[rolly]

but I hate spending good money when I can do it for free

Me too!Free is my middle name.
Yes,I do see the cost of Image For Dos has increased a lot since I've used it.
Still,for someone who really doesn't understand disc imaging very well,this product does make it very easy,and it does work very well.
I found it more pleasurable to use than Ghost or True Image,because
you don't need Incd or a similiar packet writing capability to use it.
And no question it was much faster.

I particularly liked how it would remember the partitions size.
If for example you imaged a 10GB partition,then formatted an entire drive of 160GB,then used the image to restore the backup,you would have one 10GB partition,and the rest of the disc would be unallocated space.
Very useful when installing a second(or replacement)hard drive.

But you are absolutely right,free is the way to go,if you dare to roll up those sleeves.

[squash54]

Rolly,
I came across this device when I was browsing ebay for a hard drive:

500GB External HDD MEDIA PLAYER AVI/DIVX/MP3/MP4 5.1 CH - eBay IDE, Hard Drives, Storage, Drives, Disks, Computers. (end time 15-Feb-08 13:38:14 AEDST)

I thought it might interest you.

Squash

[lilkat]

Maybe something helpful here:
Transporter & Squeezebox Wireless Network Music Players - Every room deserves a soundtrack

[rolly]

Thanks for the new replies.It's all very interesting.
I have bought a laptop,160GB drive,in which I will be using to play the files over the audio amp.
All the links that have been given here I have saved for future reference.
I appreciate all the replies.

[solaris]

Originally Posted by rolly

Thanks for the new replies.It's all very interesting.
I have bought a laptop,160GB drive,in which I will be using to play the files over the audio amp.
All the links that have been given here I have saved for future reference.
I appreciate all the replies.

Hi rolly.


I remember someone in this forum being overly exited about this small device: Welcome To Popcorn Hour

Otherwise it is usually these two wireless streamers that are weighed up against each other in the Hi-Fi magazines: Roku - Home and Discover Squeezebox: The smart way to listen to digital music in every room.

[gluteus maximus]

Originally Posted by rolly

Thanks for the new replies.It's all very interesting.
I have bought a laptop,160GB drive,in which I will be using to play the files over the audio amp.
All the links that have been given here I have saved for future reference.
I appreciate all the replies.

Hi rolly

Good for you! A laptop is clearly the most versatile solution - if not the greenest What OS are you running on it?

gm

[rolly]

Thanks solaris for yet three more links.
I would never of imagined so many options were available.
I thought at first I'd be lucky if I found even one good product,but it seems now that there are many.

A laptop is clearly the most versatile solution - if not the greenest What OS are you running on it?

The laptop being versatile was the main reason I did choose this option.
All the other products are fine,and they probally work well if not better for my intended purpose,but that is all they do.
The laptop can be used for many other things as well,I felt it would be a better investment.

After completely formatting the drive,I will put a my linux remaster of PCLinuxOS on it,or possibly Mandriva or Fedora.
Or maybe all three.Haven't made up my mind on that yet.

[phekylmadder]

linuxmce.org

[gluteus maximus]

Originally Posted by phekylmadder

linuxmce.org

Hi phekylmadder

Welcome to the forum

I'll expand on your rather enigmatic post: http://www.linuxmce.org/

"LinuxMCE is a free, open source add-on to Kubuntu including a 10' UI, complete whole-house media solution with pvr + distributed media, and the most advanced smarthome solution available. It is stable, easy to use, and requires no knowledge of Linux and only basic computer skills."

If you're using this yourself, perhaps you could post some comments?

gm

[solaris]

Originally Posted by gluteus maximus

Hi phekylmadder

Welcome to the forum

I'll expand on your rather enigmatic post: LinuxMCE

"LinuxMCE is a free, open source add-on to Kubuntu including a 10' UI, complete whole-house media solution with pvr + distributed media, and the most advanced smarthome solution available. It is stable, easy to use, and requires no knowledge of Linux and only basic computer skills."

If you're using this yourself, perhaps you could post some comments?

gm

And if he doesn't...