all you need to know for the psp

[wwwyzzerdd]

Well everyone got a PSP for the holidays, and it seems that nobody knows what to do with them. I admit that some of the things are confusing, so I'm here to answer your feeble questions. First off, let me just clear up some of the more frequent questions.

* In order to connect to the internet via your PSP, you need to at least have the 2.00 firmware (most new PSP's come with 2.00 or higher), a high-speed connection, and a wireless router (or simply go somewhere with a wi-fi connection). To connect, go to Settings > Network Settings > Infrastructure Mode. Name your connection, scan for the nearest connection (MAKE SURE YOUR WLAN SWITCH ON THE LEFT IS TURNED ON), and if it's secured with a WEP password, enter it in. After all of that, your system will prompt you to test your connection. If all else fails, check back and make sure you did everything correctly. This information can be found on pgs. 98-103 in your PSP instruction manual (I SUGGEST YOU HOLD ONTO IT, IT CAN ACTUALLY HELP YOU).

* In order to update your PSP, there are 3 ways. 1) Through a wireless connection, 2) From the PSP website, and 3) From any new game. To download updates wirelessly, turn your WLAN switch on, go to Settings > Network Update, connect your your wireless connection, and then the system should search for any new firwares. From the PSP site, click on the System Update Link, and follow the instructions given here. To do it from a new game, you should see a link under Game > UMD. After you take any of those steps, you should find the Firmware Installer under Game > Memory Stick. You CANNOT downgrade (well, without certain mods/hacks), because Sony wants to combat piracy and homebrew games, and thay CAN and WILL force you to upgrade (once again, without the assistance of certain mods to your system).

* Getting a video onto a PSP is a bitch, so I'm unable to fully explain it. Certain programs like Sony Media Software or PSP Video 9 can fully explain the process. Adding music and pictures is a lot easier though. Simply connect your PSP to your computer using a 5-prong USB cable, then go to System > USB Connection. For a picture make a file called "Photo" within the PSP file. PSP's now support all types of picture files, so I cannot imagine you'd be able to find a non-working image (other than animated gifs). For music, make a file called "Music" within the PSP file, and add music as you please (and may I suggest you invest money in getting a fairly large sized memory stick duo. You can find a 1GB memory stick duo for about $100 around now). If you want to use any picture as a background, select that picture on the Photo Menu (scroll down to the picture and press X), then while the picture is selected, press Triangle to access the photo menu. From here, you can set that picture as a background, zoom in or out, flip the picture, and other options. If you want to create a decent sized background yourself, the screen size is about 480x272.

And finally, some helpful links for you all.

The Official PSP Website (US)
The Unofficial Official PSP Site
PSPConnect
PSP Updates
PSP Fanboy

If you have any more questions, feel free to ask.

[liljim]

That's a pretty good start. In addendum to what you've written, with regards to the wireless connection - if your wireless network restricts access to only specified MAC addresses (which is how I choose to do things on top of WEP (I have a couple of units that are on the network which aren't WPA compliant), then to get the MAC address of your PSP, go to:

Settings -> System Settings -> System Information.

As for converting your movies - there's an Gamespot, which details how to convert your movies with a program called 3GP. This is a completely free program and after you've run the initial setup (which is detailed in that article) and chosen your preferred language (which is the only confusing part, unless you have gone to get the program from the source site itself), it really is just a case of dragging and dropping your movies onto the program and it will do all the hard work. That's what I used for the movies that I uploaded for the ipod (that will be made available for the PSP soon) in this news post.

The only drawback to the program I've described (other than the initial setup) is that it doesn't tend to like avis... .Mov files seem to work pretty well, though.

[wwwyzzerdd]

At 12/26/05 09:43 PM, liljim wrote: As for converting your movies - there's an Gamespot, which details how to convert your movies with a program called 3GP.

