Hackaday On Your Playstation Portable

hackaday psp

the new psp game wipeout pure apparantly comes with a full featured web browser that is used to download updates.  normally it’s restricted for that purpose alone, but roto sent me a line this morning saying that it could be hacked to function as a general web browser with a little dns trickery.

just point the psp to a nameserver that you can control, make a dns entry for ingame.scea.com to go to your own webserver, and stick a /wipeout/index.html there.  when you hit download in wipeout, it will load up your custom page!

i’m told the browser supports javascript, so it wouldn’t be too hard to code up a quick address bar along with links to google, and (of course) your favorite site.

(thanks yuppicide for the link to the working mirrorthe author’s url is here but it’s currently down.)

update: just received some more detailed info from roto.  continue reading for more information.

from roto’s email:

Also here’s a summary of what I did (taken from the forum post):

Wipeout Pure for PSP has a feature that lets you access updated content online (such as grabbing new textures or levels). This little feature has been reversed and “exploited” to our benefit. Note I am NOT the first person to do this, nor have I ever claimed to be. I did however figure this out on my own (as did the 4 or so other people who’s links you can find on the forum posts).

Anyway, accessing the “Download” section in Wipeout brings us to a hidden but full-featured web browser which at this time is obscured by a “Coming Soon” logo from SCEA’s webservers.

Taking the access requests apart I figured out (like many other people did) that this can be exploited by simple “spoofing”

The way I loaded up my own “page” is by setting up my FreeBSD machine with some DNS entries that point ingame.scea.com and webcluster.scea.com and all NS’s for scea.com to my internal LAN machine. I also created some files for Apache to serve. So then I changed the PSP’s NameServer settings to point to the server on my local LAN (FreeBSD machine). When the Wipeout client accesses http://ingame.scea.com/wipeout/index.html it gets my LOCAL file because of the DNS mapping.  It’s all pretty simple after that. I made a static page with a bunch of spring-board (or portal-like I guess) links to access from the PSP. When you select “Go to home page” by pressing start it returns you to the portal site (index.html). So thats an easy way back.

While browsing, you can enter input (we googled stuff!), when you enter a textbox and press X the PSP pops up the Keyboard API (remember there’s alot of API to be taken advantage of with the PSP). After that its as simple as any other input on the PSP.

Browsing is simple enough, up and down to move from link to link. D-Pad only though. Also there is no cursor anywhere, and no title-bars. If there is no link in the nearest vicinity, the PSP just scrolls the page (awesome). Entering links is X, refresh page is []. Again entering text into boxes pops up the API.

JavaScript works (Again API for Alert boxes, NEAT feature…my friend MomDad gave me a scare with a “PANIC!” joke which turned out to be PSP’s Dialog box API kicking in), Java is yet to be tested. Frames don’t work. Large pictures are to be tested too. Uhm I think thats it for now. Most of HTML works (no H1’s and stuff). Background colors and pics etc work fine.

I’m attaching a huge HackADay pic just for you :) Love your site.

aww, shucks.  thanks roto!

59 thoughts on “Hackaday On Your Playstation Portable

  1. It’s cool, but the problem is that you have to be near your server. If you could do this with any wifi access point anywhere, that would be awesome. However, this is still a pretty cool hack. Maybe a WiFi PDA could be the nameserver? But that kind of defeats the purpose… Why not surf on the PDA?

  2. All that’s required is that somebody with a fixed IP set up a DNS server with the approps redirects. The owner could redirect those two domain names to their own system, which offers a textbox and the JS to redirect you to the URL you want, possibly even using frames to create an address bar.

    Of course, the address bar JS should be smart enough to take you to the real ingame.scea.com if you enter that address; otherwise you have to change your settings to get updates.

  3. there is no reason it wouldn’t work from any wifi so long as your http and dns are internet accessable and you have a static ip (though a passwd would be a good idea) you could even toss together some cgi to get other funtions (ie aim,irc,email, etc) It could be pretty badass if someone took the time(not me i have a zaurus(debian linux in my pocket))
    (and yes i am happy to see you why do you ask?;)

  4. In response to #6, I just have 2 connections, one for web browsing that uses my DNS and another for a regular connection.

    I just got this working on my windows pc and will be trying to setup an online version via a server I run, I’ll get back to you as to how it goes, but it seems logical that it would work fine, as long as the nameserver has the proper entry.

  5. If only someone could write up their own browser to run off a memory stick and not have to use wipeouts that would be awesome! Then again, I do not have a clue how (or if its even possible with the psp) Just a crazy idea I had

  6. #8 gave me an idea, is the memory stick accessible from the web browser? maybe file://memory-stick or something. where do the updates download to? If it can write it, it should be able to read it.

  7. hey guys, thanks for all your support. give the pspdev community props for everything they’re doing. i’m just here to support them. also a big shout out to everyone working in the same direction…you know who you are and you know you’re not being overshadowed!

