ATV Flash advice

bemt17 · Mar 16, 2009, 09:51 AM

If you are unsure about spending fifty bucks on it. Trust me its worth all the free ways take over an hour to do with ATV flash I had my ATV hacked with USB enabled, couch surfer, NitoTV all in 25 minutes. And so far it has worked flawlessly no issues. The only thing is there is a slight delay between pushing the menu button on your remote to when it goes back but its only like a 2-3 sec delay nothing to get worked up about.

tom1971 · Mar 16, 2009, 10:17 AM

I guess it is better to check the free versions of patchstick.ca for Windows and mac to see what they offer

bemt17 · 10:47 AM

ATV flash works perfect and quick like I said before the free way takes forever this way is way way way less time consuming

Semio1es · Mar 16, 2009, 11:16 AM

I was against the free versions also, but decided to try any way.

I used: http://code.google.com/p/atvusb-creator/

Very easy and only took about 30 mins total from download to surfing with CouchSurfer.

ehurdler · Mar 16, 2009, 11:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Semio1es

I was against the free versions also, but decided to try any way.

I used: http://code.google.com/p/atvusb-creator/

Very easy and only took about 30 mins total from download to surfing with CouchSurfer.

I agree with Semio1es. I used the atv-creator, FREE, took 30 mins or less. I personally do not see a need to spend fifty bucks for something that is FREE and does the EXACT same things. The atv-creator doesn't do everything for you, you have to do some of the work yourself, but it doesn't take much or a lot of time. Works for me, my personal option.

alex416 · Mar 16, 2009, 12:07 PM

Another vote here for ATV Flash. Setup is extremely simple, and you're up in running a very small amount of time.

Saved me from sorting through an endless amount of forum posts to get network streaming working.

TuckBodi · Mar 16, 2009, 03:43 PM

These guys just won't quit, will they? There has to be a name for these s/w self promoters. Really, come on, I've used (or seen them in use) all these patchsticks and it's such a no-brainer to use the FREE atvusb-creator versus shelling out $$$. The guy (Davilla) who wrote the bootloader all the patchsticks have to use, also created atvusb-creator. So wouldn't you think he could also write as good if not better patchstick than what all these paid patchsticks use?!

Do not listen to the FUD these other people are throwing at you. And isn't it just common sense that you can download and try something for free first and if it doesn't work, then go the pay route.

As far as the networking comment....it's all done the same on any of the patchsticks, through NitoTV's Smart Installer (or manually). Don't let them try and tell you their patchstick will magically set it up for you. For legal reasons they can't include all the Apple files.

bemt17 · Mar 16, 2009, 05:11 PM

One i tried all the free ways actually 8 hours of trying with no success then I went pay route and in 30 min all good plus I dont even use nitotv it blows the video freezes and the audio keeps going so instead of nitotv i just go to the word files on the main menu go to places my external drive name movies and it plays without fail.

TuckBodi · Mar 17, 2009, 02:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bemt17

One i tried all the free ways actually 8 hours of trying with no success then I went pay route and in 30 min all good plus I dont even use nitotv it blows the video freezes and the audio keeps going so instead of nitotv i just go to the word files on the main menu go to places my external drive name movies and it plays without fail.

8 hours?! With ATVUSB-Creator? No Way. This app is by far the easiest method to make a patchstick out there. Period. Like another poster said above, 30 minutes from making the patchstick to hacking the ATV.

And I have no clue what you're trying to say about NitoTV in your post. I referred to Nito's Smart Installer which is used to setup AFP, NFS, USB storage, etc. So you didn't use NitoTV's Smart Installer to enable your USB? Then how did you do it? ATVFlash wiki even recommends to use the Smart Installer.

http://wiki.atvflash.com/index.php?t...mart_Installer

santangelo · Mar 17, 2009, 10:23 AM

atvusb-creator is this the same thing then as Atv Flash will i be able to use all media files on my Atv or should i go with atv flash

Sorry if its a silly question am just new to all this

bemt17 · Mar 17, 2009, 12:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TuckBodi

8 hours?! With ATVUSB-Creator? No Way. This app is by far the easiest method to make a patchstick out there. Period. Like another poster said above, 30 minutes from making the patchstick to hacking the ATV.

