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MODCHIP & SCENE NEWS Coranto Archive
December 2004
Xbox: Aladdin EX now available
Posted on Friday, December 31 2004
News From Divineo China
Aladdin EX is a brand new chip from the original Team Aladdin, maker of the Aladdin Advance, Aladdin Advance 64, Aladdin Live and Aladdin Live Plus.
Now they unvail their new baby: The Aladdin EX, all the features and a little more, and still the same ultra low price.
Buy your Alladin EX Modchip from Divineo China
User Interface Xbox v0.01 Beta Testing
Posted on Thursday, December 30 2004
Beta testing has now began on whats to be our core release of this exciting new dash "user.interface.xbox". Version 0.01 will be our "base plate" for adding new features on a regular basis as the following months go by. This core release will NOT contain the BSX (BlackstormX) style menus or new music player (to be added in later releases) but some cool features are: stable FTP, full in-dash dongle free dvd player.. oh yeah and its not FRENCH!
The image below is the first level of the HDD menu, as u can see this is a totally new layout to any other ms dasboard and will become optional in later releases.
As soon as we have cleaned up any bugs that are found in the internal beta testing, its going to be upto you guys.. the public to do your part and give this work of art a blast on your boxs and find any other small bugs that may exist and report them in our forums on XS
If you want to keep fully uptodate with the latest UIX news and chat with the team you can join our IRC channel on EFnet /#teamuix
http://www.teamuix.com/news.php
FBAxxx 26/12
Posted on Sunday, December 26 2004
A new version of FBAxxx, a port to Xbox of FBA - has been released.
What's new/fixed/notes:
* Dipswitches not saved fixed.
* Cheats not being saved fixed.
* Included outrun fix (and somme system16 fix) from djohng fbaxxx-treme release , thanks to him for his work (there are many other things in his release so I can only advice you to see it)
* sources are now available up to date, sorry about last time
* Plz note : I had (again) some problems with neogeo roms, I had to use a little trick, so you could see some missing screens in the beginning of the rom (7 first seconds), that s normal.
* Another note : I want to say to all "amateur developers" that there is a developers section on my forum, you can put your fixes, own releases, suggestions there, I think that s the way open source must be.
Xbox Modchips In Stock News
Posted on Sunday, December 26 2004
Divineo China have posted that the following modchips are in stock or are on preorder:
Xbox Xecuter 3: LCD and Pro Switches and Xapt3r now in stock
Xbox SmartXX LT (OPX): We are taking preorders!
More info at Divineo China
Doom Legacy Xbox Port v0.05
Posted on Friday, December 24 2004
Carcharius has ported Doom Legacy over to the Xbox, heres the info from this alpha release:
This is an early version of a port of Doom Legacy v1.42
I wanted to get a proper release done by now, but I haven't had time, so I decided to release a version as it is, as a present to the scene.
The work was started by lantus, who had partially ported an older legacy version. He kindly passed the work he had done over to me, I used that as a basis for porting the more recent v1.42 - So big props to lantus for kicking the whole project off.
As stated above - this is a pre-alpha release. Lots of stuff isn't implemented yet and there may well be a lot that doesn't work properly.
Please be aware of this and don't expect it to be perfect!
That being said, there is plenty that does work, including....
* All Doom games should work (Doom, Doom II, Ultimate Doom and Final Doom)
* Heretic works (Hexen isn't supported in this version of Doom Legacy)
* Two player split screen works
* Network play should work
* IWAD files shown in launcher can be adding to/changing by editing the wads\iwads.xml file
* XBOX specific in game options, including control setups
* Video mode can be set/changed from Doom Legacy options
This should be enough information to get you up and playing. I don't want to go into too much detail as this is a very, very early version so things are liable to change in the future.
