Boxee, which is our favourite way to unleash the true power of Apple TV is going from invite-only to totally open on Jan. 8, as it chugs along from alpha to beta. [boxee via Engadget]

Boxee has been turning any PC, Mac or Linux box into a capable, social-networking equipped media centre for a while in its extended alpha phase--and now, news is that it will also work on your Apple TV for a free way to go beyond the iTunes lock-in for streaming all DRM-free media. Like aTV before it (which is not free), Boxee installs on a flash drive (this time using Mac-only for now ATV USB Creator) and sports a similar interface as the original Xbox version that started it all. Sign up for the alpha: [Boxee]

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The folks behind XBMC, the cross-platform media streaming solution, have announced that the first beta version (dubbed "Atlantis) of their media centre has gone live on all platforms: Linux, Mac OS X, Windows, and Xbox. The first things users will notice is the new skin "PM3.HD"—a high-definition tribute to Project Mayhem III. The announcement also includes "XBMC Live," a bootable CD which gives users the opportunity to try XBMC without installing it on their hard drive (can also be booted from flash drives). Finally, XBMC for Mac now has initial support for integrating iTunes and iPhoto media. The final release of Atlantis is slated for October.

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