oh, im confused.
You said " since it seems to me that I should be able to figure out front ends for kodi and/or mythtv on one of the several devices that are hanging around the TV now "
But you're already using a front end, Kodi.
You said " since it seems to me that I should be able to figure out front ends for kodi and/or mythtv on one of the several devices that are hanging around the TV now "
But you're already using a front end, Kodi.