Maniac from KlmSoftware has developed a homebrew app for the PC to make life easier for PSP homebrew app lovers. It's called the PSP Homebrew Installer and he just released its latest version. The title kinda explains what this thing does so we'll get straight to the app's changelog.

  PSP Homebrew Installer v0.2.6:

• Fixed some bugs that affects slower computers
• Removed appname.bin
• Added XML configuration (instead of appname.bin)
• Added the author’s website and name (see instructions)
• Improved code structure
• Faster loading speed
• More checks to ensure no file is corrupted

To install, download the app to your PC and hit the install button.

---

Update: We had made the necessary changes in the article and we are sorry for any inconvenience this snafu has brought you.

Download: [PSP Homebrew Installer v0.2.6]

PSP homebrew dev Cpasjuste, who also gave us 2.71 SE-B VSH Overclocking module, has released a port of PSP-FTPD originally created by PSPKrazy, picked up by Zx-81 which he modded to work as module under the 3.03 VSH. It's called VSH FTPD Module 1 for DA 3.03 FW. It's an FTP server that will run under the VSH when launched with the updater icon from the PSP menu.

How to install and use:

• Copy the content of the MS_ROOT folder at the root of the memory stick
• Launch Vsh_Ftpd_Flasher under the game menu of the PSP
• Press Circle to replace the current update_plugin.prx module with the FTPD one
• Select the Updater icon under the PSP menu (VSH) to launch the ftpd server
• Connect to your PSP with your favorite FTP client as anonymous on port 21 (For now there are no info printed on the screen, so you have to either set a static IP or know/find your dynamic IP yourself)
• If you send homebrews via FTP, you should enter in the game saves menu, for example, then comeback under the game menu to update the list
  

Cpajuste says it's got a few bugs such as when the module is launched, it is impossible to enter the video menu from the VSH. The module is flashed to flash0:/vsh/nodule/update_plugin.prx, replacing the current one. By selecting the update icon under the PSP menu, the FTPD server will be launched in anonymous mode. Browsing PSP menu and launching homebrew while the FTPD is running should not cause problems. He also says the source code will be released soon.

Please refer to the readme file before you use this application. Or in the words of Cpajuste: THE MODULE WILL BE FLASHED TO YOUR PSP. WHILE THIS HAS BEEN TESTED AND SHOULD BE SAFE, THIS IS CAN BRICK YOUR PSP. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

Download: [VSH FTPD Module 1 for DA 3.03 FW]
Discuss: [Forum Release Thread]

If you're in search of bargains, you best head for Circuit City before January 20. The store is currently offering a number of games with price tags that carry US$ 20 discounts. Among the titles listed on the bargain blocks are:

Xbox 360

• Eragon: $39.99 (reg. $59.99)
• NBA 2K7: $39.99 (reg. $59.99)

Nintendo Wii

• Rayman Raving Rabbids: $29.99 (reg. $49.99)
• Red Steel: $29.99 (reg. $49.99)

PSP

• Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories: $29.99 (reg. $49.99)

Once again the special prices apply only until January 20. Nice treat really, if you ask us. Off you go so you can use the extra $20 clock on the "Read" link below to shop and save.

Here's a quick follow-up to the homebrew Atari 7800 emulator for PSP by Zx-81. Yesterday we featured his debut version, and today he rolls out PSP7800 v1.0.2. Zx-81 says this could also be the final version unless some bugs are reported.

So here's the PSP7800 v1.0.2 changelog:

• Added sound support
• Added new render modes (Normal, x1.25, x1.5)
• Added frame skip option
• Added new speed limiter option
• Fixed colors palette (merge the code from ProSystem v1.1)
• Cleaned code

Installation:

• Unzip the zip file, and copy the content of the directory fw2.x or fw1.5 (depending of the version of your firmware) on the directory psp/game (or psp/game150 if you use Dark_Alex custom firmwares).
• Put your roms files on "roms" sub-directory.
• It has been developped on linux for Firmware 1.5 and i hope it works also for 2.x using the great eloader (0.99x) from http://www.noobz.eu/.