Screenshots and more info Here
OpenXDK v0.06
Posted on Saturday, December 18 2004
A new release of the legal development environment for the Xbox has been released, heres whats new:
- Support for compiling on both Linux and Windows though migration to automake/autoconf based builds
- Enhanced directory handling. For example, the notion of current directory is now supported, as well as being able to list and navigate through files and directories
- Increased audio support. SDLAudio will now auto-convert the various sample rates and frequencies
- Lastly, hopefully a start at supporting the Xecuter (and other debug-based) BIOSes. Please let me know if you still have troubles with OpenXDK applications on these BIOSes.
More information can be found at the official site Here
Xbox Article From Lik Sang
Posted on Friday, December 17 2004
Lik Sang have posted a massive article of this years Xbox Games, Console accessories and much more, heres a part of that article:
Still the most powerful hardware on the block, Microsoft's Xbox games available this Christmas definitely focus on quality instead of sheer mass releases of titles. We at Lik Sang take a closer look at two of the most exciting releases of the recent past, each one a masterpiece of its own and certainly both a great gift idea. With those it's easy to please the majority of gamers out there, but they also offer deep, authentic gaming experiences which will appeal to hardcore users as well.
Competition: it's human nature they say. With E-Sports, LAN-Parties and Beat'em Up tournaments having grown massively popular over the past years, gamers have found their own way to indulge in events where they can show off their skills and try their best to come out on top of the opposition. The Xbox, with it's attractive Xbox Live service, has proved itself to be the platform of choice here, where you can get social with like-minded gaming enthusiasts and possibly find your match in some of the most gripping titles out. This Christmas, the time is perfect for activities like that; two recently released games have absolutely taken the community by storm. Do you have what it takes to face them?
It begins now. The air-lock doors open on a whole new FPS adventure with the long-awaited and overly well-received sequel to Halo - the best-selling Xbox game to date. In Halo 2, Master Chief and Cortana are returning to Earth in an attempt to stop the onslaught of the Covenant, a terrifyingly aggressive alien civilization, bent on the conquest and destruction of any species that dares defy them. Master Chief will be called upon to save the greatest prize in the Human colonies - Earth itself.
The sequel includes many of the features players have been asking for, including all-new graphics, new environments and locations, new weapons, vehicles and, you guessed it, full support for Xbox Live multiplayer action. Downloadable content should ensure that the game continues to entertain and involve players for a long time to come.
New features like dual-wielding, destructible environments and vehicle boarding change the Campaign and Multiplayer modes dramatically, while still retaining the core gameplay that made Halo an Xbox favorite. The highly involving game plot also features plenty of twists and surprises.
Read the rest of this massive article Here
XLink: Updated Kai UI, Halo2 info, PSP Support Confirmed and Jap Userbase !
Posted on Wednesday, December 15 2004
Over the last 24 hours, we've had confirmation that XLink Kai(info) is successfully tunneling Sony PSP games - and today we have started to see a large surge in demand for Kai's online service, primarily from Japanese users. Kai's PSP tunneling is performing well - lag is minimal, and users who have played seem pleased with the service.
However, while Kai's support crew is able to support a number of languages for our users, Japanese support is something which we are currently attempting to improve. Here's what we need from you guys:
* Two users who are able to translate between English and Japanese - who are prepared to maintain a Japanese support page, and possibly in future a Japanese forum subsection.
* Feedback from the Japanese userbase - so far we only have one "verified" working network card - I know other people have got Kai to work with others, but we need this information for the benefit of other users.
* Somebody to provide XLink with an orbital server in Japan. In other words, we need RD access to a Win2K3 box somewhere - on a *good* internet connection. Once this is in place, Japanese users will have a local Kai point of presence - and will not experience chat lag, or lag changing arenas.
Recently, I have updated Kai's UI module - just restart Kai and it will automatically download. The update adds a new button - in the top right of chat. This will change the way the enter key is handled in global chat - and should allow Japanese users to use their full extended character set properly! Let me know if it works!
