and All Consoles

One of the many features of the PlayStation 3 is that it’s capable of using Linux, which means that owners of the PS3 can customize their system and get lots more out of it. Game consoles tend to be designed in order to prevent foreign systems from running on them, but Sony have gone in total the opposite direction with the PS3, allowing an experienced Linux user to personalize their system. Most of the gaming systems will be intentionally locked so that other systems will be unable to run, so the PlayStation is unconventional in allowing this. The only thing that is not possible with the PS3 is to run accelerated graphics.

The PlayStation 3 isn’t the first gaming system to allow Linux. The Xbox also utilizes this feature, but the PS3 differs in several ways. To start with, the PS3 is more powerful. In addition, the Xbox requires an additional chip to run Linux, whereas the PS3 is capable of running it without. In fact, it’s completely free to run Linux on the PlayStation 3.

Here are some options that you have with the Linux on the PlayStation 3:

With an addition of a keyboard and mouse, the PlayStation 3 can be used like a PC. Not all PC programs are able to adapt to the PS3 environment, as least not yet, but Linux enables you many choices.

Run your own operating system. This is a great advantage to those that would prefer to personalize their system.

Make sure of the Internet. You can search the web on your PS3 with the Firefox internet browser.

Use the office software package. Although, at present it’s been reported that Windows doesn’t’ run that well on the PS3. However, in the future, Microsoft may consider creating a version of Windows that can run on the PlayStation 3. There is no official word on this at the moment.

Run various kinds of emulators. This will allow you to play of your favourite games of yesteryear on your brand new PlayStation 3.

Play a variety of media types, such as CD’s, DVD’s and ROM’s. With Linux running, you can listen to music or watch movies on your PS3

Connect to share networks. This will enable you to save and retrieve file on a outside server, meaning a saving in memory.

There is one slight problem with getting Linux on your PlayStation 3 console though, and that is because it’s difficult to install and hard to use. At this moment, it’s pretty much restricted to the programmers and hobbyists. In the future, hopefully, there will be a more user interface to accompany Linux on your games console. Since PS3 emerged, most programmers liked to use Fedora Core to run Linux on their PS3’s, but there is now a new system in town called Yellow Dog, which is intended to be used specifically on the PS3. Yellow Dog is being highly rated ad gaining exposure.

Still, the best thing about Linux is that is totally free. All you need is a PlayStation 3, the necessary cable, a USB keyboard and mouse, a USB flash drive and various other accessories to make the installation run smoother… ok, so if you don’t already have all that stuff, its not really free, but Linux itself certainly is! It may not be that tough to install, if you’ve used Linux before. There is a wide choice of websites out there that provide tips on installation, and most seem to recommend Yellow Dog. You will also discover many great ideas on how to run Linux in the gaming forums.

Published By Darren Lintern

For Sony things weren’t looking so great going back to the Tokyo Games Show in September 2006. Sony was unveiling their eagerly anticipated new PlayStation 3 games system, and the demo unit were spluttering and dying left and right. This was essentially bad news considering the recent recall of Sony’s lithium ion batteries.

The problem was simply that the Playstation 3 console was overheating. A representative from an equities company was the first to report it and soon after, everybody in gaming industry was talking about the new PS3’ overheating problem.

Actually, there were several reasons why the consoles were taking to overheating, that did not really have anything to do with the design of the machines themselves. To start with, the Tokyo Game Show was extremely hot. Anyone that visited Japan in September will know that it’s a brutal time of the year, and the venue was lacking air-conditioning. There were 200 PlayStation 3 all in action close to one another, which is probably poor planning on the part of the organizers. To make things worse, all the consoles were sealed in cases to prevent anybody from peeking into the machine. This means that unfortunately there was no way that the exhaust fans, which were reportedly operating just fine, to get fid of all that heat.

It seems obvious that with 200 consoles in sealed cases in sweltering conditions that they would overheat. Still, it looked very bad. Representatives from Sony were all over the place during October stating that there weren’t any overheating issues and many gamers were sceptical.

