2007 and things to come

[wbassett]

2007 was a year of mixed things for me, some blessings, some, well not the most pleasant things in life to have to go through. Still I know others that have and are going through much worse.

One of the highlights was finding HTS. To me HTS is a place unlike a lot of other sites out there. It welcomes new thoughts and ways of thinking without the baggage of constant fighting that has sadly become a way of life for some other places.

A lot of great things have happened this year at HTS. We hit 10,000 members and are growing every day.

HD DVD and Bluray found a place where both can be discussed with their pros and cons and both appreciated without any threats or fanboy type thread hijacks.

I have been teasing over on the DIY Screen forum of a few things to come, but there has already been a lot done this year and next year is going to be even better. The same holds true for this forum... there are a few cool things (at least I think so) in store for 2008.

As far as I know the PS3 Media Server thread detailing how to archive DVDs to an external drive is not only the easiest method I have seen on the web, but also one of the best as far as retaining video and sound quality. The PS3 also has streaming capabilities that have not totally been tapped and outlined yet here and that is one thing to come. Also an XBox 360 Media Center thread will be coming.

Some other things to come to the Computers|Games|HTPC|Digital Devices forum in 2008 will be building an Arcade console to add that finishing touch to any Home Theater 'lobby', and a ground up build of an HTPC that will do DVR, stream video, archive SDVDs, as well as play both Bluray and HD DVDs all in one unit and the best thing is, it won't break the bank!

Not everything will come in January, so I hope nobody is disappointed to hear that, but it will be rolled out throughout the year. Technology is advancing faster and faster all the time in the computer arena and there are some very interesting things coming and coming soon.

I look forward to 2008. I know this is a bit early to 'ring in' the new year, but 2007 is winding down and there is only so much that can be done before we start '08. I expect things to slow down with the holidays here, as they should. People will be spending time with family and money on presents rather than building screens, speakers, and HTPCs- but that's perfectly fine. I hope everyone else is as excited about the growth HTS has had during 2007 and is looking forward to a great 2008!

[toecheese]

Looking forward to it- I've got my HTPC and MAME box on the list of projects for next year (as well as granite countertops! ugh!).