Software Installation

The latest version of the iMEDIAN software can be downloaded at the Soundgraph website here.

The version 6.01.0122 was the latest at the time of writing this review. The installation of the iMON/iMEDIAN software is quite straight forward. There are no unneeded programs installed during setup. The entire package takes up around 97 MB which is very slim for media center software. As Soundgraph provides the software to all its customers using the displays, the company is working hard to support the newest operating systems. Thus it is not surprising that they are already offering a pretty stable Vista iMON/iMEDIAN 6.0 BETA.

Installation process:


Installation Setup Wizard:

The initial Setup Wizard starts up automatically once the software installation is complete. The first screen presented to the user, gives you a choice between the included Soundgraph Remote and the Windows MCE remote. The iMON Ultra Bay already includes a MCE remote compatible IR receiver, so there is no need to mod anything or to have a separate dongle occupying a USB port. The user is also asked to set the quick launch item to be started once the MCE button or, in case of the Soundgraph remote, iMEDIAN button is pressed. The last screen controls if the application auto starts during startup. 'Automatic' means that only the toolbars are launched, while the iMEDIAN Media Center is not.


Once the initial Wizard is completed, three toolbars appear on the screen. All have a Windows Vista look. There is a virtual volume knob, an analog clock and a news headline bar. Each can be moved around as needed and easily turned off if not required.


There are two important parts to the iMON software. The first manages all the possible settings of the software. Within the software there is an option called 'FrontView' which controls the graphic display. The amount of options to customize the information is quite large. The user can set the display contrast, font type and size, scroll speed and direction. There are tabs for the different types of information the graphic VFD can display.


After the installation was complete, all the hardware worked. I did not need to set up anything else. The display showed all kinds of information and the remote worked right off the bat. As soon as I started iMEDIAN, which is a home entertainment software, I was taken through the setup step by step. After being greeted I was asked if I wanted to search my hard drive to map any media file available. This screen was followed by a choice of using iMEDIAN to watch TV or if I wanted to use my present TV tuner software. SoundGraph recommends the use of the TV hardware's software instead of its built-in in one, as this feature only supports a limited number of devices.


I wanted to watch TV using iMEDIAN, which then led me through a very easy to understand setup to select my hardware and country region so it would find all available channels.


After the initial wizard was done, a clean iMEDIAN interface spanning my whole 24" Dell LCD showed up - no matter what resolution I set it at. I was already able to select each menu with the remote control and open up movies and music. The installation and setup was incredibly easy and should be no problem for novice users. The remote control has two specific buttons, which made the navigation very simple. On one hand there was the "Application Launcher", which brought up a window from which different applications could be launched with the remote. This list was completely customizable. On the other hand there was the "Task Switcher", which worked just like the Windows Task Switcher, but with the use of the remote.

Let's take a look at the VFD in action.