When I first bought NCE I was not thinking of computer control, just ease of use and the decent reviews it had for a newbie. I have been playing with DCC++ and JMRI and getting reasonable results but I know my programming skills are non-existent at best so still leaning towards Itrain. I will have a look at Rasberry Pi as Ian mentioned it was compatible with Itrain. What Z21 system is recommended?, do I need a big Z or a small z system?. Will have to do some digging into that and the Pi option. Many thanks for all the info and help guys. Unfortunately the budget has to be considered so I don't want to have to upgrade again in the near future. James Petts your layout looks amazing, good luck with that. Cheers Mick