Yeah, there's dozens of programs out there for converting video for PSP. The video codec that they use is very strange, but just like you said, most programs out there do all the hard work for you. I imagine that Sony's Media Manager makes it easier for people to convert files than most independent programs, but then again I assume that they'd be quicker to put limits on what you can or cannot convert to stifle downloaded music.

The only drawback to the program I've described (other than the initial setup) is that it doesn't tend to like avis... .Mov files seem to work pretty well, though.

There was a homebrew that allowed avi playback, but that got shut down as soon as Sony took homebrew compatibility away. I know that PSP Video 9 allows you to convert avi to mpeg, then mpeg to the necessary file for PSP. Also, I cannot wait for most of the things you mentioned in your news post. God speed with it.

[liljim]

At 12/26/05 10:56 PM, -wwwyzzerdd- wrote: There was a homebrew that allowed avi playback, but that got shut down as soon as Sony took homebrew compatibility away.

I got mine a bit late to be tinkering around with the homebrew stuff. Whilst it sucks that they withdrew all that stuff, I can't imagine many people wanting to store avis on their memory sticks, particularly the default 32 Mb's worth... Even the worst quality avis tend to take up a crapload of room. :)

[ArabFreak]

.3gp is the Quicktime file that runs on mobile phones. Almost every mobile phone runs it's videos on the .3gp (3rd group partnership, I think), which is shit quality if you ask me.

[liljim]

At 12/27/05 07:33 AM, OsAmARaMa wrote: .3gp is the Quicktime file that runs on mobile phones. Almost every mobile phone runs it's videos on the .3gp (3rd group partnership, I think), which is shit quality if you ask me.

They're two completely different things.

[Obliquo]

Thanks for that man, thats helped me with my new PSP aswell.

[liljim]

At 12/27/05 07:45 AM, -Cobalt- wrote: If you're running firmware 2.0 you can download a patch in order to downgrade to the hackable 1.50.

I don't have any plans to downgrade (I'm running 2.60, had to because I wanted to use the RSS feature that's part of that firmware release). The only thing I'm unhappy with at the moment is the amount of storage space on the memory stick I have, so I'm going to be upgrading that to 1Gb with some Christmas money I got.

I really wanna try out the WiFi, I can pick up the SSID of my neighbours wireless but the signal is too weak, around 1% - 2%. Theres a load of hotspots in my city center, but you have to pay for them all :(

Is there any reason that you're not setting up your own wireless network (other than the obvious, of course, with regards to cost)?

[kcom]

Thank you. The only problem I'm having with my PSP is the wireless range... Is there anyway to boost it via PSP?

[wwwyzzerdd]

At 12/27/05 07:45 AM, -Cobalt- wrote: If you're running firmware 2.0 you can download a patch in order to downgrade to the hackable 1.50.

Not to encourage hacking, but...

Personally, I have never tried it, nor do I plan on doing so. I bought my PSP myself and I'm not about to screw it up. I have the 2.50 firmware, it has LocationFree player which allows you to stream TV and as far as I know 2.50 is un-hackable.

I did it back when I had 2.00, and it worked perfectly. What it does is basically does is install a bootleg firmware version, then you can go from there and reinstall the 1.50 firmware. Another thing I used was an eboot loader compatible with 2.00, that loads any homebrew through a tiff image. I doubt though that anyone though still has 2.00, but a little dirty secret for anyone with it. I myself ended up getting 2.60 just for the LocationFree Player and RSS channels. Eventually, you'll have to upgrade, there's little if any point of attempting to find the latest hacks, because Im certain Sony is looking for them too.

I really wanna try out the WiFi, I can pick up the SSID of my neighbours wireless but the signal is too weak, around 1% - 2%. Theres a load of hotspots in my city center, but you have to pay for them all :(

I was using my own router for a while. I got it a few years ago when I had broadband. Now that I have DSL, it completely sucks because it can never keep a connection. My guess is that your neighbor put his router in the middle of his house, which is actually a good idea for anyone with a router, but bad news if you want to piggy-back off someone's connection.

