I don’t really know of any program that can convert an HD DVD move or BD for that matter to another format or simple HD file format. One would suspect that using the file format that matches the encoding that the disc was made with would be the best format choice though,….not really sure.
If one were to try without the benefit of a transcode application one would think the process would go something like this:
1) Take an Xbox 360 HD DVD drive and connect it to an Xbox 360
2) Insert the install disc that came with the Xbox 360 HD DVD drive into the Xbox 360 for full install
3) Download any necessary updates for the Xbox 360 + Xbox 360 HD DVD combo
4) Remove the Xbox 360 HD DVD drive and install it on the XP server system / host MCE 2K5 PC.
5) Rip HD DVD discs to the XP server system / host MCE 2K5 PC HDD.
6) Navigate to the files on the XP server system / host MCE 2K5 PC via the Xbox 360 and see if they will play remotely.
I don’t know if this will work. What we do know is at some point in the installation of the Xbox 360 HD DVD drive on the Xbox 360 the unit’s core ability to play DVD movies is upgraded to being able to play HD DVD movies. The question now is, assuming that the network connection between the Xbox 360 and XP server system / host MCE 2K5 PC is fast enough, will the Xbox 360 be able to play unprotected HD DVD movie files from the HDD in much the same way an HD DVD / BD software player application can run from a folder.