And I have no clue what you're trying to say about NitoTV in your post. I referred to Nito's Smart Installer which is used to setup AFP, NFS, USB storage, etc. So you didn't use NitoTV's Smart Installer to enable your USB? Then how did you do it? ATVFlash wiki even recommends to use the Smart Installer.

http://wiki.atvflash.com/index.php?t...mart_Installer

Yes 8 hours cause everytime I would unplugg my atv put the usb in plug it back in let it do its thing unplugg it again and the usb then plug it back in it would only install boxee. but yes I used nito tvs smart installer but I do not use nito TV to play my videos I go down to the option right above maintenance called files and play through there. If i use nito tv to play them the video stalls and the audio keeps going.

TuckBodi · Mar 17, 2009, 01:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bemt17

Yes 8 hours cause everytime I would unplugg my atv put the usb in plug it back in let it do its thing unplugg it again and the usb then plug it back in it would only install boxee. but yes I used nito tvs smart installer but I do not use nito TV to play my videos I go down to the option right above maintenance called files and play through there. If i use nito tv to play them the video stalls and the audio keeps going.

http://www.iclarified.com/entry/index.php?enid=1959

Have no idea what you did wrong in your steps but maybe the above instructions can help next time. Also a sidenote for others, having a compatible thumb drive is required for any patchsticking.

In regards to Nito playing your video files make sure you have installed Perian (Smart Installer) and I also use QuickTime versus mplayer (Nito gives you the option). One of those may be your issue.

And actually, before going over to XBMC for playing my videos, I used Sapphire (and sometimes ATVFiles) as I liked how you were able to setup metadata and artwork. But again, that was before I headed over to XBMC (I didn't like Boxee's interface).

bemt17 · Mar 17, 2009, 01:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TuckBodi

http://www.iclarified.com/entry/index.php?enid=1959

Have no idea what you did wrong in your steps but maybe the above instructions can help next time. Also a sidenote for others, having a compatible thumb drive is required for any patchsticking.

In regards to Nito playing your video files make sure you have installed Perian (Smart Installer) and I also use QuickTime versus mplayer (Nito gives you the option). One of those may be your issue.

And actually, before going over to XBMC for playing my videos, I used Sapphire (and sometimes ATVFiles) as I liked how you were able to setup metadata and artwork. But again, that was before I headed over to XBMC (I didn't like Boxee's interface).

I didnt like boxee myself and perian is installed also iclarified is what I used to set up my patchstick and everything went fine doing it but when I would put it on my apple tv boxe and xbmc were the only two things that installed so I got fed up and bought atvflash which worked the first time. But hey if you have luck with the free way go right ahead but if it gives you issues then atvflash is the way to go.

bemt17 · Mar 17, 2009, 02:04 PM

Ok ATVflash makes my ATV very slow to react like when I select files it takes 3 minutes before it goes so I'm gonna give the free way another shot one question I have is with ATVUSB Creator is says apple tv 2.1 does it matter if my ATV is 2.3

ehurdler · Mar 17, 2009, 02:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bemt17

Ok ATVflash makes my ATV very slow to react like when I select files it takes 3 minutes before it goes so I'm gonna give the free way another shot one question I have is with ATVUSB Creator is says apple tv 2.1 does it matter if my ATV is 2.3

It doesn't matter. Just download the correct firmware version.

ehurdler · Mar 17, 2009, 02:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bemt17

I didnt like boxee myself and perian is installed also iclarified is what I used to set up my patchstick and everything went fine doing it but when I would put it on my apple tv boxe and xbmc were the only two things that installed so I got fed up and bought atvflash which worked the first time. But hey if you have luck with the free way go right ahead but if it gives you issues then atvflash is the way to go.

