Setting Up Ubuntu On a PS3 For Emulation

Gizmodo is running a guide on how to install Ubuntu on a Playstation 3 and set it up to play vintage games through emulation. Quoting: "It still kind of surprises me (in a good way) that Sony was, from the start, very OK with PS3 owners tinkering with Linux on their PS3s. A modified release of Yellow Dog Linux was available from the very beginning, and some very handy hard drive partitioning and dual-boot utilities are baked right into the PS3's XMB; Ubuntu gets installed on an entirely separate partition of your PS3's hard disk, so your default system doesn't get touched and switching between Ubuntu and the XMB is a piece of cake. There is a flipside to this coin, however. Since the PS3's Cell Processor is PowerPC based, you won't be able to use any Linux software that's compiled for x86, which is, unfortunately, most of it. However, Ubuntu has always had a PPC distro, and most of the basic stuff will work just fine. You can even load up a PPC-compiled Super Nintendo Emulator, SNES9X, and play some classic games pretty easily on your Sixaxis controller paired via Bluetooth."

Comments

erm

[larry bagina]

All the software on my linux box (an ARM machine) was either compiled by me or came from the debian apt repositories (compiled for ARM). That's no different than if I was using x86. I fail to see what the issue is, unless you need to run closed source software or something tightly coupled to the x86 architecture, like WINE or virtual box.

don't do this

[Anonymous Coward]

linux on ps3 sucks balls:

no access to gpu
10 gigs of disk space
~256 megs of memory
crappy ppc processor which meant for the stuff I wanted to do with it (read: boxee), I didn't have the libs.

Re:don't do this

[jonaskoelker]

There's really no reason to run Linux on the PS3.

Neither is there any reason to run NetBSD on a toaster, but it's still fun (to some people).

And that's reason enough.

Architecture isn't a bid deal

[gnu-sucks]

>Since the PS3's Cell Processor is PowerPC based, you won't be
>able to use any Linux software that's compiled for x86, which is,
>unfortunately, most of it.

I have to say, to most linux users, the specific architecture and processor really aren't meaningful. The linux kernel, gnu userland, and associated popular applications have always been distributed in source code first, and binaries as they are made available. The entire concept of open-source depends on source distribtion.

It is absolutely no problem if an app is distributed in source form or binary (compiled). True, a "standard" linux install base, while it may be defined, is rarely realized. So you could argue that distributing in source code creates problems because needed dependencies can't always be met. But then again, this doesn't help with binary distribution either. Ever try to install an RPM on a non-rpm-ish linux distro? It can be done, yes, but it involves a lot of details. Just as compiling does.

Debian is awesome for distributing such a wide range of apps compiled for so many architectures. But it is truly sad to see someone write that it is "unfortunate" that most linux installs are x86 and his is ppc. The entire concept of linux is that linux is a kernel and a userland distributed in source. It doesn't matter what hardware you have (within reasonable limits... toasters, watches, etc).

There's nothing "unfortunate" about an intel chip, a sparc processor, or a power pc, in terms of the ability of linux to run on it. It's a bigger deal if you're running generic pc hardware with some new video or wifi card. But even this sort of par for the course these days.

Re:It's a shame...

[Anonymous Coward]

I don't know what the numbers are for the PS3, but typically game consoles are sold at cost or at a loss, with the plan being that game royalties, licensing, and other goodies make up for the loss. They are traditionally the real revenue stream.

Assuming this is the case for the PS3, the last thing they want is a bunch of people buying up consoles for use as Linux machines. That would be a quick trip to the poor house for Sony. The only way I could seem them opening up a box for that kind of use would be to sell a much more expensive Linux version. I can only imagine the whining and gnashing of teeth that would trigger.

It seems to me the only point in running Linux on the PS3 is just to see if it can be done. In the end, it's probably about as useful as ucLinux on the iPod. It was cool to do it, but it sucked so badly that I went back to the provided OS fairly quickly.