Alright, so you've been browsing around the intarwebs absorbing the latest news. And you've probably come across a few sites reporting this so called "PS3 Firmware Update bypass hack." And maybe you guys were wondering why we didn't cover it. Or maybe you weren't. Anyways, while the "hack" does work, it's nothing more than sensationalism since most of the supposed advantages are either outright fake or uneducated speculation.

First, details about the hack. It's nothing more than hosting your own DNS server in your network, modifying a couple of entries to redirect the PS3 update check host to a different IP and using that DNS server on the PS3 instead of the one provided by your ISP. What happens is that the PS3 will now try to check that modified IP address for the update information. Since you've now modified it, it will look in the wrong place. Not finding any update information, it will think that it has the latest update available.


This is all good. Unfortunately, the hack is pretty useless unless all you do on your PS3 is browse around the PlayStation network. Here's the list of advantages that a few other sites have been listing:

• You can now access the official PS3 store without updating your current PS3 Firmware version! - Only for now.
  
• You can now play PS3 games on-line, without updating your current PS3 Firmware! - Fake.
  
• You may be able to downgrade the PS3's Firmware through this circumvention technique. - Fake.
  
• You may be able to 'install' your own desired PS3 store items using this method. - Fake
  

While you might want to think of it as a PS3 hack, it is nothing more than a small bypass for network update. Here's why:

• Since nothing has been exploited on the PS3, you still have to update your PS3 to the latest firmware if the game requires it. There is no way around it since you're not spoofing the version on the PS3 itself.
• You cannot downgrade your PS3's firmware using this method. The PS3's OS will not run any code if it isn't signed by Sony themselves. Simply spoofing a DNS entry and "trying" to send rogue files will not make it run on the PS3, it would still fail the sign checks.
• With regards to the PS3 Store items, they're probably signed too, which means that you can't simply install your own stuff.
• As for accessing the official PS3 store without updating your firmware, it will only work as long as Sony lets it work. They can simply move the update-check host to the same domain as the PlayStation Network, which will mean that you can either use the network by updating to the latest firmware, or not being able to connect to the PlayStation Network at all.

If there's a real hack/exploit, it will have to be found in the PS3's firmware itself. And for now, there doesn't seem to be one. So while you might hate us for saying this, the truth is that the PS3 is still not hacked and it will take a lot more than some simple DNS spoofing to hack one. And you can be rest assured that if there is a real hack around, you will know about it here.

We already knew that the PS3 sceners were cooking something when the earlier news from one of PDX's nfos came out. Then, it said that PS3 these ISO dumps would be playable soon. How soon? Nobody knew. Well, it seems that one of the latest nfos on PDX's dump says that an ISO loader is already in the works, maybe even as far as the beta testing stage.

Now while we can't tell a lot more since we ourselves don't know much, I've received word from a friend that unlike what others say, the application might not come out at all. Strange yes, but definitely something which has happened in the past. On top of that, the exploit is most probably software based since we haven't heard of any hardware modifications. This means that the PS3 firmwares are going to be as flaky as the PSP ones, which indirectly means that Sony will have the difficult task of securing the PS3 firmware. And looking at the PSP firmware scene, we can see all too well that Sony won't be having a lot of fun.

Anyways, here are parts of the nfo which make it seem that something is cooking:

 

While we don't support piracy, the fact that there could be software exploits in the PS3 firmware makes it seem that PS3 owners could see native homebrew sooner than we think. The fact that they were able to make an ISO loader means that they have been able to compile and run applications on the Game OS.

Again, this being found on an NFO means that we can't trust it fully. Call me a cynic, but I'll believe it when I see it.

With Linux making big inroads on the PS3, it was only a matter of time before people started messing around with it to unlock new functionality. And Linux users would know that MythTV is one of the must-have applications if you're deciding to use your PC as a PVR. While people had reported installing and using MythTV successfully, it's biggest point (recording and replaying recorded TV) was moot since the PS3 didn't have a TV tuner.

It was only a matter of time before someone tried a USB TV Tuner and successfully put together a working set of drivers for it. And that someone would be Takeshi Yaegashi who has been successful in patching the Plextor ConvertX PX-M402U's Linux drivers to work properly on the PS3. The problem was that the original GO7007 Video4Linux2 drivers didn't run properly on a 32bit userland/64bit kernel environment.

The released patches will patch the GO7007 Video4Linux2 drivers and the Addon CD to improve compatibility with the said environment, which is common on all PS3 Linux distros. What you'll have to do is patch the drivers, then patch the Addon CD file and finally compile the kernel given in the Addon CD. If this sounds a bit difficult, you can wait for distros to appear with this patches built in.

