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hcs
06-22-2004, 08:08 PM
Is it technically possible to run a program simultaneously with an XBox game?
At first glance it seems like I should be able to (though I don't know exactly how I would go about loading it), but I haven't seen any proper cheat devices for XBox and they would work on this principle. Is it just the issue of loading?

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packardmelan
06-22-2004, 08:11 PM
Depends on what you mean. There are plenty of Windows-based homebrew programs out there that communicate with the Xbox. Are you wanting a utility or, like, an Xbox-versus-PC multiplayer connection?

<P ID="signature">It doesn't matter if you’re 7'8" and weigh 100 lbs, or you're 4'9" and weigh 300 lbs, or black, green, or blue. That's Gene's greatest legacy to all of us - inclusion for the world. - Robert Blackman</P>
hcs
06-22-2004, 08:14 PM
I mean being able to run a program on the XBox while a game is being played.

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packardmelan
06-22-2004, 08:20 PM
> I mean being able to run a program on the XBox while a game
> is being played.
>
You mean like a 'resident' app or background process? In a way it could be done; I know some dashboard replacements leave a keypress (like l, r, black, white) to bring you back to the dash even in the middle of a homebrew game... but the Xbox IS limited in memory.

<P ID="signature">It doesn't matter if you’re 7'8" and weigh 100 lbs, or you're 4'9" and weigh 300 lbs, or black, green, or blue. That's Gene's greatest legacy to all of us - inclusion for the world. - Robert Blackman</P>
hcs
06-22-2004, 08:22 PM
> I know some dashboard replacements
> leave a keypress (like l, r, black, white) to bring you back
> to the dash even in the middle of a homebrew game...

That's pretty much what I needed to know, thanks.
Though the question remains: will it work with retail games? I don't see why not, but that doesn't mean I'm not wrong.


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maq112k2
06-22-2004, 09:56 PM
> That's pretty much what I needed to know, thanks.
> Though the question remains: will it work with retail games?
> I don't see why not, but that doesn't mean I'm not wrong.

I'm sure you can. Or you can just try to build whatever you want into the bios... /whistles.

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packardmelan
06-23-2004, 03:52 AM
> That's pretty much what I needed to know, thanks.
> Though the question remains: will it work with retail games?
> I don't see why not, but that doesn't mean I'm not wrong.
>
I'm really not sure; the 'keypress' option could be in the BIOS. Try Xbox-Scene for some good forums where you can ask such questions. ;)

<P ID="signature">It doesn't matter if you?€™re 7'8" and weigh 100 lbs, or you're 4'9" and weigh 300 lbs, or black, green, or blue. That's Gene's greatest legacy to all of us - inclusion for the world. - Robert Blackman</P>
hcs
06-23-2004, 01:20 PM
> I'm sure you can. Or you can just try to build whatever you
> want into the bios... /whistles.

Now is that a whistle of seriousness? Its a little hard to tell sarcasm on the net with subjects I know nothing about.

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JCJones86
06-23-2004, 06:21 PM
> Though the question remains: will it work with retail games?
> I don't see why not, but that doesn't mean I'm not wrong.

I think it would depend upon the software. Some ports on Xbox probably don't use all the available memory, but some may do so. If the memory buffer is full, then there is no "virtual memory" for the Xbox to rely on. More than likely those games which use the entire memory buffer would lock up upon returning to the game from the dashboard. This is a good idea, though. I'd like to be able to play my own MP3s through a hacked dashboard while playing my games. <img src=smilies/thumb.gif>

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maq112k2
06-23-2004, 06:26 PM
> Now is that a whistle of seriousness? Its a little hard to
> tell sarcasm on the net with subjects I know nothing about.

Yeah, it's just that obtaining and distrubuting MS bios images is a little on the shaky side of legality.


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hcs
06-23-2004, 06:51 PM
Is it in fact necessary to change the BIOS itself? Is the enitre XBox operating system in some chip, or is some of it on the hard drive?

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packardmelan
06-23-2004, 08:34 PM
> Is it in fact necessary to change the BIOS itself? Is the
> enitre XBox operating system in some chip, or is some of it
> on the hard drive?

Bits of the 'OS' are on the harddrive, but the majority of the code is in the BIOS. Of course, there are several replacements for the BIOS that work okay. There's Cromwell for Linux use, and some others like Xecuter (I think that's what I use) that are 'hacks' of the MS BIOS, if I recall.

<P ID="signature">It doesn't matter if you?€™re 7'8" and weigh 100 lbs, or you're 4'9" and weigh 300 lbs, or black, green, or blue. That's Gene's greatest legacy to all of us - inclusion for the world. - Robert Blackman</P>
hcs
06-23-2004, 09:02 PM
So is it, in theory at least, possible to have the unmodified BIOS start up a resident program from the hard drive?

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packardmelan
06-24-2004, 06:52 AM
> So is it, in theory at least, possible to have the
> unmodified BIOS start up a resident program from the hard
> drive?

The unmodified BIOS won't run anything that isn't 'signed' code as I recall. Other than using a buffer overflow hack and signing the code with some weird program. O.o But it might be doable. Like I said, you really ought to ask around Xbox-Scene.

<P ID="signature">It doesn't matter if you’re 7'8" and weigh 100 lbs, or you're 4'9" and weigh 300 lbs, or black, green, or blue. That's Gene's greatest legacy to all of us - inclusion for the world. - Robert Blackman</P>
maq112k2
06-24-2004, 03:58 PM
> The unmodified BIOS won't run anything that isn't 'signed'
> code as I recall.

Correct. The unmodified BIOS also does a media check, so if you plan on running anything from a standard CD, you'll need a hax0red BIOS.

> Other than using a buffer overflow hack
> and signing the code with some weird program. O.o

You can do it. Just get a softmod and the Phoenix Bios Loader. It loads the BIOS into memory, and does a soft reset, if I remember right, to boot from the BIOS. Then you can launch EvoX, FTP into the Xbox, plant the Xbox executable on the C drive as Evoxdash.xbe, and then every time you run the Bios Loader, that executable will be run. You can try to use OpenXDK for making the executable, but I'm not sure how far advanced it is yet.

> But it might be doable. Like I said, you really ought to ask
> around Xbox-Scene.

Always a good idea.

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