media pc, part 1: requirements

I wouldn't suggest building a media PC if I wouldn't do it myself. Over the next week or so, I'll post a summary of our media PC project, in segments. Here's part one:

Requirements
- Recording and playback of live TV
- DVD authoring and burning- Music file server
- Miscellaneous file server
- As quiet as possible

That sounds pretty simple, but it was a bit scary because I had no experience in handling video through a PC. Even more scary (and obvious) was that, in order to even try the various media interfaces that exist, I had to have all of the hardware in place. This meant that I would have to build a video-oriented PC, based on my experience with basic hardware, and based upon other users' experiences. That is a truly freaky proposition.

Months of online research went into this project, but even after reading innumerable forums and reviews, I wanted to take a cautious approach, from a financial perspective. I set out to build an entry-level media PC, which would allow us to sample its various capabilities without breaking the bank. This conservative approach would also allow us to conserve (yes, that was intentional) more money for upgrades, which would be spent with greater effect by the more experienced users that we would soon become.

Besides, as is the case with any such experiment, WAF (wife-acceptance factor) hangs in the balance. WAF is greatly intensified when your wife manages the family's finances.