I would expect Gentoo to be the first with the patches, seeing how they're already thinking of including MythTV on the Gentoo Live CD. If you do understand the consequences and want to go ahead with this, download the patches, the new Addon CD, patch both of them, and then use the new customised kernel with your distro. Expect a thorough how-to soon!

Download: [GO7007 Video4Linux2 driver - (wis-go7007-linux-0.9.8.tar.bz2)]
Download: [Patch for the GO7007 driver - ps3-go7007.patch]
Download: [New PS3 Cell Addon CD (20061208)]
Download: [Patch for the Addon CD - ps3-compat-ioctl32.patch]

The number of Linux distros for the PS3 keeps increasing steadily. After already having heavyweights such as Fedora Core and Gentoo gracing their presence on the PS3, we now have Debian being released for it.

And make no mistake, while many of you might have never heard of Debian, it holds as much, if not more respect than the distros already out. And in case you didn't know, Debian could be called the father of Ubuntu since Ubuntu was originally started as a fork of Debian. The major advantage of Debian is its stability which is already proven by it being one of the top operating systems in a server environment.

Anyways, what's great is that this OS is released with a livecd environment, which means that everyone who is scared of Linux can give it a try, without being afraid of it modifying your system. As a live CD, all you need to do is install the kboot bootloader and select OtherOS as your default OS. After that, just burn the Debian CD as an image on a CD-R and insert it in your PS3 when it boots up. Once Debian starts, you can enter a number of parameters to customise your boot environment.

• live - Boot Debian Live
• yuv480i - Boot Debian Live in 480i video mode
• yuv480p - Boot Debian Live in 480p video mode
• yuv720p - Boot Debian Live in 720p video mode
• yuv1080i - Boot Debian Live in 1080i video mode
• yuv1080p - Boot Debian Live in 1080p video mode
• yuv576i - Boot Debian Live in 576i video mode
• yuv576p - Boot Debian Live in 576p video mode
• WXGA - Boot Debian Live in WXGA video mode
• SXGA - Boot Debian Live in SXGA video mode
• WUXGA - Boot Debian Live in WXUGA video mode
• install - Boot Debian-Installer in normal mode
• expert - Boot Debian-Installer in expert mode
• rescue - Boot Debian-Installer in rescue mode

You can install it by typing 'install' at the boot screen. Or you can check out Debian as a live cd by typing 'live'. The live cd environment which will boot up has a minimal GNOME desktop along with a bunch of utilities including the Firefox browser. The login details for the live cd are as follows:

Username - casper
Password - live

Remember that these details are for the live cd only. If you decide to install Debian on your PS3, you will get a chance to set the user details yourself. The otheros.bld which you must use for the kboot installer should be downloaded from the link below. So make sure to extract that file using a utility like WinRAR and using it with otheros.self.

Tutorial: [Partitioning and readying your PS3 for Linux]
Link: [Debian Live CD + Installer ISO]
Link: [PS3 Cell Addon CD (For otheros.bld)]
Link: [QJ.NET PS3 Linux forums]
View: [Debian on Wikipedia / Debian on DistroWatch]

I'm sure all of you have been having fun with Linux on your PS3. A few of you might be happy with Fedora Core 5/6, the others have probably moved on to Yellow Dog Linux. Now while they're not bad in any sense, they do have problems which are associated with any RPM based distro- dependency hell. I'm sure that any of you who've tried to install any applications would have faced the problem of missing dependencies sometime. And it's all too common to have a few packages totally missing from the repository which means that you have to search for their respective RPMs on the net, download them and install them separately. While functional, this can get a little frustrating over time.

My friend Jake just bought a PS3, and he wanted to install Linux on it. Since he didn't know much about Linux, it was my responsibility to help him with it. His requirements - Install a distribution which is easy to maintain and run. He wanted to make the full use of his Linux install, so he needed a distro which wouldn't hold him back with frustrating problems. Among his biggest needs was an office suite, a good web browser, and above all, a no-hassle media player which would allow him to play all his videos on the big screen.

One look at the current situation of Linux on the PS3, I knew it wasn't going to be Fedora Core or Yellow Dog since they seemed to have lots of problems when it came to media players. The only solution was using a distro which had a better package management system, and did its work without bothering you, the end user. And what luck! The folks over at Gentoo.org had just released a Live CD plus a few more things for the PS3. Having used Gentoo extensively, I knew that this would be the solution to my problems. Here's a few personal thoughts about Gentoo:

Why Gentoo?

1. Theoretically, faster than any other distro.
2. Modular distro, so you have full control over the installation.
3. It teaches you more about Linux.
4. You can update it whenever you want, don't have to wait for the latest version of the distro like Fedora Core 5/6, Yellow Dog Linux 5
5. Huge community of people, and the best documentation among all Linux distros, so you'll never have unsolved problems.

Criticisms of Gentoo:

1. Long installation process
2. Takes long to install applications since they have to be compiled from source
3. Difficult for anyone new to Linux since they get overwhelmed with all the stuff given to them.

