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Week of December 5, 2004
Robbers Scared Off By VideoGame Get Jail Time
>> From abc13.com:
[QUOTE]
Back in March, Sandy Wilson was taking care of her three grandsons when a group of men attempted to burglarize her home, pointing a gun at the kids.
The children happened to be playing a video game called Grand Theft Auto at the time. The game has dozens of random police scanner messages, which blare out calls such as "This is the police! You’re surrounded!" Believe it or not, Wilson says the burglars heard that message and thought police were outside the door waiting for them.
Galveston County Asst DA Michael Elliott explained, "The police in the game were staying, 'Stop, we have you surrounded. This is the police.’ The burglar, unknowingly, thought this was the actual police and panicked ... being apprehended by Playstation."
[/QUOTE]
Read the whole story on abc13.com.
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(Saturday 11 December 2004 22:58 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
User Interface X Music Player
>> Some news about the development done on the soon te be released User Interface X dashboard. From teamuix.com:
[QUOTE]
I know you are all dying for some news. So, here is an early version of the media player to look at.
[/QUOTE]
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(Saturday 11 December 2004 05:54 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Hostile Territory W.I.P. Update
>> Hostile Territory(info) (previously called Jihad) is a homebrew arcade/adventure game for Xbox currently in development by 'The unProfessional'. The game is designed to be a free, fun, multiplayer homebrew game for everyone to enjoy.
From theunprofessional.com:
[QUOTE]
I'm still releasing a tech-demo / pre-build very very soon. I've run into major instability problems related to the suspension on the vehicles. It's not pretty, but I'm working on it a bit each day after work and I'll be hitting it all week (and this weekend). More delays, I know, but I never said the project would be done overnight :)
Bear with me... and thanks for all the great support.
[/QUOTE]
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(Friday 10 December 2004 21:37 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
SmartJoy Frag Xbox Review
>> BenJeremy wrote the SmartJoy Frag for Xbox review for Xbox-Scene.com. Here it is:
Official Website:: http://www.lik-sang.com
Where to buy::
World-Wide Reseller: Lik-Sang.com (28.9USD / 32.9EUR (EU taxes included))
Review::
As an avid PC deathmatcher, I've grown very accustomed to using my trusty MS Trackball and keyboard. I've been using trackballs way back to my first cartridge game system, a ColecoVision. I also had a nice trackball controller for my C=64 computer, way back before many of you were even born (ahem). I later found a comfortable alternative to the venerable 3-button mouse with the Logitech Trackman. I mention that because this particular style of trackball is one I've found comfortable, and gives fluid control over "looking" in an FPS. In contrast, the thumbsticks on the Xbox controller (or any controller, for that matter), tend to cause overshooting when aiming. I know I am not the only person who has desired the ability to use a trackball (or mouse, for some) in Xbox FPS games... since the early days of the scene, people have asked about using a USB keyboard and Mouse in games, only to be met with the unfortunate reality - no, it could not be done - that is, until now.
The SmartJoy Frag allows a PS/2 keyboard and PS/2 mouse combination to emulate an Xbox Controller. This is different from simply plugging in a USB-based mouse or keyboard, since those options would require the game have embedded drivers for those USB devices, and those libraries must be compiled into the games themselves; while homebrews may do this, commercial games cannot be certified with these libraries compiled in. Additionally, the SmartJoy Frag allows the user to configure their keyboard/mouse combination in a variety of ways or use preset configuratons already fine-tuned for several popular Xbox titles.
Construction:
The SmartJoy Frag is very sturdily constructed, it looked like I could whack the thing HARD and it wouldn't crack (erm, I wasn't going to try that test). Squeezing it in various ways didn't reveal any obvious cheapness in the case. The cable was well anchored in the unit, and not likely to get pulled out by normal wear and tear. The cable also had the standard "breakaway" plug that most Xbox controllers have. Additionally, as PS/2 keyboard and mouse connectors are physically the same, pin-wise, the connectors are color coded (purple for keyboard and green for mouse). These ports are also marked with symbolic indicators.
The SmartJoy Frag also has an Xbox controller expansion port mounted on the top, for your memory cards. While not slotted, as in most controllers, the fit was still nice and snug for memory cards, Live headset adapters and, ironically enough, the PSO keyboard USB adapter!
Setup:
Setup could not be easier... simply plug in your keyboard and mouse to the adapter, and plug in the device into your Xbox. For my review, I grabbed a simple multimedia keyboard and my trusty MS Trackball.
There are directions for setting it up - the included "Quick Start Guide", a multi-lingual guide with about 4 pages worth explaining the gist of running it, but honestly, there isn't much to running this device - it's plug-and-play; or almost...
Turning on the Xbox, I encountered my first problem.... not a big problem, but as the Xbox was running a Xenium mod chip, and I had not updated the XeniumOS(info) from 1.0, the Xbox refused to boot up with the Adapter plugged in. As I said, not a big problem, since this happens with anything but a genuine MS Xbox controller with that firmware... so off to the PC to get the firmware updated. After updating the XeniumOs to 1.1 (and then 2.0), I encountered no problems booting with the SmartJoy Frag plugged in.
I suspect any early Linux-based OS will have problems with this controller adapter, so keep that in mind, and be sure to update the software in these cases.
Games supported:
Out of the box, it comes with a number of games pre-configured: Halo, Medal Of Honor: Frontline, Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay, Counter Strike, James Bond: Nightfire, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 3, Return To Castle Wolfenstein, and Unreal Championship. Many of these presets also work for other games, for example, Halo 2 works nicely with the Halo configuration.
