Apple TV 2 converting local media?

[dnelms]

I have many (all physically owned) DVD's burned to MKV format. I have started a conversion of these to MP4 or M4v format so I can use my iPad to view movies (or TV shows) during weekends at work. I am now considering replacing my WDTV Live box with the Apple TV 2. Can someone make sure I'm on the right track in my assumptions.

1. If I have a TV show/movie in MP4 format stored on an external HDD (actually 3 of them) that is on my network, and I use my itunes library to point to those locations, they will show up in the Apple TV?

2. Looking at the interface for purchased/rent videos from iTunes, is the interface similar for local content as described above?

3. I do have the option to be wired or wireless in the location this will be. I assume wired would work better (already have 2 other wired devices in this hub)

Thanks for any help or advice.

 

[Panch0]

1) if they are in iTunes and compatible (bitrate and resolution) then they will be available from ATV.

2) I didn't see anything described above, but local content is accessed through the "Computers" menu on ATV2. It's just a list, not the grid display that the iTunes rental menus provide. It does include the cover art though. I've never checked to see if there is an option to change the display of local content. To be honest, since I got the ATV2, I rarely watch anything I had ripped as almost all of it is available through Netflix.

3) Yes, the ATV can be wireless. Wireless N really does make a difference (or it did for me), but Wireless G is fast enough to stream. I think it is a good idea to have at least one side of the connection wired - preferably the PC. This prevents you from wirelessly accessing the networked drives and then wirelessly streaming from the PC to the ATV. In theory it should all work wirelessly, but if you have the option to be wired, do it.

 

[From A Buick 8]

My vote would be to operate the ATV "wired", it just removes a whole set of potential issues.

For my personal collection in iTunes i use Playlist folders and smart playlist to keep the movies and TV Shows organized.

For instance, with TV shows I created a playlist folder with the TV show name (Example: “Everybody Loves Raymond), then I create a smart playlist for each season and bury that smart playlist inside of the Playlist folder.