D-link BOXEE User Manual

Boxee User Manual

Table of contents

About Boxee Boxee Features Boxee FAQ

Installing Boxee

 Supported Platforms  Minimum system Requirements

Installing the Software

 Windows  Mac OS  Linux Ubuntu  Apple TV

Setting Up Boxee

 First Time Use  Basic Settings  Calibrating the Screen  Setting Up Resolution  Setting Up Secondary Screen  Setting Up your Region  Changing Background Image

Organizing your Media Library

 Adding Media Sources  File Scanning  Naming policy  Resolving Unidentified Movie files  Manual Movie and TV Show Identification  Resetting/Erasing database  Hiding Adult content

Setting up Services and Users

 Adding Social Network feeds  Adding and Removing User

Using Boxee

 Navigating Boxee  Adding Removing Shortcut  Removing Shows from History  Search

Movies and TV Shows

 Viewing a Local Movie or a TV Show  The TV Show Library  The Movie Library  Adding and Removing to the Queue

Music

 Listening to local Music

Photos

 Viewing Local Photos

Apps

 Adding and removing Apps  Adding Third-Party Apps Repository

Files

 Using File Browser

Settings

 Local Sources  Look & Feel  Media  System  Network  Personal  Parental Control  OSD – Video  OSD – Audio  OSD – Subtitles

Useful Links

About Boxee

Boxee is the first free, open source social-media software that allows users to personalize their home media experience. Boxee is available for Windows, Mac, Linux and Apple TV(through a 3rd developer).

Boxee allows users to instantly access their personal library of digital movies, TV shows, music and photos, and stream content to their TV from websites like Netflix, MLB.TV, Comedy Central, Pandora, Last.fm, and Flickr. Boxee's wired to social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter, so users can share their favorite media with friends and family. All this from a free software program that visually beautiful and simple to use.

Boxee Features

Home Screen

The Home Screen is your hub for recommendations and content: see recommendations from your friends on Boxee, Facebook or Twitter in Boxee's Feed;

recommendations from Boxee’s staff and partners in our Featured section; and the

latest episodes from your favorite shows or things you’ve saved for later in your

Queue.

The Home Screen is where it all starts! You will be able to navigate to any area of Boxee from the here.

The Boxee Home Screen

Designed for your TV screen, Boxee's user interface defaults to full screen mode, You can change the display settings to force the application to appear in a window if you prefer (see Settings). You can use a mouse, a remote control, a keyboard or any combination you choose to navigate the controls of the Boxee user interface (UI).

Global Menu Screen

This menu makes it easy to access helpful resources and it is made up of three rows.

1. Logout Row - Logout, Settings, Queue, Feed, History

2. Media Row - Photos, Music, Movies, Home, TV Shows, Apps, Files

3. ShortCuts Row - to your favorite Apps, TV Shows, Movies, or folders/files

Media Row

Logout Row

ShortCuts Row

Featured

Featured Section on Home Screen

Featured

Feed

Feed Screen

Queue

Queue Section on Home Screen

Queue Screen

TV Shows

TV Show Library

My TV Shows

Movies

Applications

Files

Sharing

Boxee FAQ

1. What is Boxee?

Boxee is the best way to watch movies, TV shows and clips from the Internet on your TV. You can buy a device powered by Boxee or build your own Boxee using a new or used computer.

2. What can I watch on my Boxee? If it’s available on the Internet, then you can probably watch it on your Boxee - there are more than 40,000 TV show episodes and movies currently available through Boxee. Plus, you can play personal stuff from your network or hard-drive.

3. How do I watch live TV? It depends on what you want to watch. Some Boxee applications like BBC or MLB broadcast live content. However, most content from mainstream TV makes it way into our TV Show library soon after it airs.

4. Are there monthly fees to use the Boxee? Boxee does not charge you any monthly fees, but some premium applications accessible through Boxee require a fee.

5. What is the Boxee Box by D-Link? It's the first major device powered by Boxee on the market. It’s an all-in-one box specialized to run Boxee and it comes with a useful QWERTY remote -- all eliminating the need to use a computer to run Boxee on your TV.

6. Why does Boxee require a login? Boxee is meant to be social - not just with friends online, but also with people in your house. With this in mind we designed Boxee with multiple user accounts so that your social network, favorite TV shows and apps remain personalized and accessible only to you. If you want Boxee to log in to your account automatically when it starts up, make sure there are no other user accounts added to your Boxee and select "remember password" from the login screen.

