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Sync any type of video (DivX, Xvid, etc.) with an AppleTV

AppleTVMy ongoing saga with the refurbished AppleTV I bought continues. After hacking v1.1 of the firmware that came as standard on the unit, I then upgraded it to v2.0 as soon as it came out. Currently I can transfer files via SSH directly to the device (instructions on how to do that here) and play pretty much anything, as I’ve installed the Perian plugin for Quicktime.

What I want is something like XBMC which I’ve got installed on my old Xbox. With that I can play almost any type of media directly from my NAS drive (an unmodified Buffalo Linkstation). I’ve tried following the instructions in the Take 2 Full Update Procedure on the AwkwardTV wiki, but to no avail; I still get errors when I try to access network shares from my AppleTV. 🙁

For the moment, I’ve found a workaround. It’s an AppleScript that basically fools the AppleTV into thinking it’s a standard .mov file that it can play out-of-the-box. I followed the instructions here, but all you really need to do is:

  1. Download and unzip AppleTV Fooler (backup copy here).
  2. Drop a video file onto the AppleTV Fooler AppleScript.
  3. Drag-and-drop the new version of your video file into ‘Movies’ in iTunes.
  4. Sync with your AppleTV.

That should do it. Any problems, just comment! 😀

Amazon MP3 launches, not for UK

amazonmp3

Amazon.com have launched a Digital Rights Management (DRM)-free online music store. Unlike Apple’s iTunes music store, music can be played on any device and, wait for it… it’s actually cheaper per song! Although the number of tracks available is currently somewhat limited, more music is likely to be added soon.

I’d love to buy music from Amazon MP3, but I can’t. It would seem you have to be a US citizen to purchase music in this way as I was unable to using my current credit card billing address. Hopefully it will be extended to Amazon UK soon. Continue reading “Amazon MP3 launches, not for UK”

Run Doug run

I went a run this morning – my first since Ben was born. I usually listen to the MP3s stored on a ‘running’ playlist on my mobile phone in shuffle mode, but seeing as it’s the first one I’ve been on since I got my new phone, I was looking for another option. I ended up listening to a podcast from Podrunner, a free 1-hour mix of music at a set BPM (beats per minute).

Continue reading “Run Doug run”

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