Boxee and XBMC are the only application options with the patchstick. You have to install the other stuff yourself. Perian, NitoTV, etc. you install with the Smart Installer as TuckBodi mentioned earlier. The iClarified tutorial/tutorials he pointed to you are what I originally followed. Good luck, the free option works great!

bemt17 · Mar 17, 2009, 03:20 PM

Once again the free way did not work once I got to the command lines in terminal with the scp -1 -r and i forget the rest it said verisions 1 and 2 major differences and this was the first command line

bemt17 · Mar 17, 2009, 04:06 PM

Plus the free way screwed it so bad my remote wouldn't scroll through the menu at all the only thing I got it to do was to restart so I did factory restore and reinstalled ATV flash and now it works great again

TuckBodi · Mar 17, 2009, 07:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bemt17

Once again the free way did not work once I got to the command lines in terminal with the scp -1 -r and i forget the rest it said verisions 1 and 2 major differences and this was the first command line

@bemt17 - you obviously didn't use ATVUSB-Creator as it doesn't have anything to do with the command line as it has a GUI interface. So you either used something else or had no clue what you were doing.

@santangelo - You install Perian as part of the Smart Installer in NitoTV for both patchsticks so you have access to the same media (perian.org has more info on what file formats).

@ehurdler - actually, you install stuff like NitoTV, Sapphire, CouchSurfer, ATVFiles, etc. through Launcher, which is installed through ATVUSB-Creator. It's pretty slick as you can also upgrade through it as well.

bemt17 · Mar 17, 2009, 08:38 PM

umm no I used atv usb creator and it only installed boxee and xbmc nothing else so i searched google on how to install nitotv and it sent me through command lines

TuckBodi · Mar 17, 2009, 10:24 PM

My steps, of course after I've created my patchstick (creating a patchstick is really just a one-time deal):

1) Hack ATV from ATVUSB-Creator patchstick by booting ATV from patchstick. Once it's done its thing, pull the power, pull the thumbdrive and then re-power to reboot.
2) Once the new menu boots up go to Launcher/Downloads and install the latest Launcher and/or XBMC and/or Boxee.

At this point you could be done as XBMC & Boxee feature a bunch of great stuff along with built-in SMB networking (their apps only). If you want other "stuff"...then..

3) Go to Software Menu/3rd Party Plugins - from here you can install plugins like nitoTV, Sapphire and etc. It will also tell you if there's any updates out there as well if you've already installed them.
4) Then I'll install AFP or SMB (for non-XBMC/Boxee apps) or NFS, or any USB hacks, definitely Perian, and etc. These need to be done through nitoTV's Smart Installer so of course I install nitoTV first (step 3).
Note: Depending on what you install you will need to put a copy of the 10.4.9 ComboUpdate DMG and an ATV 1.0 Recovery DMG in your ATV's Documents folder. Directions on this is up on awkwardtv.org in Nito's Smart Installer wiki.

5) If you're using the USB hack and hanging a drive off the ATV, then you're done. If you're trying to connect through the network a shared drive, then you need to setup a network share in nitoTV's Network menu (directions up on his wiki).

Personally, I've just been using XBMC as it's easy to setup, has built-in networking, and the developer community seems to be alive and kicking. My 2¢.

Atrael · Apr 6, 2009, 10:02 AM

Ok, since this thread isn't that old, I'll bump it to ask for help.

I bought the ATVFlash software to hack the AppleTV to make it more useable. (Let's not get into the free/paid debate, I didn't know about the all-in-one free option until I just read this thread). But I find documentation on the programs that came with it to be lacking. What is all this stuff? I recognize Boxee, and it looks like XMBC is another media player. What is Saphire? Nitro? Why is there a "File" option on the menu for playing movies? Are all these things just different ways of watching your movies? Depending on what interface you like? How do you set any of them up with a NAS? Does my NAS need to be a UPnP server? I haven't had much luck trying to find any sort of "idiots" guide to using this. While I can launch boxee and play Hulu stuff ok (man it looks like crap), I can't find a reliable way to attach to my network drive. Do all of these just work with a usb drive or files installed to the hard drive? Any and all help is appriciated.

