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I already have a PSP and I want to pick up a DS as well (I'm a sucker for handhelds, what can I say). What kept me away from the DS so far has everything to do with how they build the actual hardware. I hated the original DS case. And I hated the craptacular screen quality. But I love the innovation behind the dual screen concept, stylus input, and massive/excellent software library.

The new DS is very pretty, but barely smaller and the screens still fail to impress. Its just so close! C'mon big N, you can do this right. The original GameBoy was like the original Macintosh - anthropomorphic, iconic, a joy to use and hold. The DS has amazing ideas happening but they have got to get the size down and get better displays. Screen quality in particular is truly painful, when compared to PSP (which, fair to say, is huge - but also fair to say, does a lot more in terms of media playback and surfing).

I guess what I'm saying is, where is the DS Lite Micro?

Anyone who's more than mildly in to DDR must eventually hook a PC up to their TV and start using Stepmania or something similar. Hundreds of songs available online (all illegally, I'm sure, but oh well), no more swapping discs in and out of the PS2 to play this song or that one.

I used to do that all the time when I went to the local community college and had a friend who lived in the dorms. I would bring my laptop and PS2 controller to USB adapter, and another friend would bring his metal DDR pads. We plugged the laptop and pads into the big screen TV in the dorm lounge and play DDR until 10pm when non-residents had to leave. We met lots of people there, and I met my current girlfriend -- yes, I'm posting on /. and have a girlfriend that I met playing DDR ;-P. Stepmania rules!

Anyway, like the parent said, what makes Stepmania much, much better than any of the official Konami releases is that you can add all the official DDR songs and make custom ones. The only limit to the number of songs is my laptop's 20GB hard drive. With the official releases, different mixes have different songs, some songs are only on consoles, only on arcade machines, only in Japan/Korea/Europe/whatever, and there is no way to get every song. It's rediculous, as if Konami is trying its best to not make money.

This page specifically says "[The controller] interacts with a sensor bar placed above, below, or near televisions. The bar contains two sensors that communicate with the controller using Bluetooth technology."

This page specifically says "[The controller] interacts with a sensor bar placed above, below, or near televisions. The bar contains two sensors that communicate with the controller using Bluetooth technology."

Forget Tetris for a second, there's a much better DS story today:

Datatel will be releasing a 4GB harddrive for the DS in March. Lik-sang is taking pre-orders for $179 US (http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?products_id=8731 &lsaid=295872). It fits in the GBA slot and requires uses the DS as the power source.

It lets the user play MP3 audio tracks, watch videos and view JPEGs. See images of the HDD and a screenshot of the media player here: http://www.nintendorevolution.ca/02132006/21/ninte ndo_ds_gets_a_hard_drive

Yep. If you've got spare Xbox, PS2, Dreamcast or GC controllers, you can use one of these: http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?category=29&produ cts_id=4532& or http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?category=163&prod ucts_id=3174& or you can make one yourself: http://www.llamma.com/xbox/Mods/xbox_controller_to _pc_usb.htm

Yep. If you've got spare Xbox, PS2, Dreamcast or GC controllers, you can use one of these: http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?category=29&produ cts_id=4532& or http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?category=163&prod ucts_id=3174& or you can make one yourself: http://www.llamma.com/xbox/Mods/xbox_controller_to _pc_usb.htm

Adaptors are pretty cheap. This one works under linux too - good for Neverball and Stepmania.

You've been able to import this from Lik-Sang for quite some time now. In fact, here is their hands on review from Nov.

Sera

I'm not into the FPS on consoles (say hello to my mouse and keyboard noobs)

Just fyi, PA posted a link at one point to this - http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?products_id=5438& likref=google_frag_xbox&gclid=CMKS86Lg44ICFQwJSQod tCh_kg/

It lets you hook a mouse and keyboard directly to an Xbox in place of the controller. (serial, not usb, unfortunately - not sure who had that bright idea) And I suppose theres little chance of anything similar in the immediate future for the 360, but if you like Halo/Halo2 and similar games I highly recommend it. I have one myself, and it improved my play by leaps and bounds since I'm a PC-game native.

Being familiar with something and being proficient in something are two entirely different things, wouldn't you agree?

"The Linux package managers are all mediocre. You have to be aware that one thing will break another, that this library is incompatible with that etc."

