Hasta La Gadget!

Of all the DIY touchscreen projects we’ve come across lately, this is certainly one of them. The kids over at Netbook Mag have got their hands on the stately Samsung NC10 and were kind enough to put together a full blown, step-by-step guide to replacing its tired, non-touch responsive display with an exciting, new fashioned touchscreen. And if that weren’t enough, there’s a video of the software drivers being installed — with a cool, vintage 1994 Euro-rave soundtrack. How great is that? Check it after the break.

Continue reading Samsung NC10 netbook touchscreen hack caught on film

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Samsung NC10 netbook touchscreen hack caught on film originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 05 Feb 2009 13:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s easy to forget that the PS3 is a fully-equipped PC in your living room attached to your house’s best monitor. Installing Ubuntu can help you remember, and play SNES games in the process.

It still kind of surprises me (in a good way) that Sony was, from the start, very OK with PS3 owners tinkering with Linux on their PS3s. A modified release of Yellow Dog Linux was available from the very beginning, and some very handy hard drive partitioning and dual-boot utilities are baked right into the PS3’s XMB; Ubuntu gets installed on an entirely separate partition of your PS3’s hard disk, so your default system doesn’t get touched and switching between Ubuntu and the XMB is a piece of cake.

There is a flipside to this coin, however. Since the PS3’s Cell Processor is PowerPC based, you won’t be able to use any Linux software that’s compiled for x86, which is, unfortunately, most of it. However, Ubuntu has always had a PPC distro, and most of the basic stuff will work just fine. You can even load up a PPC-compiled Super Nintendo Emulator, SNES9X, and play some classic games pretty easily on your Sixaxis controller paired via Bluetooth. Also, doing web browsing and other basic computing is a lot more natural and elegant on Ubuntu running on your TV than in the PS3’s somewhat gimped browser.

Another downside is performance—the PS3 obviously has a lot of hardware muscle, but there are no Linux drivers to take full advantage of the Cell processor’s multi-core architecture, or the PS3’s hardware graphics acceleration. Plus, Ubuntu can only see and use 221.7 MB of the PS3’s 512MB of RAM for some reason. So it won’t be a speed demon (and you won’t be able to play HD videos or anything), but it’s definitely functional for the basics.

And, even over two years into the PS3’s life, doing all of this still requires a fair amount of Linux geek forum sifting, which I have humbly take upon myself to do so you don’t have to. And believe me, you don’t. So let’s get started!

What You’ll Need:
• Ubuntu 8.10 PS3 Install Disc Image
• Blank CD
• USB hard drive formated to FAT32 to backup your PS3 data
• USB keyboard and mouse (wireless if possible)

Install Ubuntu 8.10
1. Installing an alternate OS requires you to wipe the hard disk completely, so you’ll want to back up your PS3 data—this includes game saves, downloaded games and the hard drive installs many games require. For this, you’ll need a FAT32-formatted USB disc (Mac HFS+ volumes won’t work). This won’t save your trophies, so if losing them will be a tragedy for you, go to Game -> Trophy Collection, press triangle and choose “Sync with Server.”

2. Plug in your disc and go to Settings -> System Settings -> Backup Utility in your XMB. Choose Back Up and select your USB disk. The data will be saved at /PS3/EXPORT/BACKUP. It took about 25 minutes for me. When you’re done installing Ubuntu, the first time you switch back to the XMB you’ll want to use the Backup Utility to restore your backup.

3. Now you’re ready to install Ubuntu. This Ubuntu help page can assist, but like it says at the top, it was written for Ubuntu 7.10, so some things may change. Our guide here is using 8.10. I would use the alternate install disc, because some folks say the graphical Live CD install can give them some problems. The alternate install disc is the exact same thing, only with old-school DOS-y graphics. Grab that (I recommend the torrent, which will blaze down as fast as your connection will let it) and burn the ISO file to a CD.

4. Drop that CD into your PS3, and go to Settings -> System Settings -> Install Other OS. This will install the dual-boot loader kboot in a matter of seconds, and ask you if you want to restart into the the Other OS’s install disc. Make sure your PS3 is connected to the web via ethernet (wi-fi could possibly work, but it might confuse the Ubuntu instllaer), plug in your USB keyboard, which you’ll need, and say yes.

