quote:Original post by Drakonite

If anybody here has lots of info on it please let me know, post or whatever. I am researching it now and if nothing else, will email sony tommorow.

In case you missed it, some relevant information regarding this is about 15 messages up, posted by Anonymous.

The short of it: a bunch of folks petitioned SCEJ (Sony Japan) to release a version of linux for PS2 for hobbyists. End result: Sony listened; they sold several hundred copies in a matter of hours.

Now SCEA (Sony America) is polling to determine interest in a similar kit for the U.S. The link is here.



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Blue programmer needs food badly. Blue programmer is about to die!

About the PSX...

All that would really be required for hobbyist PSX development (aside from official docs and software, of course) is a custum serial cable and an official black sony boot disc *. The serial cable would be used to connect the PC to the PSX (via serial port, of course), and the boot disc would contain a minimalistic OS that would be used to transfer user-written programs and data from the PC to the PSX. We''re talking maybe 50 cents of production cost, minus support fees (and Sony could potentially charge anywhere up to a few hundred dollars with monthly subscription - and we''d still be praising them).

The problem, however, is that this development environment will make it quite easy for pirates to write programs that load bootleg copies of games into the PSX. And while it is true that illegally playing games in this way (verses a mod-chip) A) costs more, B) is more complex a process, and C) requires the use of PC during game play, Sony will never, ever do anything that might potentially open up a backdoor for piraters (even if this new backdoor is much more complicated and costly than the ones pirates are currently using).

A second option would be to provide hobbyist developers access to PSX documentation and closed support sites on, say, an annual bases, while leaving the developers "on their own" as far as the hardware goes (serial cable and mod chip, sony can provide a cd image). The advantage here is that Sony is no longer legally responsable for any software piracy that occurs, since the software pirates have to use custom hardware (much like how no one can sue Sony over losses due to mod-chip piracy - that''s just plain stupid).

-mark

PS: Snail mail and petetions always work better than email spamming.

PPS: I''m actually developing a web site devoted to independant hobbyist PSX development. I''ll be sure to post a link, but don''t expect anything for a few months.

* The real PSX development kit comes with a whole lot of other hardware too. Most of this extra hardware, however, simply provides extra debugging support, and isn''t really essential.

If you''re looking to do PS2 development, sign the dang form so Sony knows! You''re looking at the "next Yarouze" if they hear enough interest.

If you''re looking for PSX development, it''s already possible. Check out www.psxdev.de for a whole buttload of linux based tools (which may/may not work under windoze). It will require a PSX with the expansion port on the back (search the pawn shops!) and finding a cheat cartridge with a cable connector (ie, like a parallel port). Find the flash image on the web and you can program PSX too! (I know it works, I''ve done it.)


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Blue programmer needs food badly. Blue programmer is about to die!

mossmoss - It is already public knowledge that the PSX is hackable. But the ability to load and execute user-written programs is entirely useless if we still don''t know how to write these programs. In order to develop for the PSX, we need documentation on how the PSX works. Hence the reason we need Sony.

quote:Original post by mafried
mossmoss - It is already public knowledge that the PSX is hackable. But the ability to load and execute user-written programs is entirely useless if we still don''t know how to write these programs. In order to develop for the PSX, we need documentation on how the PSX works. Hence the reason we need Sony.

Since there are hobbyists developing PSX games, the information on writing PSX programs is out there. In fact, check out this link which has a bunch of information.

If you''re talking about PS2, I highly expect that if Sony does release a hobbyist kit, they''ll provide documentation. It''s a fairly complex system and Sony would look rather silly providing a kit without docs.

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Blue programmer needs food badly. Blue programmer is about to die!