Configuration is pretty flexible, with the ability to swap "Look" and "Move" - in this case, "Look" refers to the Right Thumbstick (it is, by default, mapped to the mouse), "Move" to the Left Thumbstick (mapped typically to W, A, S, and D). You can use the "standard" confuguration as a reference when re-assigning the keys to your own personal preferences for a given game.
Saving custom configurations is fairly simple, and you can overwrite the factory presets, if you desire to tweak them or simply replace them. You can restore the presets to their original configuration with a simple key sequence.
Playtesting:
In all of the games I tried it on, I felt my play was greatly improved. Halo and Halo 2 worked nicely with the default Halo preset settings (Invert the look when using a trackball, for best results), but sensitivity should be adjusted to taste. I ended up playing for a few hours, doing quite a bit better than usual on FPS games on the Xbox, on my first crack at Halo 2. On some of the other games, there was a small period of adjustment, and I'm not sure I care to go back to using a standard Xbox controller to play FPS games on the console.
As I already mentioned the sensitivity, I would like to note that some games can be a bit "jumpy" with the wrong settings for sensitivity and dead zone adjustments; the presets are pretty much set, but be careful when tweaking them, and try using the in-game controller tweaks, if possible, to minimize setup time.
One nice touch, by the way, is support of the scroll wheel in the mouse. There just isn't anything like it for switching weapons in a hurry on an FPS. This adapter even handles THAT.
The only other problem you may encounter arises not because of the device, but because of the keyboard and mouse. Playing a console game with PC-oriented devices is simply not natural in your living room; you'll probably have to figure out the best way to juggle using a keyboard and mouse (or trackball) while sitting in front of the big screen on your couch. I used a TV tray to good effect, but laying them on the floor, even with the advantage of using a trackball, became ergonomically difficult after a short while. Another solution might be some sort of board for your lap, or using a wireless set up with a combo trackball/touchpad or something built in to a keyboard. I didn't test a setup like that, as I wouldn't be comfortable with it, but for those with MythTV(info) or similar living room PC environments set up, you would probably find it easy enough to handle.
The adapter works best for people who find the PC FPS environment more comfortable... my son, who spends a great deal of time on the Xbox playing against his friends, didn't care much for it. I'm not sure if that could be chalked up to his impatience for using it, or him genuinely finding the gamepads easier to use. Likewise, the device was wasted on my Japanese coworker, who believes Sony created the perfect controller for all things (He likes the SmartJoy Plus though, for obvious reasons).
Conclusion:
The SmartJoy Frag is not for everybody, but for those who have been looking for this sort of capability, it's a godsend. Short of a gamepad that replaces the thumbsticks with trackballs, the SmartJoy Frag provides the next best thing. The purpose is to allow a PS/2 keyboard and PS/2 mouse to emulate a gamepad, and in that job, this device provides about all the functionality I can think of, including the presets and configurability.
So until SmartJoy develops my trackball-based controller, I'll happily use the SmartJoy Frag to kill the alien hordes and stomp my friends in deathmatches.
I'd also be remiss in not mentioning a few of other great products SmartJoy makes for your PC and this device's sister product for the Sony PS2. They make devices to plug in your Xbox controller (neater than a homemade cable, to be sure), Sony PS2 and Super Nintendo controllers into your PC using your USB ports. For Sony PS2 gamers who feel as frustrated as I do playing FPS games with thumbsticks, there's a version of the SmartJoy Frag just for you, too!
Get them at Lik-Sang, still one of the best places on this planet to get console-gaming goodness!
Review By BenJeremy for Xbox-Scene.
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(Friday 10 December 2004 18:14 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Thomson to Back Both Blu-ray Disc and HD-DVD
>> From TeamXbox.com:
[QUOTE]
The Thomson Corporation announced today that it will support both HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc formats. The company plans to manufacture players and discs for both formats. Thomson is the manufacturer of the original DVD drive found in the Xbox console and the company’s Technicolor division is a Microsoft Authorized Xbox Replicator.
[/QUOTE]
Read the whole story on TeamXbox.com.
Blu-ray Disc and HD-DVD are two competiting next generation DVD formats - it's unknown yet which one Microsoft will support in the Xbox2 (if any).
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(Friday 10 December 2004 16:23 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
XBMC Screensaver Competition
>> From Gamester17 on xboxmediacenter.com:
[QUOTE]
Neoya Inc. (makers of the best VGA-adapter for the Xbox) has kindly donated 5 X2VGA+ adapters to The XboxMediaCenter(info) Project for us to run this screen-saver development competition. The purpose of this contest is to develop new screensaver plugins for Xbox Media Center (and extend XBMC's screensaver interface API if necessary), hopefully it will also encourage more programmers to join in XBMC development. The contest starts of right away and will end three months from now. All valid entries not infringing any copyrights (winners or not) can be integrated in XBMC, however the Top-5 entries (decided by Team-XBMC) will each win one X2VGA+, the top-of-the-line Xbox VGA-adapter courtesy of Neoya, (thanks Neoya Inc!)
Non-developers please make a PayPal donation for the winners adapter shipping cost to help
Link: XBMC Screensaver Competition Rules and Conditions
[/QUOTE]
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(Friday 10 December 2004 12:50 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Xbox 2 Developer's Kit Arrives For Mac
>> From theinquirer.net:
[QUOTE]
WHILE EVERYONE is watching the Playstation 3 we have noticed that XboX 2 development is proceeding apace.
Microsoft promised to send out XboX 2 developer's kit sometime in Q1 next year. This kit will finally have an R500 card inside which means that R500 development is quite advanced. Microsoft's current kit is powered with older Radeon 9800 cards and things will get much faster this time round. Developers have to code on Shader Model 3.0 hardware.
