Good experiences on Windows ?

[Keebler]

Hi folks,

I have a client who is Windows based and wants me to create slideshows for their 12K+ photo library. Now I could do that, but really, I think the ATV is the best way to go. I've seen the WD media server, but the ATV seems to be the easiest solution. I know it has its media limitations etc.., but for their needs, it's perfect.

Since I'm on Mac, I've had no issues, but wondering if Windows folks experience the same easy-to-use functionality? They might dload the odd movie or so, but they want to view their photos in a slideshow format.

Cheers,
Keebler

 

[JoeG4]

Windows Media Centers are pretty darn good at that sort of thing.

Positive Windows experience? I've had lots of them. Shoot, I've been using Windows as long as I can remember and I've never managed to get a virus or any of that crap on my machines, and that was without taking any special care (eg, I'd run a virus scan on the machine every 6 months and not find a thing).

The only thing, was in the Windows 9x days, the registry would be decimated after about 3 months. That happened on my MacBook's Windows Vista install, but I was very impatient that semester and kept doing hard shutdowns as I was in too big a hurry to wait for Vista to shut down xD

I wouldn't recommend an AppleTV for a Windows user because they'd have to deal with the ordeal that is iTunes on Windows. It amazes me at times that Apple thinks they can 'recruit' potential Mac users by having them use iTunes on Windows, since it's such a clunky, annoying program on there.

That's just my opinion, of course. I agree that the AppleTV looks nicer than the alternatives for the money, not sure if media center extenders can work straight with a regular desktop, but I'd check into those if you could.

 

[Keebler]

Windows Media Centers are pretty darn good at that sort of thing.

Positive Windows experience? I've had lots of them. Shoot, I've been using Windows as long as I can remember and I've never managed to get a virus or any of that crap on my machines, and that was without taking any special care (eg, I'd run a virus scan on the machine every 6 months and not find a thing).

The only thing, was in the Windows 9x days, the registry would be decimated after about 3 months. That happened on my MacBook's Windows Vista install, but I was very impatient that semester and kept doing hard shutdowns as I was in too big a hurry to wait for Vista to shut down xD

I wouldn't recommend an AppleTV for a Windows user because they'd have to deal with the ordeal that is iTunes on Windows. It amazes me at times that Apple thinks they can 'recruit' potential Mac users by having them use iTunes on Windows, since it's such a clunky, annoying program on there.

That's just my opinion, of course. I agree that the AppleTV looks nicer than the alternatives for the money, not sure if media center extenders can work straight with a regular desktop, but I'd check into those if you could.

thanks Joe. I need to chg the thread title b/c i meant windows and the appletv experiences. I certainly don't want to start another windows vs mac thread!

I didn't realize Itunes on windows didn't works so well. I'll look into the media centre, but as long as it is wireless and connect to a stereo system, then they'll be good to go.

 

[wombat888]

It works fine. They'd sync pictures by designating a folder for them. The folder can be their Adobe album folder or can just be a regular Windows folder.

Aside from that, there's little difference in using it via Windows vs using it with a Mac.

 

[KevinC867]

I wouldn't recommend an AppleTV for a Windows user because they'd have to deal with the ordeal that is iTunes on Windows. It amazes me at times that Apple thinks they can 'recruit' potential Mac users by having them use iTunes on Windows, since it's such a clunky, annoying program on there.

This made me think of something I just watched on YouTube - Steve Jobs saying that iTunes was many people's favorite Windows application. "It's like handing a glass of water to someone in Hell." That made me chuckle.

I'm not sure I would echo Steve's glowing comments, but I ran iTunes on Windows for a while before buying a Mac and I didn't have any particular problems with it.

 

[psk20]

I'm not sure I would echo Steve's glowing comments, but I ran iTunes on Windows for a while before buying a Mac and I didn't have any particular problems with it.

I can't stand it. I've only ever used iTunes in Windows and it's terrible. It freezes for seconds at a time. None of my other programs do this. I've noticed this pattern many times on a few different Windows PCs.

I'm looking forward to a better experience if/when I buy a MacBook Pro when they get Arrandale.

 

[jtmx29]

I can't stand it. I've only ever used iTunes in Windows and it's terrible. It freezes for seconds at a time. None of my other programs do this. I've noticed this pattern many times on a few different Windows PCs.

I'm looking forward to a better experience if/when I buy a MacBook Pro when they get Arrandale.

I've never had any Itunes problems in Windows. However, I have heard it runs natively better on OSX which is understandable.

 

[TheAshMan]

I agree.

This made me think of something I just watched on YouTube - Steve Jobs saying that iTunes was many people's favorite Windows application. "It's like handing a glass of water to someone in Hell." That made me chuckle.

I'm not sure I would echo Steve's glowing comments, but I ran iTunes on Windows for a while before buying a Mac and I didn't have any particular problems with it.

When I got my first iPod and started using iTunes (on Mac and Windows), I felt it was the best application I had ever used in terms of what it does. Amazing the way you could access content on the Internet in that way. Yes it demands resources, but so does every web browser, the slowness is due to pulling down Internet content. It is isn't really slow on either platform when put in proper context. People compare it to other applications, but it SHOULD be the slowest app on your system because of the volume of content it has to pull down for the right client experience. You could make a case that it seems faster on OS X, but I did a simple test with Windows Vista on Boot Camp on the same machine and iTunes performed about the same or slightly slower as in OS X.