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Home : Rudeo Play & Control : User Guide

Rudeo Play & Control User Guide

About Rudeo Play & Control

Rudeo Play & Control allows to use a wireless Pocket PC to:

Browse, manage and control media on on your UPnP Media Servers and/or host computer running Windows Media Player.

Control playback of media on compatible UPnP streaming players

Cache and play music from UPnP Media Servers to Pocket PC

Control other devices through InfraRed (IR) emitting adapter (connected to main PC).

Requirements

A Windows PC with Windows Media Player 10 may be required in your specific usage scenario (except where it is optional). The same PC may be used for example for UPnP Controlling, IR and WMP Controlling. Software required on Windows PC:

Operating System: Windows XP SP2, 2000, 2003

ActiveSync. Recommended to install Rudeo Play & Control Pocket PC client software. Could be installed on any other computer. The client component can also be installed by copying RudeoControl.ARMV4.CAB file from
C:\Program Files\Rudeo Control\RudeoControlPPC\ directory to Pocket PC via storage card or network connection (latter requires a network share setup).

Windows Media Player 9, 10 or later

.NET Framework 1.1 (see download page).

Control UPnP Players

A Streaming Media Player, such as D-link DSM-320, DSM-520, Roku Soundbridge. See updated list of compatible devices here. (Must be UPnP AV 1.0 Compliant)

A UPnP Media Server. Usually comes as a software component running on a storage appliance or main PC with access to your media, could be same Windows PC specified above. Media Server keeps track of available media, provides information about media to Rudeo Play & Control and streams media to UPnP Player(s). See updated list of compatible devices here. (Must be UPnP AV 1.0 Compliant)

A Pocket PC with WiFi capability. OS Version 2003 or Windows Mobile 5. The device requires a .NET Compact Framework 1.0 SP3 (see download page)

Optional: (but recommended) A Windows PC (see specification at top of this section). The PC running Rudeo Play & Control server component will provide the "Rudeo-Enhanced" UPnP experience where queue playback control is owned by Rudeo Server process and Rudeo Pocket PC client does not have to be always powered On.

Networking connectivity for all components above. If any of them are hard-wired, then WiFi connection from Pocket PC should be routable (bridged to the wired ethernet. NOTE: The router must allow Multicast packets on this network.

Control Windows Media Player

A Windows PC (see specification at top of this section). The PC will run Rudeo Play & Control server component. Rudeo Server component will work directly with WMP to retrieve media information, and control playback through Rudeo Play & Control client on Pocket PC.

A Pocket PC with WiFi capability. OS Version 2003 or Windows Mobile 5. The device requires a .NET Compact Framework 1.0 SP3 (see download page)

Playing Music on Pocket PC

A Pocket PC with WiFi capability and Windows Media Player 10. Operating System Pocket PC 2003 or Windows Mobile 5. The device requires a .NET Compact Framework 1.0 SP3 (see download page)

Control devices via InfraRed (IR)

A Windows PC (see specification at top of this section). The PC will run Rudeo Play & Control server component which will relay the IR commands from Rudeo Pocket PC client.

A USB UIRT adapter (IR blaster). The adapter should be connected to the Windows PC. The adapter requires appropriate USB drivers downloaded and installed from usbuirt.com website.

A Pocket PC with WiFi capability and Windows Media Player 10. Operating System Pocket PC 2003 or Windows Mobile 5. The device requires a .NET Compact Framework 1.0 SP3 (see download page)

The Server program runs on the host computer and performs operations that are sent from the pocket pc client program.

Install Rudeo Play & Control

Follow instructions on Download Page. Per download page also check on following components:

Check if there is a ROM update for your Pocket PC on the manufacturer's support website.

Check if the .NET Compact Framework needs to be updated.

Run the setup program to install Rudeo Play & Control Server and Pocket PC client components. (please be sure to connect Pocket PC to ActiveSync through a cradle or wirelessly prior to running installation)

Add Rudeo Control Server automatic startup shortcut.

Activation

If you are upgrading this software and have already activated, you will not need to reactivate it.