Why Gentoo for PS3?

1. Best distro when compared with Fedora Core 5/6 or Yellow Dog Linux because of no RPM/dependency/repository hell
2. Easy to install ANY application - emerge . It will download source of all dependencies, install and setup everything.
3. Will get the latest updates first, and you will be able to download and install it without any problems.
4. It won't take time to install applications since hundreds of binaries already available through Portage Overlays. Thus, you will get applications compiled specially for the PS3, not just a regular PPC computer. The advantages of this will be big once GCC is optimised for the Cell processor.
5. You can ask for help while installation through irc, or ask someone to install it for you remotely!

As you can see, the above reasons cover up 2/3 criticisms of Gentoo. Therefore, it's not difficult to see that Gentoo is the best distro for the PS3. Don't get me wrong, Gentoo is an overwhelmer for any newbie to Linux, but since I'm very comfortable with it, I decided to set it up on his PS3. What followed was a nice command-line installation procedure and lots of fun configuring and setting up the system. Jake, who had already got a great head-start to his Linux journey, was having fun checking around the system, installing applications manually, and in general, doing whatever he had intended to do.

Now while the Gentoo guys had already published instructions for the installation, we went ahead and changed a few steps since we thought that they could be made easier. After all, not everyone loves vim :). Anyways, here's the link to the Gentoo install instructions. Have fun installing and checking out Gentoo on your PS3. At this point though, let me warn you- The installation isn't for those who've never spent time at the Linux command line. While the instructions can be understood and followed by everyone, we'd prefer it if total newbies stayed away from it for a little while, until we sort out the wiki and add lots more Gentoo-specific content. You can also ask for help in our forums where me and other Gentoo users will be eager to help you out.

View: [Gentoo Install Instructions]
View: [QJ.NET's PS3 Wiki]
View: [QJ.NET's PS3 Linux forums]

All those who've just got a PS3 for Christmas and are thinking of installing Fedora Core, stop! Terrasoft has released the free version of Yellow Dog Linux. While you might be wondering that Fedora Core is much more popular, I'd advise you to go with Yellow Dog Linux because it is based on Fedora Core itself. Secondly, and much more importantly, it is very much optimised for the PS3, since it's specially made for it.

So now that you know about it, how would you go about installing it on your PS3? If you're new, you can just skip over to the download and further instructions section. For all the newbies who've just learned of this, I'll give you some info which will lay down the basics for you.

To install a second operating system on your PS3, you will need the following:

• A PLAYSTATION 3 with a Hard Disk (20GB is fine).
• USB Keyboard, USB Mouse.
• A USB Storage Device.
• An ISO of the desired Linux distro.
• Sony PS3 Other OS Installer.
• OtherOS.bld file for the respective distro.
  
• Blank optical media + burner.
• Other things which will be specific to every distro.

Once you have these things ready, the next step is to format your PS3's internal hard disk and install Sony's OtherOS bootloader. Thankfully, TerraSoft also provided a nicely written install guide for everyone. I'd advise you to follow it. In case any of you run into problems, you can check out our PS3 Linux forums for help where other like-minded members will be happy to help you out.

Now for the download links to the required stuff:
Sony PS3 Other OS Installer
otheros.bld for Yellow Dog Linux ( here / here )
Yellow Dog Linux 5 ISO image ( here / here ) (3.3GB ISO!)
Install guide for Yellow Dog Linux ( here / here )

Now that you have the required stuff, the first thing you should do is go through the install guide a couple of times. In case you don't understand any step, make sure to ask in the forums for clarification. If you're not lucky enough to have a Hi-def TV yet, we do have a guide to install Yellow Dog Linux on SDTVs.

Bear in mind that our wiki is still in its infancy and as such, won't be complete. We'd love it if you might want to fill it up with how-tos, instructions, or anything else you have in mind. We will be officially launching it sometime in the near future, so if you'd wait until then, no worries. Also, thanks to mussadek from our forums for the heads-up!

View: [How-to: Yellow Dog Linux on SDTV (Thanks to sincebydarren from our forums!)]
View: [PS3 Linux forums]
Download: [Otheros.bld for Yellow Dog Linux]

Digg This? Click Here!

Now if all the PS3 launch drama wasn't enough, what with the shootings, fights and everything else, we've just heard of another bizarre case of a buyer being scammed while buying a PS3. When this 27-year-old guy from San Jose decided to buy a PS3 for Christmas, he checked out a multitude of places, including Craigslist. Sure enough, someone was selling a brand new PS3 for US$ 700. Pretty reasonable when you consider that they sell for around US$ 800 and above on eBay.

