media center + xbox360

[YoungGun21]

Some of you may remember my thread here about selling my Wii and buying a PS3. Well I've changed my mind and am going to buy the new 60gb Xbox 360 but I have a few questions about using it as stated here in the FAQ:

12. What else can I do with my 360 other than just game? LifeHacker has a good round-up of using the Media Center, Netflix streaming, Wi-Fi Adapters, streaming media via Windows PC or a MAC, quieter fans, DIY VGA Output, and using Transcode 360.

So to use the 360 as a DVR type machine I would need to set things up like this, correct?
Xbox360 to TV using HDMI
Xbox360 to port switch (my router is full) using Cat5e
PC to port switch using Cat5e
TV to TV tuner card using S-video

Would this setup allow me to share media between my Xbox360 and my PC, as well as let me record movies and TV shows like a DVR? Would this also get my Xbox360 connected to the internet? I have Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005.

 

[Queasy]

Right. You would be recording all your shows on your PC to be played on your 360.

Assuming your switch is hooked up to your router, you should be on the internet as well.

 

[erwos]

Yes. One thing to remember: MPEG-2 and WMV are the only thing that plays in Media Center mode.

 

[Queasy]

Originally posted by: erwos
Yes. One thing to remember: MPEG-2 and WMV are the only thing that plays in Media Center mode.

Yep. Everything that Media Center records in is WMV.

You can stream Xvid, Divx, and MP4 through the 360 Dashboard.

 

[YoungGun21]

So the things I record will need to be converted before I can play them back on my 360?

 

[Queasy]

Originally posted by: YoungGun21
So the things I record will need to be converted before I can play them back on my 360?

No. Windows Media Center will record them on your PC in a WMV format. You can play those on your 360 through the Windows Media Center Extender on the 360.

If you've got other stuff in divx or xvid, then you can watch those through the 360 Dash.