People who enjoy building their own computing hardware will be familiar with the Boxee name. But if you don’t fall into that camp, you’re probably wondering what the heck this weird-looking, not-exactly-a-cube thingy is all about. The answer comes in two parts. The first part is the software platform known as Boxee, developed by Boxee, Inc. This is a free application that can run atop a number of different operating systems, including Windows, OS X, and Linux. Install the software on the hardware of your choice, and it will collect all the TV programming and movie content you tell it you’re interested in, and present it in an organized portal. Much of the content is free, but can also include premium content—for example, movies from the Netflix and Vudu streaming sites. You can also incorporate your own personal content. Finally, Boxee can run apps—such as Pandora, Flickr, and Vimeo—as well as hook into Facebook and Twitter.