Quick update

I'm still alive and enjoying the summer!

Some time ago I finally received the Xecuter NAND-X & JTAG Connection Kit and the other stuff I had been waiting (fuckings to Finnish customs office for delaying and messing up my package!). Now i just gotta find time to start working on the JTAG hack. Let's see what comes of it. I've already decided that I'll be using freeBOOT.

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Another thing I stumbled upon in the Internet which caught my attention!

Hacked PS3, could it be? Atleast the picture comes from "reliable sources". Maybe there's something bubbling under.

Remember to listen to http://www.whitenoise.fm/ ;)

Xecuter NAND-X & JTAG Connection Kit delayed again, mini laptop, broken elbow bone, C-64 babbling etc...

Well... As the topic says it has been delayed again. Due in Stock says: May 22, 2010, but you never know... Good things come to them who wait. :)

On the other hand one dude I know who read my blog saw that I'm into Xbox360 hacking said that he has a Xbox360 that has been in the closet for few years, because it was banned from Xbox LIVE (for DVD-drive hacking) and wants to give it for me for free! Yay \o/. So even if we break one of the boxes (*knocks on the wood*) we atleast will have one working JTAG'ed Xbox360 (*knocks on the wood again*). :)

I also got some other nice toys to play with, but I'll tell you more about it later. But one is a mini laptop I intend to turn into hackintosh, but more about it later. It has even nice touchscreen (here's a video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1H_gmvnRaE). I hurt my rigth hand pretty badly during vappu weekend (labor day // may day... whatever) so it'll be useful.

We're also working on a X2010 demo with our C-64 demogroup svenonacid (http://noname.c64.org/csdb/scener/?id=10879). Let's hope that we'll get it ready in time. We have lots of cool ideas, some demoparts (ready, unfinished and in planning stage), musics and graphics. Also some well known sceners outside our group are helping as well (you know who you are, thanks for all the support!).

Also big respect to Nostalia for Toki +6DFHR... The people into C-64 know what I'm talking about. I also just visited CSDb and saw some new tewnz from Abaddon/Fairlight. Now I'm off to listening to them.

Enjoy the sun,
Toni

Xecuter NAND-X & JTAG Connection Kit delayed

Ugh... Damn. I was waiting for April release of NAND-X & JTAG CK, but it seems that the release date is slipping to May. This is the message from the retailer of  the product:

"We just got word that the JTAG part of the kit design has been improved so the date has been bumped a couple of weeks into May - it will be worth the wait though ! There is non-cased version of the NAND-X without the JTAG kit - We have been able to get our hands on a few of these - so if you have made a pre-order and have already done your JTAG hack and REALLY want to get your hands on a NAND-X right now - drop us an email and let us know (make sure you include your order number)".

Well I'm not that much in hurry. I still have reading to do how to use the equipment when it arrives.

Let's hope all this is worth waiting and I'll be playing around with the homebrew stuff atleast in a month. Knocks on the wood. :)

Xbox 360 JTAG/SMC hack part 2!

Ok! So *finally* I acquired Xbox 360 with manufacturing date: 17.09.2008.

Dash version: 2.0.7371.0
Kernel version: 2.0.7371.0
(BK: 2.0.1888.0)
I'll take camera shots probably later.

At quick look it seems to be a Falcon console with Lite-On drive. I've been running Jeff Minter's VLM with music for few days without problems! Go Yak and long live my Xbox360 (phukin' RRoDs!).

After reading what I need I ordered some stuff from http://www.modtraders.co.uk/. First I was going to get one LPT cable built for reading/writing NAND flash, but at these prices it's really not brainer if to do one yourself or buy a NAND USB programmer. :) So I ordered:

- Xecuter Unlock Kit V2 (to get the Xbox360 open easily. I hate the procedure getting the plastic covers open without damaging them atleast too much :) and this one also has all the other needed stuff to get it open.

- Xecuter NAND-X & JTAG Connection Kit (this is the main device I need: http://www.modtraders.co.uk/xecuter-nand-x.html for fast USB programming of the NAND chips etc... Should also be newbie friendly because of quicksolder pads :).

