[ArmondoGates]

Recently I have decided to move my primary XBMC from the xbox based version to a HTPC running XBMC in Linux. (or Windows 7 not committed yet)

I guess I just realize now that I can drop out of XBMC and can utilize an OS running underneath xbmc what advantages does that give me and what are some 'no brainer' things I should be doing differently with my HTPC verse my modded xbox?

What applications are a must have when running an HTPC with XBMC? Are there 'must have' applications or scripts that complement XBMC on Linux? (on Windows?)

[mkortstiege]

Do not try to use the old MyVideos34.db as it might not be compatible with recent non XBOX platform versions. Make sure to export you video library to separate files before switching the platform. Doing this will speed up the initial re-scrape (re-import) dramatically.

EDIT: If you want to use hardware acceleration for HD video playback, you should choose nvidia + linux.

[ArmondoGates]

Speaking of hardware I have planned on the following upgrades to complete my HTPC with plans to run XBMC. I am fully aware that there are tons of options when it comes to creating an HTPC and I want to avoid a hardware flame war. But these parts are in my price range and as far as I can tell should allow me to run 720p content and even 1080p Blu-Ray movies.

ASUS P5N7A-VM LGA 775 NVIDIA GeForce 9300/nForce 730i HDMI Micro ATX Intel Motherboard
Intel Core2 Duo E7500 Wolfdale 2.93GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80571E7500
Rosewill RCX-Z90-AL 92mm Sleeve CPU Cooler
G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ
nMEDIAPC HTPCKB-B Black 2.4GHz RF Wireless Mini Keyboard with Track Ball & Remote Combo Set
nMEDIAPC Black Aluminum / Acrylic / Steel HTPC 5000B Micro ATX Media Center / HTPC Case

Found here on this newegg wishlist: http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/Public...r=12172192

The parts were shown in one of the XBMC developers signatures so I can't take a lot of credit for choosing them, but I'm not the expert here and I'll take any help I can get to have the best experience I can with XBMC.