forums.ps2dev.org

dist0rted · Joined: 15 Aug 2004 Posts: 9 Location: Copperas Cove, Texas

It's just another year before the expected Playstation 3 release, so I'm wondering: by the time I learn all this about the PS2, won't the PS3 already be out? Then I'll try and get into that for sure, but I was told that to program games with homebrew tools for the PS2, you have to write your own software 3D engine (unless you feel like paying big bucks).
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Guest · Posted: Fri Oct 01, 2004 12:18 am Post subject:

Well, there are many angles to this.

The main question is, do you have any experience programming a
console architecture ? If not, you might want to start boning up on
a console right now, so you can hit the ground running when the PS3
comes out. Or... you can wait for the PS3 to come out, and take your
time coming up to speed.

If you are motivated right now, do you really want to wait until homebrew
is able to develop for the PS3 ? Don:t expect homebrewability to be possible
upon release. Or, if you are not terribly motivated right now, by all means,
wait.

There is something to be said for getting experience right now though,
again, if you are motivated.

Just my two cents :)

pixel · Joined: 30 Jan 2004 Posts: 791

J.F. · Joined: 22 Feb 2004 Posts: 2906

Given the PS3 isn't scheduled to be released until 2006, I'd say there's plenty of time left for PS2 development. Forget the fact that PS2's won't stop working just because the PS3 is out. :)

Drakonite · Site Admin Joined: 17 Jan 2004 Posts: 989

Right now is probably the best time there has ever been to get into PS2 homebrew development. (With the except of a bit of weirdness in a few libs..)
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2BeyondTheGrave · Joined: 12 Feb 2004 Posts: 11 Location: MaryLand

yea I agree with everyone else the earlier you start the better it will be in the future( I started programming when I was 13:). The original playstation development didnt get really great till ps2 was out for a while ( emulators,homebrew games, etc...) .I may be wrong on this but most handheld game systems seem to be a little easier(cant really say easier but more fluent really) to develop for (gameboy advance is a perfect example because the homebrew dev is so far if you are motivated you can make a full game for the system) so the PSP comes out pretty soon and it does have similar specifications as the PS2 so whatever you know for the PS2 could come in handy once PSP dev starts to pick up.
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ooPo · Posted: Fri Oct 01, 2004 1:57 pm Post subject:

Is it too late to get OUT of Playstation 2 development?

Drakonite · Site Admin Joined: 17 Jan 2004 Posts: 989

mrbrown · Joined: 17 Jan 2004 Posts: 1536

You forgot to start out with "In Soviet Russia...".

Получите ему правое следующее время, друга.
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Drakonite · Site Admin Joined: 17 Jan 2004 Posts: 989

dist0rted · Joined: 15 Aug 2004 Posts: 9 Location: Copperas Cove, Texas

Well, I've been programming my GameBoy Advance SP for quite some time now. How long did it take you guys to really get into this stuff and get some accual graphics outputted from the PS2?
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Guest · Posted: Sat Oct 02, 2004 2:16 pm Post subject:

ajcrm125 · Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 7

But with the Linux DEV kit no longer avaliable in the US (Or at least for a reasonable price... sure I could spend $300 on Ebay but come on...) how can a noob like myself justify geting into PS2 development?
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There are 10 types of people in this world... those who know binary and those who don't.

pixel · Joined: 30 Jan 2004 Posts: 791

That's the whole point of the whole website here. There no need for the linux kit: we just are writing native code for the PS2, without the needs of a linux environment whatsoever.
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pixel: A mischievous magical spirit associated with screen displays. The computer industry has frequently borrowed from mythology. Witness the sprites in computer graphics, the demons in artificial intelligence and the trolls in the marketing department.

ajcrm125 · Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 7

Ah... so appently it would help if I knew what the hell I was talking about eh?
:-D
Thanks for the clarification.

Incidentally... are there any performnace differences between the 2 environments? (I.E. would a game writen in this environment run comparably to one writtn under the Linux envionment?)

-Adam
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-Adam
==========================================================
There are 10 types of people in this world... those who know binary and those who don't.

pixel · Joined: 30 Jan 2004 Posts: 791

The "performance problem" you may notice comes from the fact there's not much things around to help you code. For example, there's no big midi player with big synthesizer thing, with big callbacks to sync game with music, or no big opengl or any other graphical layer the official devkit may have... you have to do everything by yourself.

But, since the software we do here are run at the same level of the sony games, that is "native" level, the same "basic" code should run somewhat smoother there than in the linux kit, which has a kernel with memory paging, multithreading and other neat stuff.

