Putting the Pieces Together

Microsoft’s home entertainment strategy is built around the idea of using the Windows PC as a digital media hub.

With the Windows Media Player, which is built into every Windows PC, users can download digital audio and video from the Internet, perhaps purchasing it from a store whose interface appears directly in the Player (such as MSN Music, Napster, or CinemaNow), or rip content from audio CDs. (Because DVDs include a copy-protection system, they cannot be legally ripped.) If the PC has a TV tuner card—as is the case with most PCs that run Windows XP Media Center Edition (MCE)—users can also record TV programs on the hard drive.

Once the content is on the PC, users can use the Windows Media Player to transfer it to a compatible multifunction device, such as a Pocket PC or Smartphone, or portable player, such as the Portable Media Center (PMC). Users can also use the Windows Media Player to burn content to a CD, or use MCE (or a third-party application) to burn it to a CD or DVD, which they can then play in Windows-Media-compatible car stereos and consumer electronics devices, such as home theater systems. Users who have a home network, such as the wireless network shown in this illustration, can stream digital media content from the PC to TV-connected devices, such as MSN TV 2. Users with a home network and MCE can use Media Center Extenders, including the Extender for Xbox, to access all the digital media functions of the MCE from their TV or home theater system.