If you have not yet activated the Rudeo Play & Control Pocket PC software it will work in Trial mode. The trial mode expires after 14 days or net use. Trial mode also limits some functionality in following aspects:

Control of shuffle is disabled

Only the top 5 items from any folder can be added to Currently Playing or saved into a playlist.

To activate your software and access full features, you will need to purchase a Serial Number from one of our retailers. If you purchased this software directly from Rudeo, please email sales@rudeo.com for your Activation Code, don’t forget to include your Pocket PC Owner name (accurately spelled – case sensitive). For your convenience your Pocket PC owner name is shown on the Activation Screen of Rudeo Control.

Entering Activation Code

To enter Activation Code:

Rudeo Control on your Pocket PC by tapping Start à Programs à Rudeo Control.

Select "Tools"

menu and tap "Activation/About"

In the Activation Code field (see figure) enter the 5-digit activation code, or the serial number provided by the reseller.

Using Rudeo Play & Control

Please check that Pocket PC is connected to your WiFi network (be sure to verify the WiFi SSID to make sure it's not a different nearby network).

Make sure that other required components are operational and connected to the same network.

Check that your media has been registered with the UPnP media server, or if using Windows Media Player music and videos are added to WMP library.

Below is a map of buttons on the main Rudeo Play & Control panel:

Disconnect from Player

To Disconnect from target player, select Tools

à Disconnect.

Control UPnP Players

When all components listed in the requirements section are working, there is no additional setup required.
Rudeo Play & Control client on Pocket PC will discover available UPnP Players and Media Servers on the same local network.

Picking a Player

We also refer to this as picking a Target Device.

Discovered Media Players will be shown in the "Target Device" menu

. Tap this icon to see the list of available players. Tap the player you want to control.

The figure on right shows 2 devices with word dlink
Select dlink to connect to this player directly from Pocket PC. The queue will be stored and managed by Rudeo Play & Control on Pocket PC.
If you select "via rudeo:dlink" the queue will be managed on Rudeo Server and Pocket PC can be turned off for prolonged times during operation - while queue keeps playing.

NOTE: if you did not install Rudeo Server on an PC, then via rudeo options will not be available.

When connected to a player this icon look like this

. If you tap the menu, the checkmark will show what player is being controlled.

Selecting Media

Media Servers are automatically discovered and shown in the Library

tab. The root level folder list is shown under the server name.

Find the media by expanding appropriate folders, and tap checkboxes on items that you want to queue up or play.

Check the whole folder to select items contained immediately in that folder. (this does not step in more than 1 level deep by design).

Tap ("Queue Up") button to add checked items to queue of currently selected target player.

Or tap ("Add and Play") button to add checked items to queue and start playing the first item

Link Media Folder to Tab

Frequently accessed media folders like Playlists, Videos, Internet Radio (or any other folder/branch) can be linked to appear in another top.

Navigate to folder that you want to link to another tab, and tap-and-hold stylus to open context menu.

Select "Link Branch to...", then pick the desired tab.

: Videos

: Radiostations

Playlists

Go to those tabs and select Unlink branch from context menu to remove each link if needed.

Start Playback

If you did you use Add and Play button, and need to start the playback...

tap for "Now Playing" tab

Tap a track in the queue from which to start playing

Tap the Play button

Control Windows Media Player

Before using Rudeo Play & Control with Windows Media Player, please add media to your WMP's library:

Launch Media Player (either through Start menu or through Rudeo Control's server task bar icon

press F3 or in Tools menu select "Search for Media Files"

Specify where to find media files.

NOTE: Rudeo Server component must be running on the same PC as Windows Media Player. Rudeo Play & Control Pocket PC client will discover the server component and it will be availabe as a player in target devices.

Download WMP Media Database

When selected player WMP@<hostname> from target device menu, Rudeo will ask permission to download the media database from server. In order to complete this task Rudeo Server will scan the media library through WMP and build a compact database which will be transferred to Pocket PC and stored in \Program Files\Rudeo Control\ directory.

Progress information should display on the bottom while scanning the library.

When media database download is complete, we can browse media from Library

tab, and/or other tabs if branches are linked.

NOTE: if present UPnP media server(s) may still be shown but their media is not available to add when the selected target player is a WMP host.

Follow the instructions for selecting media and playback.

