Is it possible to stream from outside a itunes library

[davethis]

I want to get a ATV2 and have it stream content from the hard drive connected to my AirPort Extreme. The content is not in a itunes Library. My ITunes library is on my MBP so I can take it on the road with me. I would also like my wife to be able to watch the movies from the Airport Extreme when my MBP is with me.

I do not think this is possible but I thought i would ask anyways.

Thanks,
Dave

 

[bigpatky]

not at this time

 

[dXTC]

When iOS 4.2 comes out, she could stream media from an iPhone/iPod touch/iPad to it via AirPlay when you're gone. Otherwise, yeah, you're stuck.

Here's an idea, though: Get a used Intel Mac Mini with Leopard or an old Windows XP box or rundown laptop with a busted CD drive, or perhaps your wife has a computer of her own. Get it on the network, install iTunes on it, point iTunes to the media on your external on the AEBS and leave it running tucked away in a corner (with no monitor, if desired).

That way, your wife will always see an active iTunes library, and you won't have to have your MBP on just to watch a movie at home-- the old spare computer is now your iTunes media server.

(This is probably one of the most useful ways to "repurpose" an old computer.)

 

[laurim]

(This is probably one of the most useful ways to "repurpose" an old computer.)

That's exactly what I'm doing with an old 15" Macbook G4 on its last legs. Didn't have the heart to recycle it yet, even though the battery is dead, it's a PowerPC so it won't upgrade to Snow Leopard and it mysteriously goes to sleep if I put pressure on the speaker area around the power button. Even with all that, it still makes a great iTunes conduit sitting inside my tv credenza. Actually, my iTunes media files are on a repurposed hard drive I salvaged out of my old G4 Graphite tower I did finally recycle. So my setup is largely repurposed old macs.

 

[davethis]

Here's an idea, though: Get a used Intel Mac Mini with Leopard or an old Windows XP box or rundown laptop with a busted CD drive, or perhaps your wife has a computer of her own. Get it on the network, install iTunes on it, point iTunes to the media on your external on the AEBS and leave it running tucked away in a corner (with no monitor, if desired).

Thanks for the reply!! We do have an older MacPro, so I could do this. I just do not like to leave it running all the time sucking energy/money. To bad iTunes has to be running. It would be great if we could stream from the library file from the AEBS. Maybe I will have to look around for a used Mini, that does not use as much electricity.

Perhaps some day...

 

[laurim]

Thanks for the reply!! We do have an older MacPro, so I could do this. I just do not like to leave it running all the time sucking energy/money. To bad iTunes has to be running. It would be great if we could stream from the library file from the AEBS. Maybe I will have to look around for a used Mini, that does not use as much electricity.

Perhaps some day...

If it helps any, you could set the MacPro to turn itself off at night and restart itself the next day when you're likely to need it and have iTunes as a login item that starts on its own. That's how I save some energy.

 

[fpnc]

I use a 1.5GHz PowerPC Mac mini as my iTunes server (which is attached to a 1.5GB external drive). It works great on my first generation Apple TV and I can even use Mac OS X's web sharing feature to stream video content from the Mac mini to my iPad. I also use Apple's Home Sharing feature to keep this Apple TV-synched Mac mini up-to-date with the copy of iTunes I run on my main ("work") computer.

You really don't need much horsepower to host an iTunes server (just about any Mac mini would do). I just wish Apple would come out with a relatively low cost, low-power consumption, dedicated iTunes/File server that would work with the Apple TV, iPad, iPhone, and Mac OS X. And, no, the current Mac mini at $699 does not quality as "low cost."

 

[dXTC]

You really don't need much horsepower to host an iTunes server (just about any Mac mini would do). I just wish Apple would come out with a relatively low cost, low-power consumption, dedicated iTunes/File server that would work with the Apple TV, iPad, iPhone, and Mac OS X. And, no, the current Mac mini at $699 does not quality as "low cost."

This, +1, QFT, what have ya. Heck, even an old netbook from ebay or craigslist can do the trick. All it needs to do is host the iTunes library file, which could fit on one of those first-generation netbooks that only came with 16 Gb storage.

Unfortunately, the $699 mini is about as "low-cost" as Apple is willing to make. Admittedly, it's a good all-around solution, for those with the cash; it could be the iTunes host, the host for the actual media files, and a ripping/HandBrake-ing workhorse, all in one machine.