Imagine you have an RSS feed that occasionally delivers BitTorrents of video files in avi or mkv format, and you want to play them on an AppleTV. You can convert the video, but it requires using a few different applications and multiple steps. Here’s how to automate the process so that it takes zero clicks.
You’ll need these free downloads:
- NetNewsWire, an RSS reader
- Transmission, a BitTorrent client
- Breakfast, a folder action script GUI
- Handbrake CLI, a video converter
First, make NetNewsWire automatically download any files that feed sends you:
Subscribe to a feed in NetNewsWire (maybe from ShowRSS). Click on it in the source list, and choose Info from the Window menu (⌘-I). Under Enclosures, check Use custom setting and Automatically download: Other Enclosures.
Second, set Transmission to download any torrent that comes from NetNewsWire:
In Transmission’s Preferences, in the Transfer panel, check the box for Keep incomplete files in: and set a folder, and check the box for Start transfers when added. Uncheck the Display “adding transfer” options window. Check the Auto add: Watch for torrent files in box and choose wherever you have NetNewsWire saving the enclosures.
Third, use Breakfast to add a folder action script to your Transmission downloads folder:
Open Breakfast. Set the Folder to Watch to wherever Transmission is saving its files, and choose an Encoding Option.
Breakfast will create a folder action script that launches whenever a file of the right type shows up in whatever folder you tell it to. So when Transmission finishes its download, it’ll put the movie in that folder, and then Breakfast’s script will launch. It converts the video into a format AppleTV can understand, then goes online and tags the show appropriately and adds it to iTunes. All you have to do is delete the original files.