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BrianG · 05.20.2012, 09:04 PM

Another (final?) update:

Well, after lots more digging, it doesn't look like the real-time video transcoding from ISO files will be feasible. To stream an ISO, I can set the server up to basically "blast" the stream to the client, but there is no client control (like fast-forwarding, rewinding, etc). And even if decide to stop the movie, there is no way for the client to tell the server to stop transcoding (without killing the process obviously). To do this right, you'd have all your media pre-converted to a suitable format, and to support some advanced functions, you'd have to encode it in "chunks". So, it could be done, but it won't be very practical.

Learning that, I was a little disappointed, but I did find that the WD TV Live device which will allow hookup to a TV and pull the movies (in raw ISO form) from my Windows "server" over a wired or wireless network (and without needing any kind of transcoding). It's about the size of a Roku box and is surprisingly full-featured for the money. It allows ISO playback from a Windows or Linux network share, and it also does lots of the streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, etc (but doesn't do Amazon). It also lets you hook up an external HDD with your media on it for those who don't have a server. So, I hopped down to BestBuy and picked up the unit for $100. I hooked it up to my bedroom TV via HDMI, a couple minutes downloading/installing an update, and then setting up the share locations and it's good to go.

So, I'll keep the music player web app I already built so I can listen to music on my phone while mowing the lawn or sitting on the john (I know, nice image right?), but will be removing the video portion of the app. Adding a $100 WD TV Live to any TV that I want to access the ISO movies is a little more than I wanted to spend, but sure is easier, smaller, and cheaper than tethering a full-fledged computer with XBMC or Media Center to a TV.

I guess we can mark this project as "done" then. The system now will do everything I set out to do for the most part, except real-time transcoding to ANY device. But aside from other TV's in the house, I really don't see where I would have used that functionality to an appreciable degree.

I'm glad this is done, because it seems like I'm just about the only one that posts in this thread lately, and it was beginning to feel like I was talking to myself.

@Rawfuls:
I'm sorry, but I can't answer you question yet. Despite have TV DVR functionality in the media server, no one has really used it much yet so I have no idea how the system would manage a large library of TV shows and their associated seasons. I think my wife used it once to record a baking show or something, but that's about it.

But if I were in your shoes, I would start by putting all your TV shows in a separate media folder (named something like "TV Shows" or something), and apply a share specific to it. Then, it should be a matter of finding the software that will treat that one area as TV shows and download all the meta data for it. Maybe MediaBrowser? Dunno.

	(#53)
BrianG RC-Monster Admin Offline Posts: 14,609 Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Des Moines, IA	05.20.2012, 09:04 PM Another (final?) update: Well, after lots more digging, it doesn't look like the real-time video transcoding from ISO files will be feasible. To stream an ISO, I can set the server up to basically "blast" the stream to the client, but there is no client control (like fast-forwarding, rewinding, etc). And even if decide to stop the movie, there is no way for the client to tell the server to stop transcoding (without killing the process obviously). To do this right, you'd have all your media pre-converted to a suitable format, and to support some advanced functions, you'd have to encode it in "chunks". So, it could be done, but it won't be very practical. Learning that, I was a little disappointed, but I did find that the WD TV Live device which will allow hookup to a TV and pull the movies (in raw ISO form) from my Windows "server" over a wired or wireless network (and without needing any kind of transcoding). It's about the size of a Roku box and is surprisingly full-featured for the money. It allows ISO playback from a Windows or Linux network share, and it also does lots of the streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, etc (but doesn't do Amazon). It also lets you hook up an external HDD with your media on it for those who don't have a server. So, I hopped down to BestBuy and picked up the unit for $100. I hooked it up to my bedroom TV via HDMI, a couple minutes downloading/installing an update, and then setting up the share locations and it's good to go. So, I'll keep the music player web app I already built so I can listen to music on my phone while mowing the lawn or sitting on the john (I know, nice image right?), but will be removing the video portion of the app. Adding a $100 WD TV Live to any TV that I want to access the ISO movies is a little more than I wanted to spend, but sure is easier, smaller, and cheaper than tethering a full-fledged computer with XBMC or Media Center to a TV. I guess we can mark this project as "done" then. The system now will do everything I set out to do for the most part, except real-time transcoding to ANY device. But aside from other TV's in the house, I really don't see where I would have used that functionality to an appreciable degree. I'm glad this is done, because it seems like I'm just about the only one that posts in this thread lately, and it was beginning to feel like I was talking to myself. @Rawfuls: I'm sorry, but I can't answer you question yet. Despite have TV DVR functionality in the media server, no one has really used it much yet so I have no idea how the system would manage a large library of TV shows and their associated seasons. I think my wife used it once to record a baking show or something, but that's about it. But if I were in your shoes, I would start by putting all your TV shows in a separate media folder (named something like "TV Shows" or something), and apply a share specific to it. Then, it should be a matter of finding the software that will treat that one area as TV shows and download all the meta data for it. Maybe MediaBrowser? Dunno.