Thanks!

Mar 16, 2009, 09:51 AM	#1
bemt17 macrumors member Join Date: Mar 2009	ATV Flash advice If you are unsure about spending fifty bucks on it. Trust me its worth all the free ways take over an hour to do with ATV flash I had my ATV hacked with USB enabled, couch surfer, NitoTV all in 25 minutes. And so far it has worked flawlessly no issues. The only thing is there is a slight delay between pushing the menu button on your remote to when it goes back but its only like a 2-3 sec delay nothing to get worked up about. __________________ Macbook, 2.1ghz, ATV 2.3, USB enabled, 1TB HDD plugged into ATV
	0

Mar 16, 2009, 10:25 AM	#3
bemt17 Thread Starter macrumors member Join Date: Mar 2009	ATV flash works perfect and quick like I said before the free way takes forever this way is way way way less time consuming __________________ Macbook, 2.1ghz, ATV 2.3, USB enabled, 1TB HDD plugged into ATV Last edited by bemt17; Mar 16, 2009 at 10:47 AM.
	0

Mar 16, 2009, 11:16 AM	#4
Semio1es macrumors member Join Date: Jul 2008	I was against the free versions also, but decided to try any way. I used: http://code.google.com/p/atvusb-creator/ Very easy and only took about 30 mins total from download to surfing with CouchSurfer. __________________ 13.3" White MacBook w/ SuperDrive, iPhone 3Gs, 40GB Apple TV, 4GB iPod Nano, AirPort Extreme Base Station
	0

Mar 16, 2009, 05:11 PM	#8
bemt17 Thread Starter macrumors member Join Date: Mar 2009	One i tried all the free ways actually 8 hours of trying with no success then I went pay route and in 30 min all good plus I dont even use nitotv it blows the video freezes and the audio keeps going so instead of nitotv i just go to the word files on the main menu go to places my external drive name movies and it plays without fail. __________________ Macbook, 2.1ghz, ATV 2.3, USB enabled, 1TB HDD plugged into ATV
	0

Mar 17, 2009, 02:04 PM	#14
bemt17 Thread Starter macrumors member Join Date: Mar 2009	Ok ATVflash makes my ATV very slow to react like when I select files it takes 3 minutes before it goes so I'm gonna give the free way another shot one question I have is with ATVUSB Creator is says apple tv 2.1 does it matter if my ATV is 2.3 __________________ Macbook, 2.1ghz, ATV 2.3, USB enabled, 1TB HDD plugged into ATV
	0

Mar 16, 2009, 10:17 AM	#2
tom1971 macrumors 6502a Join Date: May 2007	I guess it is better to check the free versions of patchstick.ca for Windows and mac to see what they offer
	0

Mar 16, 2009, 12:07 PM	#6
alex416 macrumors newbie Join Date: Mar 2009	Another vote here for ATV Flash. Setup is extremely simple, and you're up in running a very small amount of time. Saved me from sorting through an endless amount of forum posts to get network streaming working.
	0

Mar 16, 2009, 03:43 PM	#7
TuckBodi macrumors 6502 Join Date: Jan 2007	These guys just won't quit, will they? There has to be a name for these s/w self promoters. Really, come on, I've used (or seen them in use) all these patchsticks and it's such a no-brainer to use the FREE atvusb-creator versus shelling out $$$. The guy (Davilla) who wrote the bootloader all the patchsticks have to use, also created atvusb-creator. So wouldn't you think he could also write as good if not better patchstick than what all these paid patchsticks use?! Do not listen to the FUD these other people are throwing at you. And isn't it just common sense that you can download and try something for free first and if it doesn't work, then go the pay route. As far as the networking comment....it's all done the same on any of the patchsticks, through NitoTV's Smart Installer (or manually). Don't let them try and tell you their patchstick will magically set it up for you. For legal reasons they can't include all the Apple files.
	0