- Xecuter LT Switch v1.5 (I don't have to mod the DVD drive when doing JTAG, but I'll probably do it eventually at somepoint anyways so I decided to get this too, goddamn bitchy Lite-On drives).

Now I'm just waiting for the ModTraders package pack to arrive. :)

I'm also hoping VERY VERY VERY much that the CB version will be compatible with JTAG/SMC hack! If it is homebrew here I come! Otherwise i'll be back for hunting a exploitable box, blah! :(

BTW: Laptop is still b0rked. I'll send it to repair next week.

- Toni

b0rked laptop

My laptop's fan broke down so no using Internet at home for me (atleast more than very short sessions with window open, until I get new fan installed. I don't wanna break this machine). I'm using Linux (because it doesn't seem to heat the machine as much as Windows 7), but even on Linux I once accidentally let the CPU temperature rise up to 80 celsius. Ouch!

Well anyways that means more quality time with my Commodore 64's. I've already downloaded shitloads of stuff on MMC card to fullfill my data needs. Actually it might be good to spend more time on real oldsk00l machines instead of using the emulator and other stuff which make your life easier (maybe too easy :).

Transferring floppy disks

I haven't had time to update the blog because I've been transferring disks to Commodore 64. I've also been doing all kinds of stuff with C-64 and testing various things with it.

I'll update the blog soon with new material, go through the old blog texts and fix the spelling and grammar mistakes I spot (there's a lot of them).

Demoscene documentary series

Here's also something new to me which I read from http://demoscene.tv/.

The Finnish Broadcasting Company (YLE) are creating (or maybe it's already finished?) a documentary series about demoscene. The page mentions it will be published mainly on Youtube during 2010. It mentions (probably PC scener called) Metapat aka. Patrick Bissinger from Demoscene.tv atleast being one of the people who will be heard in the series. I'm itching to see this documentary and I hope they also talk about other scenes than PC demoscene.

--- STILL I HAVEN'T FIGURED OUT HOW TO DO THE HORIZONTAL RULER ---

Here's a copy/paste from http://demoscene.tv/'s page:

Demoscene TV supports Altparty 2009 for a new Demoscene documentary series

Workshop: Demoscene documentary series

The Finnish Broadcasting Company (YLE) will create a documentary series about demoscene. The documentary will be planned at the Nebula Club on Saturday at 14. Welcome to discuss and decide how the demoscene should be documented!

Metapat aka Patrick Bissinger from Demoscene.tv will start the session by telling his ideas of documenting the scene. After Patrick we will start working on the subject:
- How should the story of Demoscene be told to the audience that still lives outside the scene?
- Who are the most important people in the scene and which demos and turning points should be covered?

If you have an opinion or a killer story, please come and participate! The workshop will be filmed and the material will be used in the document, that will be published mainly on Youtube during 2010.

Conversation about the document: Twitter (#demoscene), Qaiku.com [Finnish] (#demoscene).

Twitter client for VIC-20

Many people probably know there's a Twitter client for C-64, but this is something new atleast for me.

Twitter client running on VIC-20.

You can get more info @
http://gizmodo.com/5472513/youre-never-too-old-to-tweet
and here's the official homepage: http://www.tweetver.com/

BTW: Some time ago I also did something I though I never would. I registered to Twitter. You can find me there with name drafti. tweet, tweet! :)

Xbox 360 JTAG/SMC hack!

This is just a draft... I'll fix typos and add more info and links later.
Finally I've found a source for Xbox 360 for decent price which I can use to perform JTAG hack! The manufacturing date of the box is: 17.09.2008 and it has dashboard version 2.0.7371.0. Microsoft has blocked the possibility of performing JTAG hack in the Xbox 360's which are manufactured at the moment. Also If your console has been used after 11.9.2009 in Xbox Live you've probably had your dashboard upgraded to the latest version which currently 2.0.8955.0 (?). You can read more about the update from tmbinc's blog: http://debugmo.de/?p=107.

