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[yrga]

QUOTE (Knocks @ Oct 27 2003, 03:31 AM)

Well it's been a while since anything new has come up in this area, so I thought I would post an update.  Knowing how important hard drive space is for some people, this is a pretty cool feature, and it's also great for shrinking games for multigame discs.   The oldest and most obvious method to rip Xdemos was to delete the Xdemos directory with all its contents.  For some games it works great.  For example, in Halo, once you delete the Xdeoms folder, the option to play demos in the game disappears.  In other words, you can safely delete it, and it won't crash your game or affect it in any way. Other games are more problematic.  For example, in Amped, you can delete the Xdemos folder but the Demos option remains in the game.  If you select it, your game will crash and you will be taken back to your dashboard.  If you're playing from a single disc DVD, that's not a problem, because you will go back to the Amped bootup screen.  However, if you're playing from the hard drive, you will have to wait for your dash to load, then go through the menus and select the game again.  That's not as convenient.  So Demos with stuff other than videos used to be hard to rip, because selecting an option that wasn't there anymore would always reboot your Xbox. Complex released a worthless solution to this problem a while back.   They included two files with their MenuX release:  redir.xbe and backdir.xbe and suggested that you rename one of them to xdemos.xbe when you're deleting Xdemos.  Well, placing those files instead of xdemos didn't do shit, as it would just take you back to your dashboard.  You might as well just delete Xdemos and not bother putting fake files that dont' do anything. OK, now time for the juicy new info.     Grabbed by the Ghoalies comes with a new GUI for MS demos called cdx.xbe, supposedly to replace the old Xdemos.  There isn't much special about it, except that it does magic when you use that file in place of xdemos.xbe in other MS games.   I tried it with Whacked and Amped, games that gave me the most trouble in the past and it worked perfectly with both.  Try it yourself.  Delete everything in the Xdemos folder, copy cdx.xbe from Grabbed by the Ghoulies in there and rename it to xdemos.xbe.  When you start the game and select Demos, your Xbox will no longer reboot!   In Whacked, it takes you back to the mode selection menu.  In Amped, it takes you to the bootup screen of Amped.  Both are a lot better than having your Xbox rebooted, waiting for your dash to load, and launching the game again. I haven't tried this with other first-party games yet, but if you try out cdx.xbe with them, feel free to post the feedback here.

If you rip the demo option why'd you click the option if you know it will reboot your xbox? Man, I have lots of games and never bother about what demos it has.... Now if you areaware it will cause you a reboot, just stay away and you're ready to go

[lordvader129]

that cdx.xbe was on another game too, i remember seeing it fly by when i was FTPing crap.....but i cant remember what game it was in....ill check when i get home

[hessian]

QUOTE (Knocks @ Oct 27 2003, 02:31 PM)

You might as well just delete Xdemos and not bother putting fake files that dont' do anything.

This is what I do. Makes a handy IGR.

[lordvader129]

QUOTE (indecisve @ Oct 28 2003, 04:01 AM)

QUOTE (lordvader129 @ Oct 28 2003, 12:10 AM) that cdx.xbe was on another game too, i remember seeing it fly by when i was FTPing crap.....but i cant remember what game it was in....ill check when i get home Is not a game.. Its a menu system.

i said it was a game?  

i said the .xbe is on another game besides Grabbed by Ghoulies, just in case anyone else was looking for it to use

BTW the game was Kung Fu Chaos

[feflicker]

Why even spend time with the "demos" option? If you don't have the demo on the disc/hdd, why click the option? And if you do, is it really that inconvenient to restart the game?

I might be biased though, since I have only clicked the "demo" option maybe once since I have owned my xbox...  I also have a good memory so I can remember which games I removed the demos from in the first place...

Interesting point though. I will check this cdx.xbe file out. I noticed it and was wondering what it was/did . Maybe it will have an application somewhere that I feel is useful ...

[feflicker]

QUOTE

It's on Crimson Skies, which has been...problematic for those of us with exploits.

Which has been problematic? Crimson Skies, demos, or cdx.xbe?

I never thought about the "exploit" population... Maybe one of the above causes a major problem for people with exploits?

