Latest News

• May 11, 2007: Chipmunk AV Controller 2.0.2687 Released

  The latest monthly build is now available for download. The Lua Scripting Engine (www.lua.org) has been upgraded to the latest version (5.1.2). The Lua Environment Viewer can now be permanently kept open for easier debugging of scripts.

• April 07, 2007: Chipmunk AV Controller 2.0.2648 Released

  The latest monthly build is now available for download. This month's release adds a web-enabled controller, making it even easier to control Chipmunk from a web browser. To support the web-enabled controller we have added a few new functions to the Lua Chipmunk.Controller namespace. We have also included a new section in the help documentation called "Installation & Configuration". The number of command tree items allowed during the trial period has been increased from 50 to 100.

• March 10, 2007: Chipmunk AV Controller 2.0.2614 Released

  The latest monthly build is now available for download. This month's release adds JSON support for Lua, implements the Lua print() function in the Script Editor for better debugging, and includes updated Help. The Lua namespace has also been reorganised. Scripting plugins should be much more intuitive. This will of course require some modification to your scripts. But we think you'll agree that the change is an improvement.

• March 10, 2007: Connect & Control using a GC-100 and Chipmunk

  Read about how one home cinema enthusiast has created an advanced control system using Global Cache's GC-100 and Chipmunk AV Controller in our new case study.

• January 23, 2007: Chipmunk AV Forums Special Offer

  Chipmunk AV Forum members can now purchase Chipmunk AV Controller for the special price of £35 GBP. That's a saving of £20. This offer is only available to registered members. Why not sign up today and take advantage of this great offer.

• January 20, 2007: Chipmunk AV Controller Monthly Release

  The latest release is now available for download (build 2.0.2570). This release includes logging enhancements and two new TCP plugins.

• January 08, 2007: 2 New Plugins: TCP Event Server & TCP Client

  This month we have 2 new plugins which enable Chipmunk to connect with TCP services and networked devices. The TCP Server plugin enables any number of clients to connect with Chipmunk over a TCP network and receive events. The TCP Client plugin enables Chipmunk to connect with other networked devices and send commands. Together these 2 plugins greatly enhance Chipmunk AV Controller's network capabilities. For further details see the TCP Event Server Plugin and TCP Client Plugin forums.

• December 18, 2006: Chipmunk AV Controller Monthly Release

  The latest monthly build is now available for download (build 2.0.2541.28532). This release includes updates to the GC-100, RS232 Serial, and Web Server plugins and a few controller bug fixes.

• December 17, 2006: New Plugin - Xml Processor

  This new plugin enables you to create sophisticated web-based control interfaces using open standards such as XML and XSL. A full working example is installed when the plugin is downloaded using the plugin download manager. See this forum posting for more details.

• December 16, 2006: Chipmunk Pricing

  Since launch in April 2006, Chipmunk has been offered at the special introductory price of £35 GBP. This offer will end on 31 December 2006. From 1 January 2007 Chipmunk will increase in price to £55 GBP. This price includes updates and new plugins as and when they become available (normally once a month). So you'll need to hurry if you want to purchase a license at the introductory price!

• December 12, 2006: Updated RS232 Serial & GC-100 Plugins

  New versions of the RS232 Serial and GC-100 plugins are now available. Both plugins offer improved binary and character encoding support. The RS232 Serial plugin now uses the .NET 2.0 System.IO.Ports.SerialPort library. Both plugins will be in the forthcoming December release, and can be downloaded now using the plugin download manager.

• December 11, 2006: GC-100.NET 2.1.1.0 Library Update

  The latest version of our GC-100.NET library is now available for download. Version 2.1.1.0 offers improved serial connector functionality with binary and multi-encoding support.
  
  Our free download enables other .NET developers to create managed applications for Global Caché's GC-100 network adapter. The library contains classes for connecting to and communicating with the GC-100; sending commands to individual serial, infrared and relay ports; and receiving a variety of events. The library also includes support for the GC-IRL infrared learning device. The download is available here. The library source code is also available for purchase.