The changes that the box is exploitable are very good (knocks on the wood!). Only thing I don't know is what the CB version of the box is, because I haven't acquired it yet. But hopefully it is hackable.

JTAG hack involves taking control of Xbox 360's SMC (System Management Controller). Basically you have to dump NAND flash of your Xbox 360 make some modifications to it and flash it back!

It is also recommended to remove R6T3 resistor from the motherboard to prevent Micro$oft from blowing  your efuses.

Here is a picture of evil R6T3 resistor. If it isn't removed it's possible for Micro$oft to "blow up" efuses from your Xbox 360!

As it will take few weeks for me to get the box I will have lots of reading to do so I'm properly prepared for hacking it. I will do the needed software stuff and Skatronix will do all the needed soldering.

If we manage succesfully to hack it we can run Linux or unsigned XBE's. After that you can use Xbox 360 as computer (using Linux). I wonder if it'd be possible to run (PowerPC version) of Mac OS X Leopard on it. :) It'd be wicked.

Here's some info about the hack: http://www.free60.org/SMC_Hack. In the during few weeks I will gather all the information and programs to do the software part and also get diagrams for different model Xbox 360's (there's different revisions like Xenon, Falcon, Jasper, Opus). So the soldering points are different in different models.

I'd also would like to know if there is any way to run XNA compiled programs on JTAG'ged Xbox 360. Pouet seems to have demos also for Xbox 360: http://www.pouet.net/prodlist.php?platform[]=XBOX+360&order=&x=19&y=3&page=1&order=

... to be continued soon. Historiaa.

Mustikkapiirakka

Luulen, että söin tänään parasta mustikka piirakkaa ikinä hyvän ystäväni luona. ---> jatketaan kun jaksetaan ja pistetään reseptii tulemaan. :)

Oldies, but goldies... :) Games Games Games

Me and my friends like to play occasionally this old Finnish quiz game while drinking. :) It's quite funny because it's made in 1987. So the game is quite hard because it's so old and for example it could ask you a question which's answer could be something like Soviet Union (Neuvostoliitto) or something like that. :) So besides that you have to know questions you must also think that the game was made in 1987 and respond accordingly. World was a lot different back then.

Anyways the loading times are really annoying and I've asked long time ago from TNT/Beyond Force if he could make it a one-filer (or replace the loader with faster), but haven't heard from him for a while. So I decided to write about this to my blog. Maybe it would be more effective. :) I think that making this game one-filer could very well be possible (because text compresses very well). Also highscore saver would be great.

I have found two versions of this game from the net:
One from "NT Rautanen Tietokonesivut" :: http://www.ntrautanen.fi/computers/commodore/archive/c64_pelit3.htm
It can be downloaded also from: http://ihku.org/~draft/blogger/Nero_2000/nero_2000.zip

and another one from Gamebase64 ::
http://www.gamebase64.com/game.php?id=19145&d=18&h=0
It can be downloaded also from: http://ihku.org/~draft/blogger/Nero_2000/NERO2000_19145_01.zip

I don't know what the differences between 'em are. I've played the one from NT Rautanen Tietokonesivut. I gotta check them out when I have time.

If I remember correctly TNT mentioned me that he has original cassette version of the game. I also think that Ferrara/Dual Crew Shining^PhObos team (Tony Cáven) has a floppy version of the game, because he won a bid of it in Finnish auction site called http://huuto.net/. Tony's website can be found @ http://ferrara.c64.org/, but hi's e-mail doesn't seem to work.

I think it'd be essential to also compare cassette and floppy versions to see if there are differences (eg. floppy version might have more questions than the cassette version or something like that). So we'd need the disk version from Tony if he's willing to borrow it.

I don't know if cassette and floppy version have any differences, but I'd really like to know and get a jewel version of this game. One-filed and high-score saver and I'd be in heaven. :) This is very nice party game for people are able to understand Finnish. Since I started blogging maybe some other people pop up that are interested in getting a "jewel" version of this funny game. So TNT are you up to the task or are you still busy with Paradroid Redux?

