Remember, this isn't *just* good for piracy -- if somebody can figure out how to use this to patch the BIOS every time it boots without the need for a PC hanging off your Wii (e.g. the Bert and Ernie font exploits on the original Xbox), it would open up the path to softmodded homebrew, and I don't mean that as a euphemism for playing stolen games.
The Wii has a cool, innovative pointer interface, a wireless network connection built right in, and the ability to display progressive-scan (if low-res) video. It's cheap (compared to almost any PC you can buy today), small, and pretty. Hacked Wiis would make great media centers, or even servers, if only one could run arbitrary unsigned code. I wouldn't give up WiiConnect24 or future VC functionality to hack my Wii, but I would like to see the opportunity to put on user-created content.
And even if people start buying and hacking Wiis just to use as Linux boxen, Nintendo still makes a profit on the hardware. Everybody wiins!
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
James @ Mar 2nd 2007 4:32PM
Remember, this isn't *just* good for piracy -- if somebody can figure out how to use this to patch the BIOS every time it boots without the need for a PC hanging off your Wii (e.g. the Bert and Ernie font exploits on the original Xbox), it would open up the path to softmodded homebrew, and I don't mean that as a euphemism for playing stolen games.
The Wii has a cool, innovative pointer interface, a wireless network connection built right in, and the ability to display progressive-scan (if low-res) video. It's cheap (compared to almost any PC you can buy today), small, and pretty. Hacked Wiis would make great media centers, or even servers, if only one could run arbitrary unsigned code. I wouldn't give up WiiConnect24 or future VC functionality to hack my Wii, but I would like to see the opportunity to put on user-created content.
And even if people start buying and hacking Wiis just to use as Linux boxen, Nintendo still makes a profit on the hardware. Everybody wiins!