Europeans Exploit PS2 Web Browser

An anonymous reader writes "The BBC has an article on a gamer who's configured their Playstation 2 to act as a web browser for any site, not just those associated with PS2 games, although it seems to be an European-only option." While you can even run a PS2 version of Mozilla with the Playstation 2 Linux Kit, this exploit, for standalone PS2 consoles without a hard drive, works by re-assigning an external device IP option (apparently only available with the European network adaptor?) to a non-Sony website.

Comments

Other ways to do this

[bobthemonkey13]

I haven't tried it, but it seems to me that this could be accomplished by putting a DNS caching router machine between the PS2 and the internet, and then remapping the DNS for Sony's site over to the site mentioned in the article. This should work on American consoles, unless they don't have a Web browser at all. Of course, needing a router machine probably defeats the purpose of a standalone web browser.

Re:Other ways to do this

[bobbozzo]

DNS: no, not if they're using an IP instead of a Domain Name.

Other possibilities:
1. some form of NAT or DNAT (easy to do with a linux router or firewall)

2. a transparent proxy that re-writes/redirects the url.

Inertia the staple of marketting

[Rares Marian]

Why do more people go to the same media that they see on TV?

Because the computer is not the network, the computer is the TV.

I wonder what Sony's site has to offer that people would even start the web browser on the PS2.

We should focus on the big picture.

[Mensa Babe]

This is a really great news, I must admit it, even if somewhat old, but actually very few people are doing it, and it is not even the first time such a thing is possible for PS2 users. The question though is "Why?" Why should most of the users bother with such an "exploitation" while even most of the MSIE users don't bother to change their starting URL? I mean, why most of Windows users have no idea what does GNU mean? Could it be because of Results 1-15 of about 43 containing "GNU" on MSN while Google gives Searched the web for GNU. Results 1 - 10 of about 11,600,000. Search took 0.07 seconds.? I mean, let us be serious here for a second. Most of people don't care about anything. All they want is play games, play games, and then play some games. That's it. Freedom? Philosophy? Human rights? They just don't care as long as they have TV, pop music, video games, fast food and a new Saddam or Osama to kill and blame for their misery from time to time. This may be sad, but that is the truth. But let's stay on-topic. This is great news, I'm sure everyone will agree with me.

Re:We should focus on the big picture.

[Schezar]

Welcome to America ;^) The only reason we don't have a revolution is the large middle class. They're not too well off, but they're scared as all shit of being poor. Life is good enough for them, so they'll never risk losing what they have.

Thus, the middle class sides with the rich, and the poor work at McDonald's, and the RIAA continues to be evil, and the spectre of DRM looms like the Iron Curtain once did, and wars rage, and Playstation owners fail to make use of a neat feature.

Business as usual.

Re:We should focus on the big picture.

[Dave2 Wickham]

Bear in mind that MSN uses inktomi, a pay-for-inclusion search engine. /offtopic

Re:We should focus on the big picture.

[Mike Hawk]

People are supposed to care when this is how people who "care" talk about them?

Though I fall somewhere in the middle of average Joe and Mensa member (though I would never know if I could join Mensa because I find such things to be too elitest for me), I find your tone to be distasteful and self-defeating. If you want people to agree with you, or even here your side out, you should be persuasive, not hateful. In fact, if I was searching for GNU I would probably be looking for their new line of snowboards, but sports are probably below you, correct? Try a little tolerance. My homepage is Blue's News for the record.

So not to be 100% off-topic. Even though I understand the signifcance here, I think it is delicious that it is news that someone was able to get a web browser to surf the web.

and then the slashdotters came.

[Anonymous Coward]

Last two lines of the article:

So far the PS2 browsing page has only been mentioned on the discussion forums for early testers of the service. Despite this the site is already getting up to 100 visitors per day.

Is it wise to keep a fire extinguisher next to your server incase of a slashdotting?

Re:and then the slashdotters came.

[Mattb90]

I'm one of those beta testers, and I posted to the owner earlier today on those very discussion boards about how a BBC article will likely get slashdotted, and that I might even do it myself. With an "anonymous reader" making the submission, everyone will probably think I posted it...

A real browser from Sony

[bsharitt]

I thought at some point Sony was going to release a real web browser for the PS2.

heh.

[Anonymous Coward]

I would never know if I could join Mensa because I find such things to be too elitest for me
funny. i noticed that there are just 2 kinds of people: those who are in mensa and those who COULD be if they wanted to but they REFUSE to be in mensa. strangely there are no people on earth who are too stupid to be in mensa. i find it very funny. heh.

Re:heh.

[Mike Hawk]

Read a little closer. I never said I could be in, I said I don't know if I could or not. I read the mission statement, which includes the desire to exclude 98% of the population. Its just not for me. I don't hate them, I'm not mad at them, I'm just an inclusive person by nature. Its all good.

Mozilla?

[Mensa Babe]

I thought at some point Sony was going to release a real web browser for the PS2.

What about this old news? Was it only a PR stunt?

My PS2 Linux kit is in the mail...

[Kris_J]

Mozilla will be the second thing I install once I get it up and running. The D.Net client will be the first...

But why can't it?

[markimusk]

Why did Sony ship the network adaptor without a full web browser anyway? It just seems logical to me. I got my first ISP for my Dreamcast back in '99, and there I was ready to go. I actually used it more for surfing than for online games. This is probably why I haven't got the network adaptor yet, I don't really see any reason to at this point.

Good point.

[Anonymous Coward]

I remember this article, but I don't remember if they did anything more. Anyone?

This is much a more serious issue.

[Mensa Babe]

Bear in mind that MSN uses inktomi, a pay-for-inclusion search engine. /offtopic

I will, but there is a big difference between being able to pay to be on top, and having to pay to get on the results list at all. I mean, let's be serious for a while. 43 search results for "GNU" on MSN and 11,600,000 on Google? 300,000 times less? Isn't that just too much to be tolerated any more? It is like Yahoo giving zero results for "freedom" searches from China. I mean, come on! This is the real reason people don't know about GNU, not some stupid secret OEM deals!

Re:This is much a more serious issue.

[Anonymous Coward]

That's true. I always thought the M$ censorship was the biggest problem in this crusade for free software. I totally agree with you, Mensa Babe. I think your post should be modded up as insightful.