Home theater means different things to different people. To some, hooking up a DVD player to a 26" stereo TV creates a home theater. To others, home theater is a complete system that includes a big flat-screen TV and surround-sound audio system. To still others, a home theater system consists of a dedicated room with theater-style seating, a huge front projection screen, and a popcorn machine in the lobby.
The reality is, home theater is whatever you want it to be -- as long as it helps achieve one basic goal. That goal is to reproduce in your home, as accurately as possible, the experience of watching a film in a movie theater. How you achieve this goal is at the heart of home theater system design, and you can spend as much or as little as you want to achieve that goal.
Building a Basic Home Theater SystemChoosing a Video DisplayChoosing a Surround Sound SystemChoosing Video SourcesControlling the SystemFinally, to control all the functions of your new home theater system, you'll need some sort of universal remote control. Instead of juggling multiple remotes for each of your components, the universal remote consolidates operations for all your components into a single handheld device. The most advanced remotes offer programmable interfaces and single-button control of complex operations, via multiple-component macros. That's the way to go -- press one button for "Movies" and watch your TV, A/V receiver, and DVD player turn on, switch to the appropriate inputs, and start playing!
Michael Miller is a writer and commentator on technology and digital lifestyle topics. 
