From IVTV

Remotes

There are two different drivers that can be used for remote control functionality: ir-kbd-i2c and lirc-i2c. The first comes with most recent kernels, but the latter is the reccomended one (from the lirc package).

To use lirc: Get the latest version from http://lirc.org/software.html or find a package for your distrobution. Compile and install it. Modprobe lirc_i2c. Start lircd, the lirc daemon. Test your remote with irw. Set up your remote with irrecord. This program accepts clients. Some programs, for example MythTV, have built in lirc support. You can also use irexec and irxevent to control programs with lirc.

To use ir-kbd-i2c: