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2004/03/18, 05:56 PM
I have an old computer and I want to make it my music server. I need some guidance on how to proceed. In particular, I have some questions and I need some input. If anyone is knowledgeable and interested, I would appreciate it. Video would be nice too. I would definitely be interested in your input TSMD since you have mentioned that before. BTW I have a very limited budget for this project (c'mon it's March madness for crying out loud) We can do it here on the boards or you can message me. Thanks
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2004/03/18, 07:17 PM
Yo Agamble,
I'll help any way I can, but I am not the expert at recommending/configuring servers! But I do like my music!
I've got some questions, for you, too! How much "music" do you have? Lots? Or are you looking to acquire lots of music through web sources (some pay and share sites are actually legit)? How "old" is the computer in question? What operating system does it have? How big is the hard drive? How much memory does it have? What Operating Systems are in use onthe other PCs? Do you have cable TV? What kind of video card do you have? How many PCs do you have? How many do you want to have access to this music server?
To make a cheap and easy "entertainmemt center", do the following:
(1) forget the server idea (for now).
(2) buy yourself a $49 TV Wonder Card from ATI. Install and attach your cable TV to it. You now can watch/listen to TV - including MTV/VH1/etc. You can even record the songs and videos (or capture still images) using the software that comes with the ATI board. The quality is not perfect, but you said limited budget... Plus, if your PC can burn CDs, you can save any VHS home movies through a VCR(or your favorite BBall games right through the cable), through the ATI card, onto your hard drive, and then burn them to CD for posterity and for family sharing.
(3) save all your CDs to your PC's hard drive in WMA or MP3 format (it's compressed). If you have a decent hard drive, you should have plenty of room. Your PC probably already has a program that'll play these music files. If not, search the web for freebie programs or check out Best Buy, Media Play, etc. for a cheap MP3 or audio player program ($10).
(4) assuming you didn't listen to point #1 and still like the server idea so all of the PCs can access the info on this one, I think you're going to need to invest a significant amount of money to make this happen. You'll need server software to network your PCs (I assume you don't already have this). Now then, if you have Windows XP or 2000 on ALL of your to-be-networked PCs, you might be able to "share" the info over a local network using a router (<$40 and up???). It might give you sharing capabilities with less of an investment than going the full music server route. I have a wireless router with 4 PCs - but, unfortunately, all are running Win 98 except MY baby which is Windows XP (so I can't share with anybody through my router). And I won't invest in expensive server software (or Windows updates to 2000 or XP for the rest of the family!). So the wonder card works for me. Besides, no one else in my family would be caught dead listening to MY music!
Lots of questions, I know. Lots of ways to run with this, too. We need to get a handle on exactly what you have, what you want, what you'll settle for, and what you want to spend!
Let me know.
TSMD
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2004/03/18, 07:52 PM
agamble, how much are you looking to spend??
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Don't sweat what you have no control over... WILL IT MATTER IN A HUNDRED YEARS....
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2004/03/18, 08:04 PM
hey TSMD, you can share between your xp box and your 98 pc's. did you have problems doing that? If you want, I can help you share all of these computers.
Any pc running windows can act as a "server". Running windows 98 will not give you the same security options as NT, 2000 or XP, but resources can be shared between all of these computers.
Agamble, Once you answer all of TSMD's questions, it will be very easy for you to build what you are looking to build.
Agamble, like TSMD said, lots of questions.
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Don't sweat what you have no control over... WILL IT MATTER IN A HUNDRED YEARS....
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2004/03/19, 08:09 AM
Yo SS,
Talk to me (please!). I have a wireless linksys router connected to a cable modem. Then I have one wireless connection to an XP machine (min son just got XP), and 3 "wired" connections to 2 Win 98 machines (other son's and wife's) and a second XP machine (mine). I'd consider making mine the "server" machine, but don't I need add'l software?
Thanks,
TSMD
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2004/03/19, 10:20 AM
Ok TSMD, simple enough.
First thing you need to determine is if you want everyone to be able to share stuff or if you just want your XP machine to act as a "server". The only difference between say Windows 2000 Server and Windows 2000 Pro or XP Pro is that the server allows more people to logon concurrently and has more security features.
