Moving from Apple TV to Mac Mini

[TKYR1967]

pardon me if this is a "dumb" question, but here goes

 

 

I'm thinking of buying one of those refurb/old model close-out mac minis to use as my server. I know once things are set up I can use my iPhone as a remote, but how would I set everything up without a monitor? I read about that screen sharing option but how do you get into system preferences of the mac mini without a monitor?

 

Also, what's a better option for the library? A USB drive attached to an Airport Extreme or those little mac-mini sized hard drives so I could use firewire?

 

 

Guess I am looking for help and advice. Thanks in Advance.

 

[The Computer Audiophile]

There is no way to setup a Mac Mini without a monitor. You at least need to setup screensharing with a monitor then you could disconnect the monitor.

 

 

 

[80MGB]

I use a Mac Mini with an external hard drive, primarily for music, but have the versatility to use it as a video source, and certainly surf the web quite a bit with it too. It has 2GB of RAM, which I bought with the unit. I believe the 2nd GB has improved the performance, although i don't have a reference point since buying the 2nd GB was a lot cheaper doing it at the time of buying the Mac Mini. While the new Mac Mini is intriguing and has advantages, having just bought my current one 8 months ago makes it real hard to justify buying a replacement.

 

Maybe someone can correct me, but the ATV seems a bit limited if you've got a larger library and are using at least Apple Lossless quality format. Having the external HD makes all the difference in my case. Someday, I'll get all my photos loaded and have slideshows on the plasma TV at the same time.