7. I can't remember my password, how can I fetch a new one? Use our Password Recovery tool.

8. How do I know that an application or TV show is not playing because it's geoblocked, and not because of some other problem with Boxee?

Some content providers block access to their content from outside their region due to distribution agreements in different parts of the world.

The easiest way to know which is which is to visit to the original content provider's website and try to play the media directly from there. If it works on their website, it should also work in Boxee. If it won't play on their website, then Boxee won't play it either.

9. How do I upgrade Boxee? You will be prompted to upgrade when a new version is available whenever you login.

10. Which video formats can Boxee play? Boxee supports Adobe Flash 10.1, FLV/On2 VP6 (FLV/FV4/M4V), H.264 AVC

(TS/AVI/MKV/MOV/M2TS/MP4), VC-1 (TS/AVI/MKV/WMV), MPEG-1 (DAT/MPG/MPEG), MPEG-2 (MPG/MPEG/VOB/TS/TP/ISO/IFO), MPEG-4 (MP4/AVI/MOV), DivX 3/4/5/6 (AVI/MKV), Xvid (AVI/MKV), and WMV9 (WMV/ASF/DVR-MS).

11. Which audio formats can Boxee play? Boxee supports MP3, WAV/PCM/LPCM, WMA, AIF/AIFF, AC3/AAC, OGG, FLAC, DTS, and Dolby Digital/Dolby True HD

12. Which image formats can Boxee display? Boxee supports JPEG, PNG, GIF, BMP, TIFF.

13. How can I contact Boxee? There are many ways:

If you want to report a bug, ask us a question or even suggest an improvement, then you should visit our Knowledge Base. There you’ll find our Getting Started and

Troubleshooting guides. If you still can’t find the answer you need, then try our

Community Forums where expert users assist others -- The response is usually pretty

fast.

Installing Boxee

Apple Macintosh

Mac OS X (Intel Only) (Tiger 10.4, Leopard 10.5, Snow Leopard 10.6)

Linux

Ubuntu (9.10 Karmic Koala, 10.04 Lucid Lynx)

Windows

Windows (XP, Vista, 7)

Apple TV

Boxee is available for the Apple TV through a 3rd party developer (firmware

2.x and above)

Supported Platforms

What are the minimum system requirements to run Boxee?

Suggested Hardware

CPU

Apple Macintosh

 dual-core x86 (Intel only) based system running at 2.66GHz or greater  2 GB system memory (RAM) or more

Linux

 dual-core x86 (Intel/AMD processor) based system running at 2.0GHz or

greater

 video card that supports VDPAU(currently NVIDIA GeForce 8 series and

later) AND libvdpau1 installed.

 2 GB system memory (RAM) or more

Windows (Vista, 7)

 dual-core x86 (Intel/AMD processor) based system running at 1.6GHz or

greater

 video card that supports hardware accelerated Flash (see below)  2 GB system memory (RAM) or more

Windows (XP) - does NOT support hardware accelerated video

 dual-core x86 (Intel/AMD processor) based system running at 2.4GHz or

greater

 2 GB system memory (RAM) or more

Video Card

(for hardware accelerated Flash(10.1) video with Windows Vista, Windows 7 ONLY)

 NVidia Cards: Geforce GTS xxx, Geforce GTX xxx, Geforce GT xxx,

Geforce 9xxx, Geforce 8xxx, MCP79 (Ion), MCP78, MCP7A

 ATI Cards: Radeon HD 4xxx, Mobility Radeon HD 4xxx , Radeon HD

3xxx

 Intel Cards: X4500HD (part of G45 chipset), X4500MHD (part of GM45

chipset)

Recommended minimum internet connection speed?

To enjoy Boxee's online content we recommend the follow minimum internet connection speed for Boxee to perform well :

 SD (360p) requires at least 1000 kbps  480p requires at least 1500 kbps  HD (720p) requires at least 2500 kbps  HDX (1080p) requires 4500 kbps

Installing Boxee

Ensure the machine you are installing Boxee on has up-to-date software and

drivers.

Download the relevant version of Boxee for your operating system.

To use the Boxee application you will need to register with Boxee. So why not do it while the file downloads?

