![]() Seeing how well these products could play together, I fully expected Apple to sherlock the idea and eventually offer an iTunes Remote app of their own. A Camera module would follow shortly after. Released within a few weeks after the iPhone's debut, it already included remote control, trackpad, keyboard, Remote Buddy menu, EyeTV, Movie Library and iTunes modules. Instead, Apple proposed a "sweet solution": build web apps!ĪJAX Remote then, was the first (web) app, served by a built-in HTTP server (developed specifically for Remote Buddy) that provided control over a big number of Mac apps and system functionality via the iPhone. In 2007, the iPhone launched - without an App Store. That enables a much more responsive experience than what was previously possible using Apple's driver (which filters and delays certain button presses).Īnd thanks to the emulation, Remote Buddy can since pass through button press events to other applications and simulate Apple Remote button press events in response to any button press - including those happening on a different remote.ĪJAX Remote - the first remote app for iPhone (July 2007) Even better, it can get the raw button press and button release events. Thanks to the driver, Remote Buddy can since get guaranteed access to all input events. Going forward, I had to find a way to ensure Remote Buddy would always get access to the Apple Remote and keep specialized Apple Remote functionality in apps reachable, preferably in a configurable way and also via other remote controls.Īchieving these goals eventually involved writing a complete, alternative driver for Apple IR Receivers and an Apple Remote emulation. Second, many of the apps would offer certain functionality only in response to Apple Remote button presses. Which created two big problems for a solution like Remote Buddy.įirst, since only one app can get access to the Apple Remote's button press events at a time, Remote Buddy would often not be able to get access to the Apple Remote at launch time - or at all. Replacing Apple's IR Receiver driver and creating the first Apple Remote emulation (April 2007)Īs time progressed, more and more apps were adding direct support for the Apple Remote. ![]() Since Wireless Sensor Bars (which are just a set of constantly lit IR LEDs, really) were still hard to come by at the time, I used a tea light as a reference IR light source for the Wii Remote instead (the black device on the right side oft he MacBook Pro is just a harddrive housing my iTunes library). Two weeks after I had started, I was completely exhausted, but had actually finished a first preview release and put it out there.Ģ007 demo video showing Remote Buddy's Wii Remote support in action. So I put every waking hour into furthering the project - and eventually skipped sleep altogether the night before my self-imposed deadline hit in order to have a website up and running in time for Remote Buddy's first release. Which was both the maximum amount of time I could spend on it and - as I'd soon realize - very optimistic. I gave myself two weeks to complete a first version. In May 2006, I eventually decided to pull the trigger. Months later, I'd end up with what was essentially a blue print for Remote Buddy. Instead, my only option to get what I wanted was to also bring over and connect keyboard and mouse.Ĭlearly, this wasn't what I had expected, so I started thinking about what it'd take to make the Apple Remote more useful and overcome the limits I had just experienced. But with just the remote, there was no way to get there: I couldn't eject the DVD with the remote, I couldn't quit DVD Player (to then initiate playback in Front Row) and I couldn't even make DVD Player full screen. What I actually wanted, though, is play this DVD in Front Row. DVD Player opened and started playing the DVD in a window. So I carried the iMac over to the living room, turned it on and inserted the DVD. Apple had just released the first Intel iMacs (which were also the first Intel Macs ever) and with it came the white Apple Remote and Front Row. In February 2006, I invited a few close friends over to my place and at some point, we wanted to watch a DVD. Yes, Remote Buddy just turned 10! Ten! That's literally a decade! Time to celebrate? Sure! But also a good time to look back at how Remote Buddy started - and how it got where it is today.
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