We are not sure which one of G5 machines Microsoft wants to send to developers, but yes it will be a Mac G5.
It will be funny to see this G5 machine running some kind of Windows OS.
[/QUOTE]
Read the whole story on theinquirer.net.
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(Friday 10 December 2004 08:25 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Xbox Stock Runs Dry In U.K.
>> MVCuk.com reports today that that no further Xbox hardware will become available before the end of the year in the UK:
[QUOTE]
While Sony was able to rope in Russian Antanov aircraft to try and ease its slimline PS2 drought (MCV 3/12), the resulting increased consumer demand for Xbox left Microsoft with no further room for manoeuvre: “There’s no plane I can send anywhere – we’ve done all we can,” admitted UK Xbox boss Neil Thompson.
“The market share has been incredible – demand is much greater than we expected,” he said. “But it’s upsetting as I want to fulfil demand and wish I could deliver more - I am totally committed to getting in more product just as fast as we can.”
Normal service is set to resume in January, though the popular Crystal Xbox unit has been axed: “We’re just going to go back to black as we replace stock,” Thompson revealed.
[/QUOTE]
Read the whole story on mcvuk.com.
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(Friday 10 December 2004 08:13 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Xbox Live Bans - Update From Team Xecuter
>> From TeamXecuter.com:
[QUOTE]
We think its safe to say that the recent crop of XBL bans have come about by M$ collecting your eeprom data including your HDD serial number / key when you sign up to Xbox Live for the first time - this is what's known as the "Marriage Theory".
So basically if you upgrade your hard drive after signing up to XBL your account will get fried. We feel there is no "drive scanning" taking place so dont be paranoid about where you are storing your files.
Solution?: Upgrade your hard drive BEFORE signing up to the XBL service.
Better Solution?: Hacking the firmware of the upgraded hard drive to have the same serial number / key as your stock hard drive.
We will have a play - as I'm sure others will.
[/QUOTE]
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(Friday 10 December 2004 07:16 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
W.I.P. New X3 Bios, New X2.6CE and Xapt3r Leaves Factory
>> From TeamXecuter.com:
[QUOTE]
* Not content with making a whole bunch of high quality add ons for the X3, we have also been spending a lot of time on the next release of the X3 Bios.
We hope to have it ready before Christmas and we promise that X3 users everywhere will love the changes / additions / fixes we have made.
There is one marvelous feature which has never been done before on any Bios designed to boot unsigned Xbox code - testing is going very very well and we are sure it will be a great success. Watch this space...
* We have listened to suggestions from our customers and forum members and decided to make a couple of changes to the X2.6 design.
We now use a surface mount plug in connector for the Alt 5v point which is red in color and clearly marked as for use on the v1.6 only. Now any possibility of a short has been eliminated for those that didn't read the manuals too well.
The X2.6CE is in stock at Divineo, Baldbouncer & Mrmodchips. The other resellers stock will arrive within the next week.
* The Xapt3r has also been shipped from the factory. We expect resellers to receive their first stocks starting Monday of next week.
We should also note that Divineo, Baldbouncer & Mrmodchips also have a limited number of stock of the Crystal X3 Pro Switch - get them while they are hot! Main stocks will be shipped to all resellers within the next week.
[/QUOTE]
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(Thursday 09 December 2004 22:00 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Off-Topic: More News About Viper-GC
>> The Viper-GC is a 'coding module' for the GameCube that allows users to boot Homebrew applications, loaders or BIOS' (more info)
To coincide with the official release of the Viper GC and Programmer the Viper team has sent us their Developers manual, installation diagrams and PC software application for transferring Homebrew applications to the Viper GC flash memory. Some of the documented hardware features are:
- Run patched (or unpatched) Original BIOS from your own code
- Read the second DIP switch of the Viper GC Programmer
- Control of the lid sensor passthru
- Reflash the Viper GC directly from the GC
Expect Viper GC to go on sale early next week across Asia and then Worldwide!
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(Thursday 09 December 2004 20:37 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
MooGUI v1.3.0
>> Moobar released a new version of MooGUI(info).
What's new/fixed:
* Supports the new XDVDFS Tools(info) v2.1, Thanks to CloneXB(info)
* Supports XDVDFS_Maker -OEIBuf switch (Outer edge integrity buffer)
* XDVDFS_Maker and XDVDFS_Extract included with MooGUI distribution
* Reorganized menus and such to be more consistent throughout
Note: Please uninstall previous versions of MooGUI before installing this version.
Thanks again to CloneXB for another fine release of XDVDFS Tools
Official Site: http://xboxlyt.freeunixhost.com/
Download: here
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(Thursday 09 December 2004 19:49 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Disney Backs Sony's Blu-ray Disc Format
>> From TeamXbox.com:
[QUOTE]
Just one week after Warner, Universal, New Line and Paramount announced their support for the HD DVD format, The Walt Disney Company, the second-largest US media company, and Buena Vista Home Entertainment, its home video division, have announced they will support Sony Corp.'s Blu-ray Disc format.
As part of its cooperation with Blu-ray, BVHE will begin releasing content non-exclusively in that format when Blu-ray hardware launches in the North America and Japan. The Company also announced that it will become a member of the Board of Directors of the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA).
[/QUOTE]
While it's unlikely the be Blu-ray (Sony PS3) technology will be used in the Xbox2, it could be the competiting HD-DVD format, but this has not been confirmed yet.
Read the whole story on TeamXbox.com.
