Are servers the new media?

[kennyt]

Andrew Robinson is doing just this with a network of AppleTV's and is having great success with it. I haven't gone there yet so to speak... Though as I look into new media storage for all the DVD's, BLu-rays and HD DVD's I start to wonder if I shouldn't....

[rlpiii]

Originally Posted by Lotus

Watch Apple do it.

Just watch. There is a market.

One of my friends has been trying to talk me into building a HTPC with apples for a few years now using rack mountable x servers.

It would be interesting to see apple (the company) get involved in this market.

[kloneman]

An Xserve rack would be the way I would go, if I had no constraints.

Easy to manage hardware with high build quality, room to add tons of increasingly low cost storage and built-in RAID support make a convincing case for this approach to me. Your equipment closet would not necessarily require redesign to accommodate the new equipment either. The easy administration features of Mac OSX server and "lights out" management features of Xserves should allow you to locate the rack (or racks) containing servers/storage units elsewhere onsite (preferably in another location with power conditioning and plenty of forced cooling). The only equipment required to be installed in the HT room is the unit that actually contains the Audio/Video Input/Output interface (A/V I/O).

Ultra-Hi-Quality A/V I/O interface options for Mac towers and Xserves should be researched. I know DVI output and optical I/O are standard on Mac towers and upper end Mac laptops, but the options are available that fit in an Xserve should be evaluated. If "the really good stuff" can't fit in the low profile or full size rack format Xserve CPU chassis, then something that will fit in a tower will be needed.

Originally Posted by rlpiii

One of my friends has been trying to talk me into building a HTPC with apples for a few years now using rack mountable x servers.

It would be interesting to see apple (the company) get involved in this market.

[Lotus]

Originally Posted by kloneman

Ultra-Hi-Quality A/V I/O interface options for Mac towers and Xserves should be researched. I know DVI output and optical I/O are standard on Mac towers and upper end Mac laptops, but the options are available that fit in an Xserve should be evaluated. If "the really good stuff" can't fit in the low profile or full size rack format Xserve CPU chassis, then something that will fit in a tower will be needed.

Right where as my Falcon NW PC HTPCs have HDMI 1.3 outputs.

[kloneman]

Originally Posted by Lotus

Right where as my Falcon NW PC HTPCs have HDMI 1.3 outputs.

I'm not interested in a Windows based PC.

If your PC has HDMI 1.3, then it is most likely implemented on a PCIe-based card. The card can be made to work in current model Macintoshes, since they use the same electrical interface for cards as PCs. There is a lot less to do to make it work for the currently shipping Intel processor Macintoshes because they use the same processors, so "byte swapping" is not required.

It may be possible to use the card with the last generation of Power PC based Macs, after examining the driver and performing the necessary code changes, but I suspect that the required data rates may be beyond that possible of many of the older ones, just as they would be for many older Windows based PCs.

[Lotus]

Originally Posted by kloneman

I'm not interested in a Windows based PC.

You might not be but currently the best way to run a HTPC is with a PC vs an Apple.