If you choose not to register at this time, you can also register when you first use Boxee. Just check New User and enter a valid email address, then pick a user name and password.

Already a registered Boxee user? Great! There is no need to log in now. Just download the file and continue to follow the directions for your operating system below.

Windows Installation

 Click on the file that was downloaded  Click on Yes (to answer the windows warning message)  The following screen will appear

 Click Next  Click I Agree (Boxee license agreement)  If the default destination folder is OK with you, then click Next  Click Install

 Click Finish  Click on the Boxee icon that was added to your desktop  Boxee will start  Now go to first time use to continue the installation process

Mac Installation

 Click on the .dmg file that was downloaded  You'll now see the initial install screen for Boxee which currently looks like

this.

 Continue through the install process and complete the installation of Boxee  Click on Boxee in your Applications folder  Boxee will start  Now go to first time use to continue the installation process

Linux Ubuntu Installation

 Click on the .deb file that was downloaded  Click on Install Package  Wait for it to finish  Click Close  To start Boxee go to: Applications > Sound & Video > Boxee  Boxee will start  Now go to first time use to continue the installation process

Apple TV Installation

Installing Boxee on an AppleTV will require three things:

 a computer running Mac OS X or Windows XP/Vista  a USB flash drive which will work as a patchstick  an AppleTV

Here are a couple of video tutorials that will walk through this process:

 How to make the patchstick  How to install the patchstick on Apple TV

Not all USB flash drives will work to patch the AppleTV but there is an AppleTV

Flash Drive Compatibility List .

Once you've obtained a flash drive you'll need to download the most recent version of

atvusb-creator.

Making the patchstick

1. Insert a "bootable" USB drive into your PC/Mac

2. Run the ATVUSB-Creator

3. Click on Create Using or Create Patchstick

4. Remove the USB drive and plug it into your Apple TV

Installing

1. Power on your Apple TV and the patchstick will run the ATV bootloader

2. After the bootloader finishes, remove it and restart your Apple TV

3. It now has options for Boxee / XBMC on the main menu

4. Click on Boxee, then select update launcher and then update Boxee Beta

5. Once Boxee is done installing, restart your Apple TV

6. Click Boxee

7. Boxee will start

8. Now go to first time use to continue the installation process

Setting Up Boxee

First time use

Welcome to Boxee. Congratulations, you are about to use your TV in a brand new way!

Once you download and install Boxee there are a few things that are specific for first time use.

The first time you start / run Boxee you will be presented with the login screen.

Registered User If you have already registered at the Boxee Website, you will be asked to

enter your username and password.

 Choose 'Remember Password' to automatically log in to Boxee each time

you start Boxee. (this can be changed at any time in Change User)

 Select Login

Not Registered If you have not yet registered at the Boxee Website, check New User and

then enter your email address, a username, and password.

 Choose 'Remember Password' to automatically log in to Boxee each time

you start Boxee. (this can be changed at any time in Change User)

 Select Done

You will then be asked if you would like to do a screen calibration.

 If you feel your screen is OK (looks like the ones above), Select Skip.

 If you feel your screen is not OK (does not look like the ones above), Select

OK.

Basic Settings

Calibrating the Screen

When running Boxee for the first time after an install, you will be asked if you would like to calibrate the screen. You can choose to calibrate now or skip calibration.If you choose not to calibrate at install, you can always do this adjustment at any time if you find your screen is not calibrated correctly and/or parts of the Boxee user interface are missing off the screen.

To set Boxee to fit your screen, please follow these instructions:

 Go to Settings > Look & Feel > Screen > Screen Format & overscan...

 You may be able to get your screen adjusted correctly by using the 'standard

adjustments' above.

 If your screen still needs more adjustment then click on Advanced

Calibration

 You will be presented a screen like you see below:

 On this screen use the enter / select key to move between the four adjustment

cursors. They will turn green when selected.

 First, go to the top left cursor (seen above) and use the arrow keys to position

it in the top left corner of the screen. You should be able to see the green arrow-head and two thin green lines in the corner.

 Next, switch to the bottom right cursor and adjust it so you see the arrow-

head and the two thin lines in that corner.

 Now select the subtitle positioning bar and move it up or down to the

position on the screen were you would like to see the subtitles presented.

 Finally, move to the center square (aspect ratio) and adjust it to ensure box is

square(use a flexible ruler if required) and the circle round.

