Road Dog changelog

Those who have been using the nifty application Road Dog from homebrew developer Art will be glad to know that someone has picked the project up and made the program compatible with Sony PSP Slim & Lite.

Road Dog is actually a program that looks for WiFi hotspots or what is otherwise known as a "WiFi sniffer". It also informs users regarding signal strength, not to mention that Road Dog carries sound and speech functions.

The last one is really important especially when you are unable to attend to your Sony handheld at once like while driving, for example. The coder responsible for porting this program to the Slim is the coder daxster.

Since the new build doesn't come with its own Readme.txt file, be sure that you know what you are doing during installation to avoid any problems.

Homebrew developer Art's Road Dog for the Sony PlayStation Portable has been updated to version 2d. In case some of you aren't familiar with the homebrew dev's project, here's a brief background: Road Dog is an application that scans for WiFi hotspots. It also shows you how strong the WiFi signal is in the area. Oh, and did we mention it's a talking WiFi scanner?

Road Dog v2d from the homebrew dev Art contains the following changes:

-Improved startup, and WiFi scanning speed. This should be just noticeable.
-Added feature to save screenshot when the NOTE button is pressed.
-Reduced size of program by removing unused samples from the player routine.

One week after the release of Road Dog v2, homebrew coder Art has come out with Road Dog v2c, expanding on the v2 release with a fix and some added functions that should help users make the most out of the homebrew.

For those who haven't heard of the Road Dog line of homebrew programs, think of them as WiFi trackers. The program uses the PSP to scan for WiFi hotspots and lets you know if they're around, as well as how strong the signal is.

This version comes with two main changes, as noted below:

• Added configuration file parser by A_Noob. Now some options are user configurable.
• Fixed Space Invader Hit Sound problem. Works properly now.

Feel free to try out this homebrew program and let Art know what you think about it in the forums. Enjoy!

A couple of days back, we saw Art's video showcasing Road Dog V2, and today, the PlayStation Portable homebrew developer released the said version of Road Dog. The spiffy new version sports a number of additions and bug fixes.

Road Dog is a PSP homebrew application that scans for WiFi hotspots and well, tells you that there's a WiFi hotspot around. Anyway, Art provided a changelog on his release thread on the QJ.NET PSP Development Forums:

V2 (22/12/07):

• Large size graph is set by default since six connections still fit on the screen.
• Made a correction so that all the PSP's LEDs function normaly once the program is exit.
• Added implementation of registry tools ported by Skylark to update a PSP network profile ready for browser.
• Added failing to read properly before pasting into news articles, etc.
• Added a small animated graphic indicator for when there has been no activity for a few minutes.

The dev also listed the possible network config errors and you can find them on the forum release thread. Check out the application by clicking the download link below. Oh, and don't forget to go over the readme file before anything else.

If you're always on the road and need an easy way to find out where the good WiFi spots are, you might want to consider Art's Road Dog V1e. In case you missed our previous coverage on the application, it is a WiFi connection sniffer for the PSP which allows users to easily locate hotspots while driving.

What makes this safe for use while driving is the addition of voice prompts which announces the signal strength in the user's general area. Even better is the fact that the program ignores secured networks and only makes announcements when it detects unsecured ones.

If you plan on downloading this homebrew, be sure to go over the documentation included with the zipped file. The developer also included a few videos of the new version of Road Dog in action, be sure to check those out before you go.

PSP Homebrew Developer Art has released a new build for Road Dog, the talking WiFi connection scanner. According to Art, the update "should be a bit smarter." Road Dog v1d has a few fixes and new features.

Here's the changelog for Road Dog v1d:

V1d (XX/12/07):

• Fixed program exit so the HOME button is responsive. Program now also exits properly within iRshell.
• Signal strength is only spoken when it changes. It won't keep repeating the same value.
• Added check for WLAN switch. error message is displayed, and program exit if WLAN is off, or fails.
• Auto screen brightness control implementation.
• PSP is clocked at 133/133/1, unless run from iRshell, in which case the clock speed isn't changed.

Users are encouraged to head over to our forums for discussions and questions on the program.

Homebrew developer Art dropped by QJ.NET PSP Development Forum and released a new build for Road Dog, bumping it up to version 1c. Those who missed our first coverage on this might want to know that this is actually a WiFi connection sniffer for the PlayStation Portable.

In a nut shell, Road Dog helps users easily locate hotspots because of its sound features. This is very useful especially when you are busy with something else and can't attend immediately to your Sony handheld. Things that have changed since version 1 include:

• v1b (13/12/07):

o Demonstration Preliminary version using GU texture font shows connection info, and has multicoloured display.
o Program can be exited with HOME button.

• v1c (14/12/07):

o Added basic sound implementation for indication of unsecured wifi hotspots.
o Limited the size of network names that can be printed to the screen, so they don't overrun to other fields.

Art included a Readme.txt file with Road Dog v1c that should provide you will the necessary information regarding installation and usage. Be sure to go over the documentation to avoid any problems.

Also, here's a video clip showing the latest features of the current build. Enjoy!

Homebrew developer Art dropped by QJ.NET PSP Development Forum and released a new application called Road Dog. The program is currently on version 1 and is actually a WiFi sniffer.

For those not quite familiar with such, Road Dog is kind of similar to califrag's wireless hotspot scanner called warPSP. Art mentioned that he was prompted to make a program because he can't compile califrag's work to modify it to his preference.

Road Dog v1, now, sports sound so that users will be alerted about connections via their headphones even if the PlayStation Portable is in their pockets. Art talked about the following details:

• This is a WiFi connection sniffer based on sdk sample, and uses Intrafont.
• I will probably continue with a similar program, and include sound, but drop Intrafont unless a solution is found.
• l looks fine to start until you get a few connections on the screen at once, and it starts printing things on top of each other.
• I'm not sure if this is my fault or not. The main.c source file is included anyway.
• I haven't seen an app use Intrafont, so it might be worth checking out what it looks like.

Should you give this application a try and happen to be a C programmer yourself, Art would greatly appreciate it if you will help him locate bugs and any other problems.