The first principle you need to know is that everything is based on user accounts. In XP, depending on how you login, you probably have a user name. Windows 98 didn't need this. If you set windows 98 to use a login and give it the same username and password as you use one on XP, 98 will be able to login to XP from the network.
This is what I would do to share from XP. I will get into sharing out 98 later, once we get XP shared.
First thing you need to do, is create a folder you want shared (or a whole drive itself). What you would do is, go to XP and go into my computer. Right click on a drive or folder you want to share and go to the sharing tab and enable sharing. (There is a difference between XP home and XP Pro) Which do you have?'
Once you have the drive or folder you want shared, the next thing you need to do is go to the windows 98 pc's. Right click on network neighborhood and look to where it says Primary Network Logon. Drop the menu down to Client For Microsoft Networks. Next time you reboot your 98 box, you will be prompted for a username and password (if you haven't already been getting prompted). Use the same exact username (and password if you use one, that you use for XP). Once logged in using the same credentials, double click on network neighborhood and look for your XP computer. Double click it and you should be able to get right in. Once it opens, you should see the drive or folder you shared. Now you should be able to push and pull files as you please.
Hopefully this wasn't to confusing for you. This same principle can be applied to sharing your printer with all pc's on your network.
Let me know how you make out.
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Don't sweat what you have no control over... WILL IT MATTER IN A HUNDRED YEARS....
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2004/03/19, 11:02 AM
Yo SS!
Thanks! Not too confusing at all. This folder sharing is really all we'd like to do. Thanks again. I'll let you know how it goes.
Maybe our buddy Agamble can benefit from this, too...
TSMD
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2004/03/19, 11:34 AM
ok, good luck!!
What i have at home is a windows 2000 server that has my music and video on it. This is shared and all pc's in my house can access it. Although it is a server, I could have done the same with professional. I also run my e-mail, web and game server off it.
Oh man, the true geek is shining through. This is why i wanna get buff, so i can fake it.:laugh::laugh:
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Don't sweat what you have no control over... WILL IT MATTER IN A HUNDRED YEARS....
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2004/03/19, 11:54 AM
Although I admire them both, I think Bill Gates makes a wee bit more money than Michael Jordan! Long live us geeks!
TSMD
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2004/03/19, 04:38 PM
My old machine has a Pentium 233 MMX. 96 MB Ram. 2 G hard drive. Runs Windows 98. I figure I'll have to buy a much larger hard drive and I definately want a video card. Will I need to buy a special audio card to interface with my home theater setup? Will my processor be up to speed? I want to be able to load all of my CD's on it. I would like to get setup for around $300 if possible. Also, on the video I am a Direct Tv guy. Will this cause problems? It would be sweet if I could do the movie thing as well. And the tivo alternative that you discussed previously. Thanks for your input.
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2004/03/19, 04:48 PM
BTW When I said server I mispoke. Not very knowledgeable about this stuff. I am basically looking to use it for music and video along with my home theater setup. Thanks again. That $300 is not firm (I could go higher if necessary).
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2004/03/21, 11:18 PM
hey Agamble, i dont think that machine will be great to run what you are looking to do. a 233 mmx with only 96mb of ram will run very slow and definitely won't have the power to run streaming video. As far as connecting your computer to your stereo, checkout this link: http://www.techtv.com/callforhelp/howto/story/0,24330,3338088,00.html
You should check out dell's refurbished machines. These many times are boxes that companies ordered and cancelled. You can get a nice machine, add your own video card and voila, you are in business. You can then store all your audio, and capture video if you get a capture card and some software.
Or you can go a different route and build something yourself, i am not sure how comfortable you are with doing that. I have also seen many decent pc's on ubid.com for very cheap, the only problem is, you don't really have any support and warranty may not be reliable.
There are so many possibilities. Let me know if you are looking to build something a little more custom or if you want something pre-configured and I can point you in the right direction.
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Don't sweat what you have no control over... WILL IT MATTER IN A HUNDRED YEARS....
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