Play Music on Pocket PC

Rudeo Play & Control downloads media to Pocket PC storage card before playing on the device. Rudeo does not use device RAM to avoid filling it up, and does not use a built-in Storage due to their very slow performance. Ultra-fast SD Storage cards are ideal for use with Rudeo.

Getting Started

Playback on Pocket PC device is controlled by connecting to player My Device. This player should appear in the list as long as the device has either a Windows Media Player 10 or a Media Player OCX Control. We recommend WMP10 due to better performance and lesser dependency on Pocket PC CPU utilization.
Tap Target Devices button on toolbar and select My Device.

The queue will populate with music tracks available on the storage card.
At this point the rules are the same as before - select media and press Play.

Queuing and Caching

To pick additional music to play on Pocket PC:

Follow the Selecting Media instructions. NOTE: you will be able to select media only from the UPnP Media Servers, and not any WMP-only libraries due to the media access features that UPnP Media Servers provide.

Select media and then use either Queue Up or Add and Play buttons to queue up selected items to the Pocket PC queue.

The files start downloading, with the next item waiting to download next.

All added music will be downloaded in sequence without as soon as bandwidth allows. When storage card runs out of space the item being downloaded will show a space error in place of the download progress.

To free up space on storage card tap on music you want to delete and tap Delete button on toolbar.

Playback Away from Network

When using Rudeo Play & Control away from home network, you can select My Device and play music available on storage card.

Control devices via InfraRed (IR)

Please refer to the requirements section for IR Controlling.

Make sure that the USB UIRT software drivers are installed and the device is connected via USB cable to the PC.

Rudeo Server should be running on this PC.

Device Setup

Select IR Control panel by tapping .
If you have not copied the sample device files, the panel will be initially empty as shown on screenshot on the right.
To setup devices tap the menu button of IR setup options

Tap Setup Buttons menu option to continue the device setup.

Tap button Add to add devices.

Tap Add Device button and type the name of new device in the textbox. For our example we are going to add "RECEIVER"

Tap Add Device button and type the name of new device in the textbox. For our example we are going to add "RECEIVER".
Then tap Update button.
Add as many devices as necessary. At this time we are only creating the device placeholders and will add their commands later.
Tap OK button in the upper right corner to go back to command setup.

Device Buttons Setup

Select a device in dropdown menu (RECEIVER)
Tap Add Command button
Type the name of device command in the textbox. For example "POWER" and tap Update button.
Tap checkbox next to new command in the list. If checkbox is checked the command will be shown on IR Panel. If unchecked it will not show up on the IR Panel.
Select another device in dropdown on top and add commands you intend to use on this device. Finish entering commands for other devices you have created.
Tap OK button in the upper right corner to go back to IR Panel.

Learning Commands

Before learning IR commands please prepare all original IR remote controls from which Rudeo will learn IR codes.

Place the USB UIRT adapter on flat surface with enough space before where you can put the original IR of the device.

During the learning procedure the original IR remote should point its emitter directly at the front of USB UIRT adapter.

The distance between original remote and USB UIRT during learning should be about 5cm (around 2 inches)

Learning of each command will consist of reading 2 samples of IR transmission. Rudeo will collect 2 samples because some remotes use different interleaving codes each time user presses the button.

When reading each IR transmission sample you will hold the original remote button firmly until the Rudeo client will show a message to release the button. During that a progress number will show from 0 to 100%.

Tap IR Menu to open context menu and select Learning Mode

IR Panel will switch to learning mode.

Prepare the original IR remote for the device (in this example case it's the Receiver)

Tap the command you want to program first.

The bottom message panel will instruct to press and hold the appropriate button on the original iR remote control.

NOTE: be sure to keep original remote 5 cm (2 inches) away from the USB UIRT front window.

NOTE: do not release the button until the window confirms that sampe reading was completed.

While you are holding the IR button, progress will show on message panel below.

When done with 1st sample, the message will instruct to release the button on original IR remote.

Standby for 2nd sample read.

In a few seconds the message will instruct to press the button on original IR remote again and keep holding it until read is completed.

NOTE: if you let go and press button again it will change the sequence for 2-sample remotes. And if you notice that after that IR controlling is not adequate, please repeat the learning procedure.

