Playstation 3 Media Server Setup

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Setting up your PlayStation 3 as a media server works great if you already own an entirely library of media on your Mac or PC, but with a wealth of streaming content from providers like CNN, Hulu and Comedy Central now hitting the Web, you don’t even have to rip or download shows to watch them online anymore.

But what about on the PS3?

While the built-in browser that shipped on the system wouldn’t quite cut it for the Flash-based video players that sites like Hulu use, the 2.50 firmware, released in October of 2008, made it possible for PlayStation 3 owners to access many of the same streaming video sites they do on their PCs. Just visit the site as you normally would, then use the R1 and R2 buttons to blow the windowed video up into a full-screen view.

Though Hulu initially allowed PlayStation owners to watch shows from their consoles, the site threw a switch to turn off PS3 access in June 2009. Hulu has yet to really explain the rationale for cutting off PS3 owners, especially when the ads came through the same way they would on any other system, but some users suspect the owners could be lining up for an exclusivity agreement with Microsoft for the Xbox 360. In either case, you can still get around it using one of two workarounds:

1. Use TVersity Pro. This media uPNP software replaces Windows Media Player 11 on your PC, then basically opens Hulu in an invisible browser window, transcodes the video into a different format, and feeds it your PS3 as a streaming media file. It sounds complex, but setup is relatively easy.

2. Use a proxy. This is basically software running on a PC that will trick Hulu into thinking the request for data is coming from a PC, then hand the data off to your PS3. It’s more complex than the first option, but because it doesn’t actually transcode anything (layering more compression on top of existing compression), picture quality will remain superior. YPass.net offers a quick and dirty guide to getting it done using the proxy Squid. Keep in mind that you’ll need to keep the computer running the proxy turned on all the time in order to access Hulu from your PS3 in the future.