This free plug-in allows you to browse websites, through both 32 and 64bit versions of Vista Media Center. Designed to be used with an HTPC keyboard, it resizes the webpages you visit so you can easily view them on your sofa.

Inbuilt track ball keyboards, or keyboards with a touchpad are the best option for browsing on your sofa - but a regular keyboard and mouse will work just as well. To make the most of your browsing, the Media Center remote doesn't feature in this plug-in. Websites are designed to be used with a keyboard and mouse, so I felt using the remote would limit the functionality of the browser.

To maximize VMCBrowsers compatibilty, it can also be run in Internet Explorer. Media Center can't handle cookies, so websites that require a login don't work. Help is at hand! Open VMCBrowser up in IE, and you get a full functioning browser, that's readable from your sofa!

An upcoming feature is 'VMCB Home' (ver 1.21 and above). When you start VMC Browser, it displays dynamic content, and links that you may want to look at. At the minute it just displays a flash animation, but this flash file is stored here - on this mini site. This allows the flash file to be updated, and everyone opening VMCBrowser will have different content streamed direct to their TV. There's a lot of oportunity for this feature - but of course you will be able to turn it off, and goto your normal homepage if you wish.

It's still early days for VMCBrowser, and there's plenty of room for additional features, but the whole idea surrounding this plugin is 'simplicity'. Simple to use on your sofa, simple to modify and simple to design. It's free to download, and also free to be altered in any way!

Any comments or questions, please leave a message on the Guestbook