Ever heard the phrase 'DLL Hell'? What about 'VXD Hell'? Windows equivilents of library incompatibilities. As for all of Linux's package managers being mediocre, you're right, I concede. Urpmi, yum, apt, etc. are all crap compared to Windows' package manager called... oh wait. Windows doesn't really have a package manager, all software is responsible for its own installation and removal. Didn't install right? Too damn bad. Won't uninstall? Tough titty. Installing software in Windows is only as good and trustworthy as the software you're installing. Apps like Norton Antivirus and AOL for instance are nearly impossible to remove completely because their uninstallers do not have your best interests in mind. Doesn't it make more sense to have a package manager be responsible for how software is added and removed? Besides, a modern distro's package manager handles all dependancies and conflicts automatically. It basically boils down to clicking a static box next to a discription of the program you want to install from the package manager's list and clicking "Install". It will handle all of the dependancies automatically. In urpmi, my update script consists of only two lines, it works unattended and it never fails.

"When is the last time your wife installed a major new piece of software on her system? Did she get you to do it or did she do it herself? How often does she do this? What does your wife actually use the system for? Email, web browsing and the occassional openoffice document is my guess. Perhaps instant messaging too? Maybe a little graphics editing ala gimp if she's adventurous? I'd guess that's about it. Answer these questions if you want to retain any credibility."

The last time she installed software on it was probably Cedega. Yes, it's not difficult, she did it herself. She uses her system for all the things most people use their PCs for... finances, internet, games, email, IM, office, photo editing, music, photo albums, scheduling, and she plays the occasional emulated SuperNES game as well (with a PSX Controller no less -- how geeky!). So aside from the emulators, pretty normal I'd say. But the whole point was that she has average needs and no problems. I manage several SOHO networks for my workstation, which is probably not an average need, but Linux suits my needs quite well also.

"With XP I learnt about a handful of utils (most GUI driven so you don't have to be familiar with 100 command line options) - I know the control panel well. I know a handful of network utils, and a handful of disk utils. Oh yes I do run a good piece of antivirus software, and a firewall. (The only pain comes when I install new hardware - my last graphics card was hell to install and it's still not quite right but that's either NVidia drivers or my motherboard and/or graphics card are faulty - I'm still not sure which)."

So let me see if I got this straight. You don't know Linux at all, you don't even know XP very well by your own admission, and yet you refuse to believe that a properly configured Linux system can run without issues? Incredible. At this point I realize what an ass I truly am for having wasted my time arguing with you to this point. If you cannot or will not see the folly in your own argument, how can we have a rational discussion on the matter?

And if you're just thinking about MP3s, there's the much cheaper GBA Movie Player. I just got one for Christmas and its become my favorite new toy. You can play homebrew from it too, with few software tweaks. The only real downside is that you have to convert your music and movies to their special format.

One of the greatest gaming uses I've discovered for my laptop is a couple of emulators and this device from lik-sang.com. It allows you to use one of the best controllers of all time to play your favorite NES SNES and MAME games. It works flawlessly, is cheap (if you have the PC already), and doesn't require the complicated process of blowing/erasing the connections on aging game carts.

Nonsense. Halo 2 is still quite playable with a normal controller.

Because it wasn't balanced for a mouse. Halo with mouse is pathetically easy. The accuracy of a mouse + the auto-aim required for thumbpad aiming makes the game seem childishly simple to an experienced PC FPS player.

with a SmartJoy FRAG, you can play the game as well as anyone as long as you set it up right.

No. According to Lik-Sang, your play will be different from normal users: "using a keyboard and a mouse, completely changes the way the game is played. Use of the mouse takes away the need to concentrate on aiming and leaves you free to concentrate on pure tactics."

The only reason the smartjoy-frag doesn't totally dominate high-level play is that it's rather flakey, and the game sometimes gets stuck for a second or two (in situations where the approved controller could effortlessly proceed)

If Xbox had a kb+m option, I would go out and buy Halo2 right now.

Check out the SmartJoy FRAG from Lik-Sang. It lets you use any PS/2 keyboard and mouse with the Xbox. I used one of those and an X2VGA+ to set my Xbox up on my computer desk, and now playing Halo 2 is almost (but sadly, not quite) like playing Halo 1 on the PC.