So, yeah, it should run faster here. But also, should be more difficult to get something running. Except if you are only doing 2D framebuffers, or if you really want to get into troubles with the VU microcode :D
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pixel: A mischievous magical spirit associated with screen displays. The computer industry has frequently borrowed from mythology. Witness the sprites in computer graphics, the demons in artificial intelligence and the trolls in the marketing department.

dist0rted · Joined: 15 Aug 2004 Posts: 9 Location: Copperas Cove, Texas

Does anyone here have a Playstation 2 Linux Kit? I'm about to buy a used one, and I'd like to know if you'd recommend it or not and why. (I'm going to get it anyway, but I'd like to hear your comments.)
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pixel · Joined: 30 Jan 2004 Posts: 791

I'd say ebay...
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pixel: A mischievous magical spirit associated with screen displays. The computer industry has frequently borrowed from mythology. Witness the sprites in computer graphics, the demons in artificial intelligence and the trolls in the marketing department.

dist0rted · Joined: 15 Aug 2004 Posts: 9 Location: Copperas Cove, Texas

I said I'm already going to get one - I know a guy who's going to sell it for $50. I didn't ask where to find it at.
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pixel · Joined: 30 Jan 2004 Posts: 791

Ah, ho, sorry, read too fast, sorry.

Well... I don't have any linux kit myself. And I think it's useless. If I'd like to have a linux, I have computers at home. So, only interest left is programming the PS2 specifically. However, due to the "RTE" thing, you can't export your software to people who don't have the linux kit. That's why I am using stuff available here instead of a linux kit to code the PS2.

Otherwise, it seems you're gonna have troubles with the VGA (did you check if your screen was able to sync on green?)
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pixel: A mischievous magical spirit associated with screen displays. The computer industry has frequently borrowed from mythology. Witness the sprites in computer graphics, the demons in artificial intelligence and the trolls in the marketing department.

Drakonite · Site Admin Joined: 17 Jan 2004 Posts: 989

You can use reload1 and the RTE to boot native homebrew just fine. It's not an inhierent features of the linux kit, but that doesn't mean it isn't there.

Some would say the documentation that comes with it alone is worth $50, and if you have a use for any of the hardware.. Of course, there are at least a few out there that would like to have the kit for the ps2linux aspect of it (like me).
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mrbrown · Joined: 17 Jan 2004 Posts: 1536

Yeah pixel, even if you don't like the "Linux" part of the "Linux Kit", the RTE comes in handy as a bootloader for ps2link, PS2R media player, etc. The kit has plenty of value either way.
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pixel · Joined: 30 Jan 2004 Posts: 791

Yeah, true. For the docs and the reload thing, it may be worth it.
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pixel: A mischievous magical spirit associated with screen displays. The computer industry has frequently borrowed from mythology. Witness the sprites in computer graphics, the demons in artificial intelligence and the trolls in the marketing department.

dist0rted · Joined: 15 Aug 2004 Posts: 9 Location: Copperas Cove, Texas

Isn't there a way to boot the kit onto the TV screen instead of the moniter? I remember seeing something about how you could press SELECT + another button and boot to the VGA graphics. I'd like to confirm this if you know.
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mrbrown · Joined: 17 Jan 2004 Posts: 1536

http://playstation2-linux.com/faq.php#Can_I_use_a_TV_as_my_display__
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dist0rted · Joined: 15 Aug 2004 Posts: 9 Location: Copperas Cove, Texas

Awesome, thanks man.
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Guest · Posted: Sun Oct 17, 2004 8:54 pm Post subject:

pixel · Joined: 30 Jan 2004 Posts: 791

Huh ? How the linux kit thing could work on the 7000x, since it doesn' t have any harddrive bay anymore ?
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pixel: A mischievous magical spirit associated with screen displays. The computer industry has frequently borrowed from mythology. Witness the sprites in computer graphics, the demons in artificial intelligence and the trolls in the marketing department.

Guest · Posted: Sun Oct 17, 2004 11:40 pm Post subject:

Pixel, the linux kit works just fine without a hard drive, if all you want to do it boot the RTE, load a kernel, and access files off a memory card. Mrb:s reload takes advantage of this useful feature.

Perhaps you need to spend more time investigating the useful dev features of the linux kit ;)

Of course, I hope Sony didn:t disable seeing the Linux RTE disc from the bios like it did in the PSX. That would be mean. Just mean!

pixel · Joined: 30 Jan 2004 Posts: 791

Aaaaaaaaah, okay, I see.

Well, I never really went into that linux kit thing. Too costly for mah poor wallet back then :P

Now, I bet there are high chances that the RTE is disabled...
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pixel: A mischievous magical spirit associated with screen displays. The computer industry has frequently borrowed from mythology. Witness the sprites in computer graphics, the demons in artificial intelligence and the trolls in the marketing department.