It's oh-so enticing: you find a copy of a brand new game like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 on a pirate site and the temptation to download it is too strong. Well, that temptation may have cost up to 1 million users of Microsoft's Xbox Live the ability to use that service. According to a report in InformationWeek, Microsoft has banned as many as a million players from Xbox Live for altering their consoles in order to play pirated versions of games. This week, Activision's new Call of Duty was released, and InformationWeek speculated that because pirated versions of the game appeared on various sharing sites in advance of the release, the game's developer may have exhorted Microsoft to enact the bans. "Xbox 360 consoles are equipped with digital rights management technologies designed to detect pirated software," InformationWeek wrote, "but some players have successfully 'modded,' or modified, their machines to circumvent DRM protections." Even if someone has been banned, their Xbox will still play offline games, InformationWeek said. But it's not at all clear if the bans are permanent or if Microsoft will allow those who have been booted from Xbox Live to return at some point down the line. In a statement Microsoft said: its "commitment to combat piracy and support safer and more secure gameplay for the more than 20 million members of the Xbox Live community remains a top priority. All consumers should know that piracy is illegal and modifying their Xbox 360 console violates the Xbox Live terms of use, will void their warranty and result in a ban from Xbox Live. We can assure you that if an Xbox Live member follows the Xbox Live terms of use, purchased a retail copy of Modern Warfare 2 and played the game on an unmodified Xbox 360, no action will be taken." And on the Xbox support page, Xbox Live Director of Programming Larry Hryb, aka Major Nelson, has addressed some of the circumstances that could lead to a player's being banned. "Players who find their Gamertags banned from Xbox Live have wound up in that situation due to violations of the Xbox Live Terms of Use," Major Nelson wrote. "The Xbox Live team monitors players for not just cheating, but also for things like threats, racism, profanity, and just being an all around poor sport and ruining the game for others. "When a Gamertag comes up as violating our policies for online behavior, the person who owns that Gamertag is punished by being banned from the service. Keep in mind, this isn't just a ban on a particular game. This is a ban on the Xbox Live service as a whole, so you won't be able to go online at all during your ban. Initially, you may be banned for a day, a week, or depending on severity, permanently! Kiss that $50 goodbye."

Thousands of gamers may have been cut off from Microsoft's online gaming service Xbox Live for modifying their consoles to play pirated games. Online reports suggest that as many as 600,000 gamers may have been affected. Microsoft confirmed that it had banned a "small percentage" of the 20 million Xbox Live users worldwide. Microsoft said that modifying an Xbox 360 console "violates" the service's "terms of use" and would result in a player being disconnected. "All consumers should know that piracy is illegal and that modifying their Xbox 360 console to play pirated discs violates the Xbox Live terms of use, will void their warranty and result in a ban from Xbox Live," Microsoft has said in a statement. "The health of the video game business depends on customers paying for the genuine products and services they receive from manufacturers, retailers, and the third parties that support them." Many gamers modify their consoles by installing new chips or software that allows them to run unofficial programs. Some chips are specifically designed to play pirated games. Microsoft has not said how it was able to determine which gamers to disconnect. "We do not reveal specifics, but can say that all consoles have been verified to have violated the terms of use," the firm said in a statement. Reports suggest that the ban does not stop the console from working and only affects a gamer's Xbox Live account. Industry figures suggest that piracy may cost the video game industry as much as £750m a year. In other news, a UK court has dismissed a man's appeal against an earlier conviction for selling modification chips - "modchips" that allow gamers to play illegal games. Christopher Gillham's earlier conviction was upheld by Hereford Crown Court which found that playing counterfeit games on a modified console infringed copyrights.

What's new/fixed (same for both releases): * Fixed some bug in menu. * Added some loading screen. * In Game Menu ... allow you to going back to menu (more to come)

What's new/fixed (same for both releases): * Fixed some bug in menu. * Added some loading screen. * In Game Menu ... allow you to going back to menu (more to come)

Xmenu 0.3 Xmenu is an elf loader with a basic gui. Installation Copy the file xenon.elf and the "xenon" folder to the root of your usb disk/pen. Load it with the free60.org hack. Changelog Version 0.3 : - It's now possible to load custom icons. Put a ".png" image (32 bits, with alpha channel, 32*32 pixels would be better) alongside your executable file, with the ".ico" extension. Example : If you have an executable named "snes9x.elf", put the ".png" icon in the same directory with the name "snes9x.ico". Version 0.2 : - Graphics data is now loaded at startup, allowing to customise. - Smaller fonts, this allow more items to be displayed. Version 0.1 : - Alpha testing version.

ntroduction: SMS Plus is a freeware, open-source, portable emulator for the Sega Master System and Game Gear consoles. Changelog: v140909a: Fixed controller bug v140909: Sound is now fully working greats to tmbinc Back to menu with select key

This version of snes9x fixes the ticking sound problem and also swaps the B & A buttons around. Build also has wireless pad support so no more wired controllers needed. Only currently running on the xenon xell hack. Support for other chipsets are in the works! Thanks to snes9x-gx and tmbinc for releasing his version of the source.

