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Nintendo DS Emitting Anomalous Signal?
An Anonymous reader writes "An owner of Nintendo's Shiny New Portable, has noticed his DS is emitting a signal that is projecting a ghostly image of his screen onto his TV- and he's not even multiplayer gaming. He and several others have uploaded photos of their DSs interfering with their TV's reception. As one forum-goer points out, this doesn't seem like the DS is adhering to FCC standards." More news from a forum, so enjoy some NaCl with this.
If the FCC has arbitrary standards for indeceny why not WIFI?
-Dipster
Hmmm, well this certainly has some interesting possibilities if true. It might be kinda cool to be able to project one's gameplay on a good TV. I wonder if anyone will try to enhance this "feature"?
To the making of books there is no end, so let's get started
"Wow! It must be some hidden feature that Nintendo will release an add-on for!" And your blender is sending "special messages" to your TV everytime you turn it on. I wonder if KitchenAid is going to release an add-on so you can watch your blending live on television?
http://www.bynarystudio.com
Here's an excerpt from the thread:
OK, given that the majority of the posts look a lot like that one, why the hell would anyone with half a brain take this seriously? It's obviously just interference coming from an improperly shielded cable. I'm sure the FCC will have something to say about this--well, they would if Michael Powell weren't so busy acting as the Christian right's moralistic attack dog, anyway...
I get funny lines on my TV. Same goes for the dehumidifier.
Gonna recall those, too?
i've read stupid things before; but you, my friend, take the fuckin cake.
TEMPEST @ Wikipedia
Another article with some more links.
I think the original poster may be referring to the Van Eck Phreaking, not TEMPEST as TEMPEST is the US code limiting the radiation out from electronic equipment, and Van Eck Phreaking is actually receiveing the signal emitted from the equipment.
Actually for more go to Google and look up "Van Eck Phreaking"
This is clearly intentional, doodz and this is how it happens.
The DS uses super-sekrit rays which come out of the batteries (or maybe the thumbpad i dont no im just a leet), which beam to a satellite near the moon which nintendo has which then transmits to your tv. It works even with your radio, makes pictures on the screen if u dont have 1 u need a dot matrix printer it workz with those 2.
This is uber, we can use a HANDHELD on the TV! I think we shud make a mod so we can take the screenz off the DS and put in a bigscreen TV insted! r0xx0r!
I doubt seriously this will happen. Here's a link to the DS's FCC Certification Report. Just because a part 15 device impacts a non-part 15 device doesn't mean it is not operating within spec. All it means is that the part 15 device must be moved, turned off, etc to eliminate the objectionable interference. Read that little FCC label on the DS (or in the manual). Note that the DS user and TV owner are the same person in this case. They can choose to play and accept the interference or turn off either the DS or TV. My guess is that the DS can't interfere far enough away to cause a neighbor's TV to show interference, so the product probably won't cause harmful interference to anyone but its owner, and only right next to a TV.
Tiller's Rule: Never use a word in written form that you've only heard and never read. You will end up looking foolish.
"It has been discovered that portions of a recent batch of DS units were accidentally exposed to a paranormal mutagenic agent before shipment.
The unfortunate result is that some DS units are possessed by demonic spirits, and have been known to display erratic behavior, including but not limited to: emitting strange ghost signals, shooting protoplasm, and spontaneously opening dimensional rifts to hell.
If you have experienced any of these irregularities yourself, we apologize for the inconvenience. Please mail your DS to our new Exorcist Repairs Department and we will repair it free of charge."
BTW, has anyone noticed that giant fetus that appears to be orbiting Jupiter all of a sudden? Where the hell did that come from?
You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.
And why is this not a problem for ALL owners of the DS? I'm guessing it's because the people who are bitching about the interference have cheapass television sets, which don't have enough shielding to protect them from interference.
The shielding is supposed to protect other devices from being harmed by the emitter, but it's also supposed to protect the emitter from things that don't have shielding around them (power cables, speakers, etc.). If a television set doesn't have adequate shielding, it won't only interfere with other devices, it will be easier to interfere with.
Looks like we should have left one more.
Wasn't this called VanEck Phreaking or something like that when you could see what was broadcasted on the screen from one computer to another?
It was a scene in Cryptonomicron, I believe.
"Power corrupts. PowerPoint corrupts absolutely."
Hey we may be a bunch of freakin nerdos but our site is purple and not a default phpBB template so there.
Ok IANAEE but I believe one poster said he saw an image of Mario in his TV. Now, to my understanding his TV was analogue and the DS is entirely digital. It might make sense to see lines or other noise, but projecting the image seems impossible. I'm not buying it...most TVs get interference from microwaves or vaccuum cleaners or other high powered devices, I have a hard time believing that the DS, which is a low powered DC, digital device would interfere with a television.
SIGFAULT
I don't like to throw down credentials for fear of sounding like a braggart but in this case it is relevant. I am a test pilot (or more specificly a test NFO). For a living, I flight test new equipment on military aircraft. Every time a new piece of equipment is introduced, the aircraft and new equipment must go through varying levels of EMC/EMI/TEMPEST testing. Devices that were designed to be properly shielded fail all the time. The aircraft I test used to have a problem with the ship-board radar causing the aircraft's wing-lock mechanism to repeated lock/unlock in an attempt to fold the wings. Having an aircraft's wings fold during a catapult shot or landing is generally considered to be a "bad thing". I seriously doubt that the gaming industry has invested dollar-one in EMI shielding. From what the guy describes, it sounds like video signal is not properly shielded and the nearby TV antenna is picking it up. If it is interfering with the TV signal, it is probably somewhere in the 170-200 MHz range - and thus potentially could interfere with VHF communcations and radio navigation equipment. Think there might be an IC somewhere in the aircraft that has a clock frequency in this range? Probably. Over what other frequencies is this think leaking? Is it really worth putting an airliner at risk because you would rather level-up than read a book?
Now you are correct in asserting that if properly tested, this should be a non-issue. The problem is that flight testing is ridiculously expensive. And it doesn't matter how much you harden the aircraft, you still need to test each portable device in every combination of aircraft configurations. This of course is impossible. Even if you could certify certain types of machines, who is goinig to maintain the list of approved devices and do you really expect an airborne cocktail waitress to know that your Nintendo DS is approved but the guy with the RIO next to you isn't? I actually think that the current policy is somewhat reckless. Basicly the FAA has taken the position that they will let passengers use most electronic devices above 10,000 FT with hopes that if there was some catastrophic failure, the flight crew would have a few minutes to deal with the problem.
Putting the government in the loop only slows the feedback process down.
True statement but what is the alternative? Not having the government regulate airline safety? Let the free market punish reckless airlines in lost sales after a disaster?
"It takes considerable knowledge just to realize the extent of your own ignorance." - Thomas Sowell
We're talking radios with 5 watt transmit power, minimum. If we weren't screwing up instruments then, I have a really hard time believing that low-power interferrence is that big of a problem. instruments have to be pretty on, or we'd have a misdrop and drop in some farmer's field or something, which didn't happen, so I'm pretty sure we didn't screw them up badly, if at all.
I'm pretty sure that the FAA is just paranoid about their restrictions.
I wouldn't worry about playing games on airplanes.
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