Windows Media Center
At A Glance
- Xbox 360 is a Windows Media Extender, so you can access videos, pictures, and music on your Media Center PC.
In my last article, I talked about Microsoft® Windows® Media Connect, which lets you stream music and pictures from a computer running Windows XP to your Xbox 360™ console. There's another way you can do this: Windows Media Center. While both sound similar, they each work differently.
What Is Windows Media Center?
Windows Media Center is, in short, a PC entertainment hub for your home. Usually, people buy a Media Center PC, which has Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 pre-installed and all the necessary equipment to connect it to a TV and entertainment center.
One cool thing about Media Center is the Media Center Extender. A Media Center Extender is a device that connects to your network for streaming media from your Media Center PC. When hooked up to televisions throughout your home, these devices let you access videos, pictures, and music on your Media Center PC. Your Xbox 360 console is a Media Center Extender, so it too can stream media from your Media Center PC.
One quick note about acronyms: MCE stands for Media Center Edition, and MCX means Media Center Extender. The confusing one is WMC. Sometimes people use it to mean Windows Media Center, but it actually stands for Windows Media Connect. Just FYI!
How Do I Set It Up?
Much like Windows Media Connect, your Media Center PC and your Xbox 360 console need to be connected. Take a look at this Introduction to Home Networking article for tips about setting up your network.
Unlike Windows Media Connect, which will run on any edition of Windows XP, you need a Media Center PC to use the Media Center features on your Xbox 360 console.
Get your Media Center PC up and running before connecting it to your console. To learn more about Windows Media Center, or for information about configuring your Media Center PC, check the Media Center Web site. When you have your Media Center PC happily running in your home, you can connect to your Xbox 360 console.
To begin, go to your console, select MediaCenter, and follow the instructions, which include taking down an eight-digit code. When you’ve finished, leave the console on and take the code to your Media Center PC. Go to www.xbox.com/pcsetup and follow a few more instructions. The setup program installs the necessary Media Center Extender software and sets up the connection to your console using the code you wrote down. (It also sets up Windows Media Connect at the same time.)
Select Media Center for Windows Media Center
After setup is complete, you can access all your pictures, videos, and music on your PC from your Xbox 360 console. Just go to the Media area and select Media Center. When it finds your Media Center PC, it will launch Media Center. You can then navigate your media from your console just like you would if you were using the Media Center PC.
How Do I Tweak My Settings?
There's a whole slew of information out there about how to set up and use Media Center, so I won't go into that here. As a Media Center Extender, your Xbox 360 console will have a look and feel very much like your Media Center PC. Once you're familiar with your Media Center PC, using the extender on your console should be a snap.
Media Center
You may want to access newly added media on your console after you've established the initial connection to your Media Center PC. To add media, select My Videos, My Pictures, or My Music. If you're using an Xbox 360 controller, press X. If you're using a media remote, press Info. Select the option to add media, and then browse the folders and add the media you want to access from your console.
If you want to connect another Xbox 360 console to your Media Center PC, or if you need to reconnect your existing one, you can add it through Media Center Extender Manager. On your Media Center PC, select Start, All Programs, Accessories, Media Center, Media Center Extender Manager. Select File, then select Add a New Xbox 360. This will start the second part of the setup program you originally ran to set up your connection.
What If It Doesn't Work?
More than likely, everything will run like butter and you'll be streaming media to your console in no time. If not, here are some suggestions:
- Make sure you are running Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005. Go to Media Center in the Media area of the Xbox Dashboard, follow the steps, and write down your eight-digit code. If you run the setup program from www.xbox.com/pcsetup on your computer and are not asked for this code, you probably are not running Windows XP Media Center Edition.
- Check your firewall settings. If you are running Windows Firewall, the setup program should open the correct ports for you. If not, you may have to take some additional steps. For more information about setting up your firewall, see the firewall section in the Setting It Up article.
- If you're having trouble with playback, make sure you're using a wired or 802.11a wireless connection and a router that's compatible with Media Center. If you're using wireless, try getting around radio interference by moving your equipment or antennas. For more tips about improving network performance, see Media Center Extender Network Performance.
If these suggestions don't help, there's still a lot of info available. Try these links:
This concludes our foray into the world of PC media. Rock on!
