To accompany this issue’s feature on SmartTV/NetTV we’ve decided to pick some of the most useful programs we’ve encountered recently in the television and media-playing arena. Read on and you’ll find some of the best tools for enjoying and getting the most from your stored media. That’s music, TV, video and even the odd Windows Media Center plugin.
AirPlay for Windows Media Center
Make your Windows PC play nicely with Apple’s AirPlay technology. Using this Media Center plugin you’ll be able to stream videos and photos straight to your desktop or home theater computer. In addition to this you’ll need to ensure that the Apple Bonjour service is installed then simply download and install the Window Media Center plug-in from the link below.
Boxee
A great HTPC (Home Theatre PC) alternative to the Windows route. Boxee boasts a 10-foot user, interface designed for your large television, and some really useful social networking features. While it’s still in beta, the end game for this startup is to have Boxee running on as many third party hardware platforms and operating systems as possible.
Forget Windows Media Center, why not try this great-looking free alternative?
Filmotech
If you’re finding that keeping track of all your computer’s movies is an uphill struggle you may want to draft in some assistance. Filmotech is a very adept movie collection management program. Importing movies and their accompanying data can all be done automatically. But if you’re not happy with the process you can go back in and manually edit information.
MediaKeys
Don’t fancy forking out for the additional cost that comes with media-capable keyboards? Then we’re offering you a free alternative with MediaKeys. You can configure specific keys on your run of the mill keyboard that are able to control your media player globally. Meaning they can be used in any number of applications such as iTunes and Windows Media Player.
Miro
This little powerhouse of an application started off as a desktop-based portal for all your video and audio needs. But now it’s so much more. The latest release brings about support for iTunes libraries as well as the ability to sync with Android devices, effectively aligining itself as iTunes for Google’s operating system.
Mobile Media Converter
Want to add your favourite YouTube movie or song to your media centre computer? Then you’ll defintely want to install Mobile Media Converter. You’ll have the ability to download online media and then trim the audio or crop the video. Output options are also plentiful with MP3, wma, ogg, wav, avi, mov and more to choose from.
Plex
Forget constantly having to sync your smartphone so you can catch up on a movie or television program during your commute. With Plex you can stream audio and video from your computer to a mobile device. There are apps for both Android and iOS so nobody has to miss out. Plus if you load it and experience a sense of déjà vu, then that’s because it’s a spinoff from XBMC.
Stream movies, television episodes and music from your computer to your smartphone
WinGrooves
For those that are sick of not being able to use their keyboard’s media keys when cruising through Grooveshark’s vast archive of music. WinGrooves provides you with a decent desktop alternative to the browser option. However, if you don’t have a media-capable keyboard yourself then have no fear because you can create your own global hot keys.
TVRigger
Once you’ve installed this freeware application you’ll never miss your favourite television show again. Once you’ve configured the software it will automatically locate and download TV series’ of your choosing as soon as they are released. You can even browse episode lists, plot synopses, cast lists and play episode trailers.
XBMC
Originally conceived as a media centre application for the first-generation Xbox, XBMC is now a fully fledged free and open source cross-platform digital media hub cum HTPC. The latest version has its very own app store-type feature called Add-on manager. This allows you to completely customise the software and integrate more functionality when you see fit.
All these great tools are part of issue 314 of PC Plus, on the shelves on 18th October 2011. Subscribe today to the paper edition and you can get it up to a week early! Subscribe to PC Plus.
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