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(Thursday 09 December 2004 11:12 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Lots Of XLink News: Kai on router, New linux build, New UIs, XBMC integration
>> Lots of updates on TeamXLink.co.uk about Kai(info) - the global gaming network that allows you to play system-link enabled games online for free:
[QUOTE]
Forget Santa Claus. We've got a sackful of gifts for you. Lots to get through tonight - so I think we'll start with some visuals..
That's right folks - the kaiEngine now runs on the Linksys WRT54G/S router platform. You're going to need this file - flash your router as if this was a real Linksys update - ie. from the web control panel, then go to the front page of the router control panel - everything should make sense, but if it doesn't - head to our new WRT forum. For those of you who are using openWRT / some other WRT firmware - you can still use this release fully :) You have the choice of ipkg, straight tar.bz2, or 2 individual files for you to wget. Again - please use our forum for assistance, should you need it.
I'd just like to say what an awesome job ^S^ has done getting kaid to run on these boxes - and also, to deal out the props to Prestige for creating the excellent firmware packages for WRT - along with xboxgeek and Puma from the XR8D group for providing QA for this release - top job guys - seriously..
But that's not all! Linux users can enjoy an early Christmas present courtesy of Luis (^S^) - kaid 7.0.0.3. Luis has been hard at work over the past few weeks getting lots of fixes into his engine, which now provides *complete* XBox support, along with SpeeX, and we'd like to show our thanks to our Linux users, who are helping to ensure kaid becomes all which we know it will be. Your help doesn't go unrewarded at XLink ;) As always, you can grab a build for your platform from the downloads page.
What about some UI's? Why not! Interested in a UI for Linux? Then why not check out Luis' (Zipleen this time :D) UI - gKaiUI - or an installer version here. Here's some lovely screens for those interested... see picture1 - picture2.
Or how about some fancy ncurses UI for Linux or OSX?... see picture.
Remember to check this for more information about ncurses - or head straight for the SourceForge project site here. Also remember that both gKaiUI and ncurses are built using the now official libkaiui - a powerful C library for any developer who wishes to create a kaiUI! This is superb for developers - because each time the Kai UI API is updated, you just drag down the lib, recompile, and fix any callback parameter errors! Excellent work Zip!
Now, perhaps Java is more your thing?... see picture1 - picture2.
The jKaiUI is an awesome piece of work - and development is proceeding at an astounding pace - be *sure* to visit these guys, on their SourceForge project homepage - right here. Or, cut the crap and download the package right here.
If you are still yet to to try out XBMC and Kai's integration, what are you waiting for! Everyday more features are being put into the CVS repository, and we'd like to thank runtime for the time and effort he's putting into this, because it simply kicks ass :) Please ensure you are able to play games using a PC before moving on and trying XBMC! XBMC SourceForge goodness is right here.
More Pictures: picture3 - picture4
With only a few weeks until Christmas, we'd like to say that development may slow down over the coming weeks, as we pop open a bottle of champagne and spend some time with our familes. It's at this point in time I'd like to wish everyone a safe and enjoyable holiday season! I'd like to extend a big thanks to our administrators and moderators who have been on full-time duty since we hit the 1000 user barrier - they make the Kai experience worthwhile - for all of us.
Finally, for those of you who were here when XLink first kicked off - and I know a few of you are still around ;) - you will remember I once made a dreamy post on XS about "8 Pillars" for XLink - at the time, people told us that we were being stupid - well - with 7 of the 8 pillars in place and working, and the 8th underway - Kai has done what it was designed to do. The future for XLink holds so much more - Open Source will bring Kai to everyone, and along with revolutionary concepts such as GeoLink fighting to get into the API, we're gonna be breaking completely new ground in online gaming sooner than you think. Thanks must go to each and everyone one of our users for making us what we, collectively, are today - you guys rock.
[/QUOTE]
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(Wednesday 08 December 2004 22:28 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
XDVDFS Tools v2.1
>> A new version of XDVDFS Tools(info) has been released.
What's new/fixed:
* LayoutDumper.xbe now detects the presence of security place holders to determine if the disc being dumped is an original or backup. This had to be done because some backups were being detected as originals.
* LayoutDumper.xbe can now be run from within a sub directory on any drive on the XBOX and .lyt files will be created in the same location as the tool itself.
* LayoutDumper.xbe now reports the correct location of the .lyt file on screen when running from a sub directory.
* LayoutDumper.xbe no longer locks up when you dont have a controller plugged into port 1.
* LayoutDumper.xbe now truncates filenames bigger than that supported by the XBOX file system.
* Added -OEIBuf (Out Edge Integrity Buffer) flag to xdvdfs_maker.exe which can be used with the -pad option to ensure the shitty bit of cheap discs near the outside edge is not written to.
* Few more bug fixes which I cant remember
Official Site: n/a, by cloneXB (orginally (till v1.0) by [SNK] / supremacy)
Download: n/a (contains files built with XDK)
News-Source: xbins.org
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(Wednesday 08 December 2004 20:08 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Cromwell v2.40
>> A new version of the Xbox-Linux Cromwell(info)/Xromwell(info) bios/xbe-bootloader has been released:
[QUOTE]
Cromwell v2.40 now has a number of often asked features, that previous versions lacked. A summary:
* You can lock/unlock your xbox hard disk from a menu.
* You can change PAL/NTSC/NTSC-J and widescreen/normal video modes from a menu.
* You can power off/reboot the xbox from a menu.
* You can add multiple kernels to boot from - the linuxboot.cfg syntax has been enhanced to accomplish this. See manual for info.
* Xbox IR-remote driver repaired.
* You can plug in controllers while Cromwell is running.
* Xcalibur 480p HDTV support added.
