Apple TV Hack Help

rccballers · Jun 24, 2009

Long time lurker, first time poster!

So, about a year and a half ago, I bought an Apple TV with 160gb that was pre-hacked. I currently use frontrow and Cyberduck as my FTP to get movies and such to the ATV. Now the problem is that I can't access iTunes nor can I access Youtube, etc. I believe that this is because the version of the ATV software I have on it is so old. I would like to update the software and re-install the hack. I don't know which hack is on there, nor do I know how to find the best hack available that will give me a similar interface to what I currently have. Any help is appreciated. And I apologize in advance of the inability to figure this out myself.

chrysrobyn · Jun 24, 2009

rccballers said:
Long time lurker, first time poster!
I would like to update the software and re-install the hack. I don't know which hack is on there, nor do I know how to find the best hack available that will give me a similar interface to what I currently have. Any help is appreciated.

I suggest spending some time with awkwardtv.org and their wiki. At the minimum, you probably have Perian, although it's likely you have ATVFiles and a few others.

tom1971 · Jun 24, 2009

rccballers said:
Long time lurker, first time poster!

So, about a year and a half ago, I bought an Apple TV with 160gb that was pre-hacked. I currently use frontrow and Cyberduck as my FTP to get movies and such to the ATV. Now the problem is that I can't access iTunes nor can I access Youtube, etc. I believe that this is because the version of the ATV software I have on it is so old. I would like to update the software and re-install the hack. I don't know which hack is on there, nor do I know how to find the best hack available that will give me a similar interface to what I currently have. Any help is appreciated. And I apologize in advance of the inability to figure this out myself.

Check this for more details on available plugins

Chipskip · Jun 28, 2009

We need more information about what you were doing.... which hack you were using: Boxee, XBMC or NitoTV?

forum.boxee.tv
http://www.xbmc.org/forum

Airforcekid · Jun 28, 2009

http://www.atvflash.com great software easy to do.Just restore and update to 2.4 then install atv flash.

tom1971 · Jun 28, 2009

Airforcekid said:
www.atvflash.com great software easy to do.Just restore and update to 2.4 then install atv flash.

The problem with atvflash is that they still offer the same old plugins of 2.3.1 which are known to crash on the ATV. Check their forum and you see that people are not happy with it. Basically they rushed out an "update" the same day the new firmware was released, but basically only one plugin was updated.
Furthermore there is no way to test their solution before buying it.

Here is a solution that can be tested for free.
This solution also allows you to install and de-install any kind of plugin without having to re-patch your ATV, as is the case with the atvflash solution

rccballers · Jun 29, 2009

Chipskip said:
We need more information about what you were doing.... which hack you were using: Boxee, XBMC or NitoTV?

forum.boxee.tv
http://www.xbmc.org/forum

I mentioned in my original post that I don't know which hack I had on there...I bought it this way and now iTunes doesn't work on it. So, I updated the ATV software and everything works, but the hack is no longer. Basically, I had the regular ATV menu, and then another menu that was titled "Files". From there I could go to "Movies" and store my movies on the ATV. The problem is, the hack seems complicated. I can probably figure it out, but I do need to re-enable the SSH on the ATV. I can almost kill myself right now for doing the update, but hindsight is 20/20. Any and all help is utmost appreciated.

Chipskip · Jun 30, 2009

rccballers said:
...I do need to re-enable the SSH on the ATV. I can almost kill myself right now for doing the update, but hindsight is 20/20. Any and all help is utmost appreciated.

Take a look at this site: http://develop.dcolumbus.net/software/xbmc-on-apple-tv/ It is a guide to creating a usb patchstick for enabling SSH and installing XBMC and/or Boxee.

It sounds like you had NitoTV installed on your aTv. It is very easy to install. I recommend searching and reading both the XBMC forums and Boxee as they have several threads helping people get started.

Also, the XBMC.org/forums website has a guide on how to turn off automatic updates so you don't have to stress this again.

Good Luck!

rccballers · Jun 30, 2009

Thanks, Chipstart. I am going to follow those directions. Hopefully they are simple enough. I really appreciate your help. The hack you mentioned sounds very familiar, I too believe that is what was on it. So the question is, do I throw that back on there, or go with Boxee (I have heard that it has some glitches), or something else? I like the apple interface. Anyone using Boxee or other hacks, or other hacks that still utilize the GUI of the ATV that could give me some input, that would be great!

kadeschs · Jun 30, 2009

tom1971 said:
The problem with atvflash is that they still offer the same old plugins of 2.3.1 which are known to crash on the ATV. Check their forum and you see that people are not happy with it. Basically they rushed out an "update" the same day the new firmware was released, but basically only one plugin was updated.
Furthermore there is no way to test their solution before buying it.

Here is a solution that can be tested for free.
This solution also allows you to install and de-install any kind of plugin without having to re-patch your ATV, as is the case with the atvflash solution

I'm one of those people that are not happy. It was barely passable under 2.3.1, but too buggy for 2.4. I wish I had not upgraded. It appears your PatchStickBuilder is also for 2.3.1 only. I guess it's a waiting game.

