicate
file server PC 
Now we only have one desktop PC
in the house!!, which is a far-cry from the five PC two years ago!! Simplicity
means more time for other hobbies, and this device has a very simple to use web interface.
So what are the pros and cons of the CN-550 which right now is the pick of the affordable
NAS:
Good:
Works seamlessly with final build of XMBC v1.0
Works seamlessly with Windows 2000, XP, and Vista
Can access files via a windows ‘machine name’, e.g. \\MP3s\Radiohead\
Maintainable via a simple web interface
Simple to user Folder security (SMB username/ paswords)
Can easily become an FTP server
Stackable
Mild Annoyances:
XMBC 2.0 does not recognize these devices (yet)
Only uses IDE drives, not SATA
Discs must be formatted FAT32
Very slow for large data transfers over RJ45 (use USB 2.0 instead)
One of my 320GB Hard Discs does not work with power saving – I simply turned off sleep
for that NAS device
Bad:
Reported not to work with some very large hard discs (750GB)
Plasma TVs do suffer from screen burn
Oct 6th
Just for the record: if anyone is considering a Plasma TV bear in mind that screen
burn does happen. When buying mine early this year almost all the press were
saying that it barely happened with old models, and is the same a CRT for the latest
generation of Plasmas. Well with pretty light use (we don’t even have cable!) my Plasma
is already showing a faint impression of the xbmc menu + pause/ progress box
during power-off.
This is no big deal for me it was caught in time and I set the xbmc screensaver
to stars with a one minute delay. The default is dim (to 20%) after
three minutes which obviously was not doing the trick.
Happy with the Hanselman Remote
Jul 2nd
Last year Scott
Hanselman raved about the Harmony 880. I have been using one for three months, and have to say it tamed my fairly complex media set-up. The system was manageable before I cancelled Tivo + premium cable, instead switching to an xbox using xmbc. At this stage using the system effectively required juggling five remotes, and it was no suprise that my wife gave up on the main TV. She will not let me tell her how much the Harmony 880 cost, but can now watch IPTV streamed from a server PC (elsewhere in the house) to the xbox with video directed to a 480p Plasma with 5.1 audio via a fairly complex receiver. All that with one remote!
At a street price of $160->$200 this is by no means a cheap remote. Still, for $160 + two hours of my time (including teaching the remote xbox IR commands), we now have a state of the art media system that is simple to use. The only
glitches with the remote so far are that it rattles (weirdly almost every house guest to has the same urge to drop it on my hardwood floor!), it also can become a little confused when playing audio from the xbox, but programming a custom
key to resolved that. It appears the only upgrade to the 880 is the 890 which also handles RF. The home theater buffs I asked I asked are unsure if this is just RF to a remote IR transmitter, or RF to device like an xbox wireless remote so I just bought the 880 + an xbox IR receiver.
As Scott said this thing is butter, and seeing that 480p Plasma’s are in Best Buy for ~$1000 I think everyone I know will soon be in need of a remote like this: 
Regarding the Plasma purchase; my 2 cents is just buy a 480p off-brand $1000 model today. $2500 for a semi HDTV plasma is waste IMO as they are not 1080p and little HD material is available anyway; in about two years buy a real 1080p Plasma for $1500 and give the 480p to your kids who will then love you for ever. Regualar DVDs look fantastic on my Maxent Plasma; black levels are a little annoying at times, but well worth the $1000+ saving.