  8. Someone has already kindly setup a portal for all you people who want to view this without setting up a DNS server or from any access point (he even has links to Hackaday and /.)
    You can see his portal with your web browser (computer) here:

    http://67.171.70.72/wipeout/index.html [67.171.70.72]
    To use this on your PSP simply set your DNS to 67.171.70.72 inside the network settings then go into Wipeout Pure and hit Download.

  9. hello why don’t you people make a guide telling how to that for beginers in steps since i don’t understand nothing about making a dns server plz, it is only a sugestion.

  10. In response to #20, I agree with you. Im reading all these things dns, servers, setting up and such and im just getting lost. #15 says to just set my dns to that ip under network settings but do i do that on the psp? If so i checked it out and it said primary and some other one. Its cool if you can’t setup a guide but hey, thanks for reading. Time to buy wipeout! :)

  11. I am on a university LAN and WLAN, and have a static IP. Been experimenting with making my own DNS server etc and have actually accessed it on the other side of the state wirelessly through access points:-P The only time its down is when the actual campus network is being worked on, about 1 time a month..

  12. i think a better idea than changing the dns on your psp would for roto/mozy/whomever to create a proxy server to run off of using the spoofer dns at the proxy server. this way, it would only be a matter of setting the proxy server on the psp, and i would be able to access the internet at points where proxy servers are required to get on. (at our school, you can only access the internet though a proxy, but it can be any proxy.) preferably on port 8000 :D

  13. for some reason my psp never connects to anything other then the coming soon screen, ive tried so many dns entries.. all of them go to the cs screen, could it be the router or something.. if someone could help me out that would be great thanks

  14. today i successfully connected my psp to a web browser. several, actually. i have one question though and was curious as to whether or not it can be answered at this time. how difficult will it be to enable this access from anywhere? sure, it’s fun, but no one wants to sit at home on the psp browser when they can be in the next room on their broadband connection. true?
    ** i love my psp **

  15. OK me and a freind are setting up the most sweet DNS server possible, and it will have aim, give us 4 days, it will have AIM, i reppeat it WILL have AIM. i will not check here again so send me and email to dswink182@gmail.com or im me at dswink182. Me and my friend are good at computer programming it it will be no time beofre we make sweet homebrew programs that I will share ith ho ever emails me. SO email me for help or interest, or ofcourse IM me. help wanted, but we will manage. all you fellow homebrewers, Rock on and good luck.

  16. Someone asked for a step by step guide, it’s pretty easy once you’ve set up(or found someone elses) dns server to work it off of. You can find a nice DNS address ^^^^ up there.

    Instructions

    1) Turn on your psp
    2) Move to the settings menu
    3) go to and select Network settings
    —–select each of the following—-
    3) Infrastructure Mode
    4) New Connection
    5) Name the connection something to distinguish it, when finished press right
    6) Scan for your SSID, once it’s selected press right
    7) Enter your WEP Key(it *IS* enabled, right?)
    8) custom, press right
    9) automatic (You can do manual if it’s required to get in your network), press right
    10) Manual, press right
    11) Enter the IP for the DNS server you want wipeout to use in the primary DNS. I assume you can use secondary DNS as a back up should something happen to the primary. Press right
    12) Do Not Use, Press right.
    13) confirm your settings are correct
    14) Press X to save and test your connection.
    15) Boot Wipeout, get to the main menu
    16) Select ‘Download’, confirm the internet is
    not too frightening for you, then select the
    connection you just made.
    17) Welcome to the world wide intertron. Enjoy your stay.

    Like a tool, I downloaded both ‘security patches’ and this still works.

  17. this is a great collection of forward thinking. roto = badass +1…
    i was wondering if when other games with built-in pseudo-browsers come out, will it be possible to use them in the same manor as wipeout? or is it a particular part of wipeout that is allowing this to work?
    i understand the idea of spoofing the ip to make your psp point to another server… but i have yet to buy my psp, and want to know if it is possible to do this via another game, since wipeout doesn’t seem like my cup’O tea…
    well hope to hear a reply… and keep it up roto-man.
    -d3c1u5

  18. Sony is releasing a web browser update called V. 2.0 It will be released in aug. 20th. so dont buy wipeout. the game sucks. and the new browser is kick a!!. you can find the jap vers. it works on it but it voids your worrenty. look for it at http://www.gamespot.com/news/2005/07/27/news_6129825.html you might wanna use a translater like worldlingo.com but it is a sony released download that makes me love mine 100% more. Keep up the Hacks. You guys Rock!!!!!!

  19. They have made the portals for the playstation that look just like linux, mac, and windows xp. However none of them have managed to get a good paint program on there. Is that even possible to do that?

  20. Hi there! Can you guys help me?I tried out the Wipeout Pure web browser.But when I start up the game.And when I go to the main menu.The word DOWNLOADS isn’t shown! What should I do to solve this problem? Because I don’t know what Im doing wrong.

    Cheers!
    And my name is Tim!

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