Turn Your Computer into a Media Server in Your Gainesville Apartment
As technologies have rapidly grown and changed, the ways in which we consume music, TV, movies, and other forms of entertainment have drastically transformed as well. Now, with just a click, it’s possible to purchase and download nearly any type of digital entertainment from a wide variety of devices. Using a computer as a media center to consolidate, sort, and distribute your various videos, e-books, and music tracks is an easy way to help yourself get the most out of your purchases.
If you’re interested in turning your computer into a media server, it’s important that you’re able to connect it with all of the devices you want to send content to, or receive content from. While many devices can be easily connected through standard USB ports, network cables, and wireless networks, there are a few pieces of hardware that can be installed to improve the functionality of your media server, including:
- TV tuner cards – These devices make it possible to send and receive data over coaxial lines, allowing your media center to receive and distribute cable TV programming.
- Video cards – These cards act as a miniature computer devoted solely to processing your computer’s graphics, and are common in many computers. Adding a better video card to your media center can improve the graphics streamed directly from your machine and allow you to connect devices through a variety of wires, including HDMI, VGA, DVI and S- Video.
- Bluetooth adaptors – Bluetooth is a high-speed wireless network that operates over very short distances, but can allow your media center to automatically sync up with mobile devices when they are brought within range.
The most important decision you’ll have to make when setting up your media server is the software you’ll use to operate it. There are many options to choose from, depending on your operating system, such as Windows Media Center or Orb for Windows PCs; LinuxMCE or MythTV for Linux PCs; or iTunes or Twonky Media Server for Apple computers. Some programs, such as VideoLAN, also include features that allow you to stream media to other devices in your Gainesville apartment without requiring a controlling program, allowing you to create your own media server using the mix of technologies you prefer.
To find out more tech tips for apartment residents, you can browse the other informative articles on our website. And if you’re looking for a new place to call home, contact Bellamay Grand today and ask about the units we have available to rent.
