HTPC OS and Software

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counihan3

Weaksauce
Joined
May 22, 2008
Messages
75
I am getting ready to setup up my first HTPC using. I have all of the parts minus the storage I want, but don't know the best setup to use. I would like to run the whole thing from linux using XBMC but then I can't use netflix. I don't have a lot of linux knowledge so I thought it would be a good way to learn. So if I want to use hulu and netflix is my best option using Windows and then install XBMC and use a media center plugin for hulu and netflix? Or is there something else that's better.
 
I have just heard so many good things about it I thought it would be a good way to go.
 
go with win7. try the included app. if you outgrow that, win7 is still a great base OS for the many other frontends like mediaportal and sagetv.
 
I think XBMC and MediaPortal are the best front ends. I know a lot of people like windows 7 media center with mediabrowser but I don't really like the interface and it doesn't do anything for me that the other two don't do. The new nightly builds of XBMC also offer hardware decoding on windows Vista and windows7 so it has become my exclusive program.
 
I am not going to be using a tuner card. Its going to be dedicated for streaming and playing dvds that I rip to it.
 
I started using XBMC on my HTPC about a year and and could not be happier.
(Running Win 7 as the OS / Vista before that)
Grab a media center remote & reciever off ebay for $22 and you are all set.

Took about 5 min to setup and another 2 min to get the MS remote keys re-mapped.
It is one of the best front ends i have ever used.

The XBMC team is working on adding Netflix and Hardware decode.
Check their forms for updates and nightly builds.
 
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