At 12/27/05 07:49 AM, liljim wrote: The only thing I'm unhappy with at the moment is the amount of storage space on the memory stick I have, so I'm going to be upgrading that to 1Gb with some Christmas money I got.

I'm about $50 away from getting a 2GB memory stick duo (some wholesale electronics store has them for dirt cheap). The 32MB stick is just plain sad, and then when I found out that the Giga Pack was available for just $50 more than the Value Pack, I dropped SEVERAL F-Bombs. The highest I've seen for memory stick duos is a 4GB, but it's going for around $500. I'm thinking there has to be something so that you could hook up a small hard drive or flash drive to the USB port.

At 12/27/05 07:54 AM, kcom wrote: Thank you. The only problem I'm having with my PSP is the wireless range... Is there anyway to boost it via PSP?

The only thing I can recommend is to get new router antennas. That or maybe you could find your router company's site nd download a plug-in to help boost your router's range. As far as using the PSP to increase your connection range, I know of no such thing to improve your connection, other than having it plugged in maybe.

[Ghost-Ryder]

Question: What are the RSS channels and how do i use them? Also how and where do i get them?

[ExtraLife]

Hey -wwwyzzerdd- do you go to http://pspupdates.qj.net/ its really good.

Im sure you have before but just in case.

:)

[wwwyzzerdd]

At 12/27/05 10:05 PM, Jetfan wrote: Question: What are the RSS channels and how do i use them? Also how and where do i get them?

RSS Channels are basically podcasts (internet radio stations). If you want to add channels onto your system, open up your browser, go to a search engine (I suggest Google of course), and type in Podcasts, RSS, or anything to the liking. I found a good site, podcast.net, it has everything from music, to news, to sports, to literally anything. Of course, you need to be connected to the net on your PSP, so make sure you have a good wireless connection. Liljim was also talking about creating an RSS channel in his news post, so you'll be able to listen to music and watch video from NG eventually on your PSP.

At 12/27/05 10:12 PM, ExtraLife wrote: Hey -wwwyzzerdd- do you go to http://pspupdates.qj.net/ its really good.
Im sure you have before but just in case.

)

Yeah, I like that site. I'll visit everytime I hear about some new feature or any other PSP news.

[Prellz]

Knew all this already, but good job explaining it. Took me forever to learn that stuff on my own.

[wwwyzzerdd]

At 12/27/05 11:41 PM, Prellz wrote: Knew all this already, but good job explaining it. Took me forever to learn that stuff on my own.

Same here. If only I could explain how to use a computer to my mom like I did the PSP.

[liljim]

At 12/27/05 07:54 AM, kcom wrote: Thank you. The only problem I'm having with my PSP is the wireless range... Is there anyway to boost it via PSP?

Dependant on your router, you may be able to get some wireless access points and set them up as wireless repeaters. What this essentially means is that the repeaters pick up the signal from the main router and re-broadcast it, so you get stronger signal strength. For example, at my parents' place, they have a router up in the study, but the walls there are pretty thick and the signal downstairs wasn't so great. So I got a wireless access point and set it up in repeater mode and stuck the unit downstairs. Now there's no less than 85% coverage at whatever room you're in in the house.

At 12/27/05 06:45 PM, -wwwyzzerdd- wrote: I was using my own router for a while. I got it a few years ago when I had broadband. Now that I have DSL, it completely sucks because it can never keep a connection.

That's strange - probably down to the configuration of the router, though if it's old, then I would probably have a go at getting another and trying that out, if you have a few spare bucks. I had an older d-link router that I replaced some time ago and donated to a friend, and that decided to give up the ghost just a couple of weeks ago.

At 12/27/05 07:49 AM, liljim wrote:

I'm about $50 away from getting a 2GB memory stick duo (some wholesale electronics store has them for dirt cheap). The 32MB stick is just plain sad, and then when I found out that the Giga Pack was available for just $50 more than the Value Pack, I dropped SEVERAL F-Bombs. The highest I've seen for memory stick duos is a 4GB, but it's going for around $500. I'm thinking there has to be something so that you could hook up a small hard drive or flash drive to the USB port.

