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Virtual Earth Media Center Add In

I’ve been playing around with a VirtualEarth HTML add-in for Windows Media Center. I’ve got a number of features lined up but I’ve been side tracked with other work so I’ve only got the basics implemented so far.

Remote control keys:

  • Panning - use the arrow keys
  • Zooming - use the channel +- keys
  • Map Style - use the 1,2,3 keys to toggle map styles between road, aerial and hybrid

In addition since the text labels on the map have been sized for viewing on a regular monitor with a 2 foot experience I’ve added a local zoom option. Use the 4,5,6 remote control keys to change the zoom factor, especially if you’re running MCE on a CRT TV.

To install download this small zip file.

The zip file contains:

  • MapControl.js - standard VirtualEarth implementation from MSN
  • VirtualEarth.html - MCE HTML add-in page with handlers for the remote control
  • VirtualEarthLogo.png - logo to use in MCE
  • VirtualEarth.mcl - MCE shortcut registration file

To install unzip to:

%Documents and Settings%\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\Accessories\Media Center\Media Center Programs

Or unzip to a directory of your choice and place a shortcut file in the directory above pointing to the VirtualEarth.mcl file.

For more details on using the VirtualEarth JavaScript API take a look at the ViaVirtualEarth website.


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