* A manual is available at: http://www.xbox-linux.org/Cromwell_Manual
* Known issues:
-Will not work on '1.6b' xboxes.
-Will still hang at boot if you have too many USB devices attached.
-Owners of Xbox v1.0 systems and Xenium modchips seem to experience booting issues.
Feedback welcome - mail the xbox-linux-user mailing list.
[/QUOTE]
Official Site: http://www.xbox-linux.org
Download: here
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(Wednesday 08 December 2004 19:44 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
U.S. Officials Raid Stores For Selling Modified Xbox Consoles
>> From Yahoo!News / Reuters:
[QUOTE]
Federal authorities raided three Washington, D.C.-area video game stores and arrested two people for modifying video game consoles to play pirated video games, a video game industry group said on Wednesday.
The Entertainment Software Association said the Dec. 1 raids at three Pandora's Cube stores in Maryland and Virginia were a joint effort of the U.S. Department of Justice's computer crimes unit, the U.S. Attorney's Office for Maryland and the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Pandora's Cube, Wright (anti-piracy counsel to the ESA) said, sold $500 "Super Xbox" consoles, modified versions of Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox video game console, that had been modified to hold larger hard drives and play pirated games.
The modified consoles, some holding 15 or more games already copied to the hard drive, were on open display in the stores.
"They were burning games onto the hard drive and equipping the hard drive with copying software so that the average consumer could just go ahead and copy the software themselves," she said.
[/QUOTE]
Read the whole story on Yahoo!News.
Thanks to all those who reported this news!
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(Wednesday 08 December 2004 15:55 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Chief Xbox exec About Xbox Next
>> Chief Xbox exec Robert J. Bach, is tapping Microsoft's growing consumer software expertise to build the next Xbox and expand its tech dominance beyond the workplace and home offices. Bach recently talked about Microsoft's consumer strategy with BusinessWeek Seattle Bureau Chief Jay Greene.
Here's a small excerpt:
[QUOTE]
Well, we haven't talked about the next version of Xbox. But people know we're working on it, and people have to assume it's going to be the world's best game console. That's the place where it needs to start.
But we do think there are going to be opportunities to enable what we've called "integrated innovation" scenarios. You can assume that everything we do -- the gaming side and things that integrate with other forms of entertainment -- is going to get better and better and better.
Certainly, there's the idea that you're going to want to share what I'll call for lack of a better phrase your digital memories, whether that's digital photos, digital video or broadcast video.
Music is clearly a scenario that everyone is focused on. Certainly, Apple has done some good work there. But we're still very early in the curve of what's possible and what people want.
Communications turns out to be a very important scenario as well, whether that's chat, messaging, blogging, telephony. All those things are important scenarios, and there will be things that Microsoft will be doing to deliver those. Now in some of those, we may be an infrastructure player, rather than a direct consumer player. There are tons of ways where software can play a role.
Being a consumer-electronics company today isn't just about having some cool hardware technology. iPod is a great example. The actually technology in the iPod isn't very innovative. What's innovative in that product is the design, no question; the software, no question; and the way the design and the software and the hardware integrate with each other. That's the underlying thing that has fundamentally changed.
[/QUOTE]
Go read the full interview on businessweek.com
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(Wednesday 08 December 2004 15:31 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
D-Link Unveils First Gigabit Gaming Router
>> From dlink.com:
[QUOTE]
D-Link, the global leader in consumer network connectivity, today announced the industry's first Gaming Router. The new D-Link GamerLounge wireless router features D-Link GameFuel technologies, a new intelligent packet processing engine integrated directly on the router, giving online games precedence for bandwidth over all other Internet applications, email and FTP transfers. The D-Link GamerLounge wireless router is also the first router to brandish four 1000Mbps Gigabit Ethernet ports with up to 108Mbps 802.11g wireless connectivity for blazing fast LAN party and WLAN connections. Optimized for PC, Xbox and PlayStation2 games, the D-Link GamerLounge wireless router provides gamers with increased control to maximize online performance for the ultimate "no lag" gaming experience.
Price and Availability
The D-Link DGL-4300 GamerLounge Gaming Router will be available in mid December through authorized retail, reseller and distribution partners at $179.99 MSRP. The wired version, the D-Link DGL-4100 GamerLounge Broadband Gaming Router, will also be available in mid December through authorized retail, reseller and distribution partners at $149.99 MSRP.
[/QUOTE]
Read the whole story on dlink.com.
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(Wednesday 08 December 2004 12:50 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
SmartXX v2 LE/SE Hardware Review
>> There still many reviews that I have to write and I have been working hard on this the last few days to catch-up with the delays. Here's the one I owe you for a longest ... the SmartXX v2 PCB SE pack including the recently released v1.6 recovery PCB.
Official Website:: http://www.smartxx.com
Where to buy::
USA and Canada: BMMods.com, Extreme-Mods.com, Divineo.com
Europe: FreakWare.com, Divineo.co.uk
Rest-Of-World: Divineo.cn
Review::
With some delay (blame me), here's the chip/hardware review of the SmartXX v2 Special Edition Pack. A separated overview/review of the latest SmartXX OS software will be done later.
Here a pictures of the 'simple' SmartXX v2 package. It includes the chip itself of course, a headerpin, a pre-stripped wire (for D0/Lframe) and a SmartXX case sticker all packed in an anti-static bag.
The sample we received from freakware is the Limited Edition Halloween edition, with the orange PCB color. The 'normal' Special Edition Pack contains exactly the same but with a blue PCB color (like the chip in the image above). The Limited Edition Halloween edition is no longer in production, but the 'normal' Special Edition still is.