You might also want to refer to the readme for the full installation procedure, controls, and other important stuff you need to know to work this emulator. Enjoy!

Download: [PSP7800 v1.0.2]

Sony, according to an eyewitness report, is recalling some defective PSP units at Wal-Mart. The eyewitness said he went to a Wal-Mart on January 11 just in time to see a sales person taking all the PSPs from the shelf. The eyewitness then questioned the sales person but didn't get an answer. That's a nice way of hinting it wasn't really the eyewitness' business.

Not taking a "no comment" for an answer, the eyewitness decided to ask someone else who worked at Wal-Mart. The chattier someone else told the witness that Sony recalled all the PSP systems. The eyewitness says:

I know there is a lot of defective PSP sold on Christmas and people are returning systems like crazy and the problems are system shut down by itself, UMD doesn't read, cannot read memory stick, system restore by itself and more.

The PSP recall theory triggered a few speculations.

1. One guy who said he works in the retail industry explained that it wasn't a recall but RTV or Return to Vendor. This means if a system is bad they take it back to the store. The unit is then shipped to the vendor's warehouse to be replaced. The unit itself is shipped back to the manufacturer to be refurbished. "Besides people do funny stuff with the PSP to get it not to work and will say anything to get it returned. Funny thing is, is that Wal-Mart... will take back almost anything without question and for any reason."
2. The eyewitness countered the PSP units he saw being carted away were new and in unopened boxes so it can't be RTV.
3. Retail guy said recalls MUST have a notice so consumers can be notified. "It is not a recall unless they specify with a notice at the return desk. If it is a notice than it is a recall."
   

There are other theories. You might want to sit down and not drink anything. If you spew your drink all over your keyboard it's not our fault:

• Sony's taking back the PSPs has something to do with Dark_Alex OpenEdition series.
• Maybe Sony has finally given up and pulled all PSPs. They figured if you can't beat 'em, just pull 'em. That is why no titles are being released, they just simply canceled all PSP-related sales after the stock of PSPs sold over the holidays.
• Maybe the Wal-Mart employees are digging them out and are going to eBay them as they did with all the 1.5's they could get their hands on after Sony upgraded new units before shipping them.
• Sony may be recalling them back to be replaced with a new motherboard to combat downgrading or their latest PSP batch could have some really big flaw which we could have used.

So many theories and no one really knows for sure. That's why we're classifying this as a rumor.

Zx-81 (also known around here as Zx81 or just plain Zx) has released PSP7800 v1.0.1, a homebrew emulator for the Atari 7800. The Atari 7800 was a video game console launched to replace the Atari 5200. The console had simple digital joysticks and and titles like Dig Dug, Donkey Kong, and Mario Bros.

PSP7800 v1.0.1 is based on ProSystem by Greg Stanton, which ZX says is the best emulator of Atari 7800 game console for Windows. The developer modified and ported the source code of ProSystem v1.0, and it's now working on PSP. This is a first release and Zx is still working on some features such as sound, fit screen mode, and other stuff.

PSP7800 v1.0.1 has been developed on Linux for FW 1.5 but may also work for 2.x using the great eloader (0.99x).

To install PSP7800 v1.0.1:
Unzip the zip file, and copy the content of the directory FW2.x or 1.5 (depending of the version of your firmware) on the directory psp/game (or psp/game150 if you use Dark_Alex custom firmwares). Put the ROMs files on "ROMs" sub-directory.

If you prefer to to load rom images in the virtual drive of your emulator, put your rom file (with .zip or .a78 file extension) on your PSP memory stick in the 'ROMs' directory. While inside Atari 7800 emulator, press SELECT to enter in the emulator main menu, choose "Load ROM" and  the file selector choose one game file to load. The game should run automatically in the emulator window.

For controls and other important info, check the readme file.

Download: [PSP7800 v1.0.1]

...But this one's not a game.

"The Sword of Oz", the first of a planned trilogy of "The Dark Witches of Oz," has been transformed into an epic fantasy adventure interactive ebook for the PC, DS, PSP, PS3, Wii, and the iPod. Yes, the iPod. The story is based on the classic "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" by L. Frank Baum.