• December 11, 2006: New Plugin - Sony CX777ES 400 Disc Changer

  This plugin allows Chipmunk to control the Sony DVP-CX777ES 400 Disc DVD-SACD-CD Changer. Commands can be sent via the RS232 Serial plugin or the GC-100 plugin. Use Chipmunk's download manager to obtain the plugin.

• November 24, 2006: New Plugin - CrystalFontz 634/632 USB LCD

  This plugin supports the 634 4-Line 20 character & 632 2-Line 16 character LCD displays. All commands are sent via Lua script. A sample exported folder is included in the download. Features include scrolling marquees, bar graphs, and LCD configuration options. Use Chipmunk's download manager to obtain the plugin.

• November 20, 2006: Chipmunk AV Controller Monthly Release

  The latest monthly build is now available for download (build 2.0.2504.22118). This release includes a new Chipmunk "Shutdown" command (with various options such as hibernate/suspend/power off). This means the controller can now supsend and resume Windows via infrared remote control. With the addition of ten new Lua functions, Chipmunk can now be completely controlled via Lua scripting. We have also added Xml and Lua visualizers. The former offers an Xml view of every item in the command tree; the latter enables automatic Lua code generation for macros, commands and events. With this release it is now possible to execute standard Chipmunk commands as well as plugin commands from Lua - offering far superior scripting control.

  The Online Help documentation has been updated and redesigned.

• October 24, 2006: Chipmunk AV Controller Monthly Release

  The latest monthly build is now available for download (build 2.0.2487.23618). This release incorporates the latest versions of the web server and RedRat3 plugins. The controller has a new function for adding log entries from Luascript. The remote control designer has also been patched to resolve a regional settings encoding issue. Thanks to everyone for their continued input and feedback.

• October 20, 2006: Plugin Updates (Web Server 2.1 & RedRat3 2.1)

  The web server plugin now raises additional events when the web-enabled Windows Media Player component is active. Details here. The RedRat3 plugin update contains critical fixes for running on the .NET 2.0 Framework. Please download the latest versions using the controller's plugin manager.

• October 19, 2006: New Look Web Site

  This week sees a new look for chipmunkav.com. We have also added two new sections. Link to us is a Link Creation area for generating HTML links to our web site. Aimed at the press, our marketing page contains box artwork, logos and product images.

• October 2, 2006: GC-100.NET Managed Library Made Available

  Home Cinema Solutions Ltd are making available their GC-100.NET managed library for the .NET 2.0 Framework. The free download will enable other .NET developers to create managed applications for Global Caché's GC-100 network adapter. The library contains classes for connecting to and communicating with the GC-100; sending commands to individual serial, infrared and relay ports; and receiving a variety of events. The library also includes support for the GC-IRL infrared learning device. The download is available here. The library source code is also available for purchase.

• September 25, 2006: Chipmunk AV Controller 2.0 Released

  Home Cinema Solutions Ltd are pleased to announce the release of Chipmunk AV Controller 2.0. This major new release utilizes the latest Microsoft .NET 2.0 Framework, offering an improved user interface, and performance. Plugins and configuration files are now loaded from the local user's application data directory offering an improved experience for Windows XP restricted users.

  Chipmunk now has the ability to log events, and commands using the new Logging Manager feature. This release also sees enhancements to many of the existing plugins. Version 2.0 now comes with 10 plugins pre-installed. We have made significant improvements to the Pocket PC remote control with reduced loading times, and improved stability. We have also simplified the .NET Plugin API making plugin development even easier.

  Existing customers should carefully read the release document before upgrading. Please note that this is a FREE upgrade for existing customers. Your license keys are still valid. Press Release

• July 20, 2006: Chipmunk AV Forums Launches

  Chipmunk AV Forums is now up and running. Though primarily for support, users are welcome to discuss broader issues relating to AV control, hardware, and automation.

