that was my reaction as wellthe guy's Mail.app got an e-mail.. and I immediately clicked over to read "my" e-mail!
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Apple TV Booting off External USB
- Thread starter balamw
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Apple TV and Xgrid
All of these hacks sound promising indeed. Very exciting!
What I'd like to know is if it is somehow possible to harness the processing power of the Apple TV to encode video? VisualHub, for example, supports Xgrid. Given that it takes me around 18 hours (!!!) to convert a DVD to H.264 on my iMac G5, the thought of using the Apple TV's idle processing power (when not in use) to help speed things up is quite appealing.
Any thoughts on the subject?
All of these hacks sound promising indeed. Very exciting!
What I'd like to know is if it is somehow possible to harness the processing power of the Apple TV to encode video? VisualHub, for example, supports Xgrid. Given that it takes me around 18 hours (!!!) to convert a DVD to H.264 on my iMac G5, the thought of using the Apple TV's idle processing power (when not in use) to help speed things up is quite appealing.
Any thoughts on the subject?
that's cool, but what I can't understand is that won't all this stop working once apple releases a new software update? Can't they make it impossible to use thetv unless you update?
Yes, hacks can certainly interfere with updates.
That's why I might prefer to boot a modified OS on an external drive, and leave the internal "as is."
Well, a Pentium-M class processor is no Core 2, but it's not bad either. It could probably shave a few hours off your process, if someone gets XGrid working and VisualHub is Intel-optimized.
How about a hack now to get a very small USB DVD drive hooked up to the AppleTV?? Maybe some company out there will start making one in the same form factor as the Apple TV so it can stack on top or underneath it. Add to that a nice size USB drive (500 GB-1 TB) and a HD Tuner (Miglia, Eye TV , etc) and you'd have a pretty nice set up.
While the Mac-mini can already do much of this, it cannot be hooked to a component HDTV. You must have HDMI or DVI to use a mini. I have seen no solutions for a Mac-mini running a signal through component connectors to an HDTV anywhere. The mini lacks the chip to convert the signal. It's not just a matter of cables. The signal isn't compatible.
I have an HDTV circa 2001 with only component connectors so the AppleTV should be fine. Keeps the hacks coming!! It's amazing that it's been just under a week and all this stuff has come out! Simply amazing!
While the Mac-mini can already do much of this, it cannot be hooked to a component HDTV. You must have HDMI or DVI to use a mini. I have seen no solutions for a Mac-mini running a signal through component connectors to an HDTV anywhere. The mini lacks the chip to convert the signal. It's not just a matter of cables. The signal isn't compatible.
I have an HDTV circa 2001 with only component connectors so the AppleTV should be fine. Keeps the hacks coming!! It's amazing that it's been just under a week and all this stuff has come out! Simply amazing!
I'm surprized that the tv doesn't have the startup chime that all Macs have.
Also, I am beginning to think that Apple is "allowing" users to be able to hack thetv. Who knows? Maybe it's their way of (not) telling us this product has more functionality than it first seems.
tv doesn't have the startup chime that all Macs have.Also, I am beginning to think that Apple is "allowing" users to be able to hack the
tv. Who knows? Maybe it's their way of (not) telling us this product has more functionality than it first seems.Is this Apple TV OS any more open than the OS on a standard mac, or is it merely that it's simply accessible like the OS on a standard mac?
If that's the case then I can't see why Apple would really care what the end user does with their Apple TV than they do already with their mac...
In fact you would think that Steve would be thrilled - probably reminds him of his old 'blue boxing' days...Who knows maybe some pair of geeks will start selling a 'hack pack' for this thing out of the back of an old beat up VW bus!!...
If that's the case then I can't see why Apple would really care what the end user does with their Apple TV than they do already with their mac...
In fact you would think that Steve would be thrilled - probably reminds him of his old 'blue boxing' days...Who knows maybe some pair of geeks will start selling a 'hack pack' for this thing out of the back of an old beat up VW bus!!...
Yes it's interesting.. why so little protection (or is there more protection we didn't know about?)Also, I am beginning to think that Apple is "allowing" users to be able to hack the
I'm sure Apple can stop this if they want. I'm also sure they know that playing DivX and x264 files will make the AppleTV more popular.
But I think this is an interim AppleTV OS (modified 10.4.7). The real one will be a 'lite' version of OSX 10.5. It'll have some neat new functionality and run slightly more efficiently.. and break every "mod" that comes out between now and July. (Yes, this is my 'inner pessimist' talking)
I can't petend to understand what you are all talking about but to me I think the leak to do all this stuff probably came from apple itself. With the internet its impossile to find the source of leaks and rumours but this seems to easy. From what I can gather this thing is being turned into a computer and soon someone is going to hook a DVD player up to it. A lot of so called album leaks come from record companies to create a buzz
When the iMac came out people said that Apple was nuts for releasing a computer without a floppy drive. Now they have released essentially a computer with no drive of any sort.
Watch TV!