This package includes: a SmartXX v2 PCB modchip, a Xebian(info) (Debian for Xbox) pressed CD, a SmartXX case-sticker, a "xbox v1.6 Recovery PCB", a headerpin (not on image above, but it's in the pack) and an USB-adapter allowing you to easily connect USB devices like keyboard, mouse and others.
The Modchip
Hardware Feature List:
* Ultra Highspeed SysCon
* 4MB Hardware protected flash rom (max. 8MB)
* Emergency recovery switch
* Quicksolder Install & PIN-Header Install
* GND / 3.3 & 5 Volt solderpads
* LED (1x blue and 1x red) for Status / Programmable
* Direct Bootup Config (Emergency Recovery)
* External Switch Connector Port
* X-Display Support
* Dual-side X-Display contrast control
* Highspeed Transporter IO BUS 4 Port !
* Highspeed transport IO bus ( LCD/I2C/SPI/LPC) Port
* Works on any XBox ( v1.0-v1.6 )
More Pictures: Backside of the modchip.
The SmartXX v2 PCB comes with a few 'optimizations' compared to the original v1 PCB.
* The LCD contrast pot is now accesible from both the front and back of the PCB. So even if you install your modchip using the headerpin method you can easily access the LCD contrast pot.
* The 6 dip-switches have been replaced by 1 switch on PCB v2. This has probably been done as cost-saving ... 5 of the dip switched where never really used by end-users, so it has been replaced by 1 normal switch. This switch allows you to change between the normal mode and the emergency recovery mode (if you main SmartXX OS flash is broken for any reason).
* The green led became blue. The red led is still red.
* On the backside of the PCB there is now a new SmartXX logo.
The PCB is still of the same high quality as the original v1 PCB, thick/solid PCB and all ICs are very cleanly installed. The ICs themselves haven't changed, the controller is still a highspeed QuickLogic chip and the flash is a 4MB MX chip (some early v1 chips were AMD afaik).
It's also clear SmartXX thrusts their own quality as they offer 1 year of warranty if you buy your chip from one of the 'SmartXX Warranty Centers'.
The USB-adapter
This is the USB adapter that is now delivered with the SmartXX SE/LE package. It fits nicely in the Xbox controller ports. It has a design looking a lot like the design of the connector on the official controllers ... thus matches nicely with the look of the Xbox console. There's also a blue led on the adapter that allows you to check the status of the USB connection.
This USB adapter will allow you to connect any type of PC USB-peripherals with your Xbox. It's very useful for Xbox Linux distros that have support for several USB devices (keyboard and mouse being the most important and useful for Linux), but also some homebrew Xbox applications have support for a PC keyboard or even mouse.
The Xebian CD
This is the CD that comes with the SmartXX LE/SE package. The CD is not burned but pressed which should make it readable even in the worst Xbox DVD-drives.
As the name of the CD says ... it includes Xebian (the Debian Linux distro for Xbox), but it will also contain all the installation guides and manuals and other info found on the smartxx website. You'll also find 2 pdf files to print out a SmartXX or Xebian DVD-cover for the CD.
The v1.6-recovery PCB
More Pictures: Recovery PCB next to the modchip.
This is the recovery PCB for Xbox v1.6/v1.6b that has recently been added to the SmartXX LE/SE pack.
It allows you to easily repair the missing data points on the Xbox v1.6/v1.6b LPC. Just place the PCB on the back of the Xbox motherboard so the LPC holes matches with the holes on the recovery PCB ... and you can directly repair (solder) the missing LAD's on the Xbox v1.6(b) LPC. Advantage is you don't have to buy/cut/strip wires or search for the points on a diagram. You could call it the 'quicksolder' method to repair LPC. This will not really make the points easier to solder, but it's certainly a lot faster.
The recovery PCB is not of the same high quality of the modchip PCB, but that's probably to keep the PCB as thin as possible so it doesn't touch the inside of the xbox case and also to keep the production price low (after all you get it in the LE/SE package without any price raise).
Again the image above is from the Limited Edition Halloween edition - the 'normal' LE/SE pack will contain exactly the same recovery PCB, but in blue. This recovery PCB is also sold separately.
General Stuff
Compared to when the first SmartXX originally launched, Team SmartXX has also been working to optimize a few other things:
- You will now find full quicksolder and headerpin installation guides in english for all Xbox and SmartXX versions on their website.
- While the SmartXX was original hard to find outside germany, the SmartXX modchip is now also widely available on many internet shops all around the world.
POSITIVE::
+ Very high quality PCB build.
+ Modchip is very stable in operation.
+ Fully compatible with xbox v1.6.
+ Huge 4MB flash that should be more then enough space to save all your bioses on.
+ Safe chip to use, with the recovery mode you should always be able to restore even if something goes wrong with the SmartXX OS bios image.
+ LCD contrast pot now also accessible from the back of the PCB.
+ All solder-install methods possible: quicksolder, headerpin and using wires (connected to quicksolder pads)
+ The SE/LE pack offers a great and complete package with an USB adapter, CD with all manuals and the Xebian distro and a recovery PCB for faster installation on Xbox v1.6(b).
+ 1year warranty from 'SmartXX Waranty Centers'
NEGATIVE::
- No 1st party solderless adaptor yet. Seeing the succes of solderless solutions ... it's still something missing in the current SmartXX offerings.
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(Tuesday 07 December 2004 16:42 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Does the Halo 2 effect threaten broadband?
>> From Sandvine.com:
[QUOTE]
Waterloo, Ontario; December 7, 2004 – The long-expected broadband gaming boom, where hordes of players enter hosted Internet environments in order to do battle, may now be underway thanks to the popularity of the Halo II live-play video game.
