iTunes 10.1
Just as the first appearance of autumn leaves signals a change of seasons, the appearance of iTunes 10.1 signals the imminent arrival of iOS 4.2. In fact, the release notes cite the capability of this release to sync the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad with iOS 4.2. Also added to iTunes 10.1 is AirPlay, which provides the capability to stream video from iTunes to the new Apple TV. Furthermore, this version enables users to disable Ping in the new iTunes Sidebar, and brings with it a changed license agreement that specifies the kinds of information Apple receives from users when Ping is used. And, of course, iTunes 10.1 contains the customary
“important stability and performance improvements” and security fixes. The update is available from Software Update and directly from Apple. (Free, 90.63 MB)
Couldn't you always stream video from iTunes to your AppleTV? I seem to have been doing that for years.
Yes, and no. The old Apple TV could pull stuff from your iTunes library and play it. AirPlay allows you to play something in iTunes on your computer and have it appear both there and on your new (but not older) Apple TV. Think of it as being the video equivalent of the way you could stream audio from iTunes to an AirPort Express using AirTunes: now the Apple TV is a destination for the stream, and the stream can handle video as well as audio. AirTunes has been renamed AirPlay and also supports streaming of audio and video from an iPod touch or iPhone or iPad as well (once iOS 4.2 is installed on those devices).