IR learning: I've just completed a short feature article describing all of the tips and tricks I've learned that can help when trying to learn difficult IR codes. Give it a read and let me know what you think.

Pronto files: Two new large collections of buttons by Bruce Sinclair and Paul Nash. Plus, a new system CCF from Job Taylor.

An important thing to remember when submitting a system CCF file is to include all device model numbers -- without them I can't properly index the contents. Thanks for understanding!

Mac IR: An interesting product was brought to my attention last week for Macintosh computers. It's a PCI card from Keyspan designed to control IR home theater equipement. It comes with eight small jacks on the back of the card, one for a IR receiver (to learn codes) and seven others for single or dual IR emitters. It supports up to seven "zones" for programmability and can learn and transmit IR codes from 15KHz to 614KHz. It won't come cheap though: the list price is $259.

X-10 and Winamp? Yes, someone has now developed a Winamp plugin called Ampapod that, coupled with the $25 X-10 MouseREMOTE, will allow you to control MP3 playback from afar. It supports button to function mapping and on-screen display, but what's best is the fact that it's free!