Post by: xboxbman on February 02, 2007, 09:29:00 AM
Post by: Perplexer on February 02, 2007, 09:46:00 AM
I'm extremely skeptical of a DVD firmware chip which can be updated from within the console...
Such a chip would need its own O/S in order to facilitate the upgrade. This would also not be transparent to the system, like the current Wii chips are...
I'll believe it when I see it. I think this is an attempt to buy some time and swing buyers away from the Wiinja / Cyclowiz.
Post by: jon_jon on February 02, 2007, 11:34:00 AM
Post by: twistedsymphony on February 02, 2007, 12:08:00 PM
QUOTE(Perplexer @ Feb 2 2007, 11:53 AM) 
I'm extremely skeptical of a DVD firmware chip which can be updated from within the console...
Such a chip would need its own O/S in order to facilitate the upgrade. This would also not be transparent to the system, like the current Wii chips are...
Not necessarily.
If it works anything like the Saturn modchips did it basically intercepts the signal from the disc and changes whatever it needs to change before feeding it tot the console. COMPLETELY transparent.
Basically the console asks for certain disc data and when the disc responds with "this is a DVD-R" the chip replaces that with "this is an original disc" and the console continues on it's merry way.
Upgradeable from disc basically says to me the console checks the disc to see what it is and the chip intercepts the update data as the response.
Becides, Nintendo seems to rarely do things to quash piracy. I think they take up the opinion that it's a very niche market and not worth the effort as long as it's too advanced a procedure for Joe gamer.
Post by: Perplexer on February 02, 2007, 12:49:00 PM
Post by: gordita37 on February 02, 2007, 01:03:00 PM
Post by: the lobo on February 02, 2007, 01:44:00 PM
Post by: Alex548 on February 02, 2007, 03:02:00 PM
Just 5 wires and simple soldering required. Link to wiinja installation: Click Me
The Cyclowiz is a nice PCB, but I've never been a fan of quicksolder method.
This new chip hasn't even been shown yet. All we have is a rough draft of what the chip looks like.
Concept image:
Post by: Perplexer on February 02, 2007, 04:41:00 PM
QUOTE(RaDuKa @ Feb 2 2007, 10:12 AM)
Expected shipping date: February 7th, 2007
From concept image to shipping in five days?
I stand by my belief that this news is to keep buyers from buying the "other" chips right now...
Post by: Alex548 on February 02, 2007, 05:07:00 PM
Obviously fake though.
I have a ton of those 1.6 LPC rebuild boards. Maybe I can make my own chip too.
Post by: SR388 on February 04, 2007, 10:18:00 PM
it isn't all that bad though, just unorganized atm
edit:
btw, i want to make a preorder for 50 of your chips alex!
Post by: telo{+} on February 05, 2007, 09:05:00 AM
QUOTE(Perplexer @ Feb 2 2007, 05:53 PM)
I'm extremely skeptical of a DVD firmware chip which can be updated from within the console...
Such a chip would need its own O/S in order to facilitate the upgrade. This would also not be transparent to the system, like the current Wii chips are...
WOW. I know twistedsymphony already corrected you on this, but your post could not be any more wrong at all. here is a tech explanation why
If they are tapping in at the DVD's read stream and just buffering the data onto the wii... well, I think they are just tapping into and modifying by holding the line low to make a 0 into a 1 or vs when they detect the DVD mfg id tag, that of course assumes an active-low bus, and that the signal just happens to be changeable in that way. Anyway, point is they can update via DVD. They just set the chip to wait for a specific dvd stream that tells the chip to start updating the firmware with the next XXXX bytes of code.
This would require no OS. Thats just not how hardware works. An OS allows other programs to run without being specifically written for a set of hardware. THIS code is firmware, which of course is/was written for this and only this hardware. Try google.
The problem with that is that, yes retail games 'could' cripple the chip, but only if the code they use is not ciphered. Which is unlikely b/c then other 'scene' releases could use their code on a different chip. So, for a game to disable this chip it would first want to to (unlikely) and then also it would need to know not only the cipher and protocol they used for uploading a firmware image, but also a crc algorithm, the correct dvd stream that tells the chip to start updating, and a new crippled firmware image that would only be effective if it overwrote the bootloader with garbage.
There is also nothing that would make this non-transparent to the hardware. Nothing more then the current chips are.
Your statements that it probably can't update from firmware, that it would need an OS and thus would be visible to the wii are so completely false and that I can only assume you wrote them in your sleep or while very high. Who knows.
edit got twistedsymphony's name wrong
Post by: Alex548 on February 08, 2007, 04:44:00 PM
It's for sale on ebay.
Post by: Perplexer on February 08, 2007, 09:36:00 PM
QUOTE(telo{+} @ Feb 5 2007, 11:12 AM)
I can only assume you wrote them in your sleep or while very high. Who knows.
Wow! No need to be condescending. It may have been a poor choice of words on my part (I meant "app" when I said "O/S) and I didn't consider the way it would be upgraded (as mentioned, prob. GC homebrew).
But anyway, I preordered a Wiikey a few days ago; it seems to be the best choice out there at this time. Can't wait to mess with it (the only time I really enjoy my consoles is when they're in pieces
)
Post by: EverestX on February 09, 2007, 09:01:00 AM
QUOTE(Perplexer @ Feb 8 2007, 10:43 PM)
(the only time I really enjoy my consoles is when they're in pieces
)You and me Both!
Post by: SR388 on February 09, 2007, 06:51:00 PM