>No console have ever offered this kinda gameplay before, so i think its fair to call it revolutionary.

http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?category=259&prod ucts_id=3557

I do hope we get a two-controllers game for DragonQuest-type games, though (one for the sword, one for the handle of the shield... it would be amazing!)

This is the Xbox360 launch coverage in Japan, for those who still think MS will win the consoles war. http://www.lik-sang.com/news.php?artc=3759&lsaid=1 98235

For those who still dream that microsoft will win the consoles war go there : http://www.lik-sang.com/news.php?artc=3759&lsaid=1 98235 , Im sorry!

Are there any titles in the Japanese launch that weren't available at the US launch?

The only thing I can think of to differentiate yourself from the majors right now is to stock imports and the means to play them. In this way you will have things that the big chains mostly don't have. When I was contracting in Virginia I loved to drive out to this one non-chain store that carried imports. Ideas can be had from NCS and Lik Sang. Get a few Messiah NEX systems, and some old NES games for them to appeal to the nostalgic market.

There was one rap group that used a Beats of Rage mod to advertise themselves, though I have no idea how that worked out for them.

The biggest problem though is getting people actually to the store. If you could get people to come once a week, for some kind of competitive game night, they might buy or at least come back.

I thought this article about Animenation was interesting:

Right hobby, right time

Of course, they built their online business first and the retail store came later.

The people who are really into multiplayer get PCs.

Seriously though, I don't think that's completely true. Even if consoles are lacking in their network play in the current gen of consoles, is there any reason that consoles should ignore online play and leave that to PC's only? I think it would be great if consoles brought the LAN gaming feel to bigger TV screens, made the process easier, and allowed you to sync up with your real-life friends.

I give you reverse engineered Nintendo.

That uses an NT6578. Made by Novatek. Single chip NES. Don't know if it's legally reverse engineered.

I also give you a legally reverse engineered NES clone.

I use a SmartJoy Frag on my Xbox. It's great for games like Call of Duty, Halo, and pretty much any FPS, really.

I ordered from Lik Sang:
http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?category=83&produ cts_id=5438&

Also, you can get it for PS2 as well, so that the games that don't support the USB ports will work:
http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?category=23&produ cts_id=5439&

I use a SmartJoy Frag on my Xbox. It's great for games like Call of Duty, Halo, and pretty much any FPS, really.

I ordered from Lik Sang:
http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?category=83&produ cts_id=5438&

Also, you can get it for PS2 as well, so that the games that don't support the USB ports will work:
http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?category=23&produ cts_id=5439&

there are tutorials on the internet that show you how to connect a NES controller to your computer http://www.joystiq.com/entry/7817137582525561/, it just takes a bit of soldering. There's also USB http://www.zeroorone.com/nesusb.html. You could even buy a USB adapter for an SNES controller http://www.lik-sang.com/news.php?artc=3339if you don't want to rip the NES controller open and fiddle with the wires.

And this on the heels of the announcement of the TV adapter!
 
So combine the hard drive plus the TV adapter, and your PSP can now serve as a ... comfortable home for a family of four?

And this on the heels of the announcement of the TV adapter!
 
So combine the hard drive plus the TV adapter, and your PSP can now serve as a ... comfortable home for a family of four?

Guess what? The PSP is not designed to be hooked up to a television. if you want to do so, you have two options. The first, is to get some half-assed contraption like this, which is going to likely offer crap video quality.

And then there's the RIGHT WAY. http://www.lik-sang.com/news.php?artc=3696 Which has been adopted by many gaming news outlets, prior to it even being released.

It even lets you hook up a PS2 controller. Are you really going to play your PSP with this new contraption on the front of it? I think not. Unlike this new one, it actually taps into the video signal going to the LCD directly. That certainly seems like the more intelligent method, and is certainly liable to be the option with the highest quality output.

Face it, the serious PSP users have already voided their warranty for homebrew apps, piracy, or just to stick it to Sony by downgrading their firmware out of spite. Replacing the faceplate with one that has a connector at the bottom allowing you to dock a REAL video output solution to it is a sound idea that makes a hell of a lot more sense than this thing.

You're right. It does say that. For a completely fucking different piece of hardware then the story is talking about.

