My apologies, I originally posted this in the other Digital Cable forum so I have to cross-post it to this forum. ops:

Hi Everybody,

I'm a long time listener, first time caller. The forums have been very useful to me without having to post until now.

I'm a Shaw customer in Vancouver thinking about getting a DCT 2500. I also own a Toshiba TV (34HF83) with a Toshiba universal remote (CT-90159) that supports controlling cable and satellite boxes. It has the channel guide and menu buttons for controlling such a device.

The problem is that the owner's manual for the Toshiba remote does not have Satellite/Cable box codes for any Motorola device. Does this mean I cannot use my remote to control the DCT 2500? Or does another manufacturer use similar codes to Motorola's?

I want to do whatever I can to avoid introducing a FOURTH remote to the coffee table, and I don't have to dough for a fancy Harmony remote.

Thanks for your help,

Chris.

Another reader in the SA forum suggested that I try the General Instruments codes since Motorola "absorbed" GI.

Does anybody have anything else they would like to add?

Thanks again,

Chris.

It's General Instruments codes that you use, If you look under the digital box you will see set of numbers and letters that start with (GI) This means General Instruments

I've never been able to get my Denon receiver remote working w/ my Motorola box (I tried ALL of the codes in my Denon manual)

good luck

::

i also have the denon 3801 and its remote is a learning one but it is pretty tricky and involed but it works on my motorola dsr 500....i also could not get the codes to work......but the learning way worked

You guys really should pick up a Harmony H688 remote. All 8 of my other remotes are now in a shoebox as I can do EVERYTHING and more with the Harmony. It's a little bit of a premium, but man, it's a MUST for any HT enthusiast. All this "anyone have a code for..." discussion goes away...now and forever!

I'm trying out an H688 atm. I think it shines @ some things, but others I'm not so sure of. I also haven't found the time to actually make it do what I want to do. I'll have to call them to get the pg up / down buttons working even... learning them didn't do it.

::

My motorola cable box works with toshiba universal remote code # 60 for jerold box.

Thanks for the update and waking up this thread, I think I'll give it a shot.

But, since I first wrote this, I did actually buy a Harmony remote. It takes a while to set up and fine-tune the settings, but it really works like a champ. We now only have ONE remote control, and even the wife knows how to use it for everything.

Do these Harmony remotes(628 from costco) allow you to perform all the functions that the standard Shaw remotes would do with your dct 2500?
Also, could it operate Picture-in-picture if my tv has it?

Yes, absolutely. You just need to invest the time spent 'tinkering' to get it to work the way that you like. If i recall correctly, I took about a week to get it to work just right, and I'm a Software Engineer by profession!

To be more specific, here are the issues that come to mind:

1.) The remote works by sending a sequence of commands for a certain operation (like a 'macro' if you're familiar with programming)for example, to watch TV: turn on tv, set tv input to X, turn on receiver, set audio input to X, turn on cable box...etc

Sometimes you have to tweak the remote so it delays a certain time between operations. For example, wait 0.5 seconds between 'turn on tv' and 'set tv input'.

2.) The more non-standard menu items can be programmed to show up on the remote's LCD display so you can easily access them.

3.) You have to get used to how the remote works, and you have to get used to recovering from accidentally pressing the power off button while the remote is not pointed at your devices. When this happens, the remote "thinks" that everything is off, when in fact everything is still powered up.

Once you get used to this stuff and do more tweaking (such as programming it to select your widescreen TV's correct stretch mode when switching from watching a widescreen DVD to watching regulat TV) it becomes a fantastic tool and you can finally get rid of your old basket of remotes. Once everbody else in the household is comfortable with using it as well....

I have the "688" model. The logitech web page is pretty good, and you should be able to find it for much less than the MSRP ($250). I think I paid $150 for it almost a year ago, I think it was just after the xmas rush.

http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/pr...CONTENTID=8747

Hope this helps.

I second the buying the Harmony Remote Control.
I bought the Harmony 659 remote control when it was on special at dell.ca for like $100 (all the Harmony remotes are great since they use the same web based interface but they do have different button layouts).

The beauty of the Harmony's are:

1)
It will be easy enough for the ENTIRE family to use and troubleshoot (in case they didn't have the remote pointing at the TV, etc. during the macro process).
The only exception would be clueless family members who do not even know how to operate basic functions on a remote control like how to turn the TV on.

2)
The macro functions make it easy to turn on a series of devices (e.g. TV, Shaw box, and Stereo receiver all it one time) with one button click.

3)
You can have the remote learn ANY button from ANY remote IF the database doesn't already have your remote control stored (for most brand name devices, like Sony, Toshiba, Panasonic, etc. you'll find that 99% of the new items you buy are already in their database).

4)
If you really take the time to learn Logitech's web based interface, you can really customize the Harmony remotes to your heart's content.

5)
Because of the "web based" and learning interface of the harmony, it should work with future devices for years to come.

There are better universal remotes (liek the philips pronto) but none of the other ones are as easy to program as the Harmony, nor are any of them as cheap as the Harmony.

JC