I found just the remote you are looking for while I was living in Europe a few years back. However, I have seen them here as well.

The Brand name on mine says Tele-Art

It is a small unit, about 1/2" shorter and 1/2" more narrow than a cassette tape and thiner.

It looks like a simple calculator with 10 number buttons plus 6 function buttons (play, ffwd, etc) and a power button. There is a mode button to switch between five modes (tv, vcr, cd, HIFI, AUX).

Each mode can program the 17 buttons to anything.
The remote has no stored codes and is strictly a learning remote. You can program just about anything to any button.

There is also a clock and a timer/macro function but I do not recall the details. For simple tasks this remote can't be beat for simplicity and flexibility.

I paid about $35 in Europe a few years back. I believe the ones I have seen here in the US were on the order of $20 - $25.

If anybody knows the remote I am refering to, please post a brand name and supplier if possilbe.