TuckBodi · Jun 30, 2009

tom1971 said:
Check this for more details on available plugins

Do you really have to type all those Unix commands just to install nitoTV and CouchSurfer? Don't you have an automated way of doing this (like a menu)? And how much does this cost?

tom1971 · Jun 30, 2009

kadeschs said:
I'm one of those people that are not happy. It was barely passable under 2.3.1, but too buggy for 2.4. I wish I had not upgraded. It appears your PatchStickBuilder is also for 2.3.1 only. I guess it's a waiting game.

PatchStickbuilder works also to patch 2.4 - you need the 2.3.1 firmware to create the working patchstick.

tom1971 · Jun 30, 2009

TuckBodi said:
Do you really have to type all those Unix commands just to install nitoTV and CouchSurfer? Don't you have an automated way of doing this (like a menu)? And how much does this cost?

Due to legal requirements, fully automated scripts cannot be provided

Chipskip · Jun 30, 2009

TuckBodi said:
Do you really have to type all those Unix commands just to install nitoTV and CouchSurfer? Don't you have an automated way of doing this (like a menu)? And how much does this cost?

http://xbmc.org/forum/showthread.php?t=40446

The latest patchstick creator linked in the link above is fully automated and is for Windows User and/or Mac.

XBMC and Boxee's forums are for people that are trying to hack their :apple:

TV or have already done so. I suggest those forums for answering more specific questions about how to do things. The people there are a lot more knowedglable about this issue and can provide more detailed answers.

tom1971 · Jul 1, 2009

rccballers said:
Basically, I had the regular ATV menu, and then another menu that was titled "Files". From there I could go to "Movies" and store my movies on the ATV. The problem is, the hack seems complicated.

This is the "ATVfiles" plugin

kadeschs · Jul 1, 2009

Chipskip said:
http://xbmc.org/forum/showthread.php?t=40446

The latest patchstick creator linked in the link above is fully automated and is for Windows User and/or Mac.

XBMC and Boxee's forums are for people that are trying to hack their TV or have already done so. I suggest those forums for answering more specific questions about how to do things. The people there are a lot more knowedglable about this issue and can provide more detailed answers.

Are the programs provided on this patchstick old versions?

Chipskip · Jul 1, 2009

kadeschs said:
Are the programs provided on this patchstick old versions?

The patchstick creater modifies the main :apple:

TV menu to added them. You then go to the Download menu and download the latest launcher, XBMC & Boxee.

Hawkeye411 · Jul 1, 2009

Airforcekid said:
http://www.atvflash.com great software easy to do.Just restore and update to 2.4 then install atv flash.

+1 ... Really easy to install and they will provide updates for 1 year.
I don't use all the extra apps that come with ATVFlash. However, I was able to use it to install a 500GB external HD and it plays .avi files great and it still syncs with iTunes perfectly. Installing the external HD was a little difficult but you have an Apple TV with a large HD so you probably don't need to install an external HD.

You can look up instructions to hack your Apple TV yourself, but using ATVFlash (there may be similar software available) is very easy.

You could probably find a torrent for ATVFlash if you looked around.

Cheers.

TuckBodi · Jul 1, 2009

tom1971 said:
Due to legal requirements, fully automated scripts cannot be provided

So why does atvusb-creator w/ SoftwareMenu have an automated method for installing nitoTV, CouchSurfer, ATVFiles and etc.? I don't quite understand why you guys and ATVFlash can't do this but atvusb-creator can? Is it because that developer got the blessing from the plugin developers and you guys didn't?

tom1971 · Jul 1, 2009

TuckBodi said:
So why does atvusb-creator w/ SoftwareMenu have an automated method for installing nitoTV, CouchSurfer, ATVFiles and etc.? I don't quite understand why you guys and ATVFlash can't do this but atvusb-creator can? Is it because that developer got the blessing from the plugin developers and you guys didn't?

PM sent

rccballers · Jul 1, 2009

Hawkeye411 said:
+1 ... Really easy to install and they will provide updates for 1 year.
I don't use all the extra apps that come with ATVFlash. However, I was able to use it to install a 500GB external HD and it plays .avi files great and it still syncs with iTunes perfectly. Installing the external HD was a little difficult but you have an Apple TV with a large HD so you probably don't need to install an external HD.

You can look up instructions to hack your Apple TV yourself, but using ATVFlash (there may be similar software available) is very easy.

You could probably find a torrent for ATVFlash if you looked around.

Cheers.

+1 Thank you so much! This is awesome!!!!

rccballers · Jul 2, 2009

Oh my gosh..this hack is better than I expected. After putting it on my AppleTV, I went to "movies" and ALL of my movies that I thought were deleted were still there! Even after the update!

jjxc90 · Jul 3, 2009

TuckBodi said:
So why does atvusb-creator w/ SoftwareMenu have an automated method for installing nitoTV, CouchSurfer, ATVFiles and etc.? I don't quite understand why you guys and ATVFlash can't do this but atvusb-creator can? Is it because that developer got the blessing from the plugin developers and you guys didn't?

ATV Flash includes everything right off the bat. No need to monkey around with Terminal.

Terminal =

jjxc90 · Jul 3, 2009

Plus, using my Loop pointer on the appletv is pretty freakin sweet.

Hawkeye411 · Jul 6, 2009

rccballers said:
Oh my gosh..this hack is better than I expected. After putting it on my AppleTV, I went to "movies" and ALL of my movies that I thought were deleted were still there! Even after the update!

Great!!! Glad it worked!

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