I have also tried to find "Bio-Syntax Method Oy:n englannin kieliohjelma no:6, Bio-Slang", but I haven't found any references of it from the Internet.

Here is a review of Nero 2000 MikroBitti magazine made in 1987.

--- HOW THE HECK DO I MAKE HORIZONTAL RULER??? ---

Another game that I've been waiting for Nostalgia or Remember to release is Track & Field http://gamebase64.com/game.php?id=8072&d=18&h=0

I'd love to get a version with highscore saver. I remember Jack Alien/Remember mentioning Hok/Remember has original cassette version, but if I remember correctly there were some problems with it. So if anyone has working cassette or diskette version it'd be really nice if you could arrange it to Nostalgia or Remember dudes.

Another thing I've wondered is that are the lines from K and D letters some kind of bug (of eg. freezing or something) or should it look like that... Can anyone with original confirm this?

svenonacid Commodore 64 data corner at Fuusiå and oldsk00l posse meeting!

Me (vedos/svenonacid) and SounDemoN/Church 64^Dekadence^Onslaught (Otto Järvinen) were last weekend in Fuusiå happening at Vimma art and activity house. Thanks also for Jani Rand for help! It had many floors with different happenings. There was animation movies, a darkbeat documentary (I guess it was this http://www.darkbeatmovie.com/), circus acts, an electronics workshop (including C-64 activities by yours truly and Otto), art and photography.

We were showing some demos to people and we played some IK+ GOLD (you can get it here: http://noname.c64.org/csdb/release/?id=3757) with 4-player adapter (though the game has only 3 karatekas to control :), Hat Trick and maybe some more which I don't remember. It'd be cool if someone would hack Hat Trick also to support 4-player adapters, so the goalies could be controlled with two extra joysticks. Ninja/The Dreams... There's a little project for you. ;)

I don't know which type of 4-player adapter Otto had, but it was nice that you could use the third ninja as human player. We had two C-64 setups. One was connected to big LCD flat screen and one was connected to my old trusty 14" television. :)

MMC64 and Action Replay MK VI connected to C-64.

I had MMC64 and Action Replay MK VI connected to C-64 setup with 14" television. The another setup which was connected to LCD flat screen had 1541 Ultimate (http://www.1541ultimate.net/) connected (which Otto brought with him). It was first time I saw it in use. It seemed like a very nice piece of equipment although we had some problems with the file/disk copier. Otto had version with ethernet connector which is a very neat option to do all kinds of stuff. He had 8GB SDHC card filled with demos and games. I noticed my memory card reader doesn't seem to support SDHC cards :(. 1541U is FPGA-emulated Commodore 1541 drive with lots of other options like cartridge support eg. Action Replay or Retro Replay and REU emulation etc... Because it emulates 1541 it supports all kinds of loaders and is most compatible of similar add-ons.

Currently 1541U is sold out, but 1541U-II is coming soon. The only thing which I'm disappointed in it is that it doesn't have network functionality. The homepage says "Ethernet will not be supported until further notice.". I'm not going to buy it until Gideon or someone else implements ethernet into it. Another option is that I'll be patient enough so Individual Computers finishes their very promising product called Chameleon. It has all the options 1541U-II and more. You can read more about it @ http://allt.jonatanforsberg.net/krams/c64/50chameleon.html. Chameleon's VIC emulation core is already available in C-ONE (http://www.c64upgra.de/c-one/). I haven't seen it in action, but I'd really like to see how it copes on frame buffering the VIC chip to VGA compatible frequencies.

We also fixed one C-64 which had broken SID chip (we replaced the 6581R3 with 6581R4) and the VIC chip's metal shield was loose (it is mean't to cool down VIC chip) and we soldered it back. It has maybe broken RF modulator, because when using RF out it gives static noise, but the picture is ok. It also might be that the problem was with the 6581R3 (which had b0rked filters).