Mar 17, 2009, 10:23 AM	#10
santangelo macrumors regular Join Date: Apr 2006	atvusb-creator is this the same thing then as Atv Flash will i be able to use all media files on my Atv or should i go with atv flash Sorry if its a silly question am just new to all this
	0

Mar 17, 2009, 03:20 PM	#17
bemt17 Thread Starter macrumors member Join Date: Mar 2009	Once again the free way did not work once I got to the command lines in terminal with the scp -1 -r and i forget the rest it said verisions 1 and 2 major differences and this was the first command line __________________ Macbook, 2.1ghz, ATV 2.3, USB enabled, 1TB HDD plugged into ATV
	0

Mar 17, 2009, 04:06 PM	#18
bemt17 Thread Starter macrumors member Join Date: Mar 2009	Plus the free way screwed it so bad my remote wouldn't scroll through the menu at all the only thing I got it to do was to restart so I did factory restore and reinstalled ATV flash and now it works great again __________________ Macbook, 2.1ghz, ATV 2.3, USB enabled, 1TB HDD plugged into ATV
	0

Mar 17, 2009, 08:38 PM	#20
bemt17 Thread Starter macrumors member Join Date: Mar 2009	umm no I used atv usb creator and it only installed boxee and xbmc nothing else so i searched google on how to install nitotv and it sent me through command lines __________________ Macbook, 2.1ghz, ATV 2.3, USB enabled, 1TB HDD plugged into ATV
	0

Mar 17, 2009, 10:24 PM	#21
TuckBodi macrumors 6502 Join Date: Jan 2007	My steps, of course after I've created my patchstick (creating a patchstick is really just a one-time deal): 1) Hack ATV from ATVUSB-Creator patchstick by booting ATV from patchstick. Once it's done its thing, pull the power, pull the thumbdrive and then re-power to reboot. 2) Once the new menu boots up go to Launcher/Downloads and install the latest Launcher and/or XBMC and/or Boxee. At this point you could be done as XBMC & Boxee feature a bunch of great stuff along with built-in SMB networking (their apps only). If you want other "stuff"...then.. 3) Go to Software Menu/3rd Party Plugins - from here you can install plugins like nitoTV, Sapphire and etc. It will also tell you if there's any updates out there as well if you've already installed them. 4) Then I'll install AFP or SMB (for non-XBMC/Boxee apps) or NFS, or any USB hacks, definitely Perian, and etc. These need to be done through nitoTV's Smart Installer so of course I install nitoTV first (step 3). Note: Depending on what you install you will need to put a copy of the 10.4.9 ComboUpdate DMG and an ATV 1.0 Recovery DMG in your ATV's Documents folder. Directions on this is up on awkwardtv.org in Nito's Smart Installer wiki. 5) If you're using the USB hack and hanging a drive off the ATV, then you're done. If you're trying to connect through the network a shared drive, then you need to setup a network share in nitoTV's Network menu (directions up on his wiki). Personally, I've just been using XBMC as it's easy to setup, has built-in networking, and the developer community seems to be alive and kicking. My 2¢.
	0

Apr 6, 2009, 10:02 AM	#22
Atrael macrumors newbie Join Date: Nov 2008	Ok, since this thread isn't that old, I'll bump it to ask for help. I bought the ATVFlash software to hack the AppleTV to make it more useable. (Let's not get into the free/paid debate, I didn't know about the all-in-one free option until I just read this thread). But I find documentation on the programs that came with it to be lacking. What is all this stuff? I recognize Boxee, and it looks like XMBC is another media player. What is Saphire? Nitro? Why is there a "File" option on the menu for playing movies? Are all these things just different ways of watching your movies? Depending on what interface you like? How do you set any of them up with a NAS? Does my NAS need to be a UPnP server? I haven't had much luck trying to find any sort of "idiots" guide to using this. While I can launch boxee and play Hulu stuff ok (man it looks like crap), I can't find a reliable way to attach to my network drive. Do all of these just work with a usb drive or files installed to the hard drive? Any and all help is appriciated. Thanks!
	0


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