[tucansam]

Significant amounts of apologies for the noobness in this post.

I have been looking at XBMC for years and finally have it running on an older system for testing (linux). I am probably going to get one running under Windows also, just to see the differences and difficulties with each.

I have a few very pointed questions before I get to the meat of my post...

This system is going to (attempt to ) replace a $129/mo cable subscription. I already have a Roku, not impressed. Netflix runs on the Roku and all the WIIs, fine. But I need the wifey's Bravo, HGTV, and Lifetime. And I need the kiddo's Disney, Nick, and Cartoon Network. I have yet to find any system that can get me content from these providers.

Assuming I can configure XBMC to find the aforementioned content "out there," I am curious as to which system is going to be the easiest for me to maintain (from a system administration standpoint of mirroring system drives, connecting it to a network storage device for storing and retrieving, connecting it to all of the other TVs and PCs (Windows) in the house, etc). Windows or linux? I am competent with both but far more comfortable with the former. If the kids need to use the system directly from the TV, how do I make it impossible for them to accidentally screw something up? Or view content I don't desire them to view?

I am in the process of reading (and trying) many of the step-by-step guides, but I am still in the stage where I am very much intimidated by the seemingly daunting task of configuring this system... I don't really need it to do a whole lot, initially... Just find some TV shows so I can convince the fam to cut ties with the cable company.

Ideas or suggestions most welcome.

[digitalb0y]

Don't apologize, welcome to the community!

If you need an all-in-one box, Windows will run XBMC Flicks (Netflix for XBMC) which is not likely to come anytime soon for Linux, thanks to Netflix's dependence on Silverlight and DRM, and Microsoft shunning Linux for Silverlight support. Depending on your hardware, you may find one OS or the other easier to use for surround sound support over HDMI. At the end of the day, I prefer the Linux environment and enjoy the practice at the terminal level, and I don't mind switching to my Xbox when I want to watch Netflix since its all controlled with the same remote. So I stuck with XBMCbuntu.

It's not hard to make XBMC easy for family members to use. If you have a universal remote of some kind, I highly recommend checking out Flirc (http://flirc.tv) for a quick, easy, platform-agnostic way to make your remote emulate the XBMC keyboard shortcuts. With Flirc you don't have to worry about compatibility, setup is a breeze, and you wind up with something that takes advantage of the entire XBMC keyboard. It's easy to navigate using any remote that has buttons that make sense to your family.

For making it unlikely that your young ones or tech-unsavvy family members will get lost trying to navigate or goof up files unintentionally, I recommend making a second profile for yourself. Having the one that boots up by default use a nice easy skin (like Neon or even default Confluence), and only make the files and folders you want them to have access to visible. Once you're happy with all the views for different library types, put the skin into kiosk mode, disable renaming and deleting files, and hide the Add Source button. This locks the views and makes it so you don't really need to worry about them messing up content. You can even hide the settings menu if you have another way to get there. On my system the S key is mapped to a remote button, so I can use it to shut down, switch profiles or get to settings without the use of the Settings menu on the home screen (what's available in the S menu varies from skin to skin). So make the profile that everyone uses by default as simple as possible, and switch to your admin profile only when you need to. This also lets you add content you don't want younger eyes to see to your own profile only, and not make those file sources viewable to everyone else. You can passcode protect your own profile or folders.

As far as mimicking the content your wife needs, there are a ton of great add-ons to try. BlueCop's repo includes the Free Cable add-on, which includes free streaming content from Bravo and Lifetime (and lots of others). There's a separate HGTV add-on, though the repo it came from escapes me at the moment. Maybe it's even the stock one? If there are shows that you can't find using streaming add-ons (the add-ons will only find content that these channels make available online), I highly recommend Sickbeard for downloading shows and organizing them properly. It even notifies XBMC when new shows have been downloaded and automatically updates your library. I cut my cable bill by about 75% by eliminating TV and phone and even beefed up my internet service, and I haven't looked back.

It sounds like you're going about it the right way though. There is a ton you can do with XBMC so the best way to learn is to try it and keep reading guides when you get stuck on parts or want to see how others are doing things. Welcome to the neighborhood, your new addiction, and your first step towards a great media center with only the content you want to enjoy/pay for.