The seller told the guy that he was working at the BestBuy in Hayward and had managed to secure one for himself. A few emails were exchanged and it was decided that the deal would be carried out at a nearby McDonald's parking lot. Sure enough, the day came and he met the seller there who was with another guy in a Ford Explorer. He asked if he could check out the box, to which the seller replied, "What, don't you trust me?" The money and the box exchanged hands, and once outside the parking lot, the sellers ran, in the process, drove through a red light.

The buyer, meanwhile, decided to check out the box...Lo and behold! Instead of finding a shiny new PS3, the buyer found junk, including floor tiles, a PS2 controller and apartment rental magazines! While we can go on and on about being cautious and watchful, the fact remains that the poor guy was badly scammed of his seven Benjamins. The case is being investigated right now, so we do hope that the guy does get his money back, if not a PS3.

While we covered the news of Team Xecuter announcing their new PS3 project- the Hypredrive, I was left wondering about the purpose of such humongous space. I mean, while I do have about 2TB of storage space on my PC, it's a PC after all. On the PS3, you'd be left searching for stuff to fill up the hard disk.

Or would you? Well, not according to Team Xecuter and Paradox, it seems. Paradox, while being a warez release group, have a lot of firsts to their credit, including the first PSP ISO dump, and the first PS3 BDRay dump, among other things. And if they are to be believed, the illegal scene is not far off from being successful at booting games off the hard-disk. For now, we have nothing but a small snippet of the release info courtesy of Maxconsole.

| tYPE : Action/Role Play | vIDEO MODE : NTSC/USA |
| mEDIA : BLU-RAY | pLAYABLE : Soon ;) |

While we wouldn't know much until it was officially let out of the bag, I have a hunch that cracking the PS3 will be a bit easier than the Xbox360, simply because of the reason that its OS is pretty close to what we've had on the PSP. Second, a lot of file formats are identical to the respective PSP versions. And while the PS3 might have more security than a PSP, we can be sure that the first few firmware versions will still be pretty insecure.

And while we can't say that we're happy with the news, a part of me wants to rejoice simply because of the fact that the "scene" is hard at work on the PS3. And again, while piracy will be a big problem, you have to remember that a large contention of people will also be looking for homebrew on the PS3's XMB like on the PSP. Anyways, stay tuned for the latest updates!

Yes, the void has been filled! You will be able to install Fedora Core 5 on your PS3s right now if you have all the components ready! The void we're talking about here is the OtherOS Installer which has just been released by Sony on their Open Platform for PLAYSTATION site. So let us be the first ones to tell you how it's done. We're getting our own PS3 in a few hours and we'll make sure that you have the whole install process with pictures later on.

First, download all of the components that I've listed here.

• PS3 Linux Addon CD - Burn it on a CD at a slow speed (4x - 16x)
• OtherOS Installer by Sony
• Fedora Core 5 PPC image (DVD) - Burn it at a slow speed (2x - 8x)
• HTTP Download - [here]
  
• Bittorrent Download - [here]
  
• More HTTP Mirrors - [here]
  

Raring to have Linux running on your PS3? Click "Full Article" link below to get the full instructions!

It's here guys! And it's a heck of a lot quicker than I had anticipated. Remember that mysterious Addon packages CD that we were talking about; the CD that supposedly contained the kboot image for the Fedora Core 5? Well, it's out, and you can download it right now!

The only thing remaining right now is the OtherOS installer which will be released by Sony in the coming few days. And looking at the speed at which the things are being released, I'd give it a week for the void to be filled. For all the lucky Japanese people, you're just a few inches away from having Linux on your PS3s. For our American readers, well, you'll be lucky to get one on launch day. But I guess I can leave that for some other day.

For now, I suggest that all the Linux enthusiasts get started by having the Fedora Core 5 DVD image and this Addon CD downloaded. All you'll need once the PS3 comes out is the OtherOS installer. I'm giving out the link to the Fedora Core 5 DVD download. Personally, I haven't tested Linux on the PS3 yet for obvious reasons. But just to be safe, I'd advise you guys to download the DVD version.

Fedora Core 5 PPC DVD - 3.4GB
HTTP Download: [http://mirror.linux.duke.edu/pub/fedora/linux/core/5/ppc/iso/FC-5-ppc-DVD.iso]
Bittorrent Download: [http://torrent.fedoraproject.org/torrents/bordeaux-DVD-ppc.torrent]
More HTTP Mirrors: [http://fedora.redhat.com/Download/mirrors.html]

Once you have it downloaded, you can download the Addon CD off our servers below. Be advised that you'll still need to wait for the OtherOS installer to show up on the PLAYSTATION 3 Open Platform site. Until then, why not chill out in our Linux forums with other Linux enthusiasts. For more info about PS3 Linux, make sure to check our our previous articles here and here.

Download: [Sony PS3 Cell Linux Addon CD]
View: [PS3 Linux Forums]