A friend at work just bought the PSP version of SSX 4. He was royally pi$$ed to find out that the PSP version he just bought is 10 dollars more than the regular console versions.

On the one hand, I'm surprised that as many UMD movie disks are selling as they are. The idea of portable movies isn't new or revolutionary, and the PSP has the capacity to playback movies from resonably affordable flash memory.

On the other hand, I can't see strapping a cheap digitizer to an LCD screen, feeding the video to a television, and having it be anything other than crappy. PSP UMD disks have resolutions significantly below broadcast quality, and not at all up to DVD standards. But if you really wanted to do something like that, the best way would be to use a inline digitizer that snags the signal before it goes to the LCD screen. That way the resolution you do have remains as crisp as it is likely to be, short of having a dedicated UMD player.

And don't worry too much about voiding your warranty. Sony has already made clear that nothing that is likely to go wrong with your PSP is covered under warranty.

Did you read the article? "Unfortunately, the installation requires you to open and modify your PSP console, and you need to replace the front face plate with a new one. This TV Adapter is recommended only for advanced D.I.Y. technicians, and installing the kit will definitely void your warranty."

So if it's not a 'mod', but it voids your warranty, what is it? Oh yeah, a PIECE OF CRAP! Ok, I'm going to take 480 x 272 video and blow it up to wide screen using an A/D/A conversion device costing $120 ... it will look HORRIBLE! This will be worse than the crappy ripped AVI movies people put on the web....GACK!

I hate to say it, but this is one of those times where it REALLY is better to buy the effing DVD! And, I HATE the MPAA (and the RIAA, for that matter).

Nothing to match the PSP's music and movie playing abilities (third party add-ons don't count)

How about the Play-Yan? This is a Nintendo made product, though it hasn't made it's way stateside(it's on it's way), I know plenty of people who have imported it.

If all you want to play is Homebrew then you could just buy the Gameboy Advance Movie Player and then get the Firmware Hack and then if you don't mind opening up your DS and flashing the firmware you can play homebrew on the GBA Movie Player without a passme (plus it gets rid of that annoying as fuck touch to being screen at the beginning). Total cost? $25 + shipping + CF card which a 32 MB Generic card (I mean you don't need a sansdisc for this right?) can be found at PriceWatch for $11 shipped. So for under $40 you can do homebrew on DS and for comparison the smallest Memory Stick Pro Duo I could find is a 64MB one that costs $13 shipped. Also the GBA MP can play movies and MP3s as well.

You can watch movies on the DS, if you want to.

www.lik-sang.com

Not quite as spectacular as the PSP though.. although I like the fact that you can set it down and watch it like a laptop.

1UP.com referred to it as a "chip", but I can't imagine what it could be other than an gyroscope.

The ADXRS150 is a 150 deg./sec. angular rate sensor (gyroscope) on a single chip, complete with all of the required electronics.

http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?category=&product s_id=7103 Tho, being an absolute FF freak, I'm still very much tempted. In fact I would trade my soul if it came in English.

OK. Here's your controller. For those who don't follow the GC : this is a REAL controller, made for the game Phantasy Star Online. I don't think many people bought the controller, but it still exists.

Lik-Sang is taking preorders for 60 US dollars.

Of course, that's with one wired controller and no hard drive...

Shipping date is set for the end of august.

I was round a friend's house the other weekend, and she fired up Halo 2 on her XBox, and I was struck with how primitive the graphics look. Sure, an XBox is a damn sight cheaper than my PC, but I can see why.

It's not just the graphics that are disappointing. You have to control it with a gamepad too, unless you buy a keyboard/mouse adapter, and even then it doesn't quite feel like a real PC FPS.

Maybe those are the games Sony wants to promote, but they're not the only games out there. I get mine at Yodobashi Camera, but since I'm in America right now, I'll look at a source more available to Americans: Lik-Sang.

It shows 110 PSP games out now, and another 84 awaiting release. That's pretty close to what I've seen in the shops. Yes, Lik-Sang is out of many of the titles, but that's not the point -- there are dozens and dozens of games out there. Even discounting the titles that Lik-Sang is out of stock on, the numbers are far higher than reported by 1UP, and all of these games are available from mail order for Americans just as easy as if they ordered from Amazon.com or Target.

Just because you can't get them in Best Buy doesn't mean they're not available to Ameicans or anyone else.