Finally - Halo2 users on Kai - if you don't have engine 7.0.5.4 by now, you wont be seeing games at all - *restart and get it* - press the magnifying glass to check the engine version.
http://www.teamxlink.co.uk/
Xbox News from the UK
Posted on Tuesday, December 14 2004
News from Divineo UK that they have the following in stock.
X3 LCD & X3 Pro Switch In Stock
Xbox / PS2 Wireless Pads *IN STOCK*
XBox Xtender: Price drop & Xbox Xlight News
Posted on Tuesday, December 14 2004
News From Divineo China
The Xtender, the only HD mod that will never get you banned on Xbox live (in USA), is now cheaper than ever!
Buy at retail price : $ 49.95
Fans of console tuning, here comes the x-light! A neat electro luminescent wire to give that extra cool look to your Xbox. Comes in 2 colors for now, Blue and Green.
Buy at retail price : $ 19.95
Get yours from Divineo China
Chankast News and its Coming for Xbox too !
Posted on Monday, December 13 2004
I spoke of the rumour some months back and its true, Chankast the Dreamcast emulator for Windows is also coming to the Xbox Console.
Heres what Garrofi posted Himself:
Hi,
About our missing in action. Chankast has been a very stressful project, it needed a lot of time to get it working. We did an incredible work to get the first release working in only 3 months, it was a full time work. After the 0.25 release I didn't feel like doing chankast again so I took a long break, but
we have been improving a lot of things in that time. The emu is faster and need less memory to work, an early xbox version is working, it's great to see shenmue 1 on xbox , the sound is better, ...
About the future, we are thinking about releasing the source code and a binary with the latest changes.
Garrofi
Discuss Here
SmartXX v2 Review
Posted on Friday, December 10 2004
One of the best selling Modchips for the Xbox has been reviewed, heres part of that review:
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).
Check out the SmartXX V2 Review Here
Xbox Live Bans - Update From Team Xecuter
Posted on Friday, December 10 2004
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.
Chief Xbox exec About Xbox 2
Posted on Friday, December 10 2004
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.
Xbox Modchips In Stock News
Posted on Wednesday, December 8 2004
News from Extreme Mods about the very latest Xbox Modchips and accessories they have in stock:
Xbox Modchips:
- Xecuter 3 Modchip
- Xenium ICE & Xenium ICE Solderless
- SmartXX v2 LE
- Xecuter 2.6 Lite & Xecuter 2.6 Lite Solderless
- Universal Solderless Adapter
- Xenium Solderless Adapter
- LCD Mod
- SmartXX LPC Rebuild Kits
Xbox Case Mods:
- Clear Blue Xbox Cover
- Red, Green, and Blue Light Kits
- Xbox Vinyl Skins
Xbox Accessories:
- Wireless DDR Mat & Non-Wireless DDR Mat
- MultiVGA Box 2
- Sharpshooter Arcade Gun
- m9 Light Gun
- 2.4 Ghz Wireless Controller
- Xbox to PC USB Converter
- 8 MB Memory Card
Buy Yours Xbox Modchips from Extreme Mods
X3 LCD & X3 Pro Switch & Xbox Wireless Pads In Stock
Posted on Wednesday, December 8 2004
Divineo UK have posted news that they have X3 LCD & X3 Pro Switch & Xbox Wireless Pads In Stock.
XBOX 2 GETS CES STAGE FRIGHT?
Posted on Sunday, December 5 2004
With Bill Gates confirmed as the keynote speaker at the Consumer Electronics Shown in Las Vegas on January 5, everyone was expecting Xbox 2 to make its debut on the night.
Why? Gates chose exactly the same event to unleash the original Xbox on the world in 2001, leading to widespread anticipation that he'd do the same for Xbox 2.
Nonetheless, these rumours have never been confirmed by Microsoft itself. Now the presence of the next-gen console is beginning to look even more in doubt, with internet reports citing Xbox 2 development sources suggesting that the grand unveiling will actually take place in March at the Games Developers Conference in San Francisco.