5. With the keyboard, follow the fugly text-only instructions for the Ubuntu 8.10 installer to install the system. Everything is self explanatory, and at almost every turn, you should be able to select the default option. The installer will look like it’s hung up at several points, but it’s not, so let it do its thing. Install will take about 45 minutes, and when it’s done, remove the install disc, and you’ll boot into a good ol’ Ubuntu desktop.

Pair Your Sixaxis or Dual Shock via Bluetooth
One advantage of using Ubuntu over, say, the PS3-specific Yellow Dog distro is that it’s easier to wirelessly pair your PS3 controller with a little downloadable utility. For these steps, you should switch to your PS3 running Ubuntu.

A wireless USB keyboard and mouse here are essential, but stick with wireless USB over Bluetooth. Logitech’s MX1100 mouse worked immediately with Ubuntu without any futzing, but the Logitech DiNovo Edge BT keyboard I had was a different story—Ubuntu’s Bluetooth utility found it and paired with it, but I couldn’t get it to actually type. I’m sure there’s a way, but that’s some forum sifting you’ll have to do on your own. Instead I used an old Apple keyboard I had laying around with the USB extension cord.

1. This thread spells out most of the process, and it’s the source of the software you’ll need to download. Grab Sixaxis Bluetooth Package.tar.gz and unzip it on your Ubuntu desktop.

2. Double click to install the packages inside, first the “bluez-sixaxis-bin_powerpc.deb” package and then the one named “bluez-sixaxis_rc1.1_all.deb.”

3. Now, with your controller turned off, go to Applications -> Accessories -> Sixaxis-gui in Ubuntu and start the app. Choose “Setup Menu” and then “Setup first connection” and follow the instructions. Don’t press the PS button until it tells you to. The lights will keep blinking even after it’s connected.

4. After that’s done, you can connect this or any of your other controllers by simply going to “Connect Sixaxis to PC” under “Task menu.” But to use it with the SNES emulator you’re about to install, you have to do one more thing:

5. Under “Task menu” choose “Enable Keyboard and Mouse” and then pick “Fake Joystick.” This will pair your controller as a Linux joystick. After that, you’ll have to disconnect (with “Turn Off Sixaxis”) and re-connect your controller.

Install SNES9X Emulator
SNES9X works fairly well on the PS3, with a few minor caveats, which we’ll get to below.

1. Open up a terminal window in Ubuntu and type the following command:

sudo apt-get install snes9express snes9x-x

This will install the emulator.

2. When it’s done, “snes9express” will appear under Games in Ubuntu’s application launcher. Fire that up.

3. To configure it properly, do the following: under the ROM tab, select the folder that houses all your SNES ROMs (for games you already owned as a kid, of course!); under Sound, make sure “Thread Sound” is selected, or else everything will sound horribly garbled; under Video, check “Scale,” “Hi-Res” and “Full Screen.”

4. Getting SNES9X to recognize your Sixaxis takes a little bit more juju, but even then, there is still some weirdness. To config, go to the Controllers tab and press “Devices.” Change the entries of “Pad 1” (and “Pad 2” if you’re using two) from “/dev/js0” to “/dev/input/js0” and hit close. Don’t try to Configure Button Maps… for the joysticks.

5. Go back to ROM, choose your game, and hit Power, and it should start up.

Here, though, are the aforementioned caveats: the PPC version of SNES9X on the PS3 chokes hard when you try to use an alternate button configuration for your controller (it will take the configuration, but just won’t play any games). But it’s default configuration, while wacky, is still playable. You’ll just have to find where each SNES button is mapped for each game. You’ll have trouble with something like Street Fighter 2, but simpler games like F-Zero, Pilotwings and RPGs like Earthbound (!!!) are totally playable.

And, less damaging, total full-screen does not appear to work (or at least I couldn’t get it to work) on the PS3. But you can still drag the window as big as it will get and get the same effect, just with your Ubuntu desktop visible behind.

