I’m a total newbie to the Apple TV. I have just bought one and synced without any problems to my iTunes etc. I notice the Apple TV is running version 1.0. Can anybody here reassure me that I will be OK to update to system version 2.2, and THEN attempt to install the latest aTV Flash (3.3.2 I believe). I see that the good folks at AppleCore LLC indicate that this is all good and dandy but being the nervous type, I just want to be sure that this is the way to go. Frankly, all I want to do is to be able to watch my increasing collection of AVI files on the Apple TV without any great drama. I sense a disturbance in the force with Sapphire, and some of the other acronym add ons mentioned in these forums but I can probably live without the cataloging features and don’t really need to do complex network based linkages to external drives full of files etc.
My apologies if I’m asking stupid questions but some plain english, well intentioned advice here would be very much appreciated.
Roget. Welcome to thy forum of great wonders. The Apple TV is also new to me. That is why this wonderful place was put here by great powerful people from the west. To help us. Ok, Ok, enough with the pitiful English. I tried.
Yes. You will be fine. When I bought the Apple TV, I updated and followed directions according to the flash pdf that came with the purchase.
here are some steps that I would recommend taking. Correct me if i’m wrong guys.
Update ATV in settings.
Once, updated and running smoothly like your gramma’s butt, :? follow the directions in the provided pdf after purchasing from ATV Flash.
Pop in the thumb drive and restart foo! great success is near.
Ok. When you get the message saying and I quote “your apple tv is successfully patched and you may now pull 300 dollars out of your pocket because you just broke your tv” JK. your done.
Once in your newly, greatly, Apple TV, continue to update your system by going under DVD/SETTINGS/INSTALL SOFTWARE/ and install “mplayer codecs” and update your couch surfer
If your wanting more out of your TV and your thinking about plugging in a harddrive and surfing the web with a wireless keyboard and mouse in firefox, your going to have to do some more work. The more work part can be found here: http://www.wiki.atvflash.com
You may be noticing that after installing your atvflash, your apple tv may not be handling up to its full potential. Thats because of that update i told you to do earlier. ATVFlash. I mean, the dude, is coming out with a fix faster then you can say, pneumonultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis in Chinese. Some programs arnt going to show up, and some stuff isnt going to work correctly. DO NOT WORRY. all is good.
anything else needed, look around on the forums or ask us.
Awe shucks Mattfick12, thanks for that kind welcome and advice. Sounds pretty compelling.
OK - I’m just about to hit the ‘update’ button on the Apple TV to take it from 1.0 to 2.2. I will then proceed with the latest aTV Flash (3.3.2). Any last minute advice from anybody out there who would suggest reasons why this is a dumb move? (i.e. I should work with the earlier version of aTV Flash and stick with version 1.0 Apple TV software for the time being?). Is my trigger finger too itchy and will I regret my haste? - Is there a dark side of the moon? - Is Steve Jobs the long lost Lindberg baby?
The problem is if you want full functionality right now, you have to use AppleTV 2.1 with aTV Flash 3.3.1. The only way to get to 2.1 right now is by editing the Restore partition on your AppleTV and that can be tricky even though many people have done it. I’d say you should be alright with 3.3.2 for now, it does not have everything, but mattfick12 seems to have some good ideas.
OK - I’m pretty much convinced now guys. I’ve had another colleague suggest that XBMC / Boxee may be the way to go and I notice that this is part of the 3.2.2 loader. That’s all sounding like things are heading in the right direction.
Thanks for the prompt and supportive advice. Its reassuring to find forums of this nature that do not insist that all users be fully up to speed with the jargon and inside knowledge.
Be sure to run the Update command and download the update to XBMC Beta2, Boxee, and the XBMC/Boxee Launcher. Just to be sure it all works with 2.2. If you need a Boxee invite, PM me your E-mail address.
XBMC came out of the mod chips people used to use in the original Xbox and it grew into a Windows/Linux/Mac interface, it is kind of the standard. Boxee came out just a few months ago (as far as I know) and it is based on XBMC, but they went a different route in adding in a community to it. You have friends that you add on Boxee’s website and you can see what they watch and recommend. With Boxee you do need an account and right now since they are in Alpha, so you need an invite. I have those for anyone who can PM me their E-mail address. It comes down to preference for most people, some like the XBMC look (you can get skins for the interface) and some like the interface for Boxee. Hope that answers it for you.
Just to confirm Madcran, you mention that I need to be sure to run the update command for XBMC. Is this something I do BEFORE I create and install the aTV Flash USB on the Apple TV, or is the update process something one does AFTER it is loaded onto the Apple TV?
XBMC/Boxee are installed with aTV Flash 3.3.2, as long as you chose them when you create the stick. But before you can launch them, you have to go in the menu item that says XBMC/Boxee on the AppleTV and choose Update. At that point you should see a screen almost like this:
The ones you want to update are:
[list]
[]XBMC Beta2[/:m]
[]Boxee alpha 0.x.xxx[/:m]
[]XBMC/Boxee Launcher 0.x[/:m][/list:u]
Run all those updates and then restart your AppleTV and you should be good to go.
*If you see XBMC Beta1, that does not work on AppleTV 2.2.