Problem getting universal remote working with lirc-0.8.1

[Ben D. <ben...@gm...>]

Hi everyone,
I decided to give lirc a try. I built a home brew serial IR receiver
with a ZD1952. After checking the list of supported remote, I decided
to buy the one-for-all URC-7730 as there is a config file already
available for it. (see picture attached)

I downloaded lirc-0.8.1, ./configure, make and make install without
any problems. The right device files are created with the right mode
(after configuring udev with the correct rules). Running "mode2" shows
pulses and spaces, so I assume the receiver works fine. (also mode2
does not report anything without a key press, so there is no ambient
light disturbance)

I moved the URC-7730 config file (downloaded from the lirc web site)
to /etc/lirc/lircd.conf, restarted lircd, ran irw and pressed some
keys on the remote (after configuring it for the right model, as found
in a comment at the top of the config file), but nothing happened.

I tried creating a brand new lircd.conf file using irrecord, but it
seems I m missing something here:
I made several irrecord-reload_lircd-irw runs and NEVER got any
consistent results:
- (using irrecord) Sometimes the encoding is detected as RC-6,
sometimes as RC-5 and some other times as unknown.
- (using irrecord) For a single key, multiple signal lengths are
reported across multiple runs
- (using irw) irw only reports a few keys correctly. Repeated keys
does NOT work (the middle column in the irw output is always 0).
- (using irw) interestingly, some keys work only once every two times
(eg, pressing 4 doesn't output anything, but releasing it and pressing
again, reports it correctly).

With no success from my brand new URC-7730 remote, I experimented with
my TV remote control (akai model) with EXACTLY the same
inconsistencies as above.
However, I successfully configured the 6-button remote control from a
NEC video projector.

Now, one problem at a time:
- why doesnt the URC7730 config file form lirc work with my brand new
remote control ?
- why does irrecord report different results for the same remote
across multiple runs ?
- irrecord says to press different keys for about a second until 2
full lines are displayed (no single should print more than ten dots).
Does the time a key is held for influences the detection of that key
by lirc ?
- When the gap value is found by irrecord, the second line prints a
lot faster, which means that keys should be held for even less time.
is that correct ?
- does the distance at which the remote is held from the IR sensor (as
long as a signal gets through) influence the correctness of the
detection?
- finally, is there something i m doing wrong ? Can someone walk me
through the correct steps to get my remote working ?

Thanks for your help
Ben