AsbestOS (a mineral, and meaning “inextinguishable” in Greek) is a bootloader to run PS3 Linux without OtherOS. It runs using the USB GameOS exploit (on PS3 version 3.41) from any compatible device, and any reprogrammable devices currently running the PS3 exploit can be used as long as they have enough free internal or external storage (40kB or so) to hold the loader. It is general enough that it should be useful to boot Linux given any other GameOS exploit in the future.

Currently, it only supports netbooting a kernel and no initrd (mostly due to bootmem limitations). This is enough to run a Linux system booting from an NFS share or from USB storage media. Almost everything that works under OtherOS is working. As additional perks of running as GameOS, you also get access to a seventh SPE (needs a kernel patch to enable) and there is clearly full access to the RSX including 3D support, although we still need to learn a few details about how that works to be able to use it.

AsbestOS is a fully independent open source payload and does not contain any code from the original PSJailbreak payload or derivatives. It is licensed under the GPLv2. Compiling it does not require any SDK tools, and it includes a script to build a fully vanilla GNU toolchain for the PS3.

If you’re interested, check out the git repository. The README file contains information on how to run AsbestOS and how to set up kernels. Currently, ports exist for software USB AVRs (Arduino etc.), iPods, and the reference implementation for devices with a TI OMAP3, but anything currently running PSGroove or similar can be adapted with only a few lines of new code.

For the impatient or lazy folks, here’s a kernel that you can use. You’ll probably want to change the kernel commandline options to set up your NFS root partition. This will eventually be handled by AsbestOS, but for now, open it up in a hex editor, search for HEXEDIT_THIS, and change the commandline to suit your needs (without changing the total length, of course). Do note that this kernel does not have built-in USB support, so it can only be used for NFS booting (the USB stuff is built as a module).

You can use this filesystem as a starting point. It’s a Gentoo stage3 updated to date and with PS3-specific tools installed. Keep in mind that there’s no Portage tree included, so be sure to either emerge –sync or NFS mount your server’s Portage tree (which is what I do). At the very minimum, you’ll want to edit the following files to configure your NFS and networking settings (or to specify USB device partitions, if you want to go that route – but you need to compile your own kernel then): /etc/fstab, /etc/hosts, /etc/resolv.conf, and quite likely a few others. This filesystem includes kernel modules for the above kernel. The root password is ‘ps3′.

Updates via psx-scene:
“marcan42 CONFIRMED IT WORKS ALSO WITH TI-84 PSJB (THE NEW ONE WHICH SUPPORT STAGE 2) BY HIS TWITTER
And he Confirmed that AsbestOS work on the PS3 Slim, but possibly with a few minor bugs”

Checkout a Youtube Video here

Source

Build 4.3.7 (19-10-2010) – rev. number f2e3e0bef2
————————————————-
* There’s now a build for PS3s with firmwares below 3.41 (basically bigger than or equal to FW 1.92) and a build for PS3s with firmware 3.41.
* You can now switch resolutions inside the Settings screen – go from 480p to 720p or vice versa, hence the need for two builds (480p and 720p) eliminated. (Halsafar)
* Zipped ROM support (ZIP/JMA) (Squarepusher)
* Savestates are now compressed as well (NOTE: I don’t know what this will do to your pre-existing savestates. Try to back them up first – they’re inside the USRDIR folder of /dev_hdd0/game/SNES90000/)
* Menu looks a whole lot better now at both 480p and 720p; crappy font has been put out of commission. It’s now actually readable (Cmonkey69)
* Games that switch between SNES resolutions (Seiken Densetsu 3/Secret of Mana) are now both vertically scaled correctly – you don’t even notice the resolution switch anymore. This is only at 480p mode – in 720p mode you will notice the same effect as you did previously. This will be worked on. (Halsafar)
* A lot of settings got added to the Settings screen. For instance, it’s now possible (on most PAL games) to run them at 60fps by setting ‘Force PAL ROM to NTSC’ to ON. This won’t work for every game, however (most games after 1993 came with region protection), and it might even result in a crash because you’re doing something that is not deemed appropriate by either the SNES hardware or the emulator. A solution for PAL ROMs is worked on.
* You can return to a previous folder inside the ROM menu by pressing the CIRCLE button.