So, all in all, this won’t be as elegant as dusting off your old SNES and plugging it in, but it’s fun to squeeze all of the potential out of your PS3 and see it play some vintage classics.

Tips
If Ubuntu locks up on you at any time, don’t trip the main power switch on the back: all you have to do is hold down the regular power button on the front for five seconds to force a shutdown.

And, theoretically, all you have to do to get back to the XMB is type “boot-game-os” at the kboot prompt. This has yet to work for me. Instead, power down the PS3 (so the power light is red), and then hold down the power button for 5-10 seconds until it beeps a few times, then let go. This will boot back into XMB by default (you may have to re-select your TV resolution, but don’t worry, all the rest of your configurations should be saved). If you’re done playing around with Linux for a while, you can simply set the PlayStation OS as the default in your XMB System settings.

Further Tinkering
A couple of things that are possible, but I have not fully tested:

Setting Ubuntu to Your Exact TV Resolution
This thread will help there—in my default installation on my Samsung 720p LCD, Ubuntu was sufficiently high-res, but with a black border an inch or two thick around the edges. If you’re experienced with Linux config files though, you can dive into the xorg.conf (which is blank by default in Ubuntu 8.10, much to my initial confusion) and calibrate it to the exact resolution of your TV.

Using the Sixaxis as a Mouse
I don’t think this works by default, but if you want to ditch the USB mouse and use the PS3 controllers analog stick, see this thread for more guided xorg.conf config file tweaking. I tried it but the buttons were oddly mapped, so I gave up. Many have gotten it to work though.

Oh, and I think you guys will enjoy this: while researching this article and diagnosing some problems with using the Sixaxis with SNES9X, I found perhaps the greatest moment in geek troubleshooting forum history. But thanks to this guy, I was able to get it working, so mad props to him and his Olive-Garden-fueled troubleshooting.

As of JAN/06/2008 @ 11:43AM EST – For some reason, SNES9EXPRESS does not like it if i turn JOYSTICK on, i have to go to JOYSTICK tab and turn it off for the Emulator to run without an error code 1. I will look further into this and see if i can make sense of it.

*(UPDATE)* Going to Olive Garden for lunch, going to let a few ideas rattle around in my brain before i take another stab at this.

And that’s about it. Enjoy Ubuntu on your PS3, and if you come up with any more fun uses for it, please let me know in the comments. And if there are any other topics you’d love to see covered by a weekend how-to, speak up! Have a good Saturday tweaking everyone.

You’ve been thinking about installing Windows 7 Beta 1 now that it’s totally available to anyone. Well, here’s our complete guide to grabbing, installing and playing with Windows 7—it’s (mostly) painless, so no excuses!

Are You Ready?
First thing’s first—you might be tired of XP, but can your computer handle Windows 7? Probably! Here are the minimum requirements:
• 1 GHz 32-bit or 64-bit processor
• 1 GB of system memory
• 16 GB of available disk space
• Support for DirectX 9 graphics with 128 MB memory (to enable the Aero theme)
• DVD-R/W Drive (actually not necessary)

Where to Get It
Microsoft is obviously the first stop to getting Windows 7. Here’s the download page, where you’ll pick either 32 or 64-bit version. Update: Microsoft has killed that page for whatever reason. Here’s how to get the key now.If you have 4GB of RAM or more, get 64-bit. You’ll need your Live ID and Microsoft will want some info about you, but just lie or tell the truth or whatever, and you’ll be taken to a download page with your product key. If you have some trouble getting the download link to work after getting your product key (like me), here are the direct links to the 32-bit image file and 64-bit image file.

Even if Microsoft’s own servers are crumbling under the strain of surprisingly strong demand (though I downloaded at 1MB/sec just fine), you can always hit BitTorrent. You’re looking for Windows 7 Beta 1, build 7000. Other benefit to torrent: It’ll still be available after Microsoft’s Jan. 24 deadline and you don’t need a Microsoft Live ID. But you will need to get your own product key.

