Tried building a mythtv backend/general linux server last week.

- My digital receiver card (twinhan mantis 2033) is still in the "experimental support" stage in linuxtv: http://jusst.de/hg/mantis/
could find the channels, and lock, but garbled output, even on the fta channels.
- Technotrend C1500 i had laying around (dumped it because its reception was so bad) would work occasionally, but then i found a new problem:
- http://www.mythtv.org/wiki/index.php/Channel_tuning_broken_with_DVB-C

So, long story short: Running a windows xp server with a mediaportal backend now.
Except for those problems, mythbuntu 8.10 was very easy to install though.

Edit: And now i can use the full 4 gb in my other pc, instead of only 3.2 for the pvr500 card: http://www.hauppauge.co.uk/board/showthread.php?t=14947