Tvbgone Mod?

[Miner49er]

Sorry if this title is misleading but I was wodnering how possible it would be to add an infrared LED and then control it via software in order to replicate TVBGone-like functionality?

For those who are unfamilar with TVBGone: www.tvbgone.com

Okay, it's pointless but isn't that the point?

I was just trying to think of possibilities of hardware mods.

I owned one of those things (until it broke...) and my son and I had fun switching off all the TVs in Tescos. It's also quite fun trying to aim it through someones window whilst their watching Eastenders or something! Silly but good for 5 minutes fun!

 

[Hooka]

Heh, I used to do the same with my pocketstation in the Sony store

Always good for a laugh

 

[iampanis]

A USB IrDA dongle should work fine, they're cheap and tiny. Then for the software use LIRC.

 

[Miner49er]

A USB IrDA dongle should work fine, they're cheap and tiny. Then for the software use LIRC.

Like this?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Belkin-F5U235QEA-Usb-Infrared/dp/B000A0GLXU

Would be nicer for it to be integrated into the case but I guess this is a cheap/easy option. Just have to whip both the pandy AND IR unit out in Tescos and cause a bit of mayhem!

 

[Barnaby]

Oh man these devices are fun. I did it in school once, and unintentionally made them throw out the TV and buy a new one. They thought it was broken. Oops. I wouldn't mind being able to use one on the Pandora, even if I was caught they probably wouldn't think it would double as some kind of remote.

 

[HackModford]

Oh man these devices are fun. I did it in school once, and unintentionally made them throw out the TV and buy a new one. They thought it was broken. Oops. I wouldn't mind being able to use one on the Pandora, even if I was caught they probably wouldn't think it would double as some kind of remote.

Should've grabbed the TV

In any case I would really like to buy one of these devices so that I can turn the TV off in a restaurant.

 

[Mqark]

Oh man these devices are fun. I did it in school once, and unintentionally made them throw out the TV and buy a new one. They thought it was broken. Oops. I wouldn't mind being able to use one on the Pandora, even if I was caught they probably wouldn't think it would double as some kind of remote.

Should've grabbed the TV

In any case I would really like to buy one of these devices so that I can turn the TV off in a restaurant.

You need to eat in classier restaurants!

 

[Barnaby]

Oh man these devices are fun. I did it in school once, and unintentionally made them throw out the TV and buy a new one. They thought it was broken. Oops. I wouldn't mind being able to use one on the Pandora, even if I was caught they probably wouldn't think it would double as some kind of remote.

Should've grabbed the TV

In any case I would really like to buy one of these devices so that I can turn the TV off in a restaurant.

I only found out a week later when in the next lesson they had they wheeled in a new TV. I asked them what happened to the old one, my teacher said "Oh it was broken so we had to buy a new one". Whoops. I was doing it discreetly by turning the TV off every time the teacher walked past and bumped it, and turning it back on when she fiddled with the SCART cable.

 

[Viral18]

I only found out a week later when in the next lesson they had they wheeled in a new TV. I asked them what happened to the old one, my teacher said "Oh it was broken so we had to buy a new one". Whoops. I was doing it discreetly by turning the TV off every time the teacher walked past and bumped it, and turning it back on when she fiddled with the SCART cable.

I tip my hat to you... Anything that makes that hell-hole waste budget is fine by me XD

 

[Miner49er]

I only found out a week later when in the next lesson they had they wheeled in a new TV. I asked them what happened to the old one, my teacher said "Oh it was broken so we had to buy a new one". Whoops. I was doing it discreetly by turning the TV off every time the teacher walked past and bumped it, and turning it back on when she fiddled with the SCART cable.

I tip my hat to you... Anything that makes that hell-hole waste budget is fine by me XD

By hell-hole, do you mean school in general or do you happen to goto the same school? I'm not sure I agree with schools blowing their budget on new TV's that they don't need. Buuuut, great gag! My mate did the same when I was at school - he happened to have the same type of Betamax video player as the school, so snuck his remote into class one day to screw with the teachers head! It was very funny. Bloody TV's in the classroom == lazy teachers though if you ask me...

 

[Barnaby]

Yeah we went to the same school. I felt a bid bad for making them waste their money on a new TV, but it was very funny at the time. My teacher got really frustrated. How did your friend manage to hide a remote control though? Did he get noticed? My one was on a keyring so it was pretty small. It's broken now though.

I'd like to see something like this on the Pandora just so I can use it to screw with my dad again.

 

[Fzero]

I had the tvbgone letting and it was jokes, then the battery ran out and I never replaced it, don't even know where it is now.
This would be a good little thing to have on the pandora me thinks

perfect time now too seeing as the world cups on, couldve had some fun in the pubs with it

 

[Barnaby]

I had the tvbgone letting and it was jokes, then the battery ran out and I never replaced it, don't even know where it is now.
This would be a good little thing to have on the pandora me thinks

perfect time now too seeing as the world cups on, couldve had some fun in the pubs with it

Dude I'd never dare do that. Switch it off at the right moment and it could cause of riot of angry drunk people. I was always tempted to do it through a window though so I wouldn't be inside, but figured it's not worth it when someone could get seriously hurt. XD I doubt it would happen, but hey it's possible.

 

[SomeGuy99]

Just picked up an old Ipaq for a tenner, and it has a learning remote control app built in. Worth the price alone! It has a huge database of manufactuers in there, but it didn't work for mine. I forced it to learn the codes by pointing and shooting the original remote at the IRDA port.

Range seems pretty good too! I tried this sort of thing on my PSP and it sucks TBH.

This thing has Bluetooth too. With a bit of hacking, I just got myself an awesome remote control! I'm thinking about pairing it with the Pandora and have all sorts of fun. B)

 

[paulguy]

Meh, I always wanted to do stuff like this, but never really got nifty gizmos like that, or universal remotes.

That's pretty funny about you having the same BETAMAX VCR as your school, though. What are the chances of that, with a rather obscure format? That's like having the same laserdisc player.

 

[Prometheus]

That's pretty funny about you having the same BETAMAX VCR as your school, though. What are the chances of that, with a rather obscure format? That's like having the same laserdisc player.

There's a chance, here, that this might have occurred when Betamax was still on the market - it was likely not, at that time, obscure (that format-war was actually a long-running one, wasn't it?). I remember still seeing people using the players in the UK as late as the end of the 1980s, myself (though I was only a kid at the time).

Getting myself on-topic, does the earlier-linked IRda dongle work under Linux, I wonder?

 

[Miner49er]

That's pretty funny about you having the same BETAMAX VCR as your school, though. What are the chances of that, with a rather obscure format? That's like having the same laserdisc player.

There's a chance, here, that this might have occurred when Betamax was still on the market - it was likely not, at that time, obscure (that format-war was actually a long-running one, wasn't it?). I remember still seeing people using the players in the UK as late as the end of the 1980s, myself (though I was only a kid at the time).

Getting myself on-topic, does the earlier-linked IRda dongle work under Linux, I wonder?

Heh, yeah this was in about '86. They used betamax at my school for all the time I was there. My mate had his parents cast off after they went vhs - I was very jealous, we didn't have a vcr. Now that I think about it, he might have had the remote confiscated as, as you say, it was BIG!

As for the irda thingy working under Linux I don't know but I'm tempted buy one anyway to find out...

 

[Prometheus]

Might be cheaper to Google it. :lol: Actually, I just did - it seems that it was working way back in 2006, so I would imagine it probably still is now (assuming it still uses the same chipset nowadays).