Getting Stuff Ready
Windows 7, from everything we’ve heard is surprisingly stable beta, and it’s easy to upgrade from Vista, since it happens automagically. However, that doesn’t mean you should run it as your sole OS (especially on your work computer), because your programs might not work with it (they should, but you never know), crash possibilities and other unknown unknowns. should dual boot it, meaning you’ll be able to run either OS at startup. Luckily, Lifehacker has a step-by-step guide to doing just that.

It works especially nicely if you have two hard drives in a desktop (like me), but most likely, you’ll have to partition. Keep in mind if you’re partitioning a single hard drive, the minimum space for Windows 7 is 16GB, and you’ll probably want more room than that. Again, Lifehacker has the complete details, but the short version is that in Vista, run “Computer Management” from the Start Menu and you can complete all of the partition voodoo from Disk Management, like shrinking your current volume to give your new Windows 7 partition that minimum 16GB of breathing room. And you know, actually creating the fresh partition for Windows 7. (Do that now, and remember which one it is!) For XP, you’ll need the GParted Live CD, which you burn to a CD, restart, boot from disc, and do the partition thang.

How to Get Windows 7 on Your computer
After getting install downloaded and hard drive prepped, you’ve got a couple of options for actually getting Windows 7 onto your computer. The first, and easiest, is to make a Windows 7 disc by burning the image to a DVD using something like ImgBurn.

If you’re installing Windows 7 on a Mac, you can burn the image to a DVD with Disk Utility.

Or, you can do what I’m doing since I’m out of blank DVDs at the moment, and put it on a flash drive for installation. This is also how you’ll get it on a netbook or MacBook Air. You’ll need a 4GB USB 2.0 flash drive and a mounting program like Daemon Tools on Windows or MountMe on Mac. Format the flash drive in FAT32, mount the Windows 7 image, then copy everything over to the flash drive.

Installing
Hello easy part! Pop in your disc or your flash drive. Boot from it, and follow the wizard, installing Windows 7 on your clean partition (under Custom installation type). On a Mac, Boot Camp Assistant will take you through the process after you slide in the Windows disc. Make sure it’s the right partition or you will hose your actual current Windows install. Then go watch some TV or take a poop while it does its thing. Come back, and you’ll have a few more setup screens—hope you wrote your license key down!—then you’ll be up and rolling with Windows 7.

Now what?
The initial setup is fast and easy, but you might wanna check out your driver situation. Mac users, for instance, have a little bit of work ahead of them, since you’ll have to install drivers from the OS X disc, and if you’re running 64-bit, download the Boot Camp 2.1 update.

Well, there’s a lot to check out in Windows 7. Like the new Media Center, which has 10 new features we’re really hyped about, like sweet dissolve effects, turboscrolling, virtual channels and remote copying.

The new taskbar is one of its major new UI features that’s both exciting and at first a little confusing, since it works a lot differently than the taskbar you’re used. Checking out Microsoft’s video tour before you jump might save you some frustration. There’s also Aero Shake, which knocks all the clutter off your desktop instantly; Snap, with its instant window resizing; and Peek, which is like turbocharged thumbnail previews.

Oh, and whatever you guys do, don’t play your MP3s in Windows Media Player, since it could corrupt them! Update: There’s a patch out for this issue, here’s the 64-bit download and here’s the 32-bit.

There’s definitely a lot to play around with. Let us know in the comments once you get your install running what else you think people should check out as soon as they get their machine fired up! If you’ve got any other install tricks, let us know about those too!

So you followed our guide to getting a sweet HDTV for dirt cheap for Christmas, and now a lovely glossy box of plastic and glass is sitting in your living room. Congratulations! Now what?

Did You Buy Everything You Needed?
We covered this a bit in our buying guide , but your TV isn’t the only thing you should’ve walked out of the store with. At bare minimum, you need cables—up to four sets of HDMI, depending on how much stuff you’re going to be plugging in. If you planned ahead, you could pass on the $100 Monster set Best Buy tossed your away, and already had them waiting at your house from Monoprice.com.

Also, a decent surge protector is a must, since you’re going to be having a ton of crap plugged into one outlet—we like Belkin’s Conceals a lot. And we’d recommend a universal remote, since you’re probably going to have a lot of crap plugged into it and no one wants 17 remotes to deal with. Logitech’s Harmony remotes are a good choice.

