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Dreamcast Reading An IDE Hard Drive

Posted by timothy on from the this-isn't-a-cd-dave dept.

evilpaul13 writes: "Somebody got an IDE Harddrive hooked up to his Dreamcast! He plans to build a new case for it as a later project. Maybe this will encourage new Linux for Dreamcast work with the greater possibilities it presents for a small SH6 based web server?" This is still a work in progress -- but it's encouraging, especially given the current price of Dreamcast consoles.

6 of 178 comments (clear)

  1. Not SH6 by ldspartan · · Score: 5, Informative

    It uses a Hitachi SH4, not SH6, iirc. Just splitting hairs :).

    --
    Phil

  2. Dreamcast videosystem is designed by PowerVR by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative
    If I remember correctly, the Dreamcast sports a first gen Kyro graphics chipset. Also noteworthy, PowerVR has just released its 2nd wave of BETA X11 XServer, GLX, and DRI drivers for their Kyro and Kyro II graphics chipsets. I submitted this as news, but apparently Slashdot doesn't think it's noteworthy. What realy is noteworthy is POWERVR has NOW opensourced their DRIVERS! Check it out on their download page...

    SuSE 7
    RedHat 7
    Mandrake 8
    SOURCE RPM
    and SOURCE TARBALL ;)

    PowerVR has just made the Dreamcast into an aspiring platform for Linux gaming! Good graphics, 128 bit SuperH CPU, good BUS, affordable(less than $100 at retail, cheaper used), and now a harddrive... shame on them ;)

  3. Old news... by Daniel+Wood · · Score: 2, Informative

    bITmASTER32 made an IDE interface and Kiyoshi Ikehara built released a driver for NetBSD a long time ago. What this guy did was nothing special. They have been Lan booting NetBSD on a dreamcast and using the HDD (albeit slow, 800k/sec) for a while now.

  4. Re:Dreamcast is Cheap, but not easy to find anymor by sparcv9 · · Score: 5, Informative

    Hit up a Babbage's or FunCoLand (same parent company). Babbage's sells mostly new stuff, but has some used/refurbed DC stuff, and FunCoLand is primarily a used game/console store. The one near me has about a half-dozen used DCs for sale. I even got a DC keyboard at FunCoLand for $10, new in the box. The Electronics Boutiques around here seem to be dropping the DC merchandise and just selling off the remainder, though, and the local Wal*Marts have stopped carrying it completely.

    --

    This is not a Fugazi .sig
  5. Re:Summary of Sega consoles/CPU's by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative

    As someone who has written a Genesis emulator, I can assure you that the Z80 is indeed the sound CPU. There was only 1 game which used the SMS compatibility mode that I'm aware of (Phantasy Star -- exact same game as the SMS counterpart, in a Genesis cartridge.)

    Try firing up some games in your favorite Genesis emulator and then disabling the Z80. What's that? Sound stops? Oh! :) Some games did PSG sound through the 68K but the bulk of sound output was done through the YM2612 FM (and its DAC) using the Z80.

    The SMS compatibility mode was activated via a cart pin. It disabled the 68K, put the VDP in SMS compatibility mode, and the made the Z80 think it was an SMS Z80.

    The Game Gear is basically just an SMS (the only real difference is that its palette can define more colors.)

    The 32X used twin SH-2s in a set up that was somewhat similar to the Saturn. The Saturn used 2 SH-2s, NOT SH-3s. There was an SH-1 in the CD-ROM drive, but you couldn't load code on it, so it basically worked like a black box.

    AFAIK the Dreamcast uses an ARM CPU for sound.

    If you can't already tell, programming old Sega consoles for fun is something I've dabbled in :)

  6. DC Has lots of great stuff already. by NiGHTSFTP · · Score: 5, Informative

    I've been following the scene for quite awhile. Was hop in #dcemu 6 months or so, when it wasnt busy. Went through the big John Henderson fiasco.

    There is alot the DC offers, that nobody realizes. Do you know its the only cheap $50 console, that has accelerated 3d rendering? in free, open source libraries (KOS 1.1.7).

    Rocket Racer beta2 is a wipeout-style game, no AI or Multiplayer till beta 3, but the techdemo of it kicks ass (4 cars, 2 tracks, time trials only).

    DCShooter (beta that is out is old, wait for next release).. loads Q2 levels. Its a homebrew multiplayer (1-4) shooting game. Will soon be goldeneye-style.

    DCAsteroids and DCFighting are both 3d, but are on backburner for the shooting game at the moment.

    Look at fucking DcDivx!! Made by team Project Mayo themselves! (Divx 3,4,5 support, AVI, MP3 - Disc Swap Support) Its only beta 3, and is an -excellent- movie player.

    There are outstanding emulators too.

    NES : NesterDC 6.0
    SNES: DreamSNES 0.9.7
    GB : DCGNUboy 1.0.3-0.4
    Genesis : DCGen 0.34b
    Sega Master System/ Game Gear : Smeg 0.84

    Just to name a few.

    The harddrive is only a smaller mod that makes up the DC as a whole. Look at everything, and it kicks the crap out of any PS2 or Xbox...

    Go ahead, play a super nintendo game on the Xbox.
    Play a DivX movie on your PS2.

    http://www.dcemulation.com/
    http://www.dcvison. com/
    http://www.boob.co.uk

    --
    http://www.angryburrito.com/ The best, completely unfinished software review site ever.