An analysis conducted by broadband traffic measurement specialist Sandvine Incorporated shows Microsoft Xbox Live traffic on service provider networks quadrupled during the Nov. 9 launch of Halo II – a trend that continues to this day.
The jump raises quality of service concerns for service providers eager to keep gamers – amongst the Internet’s most avid and devoted users – from bolting to competitors with a better reputation for offering broadband access optimized for live play.
Online games like Halo II require low latency from the networks that host them. In order to avoid network disruptions or “jitters” that degrade the pace and flow of virtual competition, network managers must be capable of identifying game traffic and setting quality of service (QoS) policies that protect it from interference.
“The explosion in Xbox Live traffic attributed to Halo II should be seen as a clarion call,” said Marc Morin, co-founder and chief technology officer of Sandvine Incorporated. “Service Providers need to enhance the broadband experience for these high-end users by prioritizing or reserving bandwidth for games and other kinds of latency-sensitive and feature-rich applications.”
“In the competitive broadband environment, operators need to differentiate the way they offer access to services like live-play gaming,” said Lindsay Schroth, senior analyst, broadband access technologies with The Yankee Group. “We expect service providers will look increasingly to intelligent bandwidth management products as a means of analyzing and distinguishing applications on a per-subscriber basis, creating a way to prioritize or even guarantee their performance.”
Download Sandvine’s trend analysis, “Gaming and QoS on broadband networks” at sandvine.com.
[/QUOTE]
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(Tuesday 07 December 2004 11:54 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
nVIDIA to Provide GPU for PlayStation 3
>> From TeamXbox.com:
[QUOTE]
Sony and nVIDIA announced today that both companies are jointly developing a custom graphics processing unit (GPU) for the PlayStation 3. The companies have been collaborating on bringing nVIDIA's next-generation GeForce graphics technology and the Cell processor to SCEI's highly anticipated next-generation computer entertainment system.
This collaboration is made under a broad, multi-year, royalty-bearing agreement. The powerful custom GPU will be the graphics and image processing foundation for a broad range of applications from computer entertainment to broadband applications.
[/QUOTE]
Read the whole story on TeamXbox.com.
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(Tuesday 07 December 2004 10:57 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
UnleashX V0.37.1207A Build 536
>> A new bugfix release of the UnleashX(info) dashboard has been released.
What's new/fixed:
*Fixed: corrupt trasnfer of files less than 1MB in size.
*Fixed: Empty/shrinking message box.
*Note: This is a Quick fix release addressing the issues listed above.
Official Site: http://www.unleashx.com
Official Forums: forums.xbox-scene.com
Download: n/a (built with XDK) - if you have the previous build (V0.37.1205A Build 534) try Live Update.
News-Source: forums.xbox-scene.com and xbins.org
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(Monday 06 December 2004 20:02 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Off-Topic: Sony PSP support in XLink Kai
>> From Team XLink:
[QUOTE]
Thanks to some information recently received by Team XLink, I'm happy to annouce that I just make kaiEngine 7.0.5.3 live - with full support for the Sony PSP handheld console.
Obviously, at present we have very little knowledge of how this unit actually performs when being tunnelled - although I know a few Japanese gamers are starting to get their hands on these devices as we speak - I call on them to help test the new kaiEngine, and provide me with feedback.
Over the next few hours, I'll be creating game arenas in Kai(info) for all the confirmed-LAN Japanese launch titles, but be warned - some of the information may be shaky, so don't take it as gospel that all those games actually support WiFi play. Also, supporting documentation will be written, in a simple form, tonight - it's basically just like using a PS2, with a couple of extra conditions.
Finally, I'd just like to say that somebody should really send a PSP unit to whoever designed the WiFi module for the Nintendo DS - it's a very, very nice implementation - and adheres correctly to the recognised standards for wireless networking. I know others may argue that Nintendo uses their non-standard wireless architecture to "save power" - I'd like to officially confirm that as a crock-of-shit - Nintendo use their own "proprietary protocol" - because, it seems, they couldn't be bothered to / ran out if time trying to write a proper IP stack for the DS - so they used some horrible thrown-together frame format, used a very low-range tranceiver, and called it innovative. Anyway - my views on the DS hardware aren't relevant - what is relevant is that Kai will support both of these devices - one now, the other later - once I've finished jumping through all Nintendo's hoops.
As usual, us European guys won't see this thing for a good while (don't suppose any Japanse guys wanna import me one :P ? ) - but when we actually get them, rest assured that they will work on Kai :)
[/QUOTE]
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(Monday 06 December 2004 14:35 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Key XBox 2 Briefing Slated: Xbox 2 plans will be revealed next month
>> From Spong.com:
[QUOTE]
SPOnG can exclusively reveal this morning that Microsoft is planning to lift the lid on its most sensitive XBox 2 plans next month, with various media and software partners scheduled to attend a keynote briefing.
At the meeting, to be held in Seattle on January 17, Microsoft’s Xbox team will seek to outline its key branding direction, underlining launch plans and what it perceives as its target demographic.
It’s worth bearing in mind that this news, 100% confirmed this morning by a senior source under conditions of anonymity, does throw weight behind the new console seeing daylight on January 5 at the Consumer Electronics Show, where Bill gates is set to make a keynote address.
[/QUOTE]
Go read the whole story on Spong.com.
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(Monday 06 December 2004 12:27 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
SIN 007 (Softmod Installer for Newbies)
>> SlayerZ released SIN (Softmod Installer for Newbies): it's a newbie friendly exploit installer. This one is for "James Bond: Agent Under Fire" but he is working on a "Mech Assault" save that will do the same.