When we used C-64's excellent video output everything was fine and the static noise was gone. I haven't got around to build one yet (lazy me!) even though I have all the needed parts for it (we used Otto's audio/video cable). Here's the construction page for it http://sta.c64.org/cbmmonc.html. You need only 3 wires for audio/video cable (audio out, video out, ground).

I'll check it out later if the static noise when using RF signal is gone after us fiddling with the machine and update this blog. You can also take S-Video output from C-64's video output connector. It is recommended to use 300 ohm resistor in chroma line to reduce over saturation in picture. You can find some info here: http://www.bigmech.com/misc/c64mods/svideo.html.

I also lifted pin 26 (EXT IN) from the 6581R4 SID chip so I can use Antti Lankila's and Lord Nightmare's SID chip measurement program http://www.bel.fi/~alankila/c64-sw/yourchip.html. I just need good audio card for the measurement program which at the moment is at my old workplace.

6581 Pinout

The happening started at 12:00 and ended 18:00. The time was flying and I didn't even have time to check what else there was to offer.

We also made a invitation intro (invitro) for the happening. I'll use SOA abbreviation for svenonacid from now on. I'd like to thank Barfly/Extend for starting to do the intro, Hevosenliha/SOA for finishing it and linking the Algorithm/SOA's hidden part to it and ofcourse Vegard/SOA for musics, hukka/SOA for excellent charset and also KeFF for making the HiRes logo and Mâtador Gigante for MR-FLI graphics!

The invitro is also viewable @ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_blUV7eGagY. If you watch it there you won't see it fully (because the 10min limit Youtube has for videos, if anyone knows how to get around this please let me know!). Youtube video is missing some scrolltext and the hidden part which is a picture and tune.

The picture uses new graphics mode which Algorithm has developed called MR-FLI (MultiRes FLI) you can read more about it here: http://noname.c64.org/csdb/forums/?roomid=13&topicid=74002. You can download the invitro @ http://noname.c64.org/csdb/release/?id=89497. It's really recommended to watch it on real C-64 because the MR-FLI mode really doesn't look that good on computer monitors. Here's also another MR-FLI picture http://ihku.org/~draft/pouet/robo-mrfli.prg.

I will probably write about transferring stuff to real C-64 later on and maybe how to use emulators and configure them properly. I can recommend Hoxs64 for Windows (http://www.hoxs64.net/) which is quite accurate C-64 emulator and is easy to use compared to VICE. If your machine has enough horse power I'd recommend you to go to Settings -> Emulation -> Sound to Resample to get more accurate audio emulation.

You may also need to copy d3dx9_31.dll to %SystemRoot%\system32 directory you can download it from here: http://ihku.org/~draft/blogger/d3dx9_31.zip

Settings to get more accurate sound emulation.

--- HOW THE HECK DO I MAKE HORIZONTAL RULER??? ---

After Vimma I went to a little reunion with my old friends (some of which I haven't seen in ages). It was a very nice to meet all the old friends who I used to hang out years ago. Some of them have moved to another cities and it was a really nice reunion. We had really fun and talked about organizing meetings like this more often! Greetings to all dudes and ladies in the picture! I'm waiting to meet you all again! I had a really nice saturday!

oldsk00l posse meeting (13.3.2010 @ Ravintola Bremer).

\o/ wohoo! I registered to Blogger.

I decided to make Blogger account because my very good long time friend Ami (known as Turu Sanoma when Visual jockeying and also known as Skatronix when doing electronics stuff) said to me that I should start blogging of my activities because atleast he thought they are interesting...  We have done lots of co-operation during the years we've been friends. So Ami, here I am!

I have no idea what kind of content I should blog here and should I blog in English or Finnish language. For now I've decided that I'll blog mostly in English, but maybe I'll also write some Finnish language blog texts. I'll probably blog about electronics, hacking, demoscene, retro hardware (I am a Commodore 64 scener known as vedos/svenonacid), various computer related stuff and who knows what?

Sometimes I tend to forget things so this might also work as kind of expansion memory for me. :)

You can find Ami's electronics related blog @ http://skatronix-electrix.blogspot.com/

- Toni