Opt for the Xbox
Although
several types of media extenders exist, the Xbox 360 and its successors
are my favorite. Of course, you can use the Xbox 360 to play games, but
it’s also capable of displaying media on high-end home-theater
equipment, big-screen HDTVs, and similar home-theater hardware. Because
you can use the Xbox 360 to access media stored on your Windows
Vista–based PC, the media you access will look and feel just the way it
does when you’re sitting in front of your PC. There’s nothing new to
learn and no new skills to acquire. Just connect it, and enjoy!
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With
a media extender such as an Xbox 360 and a PC with the Windows Vista
operating system, you can watch media stored on your PC anywhere in your
home by incorporating your wired or wireless network connection.
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Note
To use the Xbox 360
as a media extender, you’ll need to connect the console to a PC powered
by Windows Media Center. Windows Media Center comes installed only on
Windows Vista Home Premium and Windows Vista Ultimate.
Meet Network Requirements
A fast—100 megabits per
second (Mbps) or faster—wired network is the best kind of network to use
when connecting an Xbox to use as a media extender. A high-speed wired
network provides only slight interference, provides maximum speed, and
is often more reliable than a wireless network.
If you can’t or don’t want
to run a wired connection to your Xbox 360, wireless is your second
option. The problem with wireless networks and the Xbox 360 is that
cordless phones and microwave ovens can interfere with the wireless
signals needed by your network and may cause connections to fail or
become sluggish. If you must use wireless, though, and can choose from
the wireless standards, 802.11a is recommended not only because it is
faster than 802.11b but also because it operates on a separate frequency
from cell phones and the like.
Connect the Xbox 360 to the Network
You
must connect your Xbox 360 to your network. If you have a wired
network, just about all you have to do to connect it is to plug in the
Ethernet cable that connects the Xbox 360 to your home network and plug
the Xbox 360’s power cord into a wall outlet. To be thorough, though,
it’s best to follow the step-by-step instructions included with the Xbox
360 if you aren’t sure.
If you are connecting
to a wireless network, you may need to configure wireless security and
other settings on the Xbox 360 first. You’ll be prompted regarding what
you need to input, which may include Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) keys
and Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) passphrases. A red light indicates
it’s ready to connect. Once you have the green light, the adapter is on
and is connected to a wireless access point. If you need help, refer to
the documentation included with your Xbox or go to www.xbox.com.
Configure the Xbox 360
After you have connected the Xbox 360 to the home network, turn it on. Then, work from the Media tab in the menu that’s offered:
1. | On the Media tab, select Media Center.
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2. | When
prompted to connect the Xbox 360 to a PC with Media Center on your
network, select A to continue. Note that if the Xbox 360 is connected to
an 802.11b or 802.11g wireless network, you may be warned that poor
performance can result. You should switch to a higher-performance
wireless network (such as 802.11a) if your wireless router supports it.
Be careful, though, because other devices on your network may not
support 802.11a. Select Continue, and press A (Select) to continue.
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3. | Once
connected, write down the Media Center setup key displayed on the
screen. This code ensures that the Xbox 360 connects only with your
Windows Vista–based PC, not any other on the network.
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4. | Press A to continue. |
Configure the Windows Vista–Based PC
With
the Xbox 360 connected to the network and with a Media Center setup key
in hand, return to your Windows Vista–based PC. Click Start, and click
Media Center. If you’re prompted that the Xbox has been found on the
network, click Yes, and skip to step 3.
To add an extender by using Windows Media Center, follow these steps:
1. | Click Start, All Programs, Media Center.
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2. | Scroll down to Tasks, and then scroll right to Add Extender. Click Next to continue.
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3. | Type the eight-digit setup key displayed by the Xbox 360.
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4. | Click Next to continue.
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5. | Click Yes to see the media folders on your extender. Click Next.
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6. | Wait while the setup completes.
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7. | If
prompted, click Yes (Recommended) to run the network performance tuner.
Click Next. (If you aren’t prompted or do not want to tune the network
now and you want to return to the option later from Media Center, click
Tasks, click Settings, click Extender, select the extender, and click
Tune Network.)
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8. | Select Bar View or Graph View. Click Next.
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9. | Make adjustments to create the best signal possible. If you cannot get a good wireless signal, connect with Ethernet.
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10. | Click Finish.
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Media sharing must be
turned on under Network and Sharing, and the network must be private for
media sharing to work. When media sharing is on, people and devices on
the network can access shared music, pictures, and video on the
computer, and the computer can also find and access these types of media
on the network. The network must also be private to protect your
personal data from being shared with others who you do not want to have
access. If you’re unsure about any of this, click Start, click Network,
and open the Network and Sharing Center. Verify that the Media Sharing option is set to On and that the network is set to Private, as shown in Figure 1.
You can turn on media
sharing in Media Player 11. To configure media sharing in this manner on
the Windows Vista–based PC, follow these steps:
1. | Click Start, All Programs, Windows Media Player.
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2. | Click
the arrow under the Library button, and then click Media Sharing.
Windows Media Player 11 lists all devices that have been allowed or
denied access to your media library.
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3. | To
access your media library from the Xbox 360, click it, and then click
Allow. A green check mark appears after you allow the device to access
your media library. See Figure 2.
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Understand What Media Can Be Shared
You
can share just about any media you have stored on your PC with others
on your network and the media extender. These include but are not
limited to the following:
Protected Windows Media files downloaded from online stores.
Music files, such as Windows Media Audio, MP3, and WAV files. You cannot share audio CDs inserted into the PC.
Video files, such as Windows Media Video, AVI, MPEG-1, and MPEG-2. You cannot share DVD-Video discs inserted into the PC.
Picture files, including JPEG and PNG.
Playlists, such as Windows Media playlists and MP3 playlists.
