my current remote that i got with my ATI tv tuner does not work well. only a few buttons on it actually work.
does anyone know how to program the buttons?
if not, is there a superior alternate?

If you have a Sony Ericsson or a smartphone and a Bluetooth USB dongle, you can use the Bluetooth HID profile.

I have a Sony Ericsson K750 and I can use it for:
- controlling the mouse cursor and some keys (Enter, TAB, arrows etc.)
- remote controlling apps like Winamp, WMP etc.