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Hello visitor.

This is the personal homepage of Helmut Obertanner.
I'm a computer freak and electronic enthusiast and I live in Munich in Germany - the hometown of the famous Oktoberfest.
Why the name X4U? In my case it's a synonym for everything is possible.
I'm an experienced full time C# developer and doing so since .Net Framework 1.0.
As technical enthusiast I started Office development using .Net technologies.
As I searched answers and found help in the Internet I decided to share my knowledge in newsgroups and forums too. For participation, helping other developers, writing how-to's and articles and doing consulting and trainings I received the Microsoft MVP Award for the 3rd time.

As Outlook C# specialist I founded the website Outlooksharp.de
Beside software development, I'm building electronic devices for customers.
Prototypes with SMD PCBs and complete electronic devices with USB connections are my typical portfolio.
You got an Idea and have no plan how to put it to work - give me a call and I tell you if I can help.
A complete solution starts from defining the requirements, design the schematic and PCB, build a functional prototype, program the firmware, program the windows software, design and build a housing prototype.
Usually I work with very cheap PIC 18F Microcontrollers, these multifunctional devices are programmed in C language. 

I'm located in Germany with satisfied customers around the globe.
Enjoy the content of my site and feel free to give me your feedback.
You're welcome.
X4U Blog
 
Nov8

Written by:Helmut Obertanner
Sun, 08 Nov 2009 20:08:08 GMT 

BlackBox

X4U BlackBox - Haunted House Controller

I published a critical part of the source code for one of my projects. It's a Hardware device used for controlling puppets in Haunted Houses. It controls three different power outlets and plays an MP3 or WAV sound. For uploading audio sounds or updating the firmware it is connected to the USB port of a computer. Since it is programmed as a HID device no driver installation is required. As soon as the device is connected, the software talks to the device and you can switch outputs or read the levels and upload firmware or audio data. The hard work lies in the correct Interop stuff required for talking from C# code to the USB API. This small piece of software makes it easy to talk with self brewed USB hardware from C# applications.

See the Project Page...

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