Yet another reason to get a modchip?  

[Krill123]

Knocks.. I apprecaite all your efforts. Even though some people seem to not really appreciate the level of attention you put towards making sure your box runs perfectly.

I will implement what you;ve suggested and test it out. Thanks dude.

It's gonna save me from going to help my kids when they mistakenly press on the demo feature.

[feflicker]

QUOTE

Knocks.. I apprecaite all your efforts. Even though some people seem to not really appreciate the level of attention you put towards making sure your box runs perfectly. I will implement what you;ve suggested and test it out. Thanks dude. It's gonna save me from going to help my kids when they mistakenly press on the demo feature.

It is not really a matter of appreciation... I, personally, am trying to find the value in what is being described. That is all!  

Preventing the xbox from a reboot just doesn't seem like something to be concerned with, especially since the demos were *removed*. That is why I am trying to find out if it does more damage than a reboot for people with "exploits".  If it does, then it would all make sense!

[chelrob]

Sounds like a good thing to me.  If friends or the kids hit a demo that has been removed xbox won't reload the dash... COOL!    I'm gonna look for the file and try it out.

Some people just like to bitch.  They have nothing else to contribute so they flame away.

[feflicker]

QUOTE

Some people just like to bitch. They have nothing else to contribute so they flame away.

A member for only 9 days and you claim to have already sorted out who "contributes" and who "bitches"?  

I, and others, are just trying to find out what the BENEFIT of this is. If it is just preventing a reboot when selecting a dead-link by accident, then the benefits are very limited, as there are plenty of other ways to get around this...

The thread mentions that people with exploits find this "problematic".

The question is: How is it more problematic for people using an exploit, than it is for someone with a mod-chip?

=====================================

No one is flaming, just wanting to know more details about the benefits of this finding, and why someone would continually select a menu option that only reboots the xbox...  

[Krill123]

QUOTE

I, and others, are just trying to find out what the BENEFIT of this is. If it is just preventing a reboot when selecting a dead-link by accident, then the benefits are very limited, as there are plenty of other ways to get around this...

It doesn't reboot the box.. THAT's the benfit!!!  
May seem limited to you.. But invaluable to others..

As for the problems it could cause???  It's an XBE from an original game.. Why would it cause problems?? It's not homebrew..

Just say thank you.

[feflicker]

QUOTE

It doesn't reboot the box.. THAT's the benfit!!! May seem limited to you.. But invaluable to others.. As for the problems it could cause??? It's an XBE from an original game.. Why would it cause problems?? It's not homebrew.. Just say thank you.

Ok, we know it prevents the reboot, and it is the opinion of each individual user as to whether or not that holds value. I think everyone agrees on that...

What I was trying to get at was how it effected exploit users in a more severe way than a mod-chip user. (I have never seen an "exploit" modded xbox, so I have no idea how it reacts when a linked xbe is missing  

Apparently, based on all the comments, this only stops the reboot, and effects mod-chip and exploit users alike?

Seems my point/question is now moot, so nevermind...

BTW... cdx.xbe is also on Crimson Skies for those of you looking for it  

[chelrob]

QUOTE

A member for only 9 days and you claim to have already sorted out who "contributes" and who "bitches"?

I made no such claim.  You singled yourself out, not me.    

[feflicker]

Cool, thanks for the info Knocks.

Another thing, that has probably already been done, that I just thought of, is simply hex-editing the xbe so the demo options point back to default.xbe. That way it would reboot the game, instead of the whole xbox... With this option you do not have to add any files, and you can remove all the demos!

QUOTE

I made no such claim. You singled yourself out, not me.

Chelrob, re-read what I posted. I was not making a defense for myself, I was only stating that I found it humorous that you had already made the determination of who contributes and who complains after only 9 days. I have been here almost a year, and I still have a hard time making such determinations.  

Thanks for all the info Knocks, this thread has definately sparked a new interest in me on this whole "demo" removal thing. And I am sure that is what you were hoping for, right?  

[chelrob]

I didn't make that determination.  I didn't say who was just bitching and not contributing ... I said that's all some people do... I didn't say which people or claim that I knew which people were doing that.