"The Sword of Oz" is set before before the wicked witches overthrew the old king of Oz and prior to the arrival of Dorothy and Toto. Instead, it's Dorothy's future grandfather Arthur Gale who is wearing the ruby slippers, so to speak.

Gale is the character through which this new chapter in Oz’s history is experienced. "The Sword of Oz" is a multi-branching adventure and readers can pick which adventures Arthur will take on. The different paths through the narrative vary widely but also closely connected so events not directly experienced by a reader in one sitting still affect those in the adventure they choose to experience.

"The Sword of Oz", written by best selling fantasy novel author Darren Reid ,will be available exclusively at NextGenBooks. NextGenBooks is a new website where PC and console (Wii, DS, PS3, and PSP) users can access Darren Reid’s free ebook library. The Sword of Oz interactive ebook will be released on January 19. Hopefully, it will create a generation of interactive e-bookworms.

For more info on "The Sword of Oz", Darren Reid, and NextGenBooks, please click on the "Read" link below.

Gunpey, Atari's adaptation of port of the classic musical puzzle Gunpei Yokoi for the DS and the PSP, will finally be available in Europe in March.

Gunpey's music-based puzzle action gameplay involves rows of panels climbing upwards from the bottom of the screen. Players must flip and move pieces to connect the lines inside the panels. The moment a line spans the width of the screen, the panels will explode making space for more. Game ends if the panels reach all the way to the top of the screen.

Gunpey (for the two handhelds) features wireless head to head play and various game modes including Single screen, Double screen, new Break Rule, and Time Attack. Exclusive to the PSP are up to 40 vibrant collectible skins in the Challenge Mode. In the DS version, players can launch special attacks to temporarily disrupt their opponent’s game and use the Sound Sets and Patternizer to create their own unique musical compositions.

JoWooD Productions certainly is no slacker. This year, the developer is all set to release 17 titles for the PC, PSP, DS, and PS2. The starting line-up includes the extreme sports game Freak Out – Extreme Freeride (PSP/PC/PS2), Ski Alpine Racing 2007 (PC/PS2), and The Mark, a counter terrorist shooter for the PC.

The complete line-up of JoWooD projects slated for release in 2007 includes:

• Lifesigns Hospital Affairs (DS)
• Neighbours from Hell (DS)
• Freak Out – Extreme Freeride (PSP/PC/PS2)
• Pain Killer (PSP/PS2)
• Ski Alpine Racing 2007 (PC/PS2)
• Murder on the Orient Express (PC)
• The Mark (PC)
• Flyboys (PC)
• AquaNox (PS2)
• Atlantis Collector Edition - The New World and Evolution (PC)
• Dungeon Lord Collectors Edition (PC)
• Egypt Collectors Edition – The Heliopollis Prophecy and The Fate of Ramses (PC)
• Genesis Rising (PC)
• Jules Verne Collectors Edition – Journey to the Moon and Mysterious Island (PC)
• Patriots A nation under fire (PC)
• Safecracker (PC)

Back in 2005, The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences added an award category to recognize original video content for computers, cellphones, and other devices like the video iPod and PSP. Unfortunately, the category is awarded during the Technology & Engineering Emmy Award ceremonies where mostly Hollywood D-Listers attend. Which explains why nobody really takes notice.

Anyway, the Academy recently announced winners of the 58th Annual Emmy Awards for geeks at the CES 2007. The PSP came out as the winner in the category "Outstanding Innovation and Achievement in Advanced Media Technology for the Best Use of Personal Media Display and Presentation Technology."

Specifically, it was the PSP' s Cross Media Bar(XMB) that got the honors. Sony (in a tie with Nintendo) also won another one of them golden statuettes that look like car hood ornament for "Peripheral Development and Technological Impact of Video Game Controllers".

By the way, we heard Paris Hilton and Britney Spears dropped out of the awards not because it wasn't glamorous enough. But because they couldn't read any of the category names all the way through.