This version of snes9x add's sound and wireless controller support! Thanks to snes9x-gx and tmbinc for releasing his version of the source. The program looks for a static filename - SNES9X.SMC Only currently running on the xenon xell hack. Support for other chipsets are in the works!

This is a very early alpha of the Xbox 360 port of the Snes9x emulator. It's based on Snes9x-GX from http://code.google.com/p/snes9x-gx/. To run this emulator, get a XeLL-supported USB stick, and place both the XENON.ELF as well as the SNES rom image, which must be named "SNES9X.SMC", on a FAT-formatted USB stick. There are the following limitations: - There is no graphical menu yet - Some USB storage devices might not work - Only the composite, component and VGA AVPACK are supported. - PAL60 is used instead of NTSC on composite - VGA is hardcoded to 1024x768 - no VSYNC - only first wired controller is supported - CPU is running at 800Mhz, only one core/thread is used. - no sound

On Tuesday, Microsoft has released an Xbox 360 software update that overwrites the first stage bootloader of the system. Although there have been numerous software updates for Microsoft's gaming console in the past, this is the first one to overwrite the vital boot block. Any failure while updating this will break the Xbox 360 beyond repair. Statistics from other systems have shown that about one in a thousand bootloader updates goes wrong, and unless Microsoft has a novel solution to this problem, this puts tens of thousands of Xboxes at risk. It seems that this update is being done to fix a vulnerability already known to the Free60 Project. This vulnerability has been successfully exploited to run arbitrary code, and a complete end user compatible hack has been in development for some time and is planned to be released on free60.org shortly. It will allow users to take back control of their Xboxes and run arbitrary code like homebrew applications or Linux right after turning on the console and without the need of a modchip, finally opening up the Xbox 360 to a level of hacking as the original Xbox. Because of the dangerousness of the update and the homebrew lockout, the Free60 Project advises all Xbox 360 users to not update their systems to the latest software version. The Project website at http://free60.org/ will provide the latest information on this ongoing topic, including the final hack software.

Zelion has posted a review where he swaps out an old physical DVD-DROM drive for a brand new one on the XBOX 360. Check it out if you're looking to do the same.

On the 3rd of June da-mista posted info about a new Lite-on drive labelled DG-16D2S (FW: 83850c) in our Xbox 360 tech forum here where he had problem reading the flash using the 360 Xtractor tool. Now other websites confirm this drive have new hardware/firmware.

he Tilt Board v3 is the newest version of the Tilt Board. This version follows the same basic idea as the older versions with a few big changes. The first big change is that it now uses a 3-axis accelerometer. This allows it to detect a jolt on the Z-axis and map it to one of the digital output pins. This allows you to jerk the controller up or down to perform an action in game. The second big change is the addition of an external input port. This is an RS232 port that will allow the functionality of the Tilt Board v3 to be expanded. (More on this in the future... ) The third big change is that it is now going to be an open source project. In the coming weeks(s) I will be releasing the schematics and source code to make it easier for those of you who are interested in making your own version. I would like to release the source code and schematics under a license that allows it to be used in any not for profit way. If someone reading this has knowledge in that area, please contact me and give me advice! The Tilt Board v3 has two functions. The main function of the Tilt Board is to use the tilt of your Xbox 360 controller as an input to the Xbox 360. The Tilt Board uses an accelerometer that measures the force of gravity on each axis to determine the tilt of the controller. The tilt of the controller is then output through the Xbox 360 controller analog stick input. Both the X and Y axes are used. The secondary function of the Tilt Board is to control the digital push buttons on the Xbox 360 controller. The Tilt Board can sense a sudden jolt of the Z axis (vertically up/down) and activate a digital button of the Xbox 360 controller when the jolt is sensed. For example, if the controller is jolted down it could activate the "A" button.

Zelion has just published his ISO-420 Certified Review of Maximus's 360 Xtractor a toolkit for flashing your XBOX 360's DVD-ROM drive firmware. You can check it out here.

The USB Xtractor function is to read the UNIQUE-PER-DRIVE Key of the Liteon Drives, its functionality mimic the original 360 Xtractor Pro version but this model does not incorporate RS232 (AKA DB9) connector, only incorporate USB port, it also combines the origninal 360 Xtractor Pro Spear functionality all in one simple and portable device. Due to the fact that most modern PC's do not include a DB9 port, this is fully USB compatible! USBXtractor Feature List: Maximus Xbox 360 USBXtractor * Portable with Full Case Design * USB Support inside Windows (Liteon Key dumping) * OnBoard Read Button fully Compatible with Maximus Xtractor Reader Software * USB Cable Included! * High Quality and Heavy Duty Parts * Safe and Tested Design 360 Power Unit (Dongle) Feature List: Xbox 360 Maximus 360 Power Unit * Supports all 360 DVD Drive Models (Hitachi, Samsung, Benq, Liteon) * Minimalistic approach eliminates the need for Power+Eject cable. It plugs directly on the DVD Drive * Support Manual Mode-B (for Hitachi drives) and Manual Eject * Power on Led Indicator * Croc clip cable included * High Quality and Heavy Duty Parts * Electronically Safe and Tested Design with its onboard PPTC (resetable) fuses Maximus Xtractor Reader Software 2.9 has also been updated to support the USBXtractor