I'm sure that the memory sticks will continue to grow in size and drop in price, so I'm not in any great rush to get one at the moment, since I'm usually not far away from the laptop, where I can store backups of everything. If and when I do any travelling, I'll be aiming to get the memory stick prior to setting off, since that's when it will really come into its own.

[Jizwh0r]

I lost mine :'(

[wwwyzzerdd]

I have some great finds for anyone looking for hotspots in their area.

http://www.jiwire.com/
http://www.wifinder.com/
http://www.hotspothaven.com/
http://www.wi-fihotspotlist.com/
http://www.wifimaps.com/

Just type your location in, and you'll get a list of places. I like the first 3 because they can narrow the search down to places that offer free service. The last one listed is cool as well because it gives you an actual map of locations.

[Revive]

I do not recommend PSp at all, everyone use Nintendo Ds :D.

[wwwyzzerdd]

At 12/29/05 09:47 PM, Tehlikeli-S wrote: I do not recommend PSp at all, everyone use Nintendo Ds :D.

Thank you for your valued comment. Maybe later, you'll learn why your sig doesn't work.

[ArabFreak]

At 12/27/05 07:34 AM, liljim wrote: They're two completely different things.

I figured same name = same thing.

[liljim]

At 12/30/05 06:59 AM, OsAmARaMa wrote:

At 12/27/05 07:34 AM, liljim wrote: They're two completely different things.

I figured same name = same thing.

Yeah, well, you figured wrong.

[ArabFreak]

At 12/30/05 09:33 AM, liljim wrote: Yeah, well, you figured wrong.

Well, duh.

>_>

[wwwyzzerdd]

At 12/30/05 05:15 PM, mamatequila wrote: You had to make the files? When i formatted my memory stick it had all the files there for music,photos,video,etc.,and i just simply put what i wanted into them. I guess it doesn't matter how you do it as long as you can get what you want on your memory stick.

I guess when you format a memory stick on the PSP, it will create the basic files for you. I haven't formatted mine, and I had all of my stuff on it already, so I cannot try it at the moment. I'll try it when I get a new memory stick.

Here's a map of the basic PSP files (give or take 1 or 2). Most of these will be automaticlly created when you do something (open browser, save a game, etc.).

[RoweNuts]

As far as storage goes,
Team Xecuter is developing a universal mass storage device for the PSP here.

[Voltnal]

At 12/27/05 07:49 AM, liljim wrote: I don't have any plans to downgrade (I'm running 2.60, had to because I wanted to use the RSS feature that's part of that firmware release). The only thing I'm unhappy with at the moment is the amount of storage space on the memory stick I have, so I'm going to be upgrading that to 1Gb with some Christmas money I got.

I'm also running 2.60 at the moment. I was rather irritated, however, when I came to realise that downgrading is near impossible when using 2.60. I think it's http://pspupdates.qj.net that are coming out with a patch for this.

Is there any reason that you're not setting up your own wireless network (other than the obvious, of course, with regards to cost)?

I luckily already had a wireless connection (Belkin, 2mbps), due to the fact that I use a laptop with wireless internet to do my stuff for work.

[munchies]

Join club, yes?

[wwwyzzerdd]

At 1/1/06 10:14 AM, -munchies wrote: Join club, yes?

Sure, I guess. Do I have to be hazed in?

[Voltnal]

Currently the only thing I use my psp for is to play gta. ;)

[wwwyzzerdd]

At 1/4/06 12:53 PM, ChronicPsychoGuy wrote: Currently the only thing I use my psp for is to play gta. ;)

Alright..... do you need any help with the game though? This is more of a thread to help people out with their problems associated with PSP, not a discussion thread. Try the PSP Club if you want to chat about it.