It's using the 007:AUF gamesave exploit to boot-up EvolutionX(info) and then using EvolutionX scripting to install the Unique Font Exploit (slightly modified version of UXE - The Über Xbe Exploit) xbe exploit on your HD.
Official Site: n/a, by SlayerZ
Discussion Thread: forums.xbox-scene.com
Download: n/a (contains files built with XDK)
News-Source: xbins.org
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(Monday 06 December 2004 11:03 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Hotel Using Xbox With Linux As Set-top-boxes
>> From Xbox-Linux.org:
[QUOTE]
Modding 10 Xboxes at a time. Hotel Royal will use Xboxes running with Linux as set-top-boxes - we applied the Hardware Method to ten Xboxes - in an assembly line.
[/QUOTE]
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(Monday 06 December 2004 10:20 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Xbox v1.6 HDTV (480p) support
>> From ShALLaX on gentoox.shallax.com:
[QUOTE]
Run magic now and you'll get (at least) 480p console support. I tried Xfree support (via xbvset) but "X2VGA -> 480p -> 1024x768" locked up my box. I'd be grateful if people could try out all the HDTV/ X2VGA modes themselves and report back! Thank you!
[/QUOTE]
Xbox-Scene Discussion Thread: forums.xbox-scene.com
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(Sunday 05 December 2004 23:29 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
UnleashX V0.37.1205A Build 534
>> A new version of UnleashX(info) dashboard has been released.
What's new/fixed:
*Fixed: Lock up when launching an app too soon when Network is enabled and no cable is plugged in.
*Fixed: Game Saves Manager doesn't create the proper destination when transferring game saves from Memory unit to HD. HD to MU is fine.
*Fixed: Text Editor is misalligned on PAL video mode.
*Fixed: Scrolling text flickers.
*Fixed: XML parser generates empty Xml element ([]).
*Fixed: RSS feeds with URL not ending in .xml are filtered out.
*Fixed: System settings does not reflect the changes until next reboot.
*Fixed: Some MP3s gets cut off near the end.
*Fixed: Music skips, or pauses when going in/out of a submenu, or opening the Storage option.
*Fixed: Random music, is now really random.
*Fixed: WMA is now more skip-resistant.
*Fixed: Video screen saver plays at a faster rate when activated the second time.
*Fixed: Default Destination folder when copying is being ignored.
*Fixed: Auto-File renaming generates invalid filename if the file extension is more than 4 characters long.
*Changed: FTP Server File IO routine improvement for faster, more efficient transfer.
*Changed: Background music manager totally rewritten.
*Changed: WMAs and MP3s can now reside in the same folder.
*Changed: Smaller and faster MP3 decoding engine.
*Changed: Transition of the Total progress bar indicator is now smoother and more accurate.
*Changed: Music volume control now affects WMVs and XMVs too.
*Changed: Default screen calibration data now uses smaller values.
*Changed: Audio/Music settings has it's own section in config.xml. If you are using BGM, you must reconfigure the music options.
*Added: FTP client for your Xbox-to-Xbox, Xbox-to-PC file transfer needs.
*Added: Live Dash Update with self-check feature.
*Added: Auto-check for new version.
*Added: Embedded Xml-only skins. There are currently 11 skins made by Jezz_X and Kthulu.
*Added: File manager now supports ISO9660 format.
*Added: Surround 5.1 for MP3 playback.
*Added: Surround 5.1 for XMVs and WMVs (preview movie)
*Added: Time elapse, estimated remaining time and transfer rate to the progress bar indicator (File operation).
*Added: [WindowBackCOLOR] and [WindowForeCOLOR] to the Color scheme tags. These currently applies to the Text editor's background and foreground color, respectively.
*Added: Exposed embedded fonts used by the dash. You can use the following tags, in place of the font filename:
MenuFont -The font the main menu uses (Arial 16)
SmallFont, -font used in the dialogs, virtual keyboard...etc (xboxbook 12)
InfoFont -font used by InfoText (xboxbook 14)
CaptionFont -font used by dialog caption/Loading screen(Xbox 14)
Example: [Font]CaptionFont[/Font]
*Added: Used kernel calls to provide kernel version, Hardware info and hddkey(used to come from eeprom data).
*Added: FREESPACE site command to the FTP server. (SITE FREESPACE [Drive Letter])
*Added: Enable/Disable Recently launched title list.
*Added: modifed mkjones' logo as a Splash screen. The logo came from Javienn, further modified with kthulu's tip.
*Added: Textured Settings' background.
*Added: Ability to change sound effects (.wav) use by the dash (Initial implementation).
*FTP CLIENT FEATURE:
-Peer xbox detection and uploading in boost mode (credits to Team Avalaunch) feature.
-Supports Passive (PASV) and anonymous connection.
-Raw Site command with some readily available in the menu.
-FTP log (press left thumbstick, or access from the menu) with save option, 1000 lines max.
-Transfer Queue (press right thumbstick, or use dpad to cycle among panes).
-Auto-rename when downloading.
*LIVE UPDATE FEATURE:
-Supports multiple server and URL redirect.
-Multiple self-checking/verification for that seamless upgrade. Will not mess existing version if downloaded update file is incomplete/corrupt.
-Creates backup of existing version before upgrading.
-New version notification.
-Update file will not work without the existing dash.
Official Site: http://www.unleashx.com
Official Forum: forums.xbox-scene.com
Download: n/a (built with XDK)
News-Source: forums.xbox-scene.com and xbins.org
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(Sunday 05 December 2004 15:53 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
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