You can download it from our download section here or better yet get it from the PS3 Homebrew Manager!

- Lots more… but don’t want to ruin the surprise.

Check it out here.

Looks like Netflix has been updated for the PS3 to include some cool new stuff like video streaming at 1080p, subtitles, and include 5.1 surround sound.
“Over time,” some of these new features will be included into other consoles, but the best feature that has now been added to the PS3 is that Netflix no longer requires a disc!

Discussion: Here
Source: Here

Brewology is releasing its own PKG installer. Input your PS3 FTP Server IP address and choose what you want it will be waiting for you on your PS3.

Features:

• Cross Platform (Windows, Linux, OSX)
• Downloads directly to your PS3 (no need to worry about transferring or disk space)
• Auto generates PDB files
• Creates the correct folder structure
• Shares PSN Link with Brewology for others to use as well (help the community effort). Check the repository of them here. Try clicking one

Notes:

• Things to fix/add include: Threading, Multiple Downloads,  Make it not ugly, Better categories on PSN link repos, A few more surprise… In all honesty there is a TON to do… just gotta find the time.
• I still don’t have a device I can use to jailbreak my PS3. So I have not got to test everything myself. As you find bugs please post them on the forum. I will get to fixing things ASAP.
• I would like to thank Shane (from ps3-hacks irc) aka Cypherous on our forum for helping me test.

Forum Discussion

Check out the Installer here and the PSN links here.

So the folks at Gamrfeed have published a few nice charts showing the sales numbers from ‘07-’10 for the Xbox 360, Playstation 3, and Wii. More interesting than those numbers, perhaps, are the market share numbers.

Truthfully, the Playstation 3 is beginning to see better days. We already know that Sony expects the Playstation 3 to be a 10-year console, but I’m not too sure even Sony is convinced of that after giving these charts a once-over. Very interesting stuff!

Since the charts aren’t the best when uploaded to Wordpress, make sure to click the source link if you’re interested in seeing theirs.

[Source: Gamerfeed]

“PS3 Media Server is a DLNA compliant Upnp Media Server for the PS3, written in Java, with the purpose of streaming or transcoding any kind of media files, with minimum configuration. It’s backed up with the powerful Mplayer/FFmpeg packages.” which basically means if you have music, video, or other media on a PC you can wired / wirelessly stream it to your PS3!

Checkout the downloads here

moh.sakhaii released his Open Manager 1.14 that allows users to manage and use backed-up games.
• Prevents crashing after quitting to the XMB using the PS button
• Changes the icon
• Corrects grammatical errors and typos
Sounds pretty cool. Remember, don’t pirate games. This is just for legally backed-up games.

Discussion: Here
Download: Here
Source: moh.sakhaii

When the first lineup of Playstation 3 consoles hit the shelves, many consumers were confused about which ones played former Playstation titles, like Playstation 1 and 2 games. Many people not satisfied with the release of the newer, slim Playstation 3, had also found no Playstation 2 backwards compatibility one of the major downfalls of the Playstation 3.

Sony of America has been very secretive about a new prototype that they’ve come up with that will specifically address the issue of backwards compatibility. The new device, which has no name as of now, is aimed at bringing Playstation 1 and Playstation 2 compatibility to all models of Playstation 3. The device would connect to the Playstation 3 and house the processor, graphics processor, and RAM for the Playstation 2 system and will enable full backwards compatibility. Of course, for those of us lucky folk out there that already have a backwards compatible Playstation 3, this would be of no use. The target audience is most centralized around those who have purchased a slim model Playstation 3, known for not having the full backwards compatibility support that so many consumers long for. If the price is right, this will add a certain functionality to the Playstation 3 that the system has been needing, but is it too late? How many people are still interested in collecting Playstation 2 games? Obviously, if you have a large collection of Playstation 2 games or Playstation 1 games, this is more of a trophy item if you don’t own a backwards compatible Playstation 3, but it should be interesting how the pricing of this unit effects the Playstation 3 overall. The ability for a Playstation 3 to have backwards compatibility is considered the driving cost behind the older, fully backwards compatible Playstation 3 units. When sold online, those systems still catch their original MSRP sales prices and above, yet this little adapter might just change all of that.