User Input/Output Hardware Considerations (Windows CE 5.0)
For information about developing device drivers for a specific type of device, see Windows CE Drivers.
Front panel control buttons
The front panel on the networked media device (NMD) must have a power/standby button. You can use general-purpose input/output (GPIO) pins or a button controller to manage these buttons. Pressing the power button causes the device to enter full power mode if the device was in standby mode. If the device was in full power mode, pressing the power button causes the device to enter standby mode.
For alternate user input, you can optionally duplicate the remote control buttons on the front panel. The following list shows the optional front panel buttons:
- Home button
- Menu button
- Up, down, left, and right directional buttons
- Play, rewind/replay, forward/skip, stop, and pause buttons
- Volume up, volume down, and mute buttons
- For digital video recorders (DVRs), channel up and channel down buttons
Power and standby LED or LCD indicators
A power and standby LED or LCD indicator is required on a networked media device (NMD). This indicator must show whether the device is powered-on or in standby mode. Consider using GPIO pins or an LED controller to manage the LEDs. If you implement these indicators with a front panel LCD, you may want to add a controller for this front panel LCD.
Network and user input activity LED or LCD indicators
For network, remote control, and keyboard activity, Microsoft recommends using LED or LCD indicators. The network indicator should flash when the device detects network activity. The remote control and keyboard indicator should flash when the device detects remote control and keyboard button presses.
Input devices
Networked media devices (NMDs) require a remote control with the following buttons:
- Home button
- Menu button
- Up, down, left, and right directional buttons
- Play, rewind/replay, forward/skip, stop, and pause buttons
- Volume up, volume down, and mute buttons
- For DVRs, channel up and channel down buttons
A remote keyboard and mouse are optional input devices. If you implement a remote keyboard, Microsoft recommends modeling your keyboard after a standard 101-key desktop keyboard.
For information about virtual-key mapping and the remote control, see NMD UI. You can change this virtual-key mapping through software.
Soft-keyboard control
The NMD software provides software for a remote control-enabled soft-keyboard.
See Also
Hardware Architecture Diagram for Networked Media Devices | Core OS Services | Developing a Board Support Package | Developing a Device Driver | Developing an OEM Adaptation Layer | CETK Tests
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