Sort of optional, but not really if you’re semi-serious about getting the most out of going HD, is a surround sound setup. The easiest way to do this is to just buy a home theater in a box (HTiB). We like Onkyo stuff and Sony’s got a bunch of different options too. An alternative to a full surround sound dealio is a soundbar—Brian has a huge hard-on for Yamaha’s, and for good reason. We used one at the Giz Gallery with our 103-inch Panasonic plasma, and it was awesome.

Where’s It Going
We really, really hope you planned this out beforehand—especially if you’re wall mounting—but you need somewhere to plop your TV. A stand, a full-fledged entertainment center, or something.

You actually kind of have to figure this out one backwards. First question: How far away are you planning on sitting? That’s how you figure out how big of a TV you’re gonna need, unless you just want a 70-inch TV for the hell of it—but then you’re probably going to fit your living room around it, not the other way around. Here’s a chart from HD Guru that’ll help you figure out the right viewing distance to size ratio.

After you know how big your TV is gonna be and how far away you’re gonna sit, you can figure out whether you’re gonna mount, plop it on a stand or install it in a huge entertainment center. It goes without saying (but we’re going to say just in case) that knowing the size (don’t forget the bezel!) and weight (plasmas are heavy) of your TV before you buy wall mounts or a stand is a must. Just please don’t mount it over a fireplace, that’s so tacky. If you are a poor planner, and you’re scrambling to buy a stand the day of, the ones at Best Buy typically suck—check Home Depot or Lowes. There are also some less conventional options.

HDTVs Are Useless Without HD Stuff
You’ve got your HDTV mounted and have a fistful of cables to plug stuff into it. Awesome. Now you need some HD content on there. Again, planning ahead goes a long way here—primarily with the cable or satellite company. Your old cable or satellite box doesn’t do HD, and you’re going to need a new one. Since every asshole who just got a new HDTV is going to be calling up the cable guy to get ESPN in HD, if you’ve already set up an appointment (if needed) or a time to pick up your new box, you’ll be one step ahead. If not, especially if your cable company actually has to send a dude out there to do the exchange, expect to wait a week, if not more, to get your HD HBO on.

You need a Blu-ray player—it’s the only real way to get gorgeous 1080p goodness up on your set. Luckily, they’re cheap as balls now, and you don’t have to pay more than $250 to get a player unless you want to (like to get a PS3, which is a solid pick). Obviously, our favorite Blu-ray showcase movie right now is The Dark Knight, since it’s one of those flicks that definitively stabs into your engorged eyeball how visually ormfgasmic a full HD movie experience can be (even if it doesn’t quite match IMAX).

Blu-ray isn’t the only option, obvs. There are lots of different ways to flood your HDTV with downloaded HD video from the intertubes—rented, bought or free. In terms of sheer video quality, Vudu, conveniently on sale right now, is is completely unrivaled with its stunning HDX downloads, and it has a pretty solid catalog too.

If you’ve got a ton of iTunes movies for some reason, Apple TV will get ’em on your TV easy, and the open-source software Boxee will unlock its full Super Saiyan media center power. Another powerful choice is the Xbox 360. It’s a Windows Media Center extender, which makes it easy to stream movies from your PC, and it’s got the Netflix HD streaming service built right in, which is free with a Netflix subscription. (Plus, it’s the best gaming system of this generation. Yeah I said it, wannafightaboutit?)

You also can’t go wrong with a TiVo HD, which is a must if your cable or satellite box doesn’t already come with a DVR (and even then, is highly recommended).

Make It Look Good
Last thing: You need to calibrate your TV, ’cause out of the box, even the best HDTVs will look like shit—or at least as half as good as they should—and even the worst ones can be made infinitely (almost) better. Don’t pay Best Buy to do it for you though. We’ve got you covered with a full guide to doing it without losing your mind.

Finally, get your favorite beer (Gizmodo Features Editor Wilson Rothman recommends Coors Light), kick back and enjoy your awesome new TV, completely maxed out.