Thinking outside the Apple TV with Boxee

If Apple's not going to provide compelling Apple TV updates, maybe it's time you took matters into your own hands.

Apps for Apple TV: sign me up

Saul Hansell, over at the New York Times Bits blog, takes Microsoft's recent announcement about Xbox LIVE Community Games as a jumping off point to some speculation about Apple TV (and who doesn't like speculation?). Hansell wonders what would happen if Apple were to open up an App Store for the Apple TV, and I have to admit that I think that's a brilliant idea.I've always thought that the Apple TV would greatly benefit from third party plugins (official ones, I mean, not hacks), if not full blown apps. Take, for example, the YouTube functionality. Wouldn't it be cool if you could watch videos from Viddler, Vimeo, or any of the other countless video sharing sites, in addition to those on YouTube? And let's not forget Netflix. Microsoft and Netflix have teamed up to offer the 'Watch it now' library of videos to XBox Live Gold members. Being able to watch those videos from Netflix on my Apple TV would make me one happy panda.Hansell notes that to make apps on the Apple TV viable something has to be done about that horrible onscreen keyboard. He thinks that Apple might tie the iPhone into the Apple TV as a way to control it. Luckily, Apple has already done this. As John Gruber points out, when you have Apple's Remote app on your iPhone you are able to use the iPhone to enter text into your Apple TV.Let's hope Apple stops thinking about Apple TV as a hobby and starts making an aggressive push for the living room. I like my Apple TV, but my XBox 360 offers up more functionality (and more heat!).Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Add functionality to your Apple TV with Boxee

Section: Software + Apps, Video, iPod + iTunes, Apple TV Earlier, we previewed the alpha of Boxee. It’s a version of the XBMC that runs on a Mac. You can use it to watch videos, subscribe to podcasts, get recommendations from its social features, etc. They call it a social media center. There really are a lot of great things you can do with Boxee, and it’s only in alpha. Today, you can add Apple TV support to Boxee’s already long list of features. Now you have the ability to install Boxee straight to your Apple TV. The best part about this is that you don’t lose any functionality of the Apple TV. Boxee adds an option to the Menu that allows you to launch Boxee. So, you can switch between Apple TV and Boxee any time you please. The whole interface is designed to be used with a remote, so it’s a perfect fit for the Apple TV. Basically, you get all of the extra features of Boxee on your Apple TV. Installation isn’t even difficult, just follow the instructions. download the ATVUSB-Creator from http://code.google.com/p/atvusb-creator/ insert a “bootable” USB drive into your Mac (Windows and Linux versions coming soon) run the ATVUSB-Creator and select which plug-ins you’d like to install remove the USB drive and plug it into your Apple TV power on your Apple TV and the patchstick will run the ATV bootloader after the bootloader finishes, remove it and restart your Apple TV it now has options for Boxee / XBMC on the main menu click on Boxee, then select update (this will download boxee from the Internet) once boxee is done installing, restart your Apple TV click “Boxee”, then select “Boxee” in the sub-menu to start boxee. The only thing stopping you from running out and installing this right now is a Boxee invite. Lucky you, I still have more Boxee invites to hand out. So, be nice and leave me a comment and I’ll see if I can hook you up. Read [Boxee Blog] Full Story » | Written by Jake Gaecke for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »

Apple TV update 2.2 brings out the "Brick"

So, that was like a really bad, mean, and cruel joke. But it does seem that the recent Apple TV update is bricking some Apple TVs. According to the Apple Discussion board, some users cannot get past the boot video. If the update bricks your Apple TV, it's not the end of the world (well, it is if you cannot do the following steps). One discussion board reader reports that doing a restore of your Apple TV will help resolve the situation. To restore your Apple TV, try the following steps: Hold down the Menu and Menu down/scroll (-) buttons on the remote for approximately 3 to 5 seconds, until the LED on Apple TV flashes yellow. After Apple TV restarts, a screen appears asking you to pick a language. Select the language you wish to use. After the Apple TV Recovery screen appears, select "Factory Restore" Please note that restoring the factory settings will completely remove any and all data on the Apple TV. In most cases, your Apple TV software will be reset to version 1.0 (if you bought your ATV prior to the 2.0 update). For more information on the diagnostic tools, read Apple's support note.Thanks to everyone who sent this in!Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

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