• July 19, 2006: New X10 Firecracker Plugin

  This plugin enables Chipmunk to send On, Off, Dim and Brighten commands to X10 modules via the CM17A Firecracker module. Firecracker is a PC serial interface module which sends commands wirelessly to an X10 wireless receiver (plugged into a power socket), and from there to the intended module. Please note that Firecracker is not currently available in Europe. The plugin can be downloaded using Chipmunk's plugin download manager. Once installed, simply specify the COM port to which Firecracker is connected, click on "Connect" and start controlling your lights and appliances.

• July 11, 2006: New Global Caché GC-100 Plugin

  We are pleased to announce the release of our latest plugin - the Global Caché GC-100 Plugin for Chipmunk. This plugin allows multiple GC-100 devices to be reigstered and controlled by Chipmunk. All of the GC-100 features are supported, including the transmitting / receiving of serial data, relay control, and infrared transmission using the popular Pronto CCF format. Chipmunk can also respond to the many events raised by the adapter, such as sensor input changes. Further details here. The plugin and help files can be downloaded using Chipmunk's plugin download manager.

• June 09, 2006: Version 1.0.21.0 Released

  This latest release includes three new plugins, and enhancements to the Plugin SDK and AV Controller. Our new Web Server Plugin not only serves standard HTTP requests, but also enables you to send Events to Chipmunk from any web browser. The Web Server Plugin supports SSL and HTTPS, basic authentication, server-side scripting with Lua Server Pages, web-enabled control of Windows Media Player, and AJAX. Sample applications include an AJAX remote control which can communicate with Chipmunk without the browser having to refresh.

  We are also pleased to announce plugin support for the USB RedRat3 infrared device. With this plugin RedRat3 can learn, receive and transmit IR signals - all from within Chipmunk. More details here.

  This latest release also includes Jon McGuire's excellent AppController Plugin which uses Windows-message commands to communicate with other Windows applications. The plugin includes working examples for Winamp and PowerDVD.

  See the release document for full details. You can obtain the latest version using the plugin download manager.

• June 08, 2006: Alliance Formed with Global Caché

  Home Cinema Solutions are pleased to announce the formation of a strategic alliance partnership with Global Caché. Global Caché is leading the way in automation with the industry's first hardware solution aimed at connecting home networks with Audio Visual and other household devices. Expect to see a plugin for Global Caché's products shortly.

• June 05, 2006: New AppController Plugin

  This new plugin by Jon McGuire enables Chipmunk to control other Windows applications running on the same computer. Using Win32 window-message commands, the plugin permits you to load applications such as Winamp or PowerDVD and control playback (play, stop, pause, and so on) from within Chipmunk. The plugin includes working examples for both Winamp and PowerDVD. More details here. The plugin can be downloaded using the plugin download manager.

• April 25, 2006: Plugin & Exported Folder Downloads Added to Web Site

  We've added two new sections to the Downloads page. Send us your exported folders or plugins and we'll post them on the web site for you. Don't forget, we're offering free licenses to plugin contributors. If you have developed a plugin for your device, please contact us.

• April 17, 2006: New Time Scheduler Plugin

  We've had a number of requests from users for a Time Scheduler plugin. This new scheduler enables you to schedule one-off, periodic, daily, weekly and monthly events. More details here. The plugin will be included in the next release of the controller. The plugin can be downloaded using the plugin download manager.

• April 17, 2006: Version 1.0.17.0 Released

  While developing the Time Scheduler plugin, we came across a few minor bugs that affect plugin developers. These have now been fixed. Details here.

• April 10, 2006: Version 1.0.14.0 Released

  Thanks for all the feedback on the first release. We have managed to implement quick fixes on all the points raised. Details here.

• March 29, 2006: Chipmunk AV Controller Launches!

  A big thank you to everyone who took part in the beta testing. We've not managed to finish the Time Scheduler, but rather than hold up Chipmunk's launch, we thought we would release the Controller now, and release the Time Scheduler plugin at a later date. We value your feedback, so please do mail us your suggestions, feedback and plugin requests.