The Beginners Guide to PSP
Published by  DJB on 2006-10-26
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The Beginners Guide to PSP
Written by DJB
What can you do with your PSP?
How do I run Homebrew on my PSP?
How do I know what Firmware I'm running?
How can I store my Homebrew for my PSP?
What Homebrew do I need for my PSP?
What can you do with your PSP?
Just like most consoles when they are hacked, it opens the door to homebrew software, which is software that is made by normal users and not people at SCE (Sony Computer Entertainment). With the homebrew possibilities, you can run many different programs with your PSP, such as Emulators for other Consoles/Computers, or other programs designed for PSP (such as ISO Loaders, FTP Servers, PDF Viewers, and so on). The most popular way to enable this is through the PSP's Firmware. Below is a small explination of what each Firmwares capabilities are.
FW 1.00 can run Homebrew, but the 1.50 is more popular for this.
FW 1.50 is the most popular at this time, and is what most homebrew is written for originally.
FW 1.50 POC (Proof of Concept) is a hacked version of the 1.50 Firmware, which allows some extra features.
FW 1.51 + 1.52 does not run Homebrew, the only way would be to upgrade to 2.00 and then downgrade to 1.50.
FW 2.00, 2.50, and 2.60 can run Homebrew through hacks, but I'm not sure on how compatible it would be, and it's always advised to downgrade.
FW 2.71 can run some hombrew code (when hacked) specifically written for that firmware, however it's not compatible with 1.50.
FW 2.71 SE (Special Edition) is a hacked version of the 2.71 Firmware along with the 1.50 requirements to run homebrew, and ofcourse it will run the special 2.71 homebrew programs also.
FW 2.80, 2.81, and 2.82 are the only two so far which can not be downgraded or run any homebrew on (at this moment), so keep clear of these ones, and by all means NEVER update to it.
FW 3.00 is coming out shortly, and just like 2.80 and 2.81 it can not be downgraded.
So basically, any PSP Firmware from 1.51 to 2.71 can be downgraded to 1.50, where you can either just be satisfied with that, or install one of the hacked Firmwares.
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How do I run Homebrew on my PSP?
There are three popular ways in order to run homebrew on your PSP, which are:
1. Using the 1.50 Firmware on your PSP
2. Using the hacked 2.71 SE Firmware on your PSP (which contains portions of the 1.50 FIrmware)
3. Installing a Modchip into your PSP
In the short time I've owned a PSP (which is around 2 months at the time this tutorial was written), I have used options 1 and 2 to enable homebrew, as I believe at this time a modchip is not really nessecary once you're running a good firmware.
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How do I know what Firmware I'm running?
This is very easy. Turn on your PSP, go to Settings, then System Settings, then System Information. This screen will show you what firmware you are running.
In the last screen you can see what firmware you are running. The 1.50 Firmware is a good starting point, either to use Homebrew or to install one of the Custom Firmwares.
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How can I store my Homebrew for my PSP?
There are two options, there is a 4 GB Hard Drive which Datel has released a while ago (which is very slow unfortunately), or there is memory sticks.
From my personal experience, and from seeing a 4 GB Hard Drive in action, I recommend the Memory Stick option. Also, if you can afford to get the 4 GB Memory stick straight up, this will be your best option as you will have plenty of storage for Movies, Homebrew, and ISO images. Here's some links:
SanDisk Memory Stick PRO Duo 4GB
SanDisk Memory Stick PRO Duo 2GB
SanDisk Memory Stick PRO Duo 1GB
You will also need a USB cord to connect your PSP and PC. This is the one that is generally used with MP3 Players and Mobile Phones. It has the normal USB end on one side, and then a smaller USB on the other (5-pin I've heard it referred to as). These are very easy to obtain, and chances are if you have a recent mobile phone / MP3 player you have one already.
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What Homebrew do I need for my PSP?
To make it easy, there is an installer called PSP Installer Deluxe that contains all the programs you would need to start out.
Here is a small list of MANY tools that cna used on the PSP:
Bookr - This lets you read your TXT and PDF files on your PSP.
Devhook - This program is used to load ISO images of UMD (Game) Discs.
Links - This program lets you browse web pages (great for 1.50 Firmware users).
Notepad - This program lets you write and edit .txt files.
And to make it even sweeter, the PSP has a lot of Emulators that have been ported, like DGEN, MAME, CPS2, just to name a few.
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Thank you for reading, hopefully this has helped you undsterand some basics about the PSP.
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