To make things worse for Sony was the recent recall of the lithium ion batteries, which are mostly used within there Vaio Laptops. The batteries were overheating and bursting into flames! This resulted in a massive recall of nearly seven million batteries being returned, and this was a massive financial blow to Sony. Critics commented that Sony was actually aware of this problem but didn’t act quickly enough, and if they had, the recall may have been avoided. Taking all this into account, it did effect Sony’s reputation pretty badly, combined with the overheating demos at the Tokyo Game Show looked much worse. With batteries exploding and the new PlayStation console choking away, many investors decided to pull out. At that time, Sony’s share price dropped 2.75%

Now, since the release of the PlayStation 3 console late last year, how many machines have been over heating? The good news seems to be that nobody has reported their machines over heating. It may have been just a fluke. In view of the variety of reasons why the consoles were getting over heated at the Tokyo Game Show, none of which seems to be down to the machines themselves, and all lack of consumer confidence and bad press blew it way out of proportion.

It has been experienced by many gamers that after prolonged gaming, sometimes 48 hours straight (more or less), playing various games on the PlayStation 3, there was no trouble to report. The fans continued to run quietly, there was warm air coming out of the back, it got hot as all consoles do, but not too hot, and no overheating trouble was noticed. The only problems were bleary eyes, backs and thumbs, and delirium due to a complete lack of sleep and video game overdose.

Finally, if you don’t believe the lack of PlayStation 3 overheating problems, check out the gaming forums, you won’t hear anything about PS3 on these issues.

Published by Darren Lintern

Although the Nintendo Wii is great, no system is perfect. Here are some of the main problems that users have experienced since the release of this gaming console late last year.

Interference from Bright Lights:

It seems that many users who have experienced the Nintendo Wii, have noticed some kind of interference from light sources. It was reported that the consoles was unable to respond to the remote control while certain lights were on. Some gamers quickly discover that if they played on the other side of the room from the lights, there problem quickly went away.

This is a result of the sensor bar on the Wii console, a part of the unit that will detect changed in the position of the remote, which gets thrown out of whack by bright lighting. This is the reason that playing the console too near to a bright light source will mess with the remote control movement.

Nintendo’s response to this was to advice that the Wii remote may not work when played too close to a bright light source. It’s not an actual problem with the technology or design, they said, and suggested moving away from bright light while playing. Also, it is important to keep bright lights away from the TV, as this can also potentially interfere with the signal there as well.

Slowing Down and Crashing Wii’s:

A further technical problem noted by Wii gamers is their games slowing down. This only seems to occur after 10 or more hours of straight game play. The simple solution to this is to turn the console off and back on again, but the unit should really be playable for longer than 10 hours at once. The reason for the console slowing down is likely to be slight overheating, so if this does affect you, make certain that the warm air is able to escape and the fans are working correctly. It is recommended that if the stand that comes with the console is used, the warm air will be able to get out.

However, this problem does not seem to be affecting the Nintendo Wii nearly as much as the PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360 consoles, so it doesn’t seem to be a mayor problem.

Trouble with Online Connection:

Some users have reported trouble when attempting to establish an online connection with their Wii’s. It seems that the Wii doesn’t too well to on-bar connections, and results in a slow dial up process. The online connection used on the Wii is wireless, so is likely to suffer from all other problems associated with wireless systems. If it starts to get too annoying, you can always purchase an adapter from Nintendo and run a line.

Strap Related Accidents and Injuries:

The most notably problem with the Wii is not technical, but physical. It has been widely reported the number of Nintendo Wii related accidents. The main culprit, apart from the overactive gamers, comes down to the wrist straps on the controllers. The wrist straps, that are intended to keep the controller from flying across the room, apparently break easily. This becomes more of a problem, as the gamers hands become sweaty, which makes it easy for the controllers to slip. The result from this is lots ob damaged TV’s, broken glass, wrecked light fixtures, cut and bruises.

Nintendo is now actually facing a class-action lawsuit because of these strap related accidents and injuries. They claim that it is the users fault for not keeping hold of the controller properly. Still, the complaints have prompted Nintendo to recall millions of the original straps and offer an exchange for a thicker version.

In view of these problems, the Nintendo Wii will certainly continue to sell well, and is being enjoyed by gaming fans worldwide.
Published by Darren Lintern