Need a good starting hack

[bootleg_lover]

So I'm new to this whole "hacking" deal and I need a good first project. I recently broke my ankle so I have a lot of free time on my hands and I decided to dtart hacking and modding my stuff, then trying to sell it. Now I'm going to start modding nerf guns because they sell for LUDACRIS amounts of money, up to $200 american. But I also want to fit my psp phat with a touch screen and QWERTY keyboard to slide out. If anyone has any good ideas for a good first hack that would give me some skillzz to get to that point please leave a reply with a link.

[ArugulaZ]

Uh... why a touchscreen on a PSP? I don't think there's a game in existence that can support it, not even homebrew. You might want to consider a more practical goal. Here's what I'd recommend... the D-pad on the PSP sucks. Try replacing it with a directional pad that actually responds to user input. I'm certain that's possible, although I've personally never been successful in making that modification. You get bonus points if you can modify the pad and make the system fit in its fabric sleeve.

Generally speaking, controllers are great for first time modders, because if you make a catastrophic mistake, you're only out twenty bucks. If you mod a system and screw it up, you could lose anywhere from $200 to $300. I think the Xbox 360 D-pad mod (open the controller, sand off the interior of the D-pad well, slip a plastic circle between the D-pad and magnets) is a really good place to start... it's not difficult and you'll notice a significant improvement in performance.

[madc0w]

For Nerf guns, in order to sell for large amounts you have to be good at modding and painting (the painting is the really important part) but more basic mods can also be good and can sell for decent amounts. You on the forums? (nerfhaven etc) My names z80, don't post much but I go to a decent amount of wars on the east coast.

[bootleg_lover]

I know that the goal is pretty far out there but I figure even if its impossible that I'll get some good know-how on the way, and I've found that my d-pad is pretty good and is very responsive. And as for why, I want to really just gut the psp and throw in a cheap itouch rip off in there and try and keep the umd capabilities. Just trying to be ambitious, but I'm cheap and pretty poor. I cant work right because of my foot and so I have like no money so I was going to try and work with my NES but wanted to see if there was anyhting I should do before that.


As to the nerf gun part I can mod the hell out of a longshot, and paint is easy for me to get and do custom paintjobs but I want to expand into other types. For my first solo project (my other projects I've worked with my friends) I was going to expand the clip and make it fully auto. This is my most ambitious nerf project and I wanted to look it up to see if anyone else did it, how hard it was and how much they got for it. But I'm going to make a nerfhaven soon, I'll be sure to friend you on it.

[ArugulaZ]

But the mod doesn't make any sense. It's like putting a jet engine on a billy goat. No games can take advantage of it, and you couldn't even access the cross media bar with it unless you wrote new firmware for the system. I don't mean to be cruel about this, but you're considering a mod that has no practical application.

[bootleg_lover]

Eh, I mean think about it this way. By time I have the practical skillzz necissary to do this I would have no real need to or most likely not even the time. The reason I chose this goal is because its so far out of reach, I figure thate if I make a goal outrageous enough that I will be a) motivated by nay-sayers to prove them wrong b) getting different ideas and projects to do that will be fun and give me new and different ideas and c) by the time I got the abilities to do it the firmware and whatever I would need could be realesed. You never know, some guy greaat with firmware and that sort of thing could turn this into his project and get that info out there.

[Tchay]

Eh, I mean think about it this way. By time I have the practical skillzz necissary to do this I would have no real need to or most likely not even the time. The reason I chose this goal is because its so far out of reach, I figure thate if I make a goal outrageous enough that I will be a) motivated by nay-sayers to prove them wrong b) getting different ideas and projects to do that will be fun and give me new and different ideas and c) by the time I got the abilities to do it the firmware and whatever I would need could be realesed. You never know, some guy greaat with firmware and that sort of thing could turn this into his project and get that info out there.

Couldn't agree more! Very wierd but true attitude, stick with it! Oh, and don't kill yourself, get the Benheck book, seriously. I didn't and I am having some tough moments of "guess and check" that could have been avoided if I bought the dang book! As long as you love it, you won't mind spending hours figuring out the difference between voltage and current

[snowpenguin]

I see no point in the near future where someone will release custom firmware for the psp to support a touchscreen. Really, you're the only one I've ever heard talk about it, and you seem to think it'll be much easier than it really would be, of course putting aside the fact that it's a completely pointless mod that you would never use nor figure out how to even do.

[Tchay]

I see no point in the near future where someone will release custom firmware for the psp to support a touchscreen. Really, you're the only one I've ever heard talk about it, and you seem to think it'll be much easier than it really would be, of course putting aside the fact that it's a completely pointless mod that you would never use nor figure out how to even do.

rough