Both theories have strong foundations. The Bill Gates connection is rock solid, but Microsoft used the GDC last year to show off their XNA development tools, believed to be the basis for Xbox 2's technology. A slightly delayed unveiling may also benefit Microsoft as it strives to get Xbox 2 on shelves before Sony's PS3 and Nintendo's Revolution - why would it show its hand early if it's holding all the aces?
We asked Microsoft to comment on these reports and guess what? "We do not comment on rumour and speculation."
We'll keep our eye on developments and keep you up to date.
DoomX v2.0 Beta !
Posted on Friday, December 3 2004
Carcharius and LikkleBaer have released a new version of DoomX the port of Doom to the Xbox, heres the news from this release:
As you can see, this is a huge release. It implements pretty much every feature we wanted to include in Doom-X and a few more besides. Any future releases will be primarily focused on bug-fixes, tweaks, and tidy-ups. So, without further time-wasting, check out the list of changes below and enjoy this new version. ^_^
What's new/fixed:
* Mod support (pWADs only) with selectable Start Map
* System link support for up to 4 players added (*extremely experimental* see below for details)
* Graphics rendering code rewritten (performance gain)
* Turning controls now fully analogue
* 3 alternate controller configurations added (Legacy, Southpaw, and Legacy Southpaw)
* Now detects controller in the lowest numbered port
* Setup menu added to launcher for resolution mode and other settings
* Start map can be changed for mods
* Updated launcher with graphics, sound effects and new options
* Xbox save games with title and save images added (saves from older versions should transfer automatically)
* Freezing issues should be fixed
* Fixed weapon cycling order bug
* Fixed map panning controls
* Fixed consecutive WAD loading bug
* '.'s in startup text now display correctly
* In-game menu bug fixed (Quit Game showing twice)
* Other small bugfixes
NOTE: Remember that the System Link feature is still very much a work-in-progress so it may not work 100% correctly 100% of the time. Thus far it has only been tested on a LAN with 2 Xboxes though up to 4 should work fine. Detailed and constructive feedback on this feature would be appreciated.
Info and screenshots Here
Sony faces global PS2 shortage; US Xbox stock also low !
Posted on Thursday, December 2 2004
Sales of console hardware are being severely impaired in all major global territories by severe ongoing shortages of the PlayStation 2, while some US retailers are also reporting low availability of the Xbox.
Major shortages of the PlayStation 2 console have been ongoing since the end of Summer in some areas, but have reached a head following the launch of the redesigned slimline "PStwo" - which massively increased demand for the system.
The situation is believed to be most severe in Europe, with the vast majority of retailers in the territory completely out of stock, although further shipments are hoped for by Christmas.
However, the USA is also experiencing severe shortages, and the unfulfilled demand in both territories is leading to significant price premiums being paid for new hardware on online auction sites such as eBay.
Although Microsoft is believed to be benefiting from Sony's difficulty in fulfilling demand for the PS2, the situation isn't entirely rosy for the rival firm either, with US retail sources indicating that Xbox stock is also in short supply.
"Consumer demand for the new PlayStation 2 has exceeded our expectations," admitted a Sony Computer Entertainment America spokesperson in a statement yesterday, "and we are doing all we can to fulfill the wish lists of people who want a new PlayStation 2 unit under their trees this holiday season."
Much of the problem is believed to be down to Sony's policy throughout late summer and early autumn of bleeding the distribution channel dry of the original PlayStation 2 in order to clear it out for the arrival of the slimline model.
The company has failed to restock the channel with the new model, and a combination of demand for the slimline console and pent-up demand caused by the shortages throughout autumn saw the console selling out its first shipment in a matter of days at many retailers.
Earlier this week, a Sony representative in Japan announced that the firm was keeping production of the new PlayStation Portable handheld system low in order to focus more strongly on producing the PlayStation 2 console.
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