 That's it! Your screen is now calibrated. Hit Esc or Back until you reach the

Home Screen.

Setting Screen Resolution

Since Boxee has been designed as a home media center, it starts in full screen mode the first time you use it. You can change this at any time by changing the resolution for Boxee on your display from the menu at Settings > Look & Feel > Screen >

Resolution. If you have one display attached you will be given two options: Full Screen and Windowed. Select the option you would like to use, then select Test & apply resolution and OK.

Setting up a Secondary Screen

If you have two displays attached, you can control the resolution for Boxee in your main, as well as your secondary display.

Set your display preferences to "extended desktop" on you computer.

1. Run Boxee.

2. Go to Settings > Appearance > Screen.

3. For Resolution, choose Full Screen #2.

4. Click on Test Resolution.

You can also toggle between window and full screen modes, by hitting the "\" (backslash) key.

Set your Region

Set your Region and Language by going to Settings > Look & Feel > Region in the Boxee.

Setting your region enables you to personalize your version of Boxee in your preferred language with the correct time, date and weather temperature(displayed in the top right corner of your screen).

 Some content providers block access to their content from outside their region.

That has to do with distribution rights in different parts of the world, and lots of legal mumble jumbo we won't get into here.

 Technically, those content providers check the IP address of your the

computer, and block access to IP's not within the authorized region.

 There are some ways of getting the desired IP address for your computer, even

when connecting from different parts of the world, and you can probably google for more info on that matter.

How do I know that an application is not playing because it's geo-blocked, and not because of some other problem with Boxee?

The easiest way would be to pay a visit to the original content provider's website and try to play the media directly from there. If it works on their website, it should also work in Boxee. If it won't play on their website, then Boxee won't play it either.

So, which Boxee applications are geo-blocked? Here's a short and partial (as we don't really know which applications the community is adding to Boxee, we can only testify on the apps developed in-house) list of the geo-blocked services in Boxee:

Blocked for IP's outside the US:

 CBS  Hulu feeds  Joost (only part of the content)  MTV (most of the content)  Netflix  The WB  Amazon  Pandora

Blocked for IP's outside the UK:

 BBC iPlayer

So why are you showing me stuff I can't watch?

If you do not wish to see those feeds and applications pointing to such content, please do the following:

1. Open Boxee Settings > Look & Feel > Region.

2. Check the Hide feeds and applications that cannot be played in your

region option.

That's it. Now you will not see those feeds and applications any more.

Change the Background Image

Change the background image Boxee uses at:

 Settings > Look & Feel > Background Image  Select Set background image  Browse your local file system to the desired image  Select the image and then select OK

You can also have Boxee cycle through images in a folder you specify to be displayed in the background.

Change the Background images folder at:

 Settings > Look & Fee > Background Image  Select Set background images folder  Browse your local file system to the desired folder  Select the folder and then select OK

If the background images folder has been previously set it can be reset to the default image by going back to:

 Settings > Look & Fee > Background Image  Select Reset background images folder

Organizing your media library

Adding Media Sources

Media sources are folders or drives Boxee looks through to identify and add media content to the TV Shows, Movies, Music, Photos and Files screens. By default, a few sources are pre-defined in the Boxee installation, and those include your operating system's default media folders (i.e. Microsoft Windows' "My Music", "My Videos" and "My Pictures" folders).

You can add as many sources to Boxee as you like from your local hard drive, external hard drives or from your network. You will need to make sure you have access to shared folders in the networked computer hosting the media you want to share. If the media source is on a Mac computer, you will need to define the share as SMB.

There are several ways by which you can get to adding a source in Boxee.

From the Home Screen select one of the following methods:

1. Settings > Local Sources > Add Sources, select the source you would like to

add, select Add Source

2. Settings > Local Sources > Add Sources, go to the bottom of the list and

select Manually Enter IP / Name...

- Enter the Hostname or IP of the remote machine

- Enter the Username and Password of the remote machine and select OK

- Choose the drive, folder or file you would like to add and then select Add Source

- NOTE: if you do not set a static IP for the source computer, the source might become unavailable when the IP address changes.

3. Files, select the source you would like to add, from the left/slide menu select

Add Media Share

4. Movies, TV Shows or Music, from the left/slide menu select Manage

Sources > Add Sources select the source you would like to add, select Add Source

You will be presented with this screen (SETTINGS : LOCAL FILES):

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