Hmmm...if thetv will recognize both a keyboard and a hard drive connected via USB, then maybe it will recognize other things - like one of those USB TV tuners! That would be great, because then you could watch TV on your ... wait a second.
Actually, I suppose it could open the possibility for PVR. Just need drivers...
Hmmm...if the
tv will recognize both a keyboard and a hard drive connected via USB, then maybe it will recognize other things - like one of those USB TV tuners! That would be great, because then you could watch TV on your ... wait a second. Actually, I suppose it could open the possibility for PVR. Just need drivers...
Wowee!
I look forward to being able to use the
(P.S. in the video of it booting the guy's Mail.app got an e-mail.. and I immediately clicked over to read "my" e-mail!
Haha... whew, glad you posted this... I rewound, but I guess not far enough... didn't hear the sound, checked Mail again, concluded that either (a) I was crazy or that (b) Mail had messed up.
I wonder is Apple is grinning at all this news of mods, or if they're cringing about it. I'm sure we all realize Apple has much bigger plans for TVs future, but will we force them to make that future come sooner with all these mods? Guess time will tell. I'll be waiting to see Apple's response to all this before I consider buying one, and also I need a better TV to make it worth it.
Thank goodness for customer's curiosity, and the benefits we all reap from them.
at all this news of mods, or if they're cringing about it. I'm sure we all realize Apple has much bigger plans for TVs future, but will we force them to make that future come sooner with all these mods? Guess time will tell. I'll be waiting to see Apple's response to all this before I consider buying one, and also I need a better TV to make it worth it.Thank goodness for customer's curiosity, and the benefits we all reap from them.
I wonder is Apple is grinning
Thank goodness for customer's curiosity, and the benefits we all reap from them.
It would be unlike Apple to be completely happy with a modded version of hardware that's sold as closed, but that said Apple hasn't gone after projects like iPod Linux to the best of my knowledge.
My guess is that if people keep trying to find ways of making the @TV a lightweight Mac mini, complete with a fully enabled version of Tiger, they'll take steps to make that difficult, if not impossible. That may include EFI hacks (firmware hacks, preventing the @TV from booting from an unsigned internal or external drive at all) which would be terrible news for the modding community.
But if the modding is limited to using the @TV to run free operating systems like Ubuntu, which may actually be useful if people build TV oriented UIs (like iPod Linux has an iPod oriented UI), coupled with the free DVR software that exists in Free Software land (MythTV? I forget), then from Apple's point of view they're selling hardware to a market that doesn't compete in any way with Apple's stuff, that can be withdrawn should Apple decide it does, actually, compete in some way. In that set of circumstances, I can't see Apple any more effort to close the @TV further than they do the iPod.
Now, some are speculating the iPhone will be semi-open too. I'm not so sure about that. From comments Jobs has made about the security of the device, it sounds like the OS has control over the phone that goes beyond what a typical Smartphone OS allows (typical Smartphone OSes separate the phone end from the opened front-end.) It also sounds like OS X, in this instance, doesn't have a substantial, predictable, well designed, security model that would prevent rouge applications from doing things they shouldn't.
If this is true (and Teh Steve may have been engaging in some kind of handwaving when he claimed opening the OS would put Cingular's network at risk, it might just be he wants Apple to have a lot of control over the user experience in the early days and made this up), then Apple would likely stamp on any attempt to open up iPhone.
Gut reaction: I'd wait and see if @TV stays open. I think it very much depends on the types of hacks people come up with for it. I can't see Apple preventing its use as a MythTV box. It may even be that, with 256Mb of non-upgradeable RAM, they don't consider it much of a threat running *Mac* OS X (ie being the $300 Mac we'd like it to be.) But I wouldn't bet on it.
I wanted one of these things before the hacks started, my major issue being that I need to do something about my other Macs which aren't really powerful enough any more, but boy do I want one now.
That's how it starts...
All this tinkering with and hacking of the AppleTV is market research for Apple, and more importantly, for accessory makers, in order to determine what stuff they can bring out to support it.
I smell an ecosystem brewing.
All this tinkering with and hacking of the AppleTV is market research for Apple, and more importantly, for accessory makers, in order to determine what stuff they can bring out to support it.
I smell an ecosystem brewing.
The
TV connects to iTunes. iTunes is available on Windows and Mac OS X. It's pretty safe to say there's going to be more TV around than there is recent Macs (say, Intel Macs).Make Leopard require 512MB RAM. Problem solved.
How about getting the xbox 360 HD DVD drive working on it or a Blu Ray (don't think there is a external usb bluray yet.), that would be awsome.
He is probably using all three (white, red, and yellow) for component video. You can use them - may not work the best because the cable looks cheap and unshielded. Don't get caught up in the color of the cable.
I'm surprized that the
Also, I am beginning to think that Apple is "allowing" users to be able to hack the
Or, maybe they'll integrate the best hacks in a future generation. So the user community is doing their R&D for them, for free.
I'm hoping Apple doesnt take the Sony approach by constantly sending firmware updates. Then again each update for the psp gets cracked pretty fast.