Teach42

A couple of years ago, I mentioned that I wanted to get access to all my media anywhere at any time. I actually think I’m there now!

On Black Friday, I got lucky enough to score a new desktop for $399 from Best Buy (I had to beat up two old ladies and step on 3 small children to get it). It came with Windows Media Center 2005, which has taken me down a twisted path with the net result thatI now have access to my music and videos from just about anywhere.

In the house, I have an XBox 360 hooked up to our main TV in the living room. The 360 is designed to be able to tap right into WMC and stream music and video from it. Pretty sweet. So now I can load DVD’s and TV shows right onto the hard drive, and watch them through the TV on the other side of the house. I started off doing it wirelessly. While this did work, it was prone to what it called ‘network congestion’ aka lag. So I wound up running a network cable through the wall, through the nursery, into the closet, down to the 1st floor closet, down to the basement, across the ceiling, under the TV and up through the floor to the 360. Works like a charm. And nothing makes you feel like a man more than using a 12″ drill bit!

Outside the house, I’m using Orb again. While it still isn’t perfect (there can be annoying gaps between songs) I have to admit it’s pretty darn slick. I can listen to my music and watch videos from just about any internet connected device. You can even share your media too! For example, click here to listen to one of my favorite albums, Why Do Birds Sing by the Violent Femmes. While people would be able to download your photos, they can’t download music or video for obvious reasons. Streaming only.

In theory, I should be able to watch and listen from the PSP and even my cell phone as well, but I haven’t tried that out yet. That’s next up on the list. For now, I’ll just enjoy being able to access my immense collection of 80’s one hit wonders while working on the DEN website!

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