Unfortunately, it doesn't take old PS and PS2 memory cards (I found it annoying that you could save PS data onto a PS2 card, but this just really sucks).

Yes, because it's so hard to transfer files to a Memory Stick Duo. I might even be able to do that with a $10 USB interface. (And you've been able to transfer PS1/PS2 savegames for ages.)

Dance pads and other old PS2 periphels won't work on it (I guess I can laugh at my brother for buying a $300 DDR dance mat that won't work with a PS3).

Sure, because even though they already build a PS2->USB box for $13, building either a bluetooth-based box or just connecting your dance pad to the PS3 USB port will be impossible. After all, it's clearly in the best interests of Sony and Konami/Bemani to alienate all those users. That's why they're ensuring backward compatibility in the first place.

Next thing we know, it won't even play games.

Sure, dumbass.

Unfortunately, it doesn't take old PS and PS2 memory cards (I found it annoying that you could save PS data onto a PS2 card, but this just really sucks).

Yes, because it's so hard to transfer files to a Memory Stick Duo. I might even be able to do that with a $10 USB interface. (And you've been able to transfer PS1/PS2 savegames for ages.)

Dance pads and other old PS2 periphels won't work on it (I guess I can laugh at my brother for buying a $300 DDR dance mat that won't work with a PS3).

Sure, because even though they already build a PS2->USB box for $13, building either a bluetooth-based box or just connecting your dance pad to the PS3 USB port will be impossible. After all, it's clearly in the best interests of Sony and Konami/Bemani to alienate all those users. That's why they're ensuring backward compatibility in the first place.

Next thing we know, it won't even play games.

Sure, dumbass.

http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?category=25&produ cts_id=202&

This is the first thing I saw. Plug it into your PC, and backup your saves. If you have a Memory stick reader on the PC, it should be easy to copy over.

I also wouldn't be surprised if there us a USB card reader available for the PS3 itself to work with the old cards directly.

The article mentioned that the DexDrive would be a possible solution to transfer game files. It's the first thing that came to my mind as well.

Lik Sang will come to the rescue.

From this thread:

Update using a PC

NOTE: You will need one of the following to update your PSP using your PC:

- A USB AUSB Mini B Cable - A Memory Stick Reader/Writer (USB or a PC equipped with a slot)

1. Create a folder for the update file on the Memory Stick Duo. Create a folder on the Memory Stick Duo, name is 'PSP'. Inside that folder, create another folder named 'GAME'. Create another folder inside that folder and name it 'UPDATE'.

2. Download the firmware update file (at the top of this page) and place it inside the 'UPDATE' folder you created in the previous step.

3. Insert the Memory Stick Dup into the PSP system

4. To start the update, select (Game) from the PSP Home Menu. Then select (Memory Stick). Press the X Button. The update will begin.

5. To confirm the update was sucessful, select (Settings) from the PSP Home Menu, then select 'System Settings', then select 'System Information'. You should see the latest version that you just updated displayed:

Once the update is complete, you can delete the update package from your Memory Stick Duo.

From this thread:

Update using a PC

NOTE: You will need one of the following to update your PSP using your PC:

- A USB AUSB Mini B Cable - A Memory Stick Reader/Writer (USB or a PC equipped with a slot)

1. Create a folder for the update file on the Memory Stick Duo. Create a folder on the Memory Stick Duo, name is 'PSP'. Inside that folder, create another folder named 'GAME'. Create another folder inside that folder and name it 'UPDATE'.

2. Download the firmware update file (at the top of this page) and place it inside the 'UPDATE' folder you created in the previous step.

3. Insert the Memory Stick Dup into the PSP system

4. To start the update, select (Game) from the PSP Home Menu. Then select (Memory Stick). Press the X Button. The update will begin.

5. To confirm the update was sucessful, select (Settings) from the PSP Home Menu, then select 'System Settings', then select 'System Information'. You should see the latest version that you just updated displayed:

Once the update is complete, you can delete the update package from your Memory Stick Duo.

http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?category=252&prod ucts_id=3983&

I bought one about a month ago and I'm very impressed. And at $US25 - well.

Try a USB to PS2 controller adaptor.

I got myself one of these Less than 15 bucks, works like a champ.

PC gaming has never been better, best of both worlds.