Appliance Hacking: Converting Existing Technology - Smart Home Automation with Linux and Raspberry Pi - page 56

Sony PlayStation
Sony is now promoting its third generation of PlayStation console, imaginatively titled PlayStation 3 (PS3). It is still too
new to make it financially viable to turn the whole machine into an home automation device (and since it's a very capable
media playback device already), but you can install Linux on it if you want, provided you use firmware version 3.15 or
earlier, or use OtherOS++. 2 (Note that the Slimline version of the PS3 does not support this.) For software engineers, it is a
good platform to learn the CELL architecture, but because the kernel isn't optimized for this chip, the operating system is
comparatively slow, meaning the same money and electricity could be put to better use with a standard PC. However, the
newness of this machine means there are two older consoles being neglected that can be had for very little money.
PlayStation 1
The first PlayStation released in 1994 (now referred to as the PlayStation 1, to differentiate itself from the PlayStation
brand) had a mere 2MB of RAM, a 33.8MHz CPU, and no memory management unit (MMU), meaning that only the
uClinux kernel was suitable for porting, but even then converting the rest of the system was difficult. Only one installation
seems to have existed, Runix (originally called PSXLinux), although this is now near impossible to find. This is no great loss
because, unlike modern game consoles, it didn't have a hard drive, which limits its use as a Linux machine.
Instead of using existing Linux software, it is still possible to develop applications from scratch using Net Yaroze
and utilizing the 128KB memory card for temporary storage. This comprises a black PlayStation, controllers, cables,
software, and manuals for software development, and it was intended to get hobbyists into the field by providing a
means of compiling software on a PC and uploading it through the serial cable—which was also used for debugging—to
the PlayStation. The machine was sold via mail order and to universities but wasn't a big success. Ultimately, there aren't
many of these devices available, so they're mostly traded between enthusiasts for excessive money. However, the speed
of the machine makes it unsuitable for video playback, 3 and its lack of communication ports further limits its potential.
A much better use for the PlayStation 1 is not as a computer but as a CD player, especially the first versions. This
is because the original console had a much-improved DAC inside it over later versions, giving it professional audio
quality output when playing CDs. This model can be distinguished by the model number SCPH 100x and the separate
audio and video RCA outputs.
PlayStation 2
Sony's second machine was released in 2000 and called the PlayStation 2 (you might detect a naming pattern here!),
and it provided a significant increase in power over its predecessor. It had 32MB of RAM and contained separate
chips for I/O, sound, and graphics, and it had a main CPU called the Emotion Engine (running at 294.9MHz or
299MHz depending on whether it was an original or later device). This made it a more realistic specification for Linux.
Furthermore, an easy route for doing so was provided by Sony, which sold its own supplementary kit, called PS2 Linux.
It provided the end user with a hard drive, a keyboard, mouse, an Ethernet adapter, and the necessary software and
manuals to develop software. These kits are no longer sold or supported, but some are available from old stock and from
secondhand dealers. Development is much easier on the eye if you ignore the TV output and use a monitor—you'll need
one that does sync-on-green. The supplied distribution is ultimately based on an old version of Red Hat with a 2.2. x
kernel, although newer versions now exist, along with Mozilla, XChat, and various lightweight GUI applications; utilities
that make use of the USB ports such as printers and cameras; and the network port. The site has since been retired,
although kits and software disks still surface on eBay occasionally. There is still some web content available through the
Wayback Machine at http://web.archive.org/web/20130303202328/http://playstation2-linux.com .
Outside of the official Linux distribution, there is a wide selection of home-brew software, such as media players
and emulators. You can download them as elfs from sites like http://sksapps.com or the old exploitstation.com
site (now languishing at http://web.archive.org/web/20100712044012/http://www.exploitstation.com ), or you
can build them yourself on a PC using a set of cross-compilation tools and run from a disc, memory card, network,
or USB memory stick.
http://www.ps3devwiki.com
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