At this point you can continue to learn the next button.

To do so prepare the original IR remote
press the appropriate button on Rudeo IR Panel, and
Follow on-screen messages.

When done learning commands, open IR context menu (see figure on right), and tap Learning Mode to turn it off.

Sending IR Commands

IR Commands are sent via USB UIRT adapter by pressing the command button on IR Panel.

To send repeating signals (e.g. when changing volume or channels) simply keep pressing the button until reached a desired setting on the device.

Button Layouts

Rudeo Play & Control IR panel provides for 2 types of button layouts. Each device can have its own layout type and customization. User can switch device between layouts at will by using the IR Context menu of corresponding device.

Flow layout

This is an automatic layout rendered by the program.

It creates buttons based on the device configuration.

It automatically re-positions buttons when screen orientation changed between portrait and landscape.

User can only customize the order of buttons in this layout.

Free Layout

This is a layout in which user can reposition buttons at will anywhere in the device area.

Free layout is fixed to the specific screen orientation and resolution. A separate copy of layout data is kept for each screen size/orientation and can be modified separately.

The button layout can be reset (see Auto Align Buttons) to restore original layout.

Button Reordering

To change order of buttons on IR panel:

Open IR context menu

Select Adj Btn Order command

The device buttons will show arrows indicating the button order change mode.

Tap the arrows of the button in the direction you want to move it.

For example after tapping right arrow of Power button:

It moved to the right, switching positions with button VCR.

NOTE: To turn off this editing mode, open IR device context menu again and uncheck Adj Btn Order item.

Button Layout Editing

New device layouts are by default Flow. To demonstrate the Free layout editing of a device we will switch the layout mode of PLASMA device to Free. To do so tap the IR context menu of device PLASMA and select Set Layout - Free :
When switching to Free layout for the first time on the device the buttons inherit their positions.

To edit button in Free layout, open IR context menu for the device, and select Edit Buttons.

The device switches to the button editing mode.
Adjust amount of area designated for device by dragging the middle marker on bottom of device border.
Move buttons around by dragging
Resize buttons by dragging their corner markers.
NOTE: for easier editing you may want to refresh your Pocket PC stylus/screen alignment (from keyboard menu).

When finished with layout open IR context menu for the device and uncheck Edit Buttons

Easy Use Tips

When you have more than few devices they will become scrolled away from direct view.
There are following ways to access their buttons

Tap the device name at bottom of IR panel. This area of IR panel contains the device shortcuts. Once The number of shortcuts goes over certain number that they don't fit, there will be a "more" button opening all available device names.

Tap "Up" or "Down" on bottom of IR panel to scroll the panel to right device.

Use hardware directional keys of Pocket PC

Use vertical scrollbar of the IR panel

Drag the panel by any area outside of the buttons.

Device File Editing

Some devices have IR codes that are not used in their original remotes and therefore cannot be programmed by learning. If you can obtain such codes in Pronto format, they could be pasted directly into the Rudeo Play & Control device files.

The device files are located on Pocket PC under \Program Files\Rudeo Control\devices directory.
They have a .dat extension but can be opened in notepad.

TV/ Layout:Flow Command:POWER Button 0000 006C 0000 0016 00AC 00A8 0015 003F 0015 0017 0015 0017 0015 0019 0015 0017 0015 0017 0015 0017 0015 0019 0015 0017 0015 0017 0015 0017 0015 0019 0015 003F 0015 0017 0015 0017 0015 0019 0015 0017 0015 003F 0015 0017 0015 0015 0014 0364 0000 006C 0000 0016 00AC 00A8 0015 003F 0015 0017 0015 0017 0015 0019 0015 0017 0015 0017 0015 0017 0015 0019 0015 0017 0015 0017 0015 0017 0015 0019 0015 003F 0015 0017 0015 0017 0015 0019 0015 0017 0015 003F 0015 0017 0015 0015 0014 0362 EndCommand

The example above is a fragment of the device file, which has 2 code sequences (1 for each sample). If there is only one available Pronto sequence it can be pasted once without duplicating. There are no line breaks within one pronto code sequence.

Some sample device files with further instructions can be downloaded here.