I have a uk xbox bought around winter 2003 with a dashboard version 5101 and a kernel version of 5960. I have read that if my dashboard version is above 4920 and my kernel is above 5713 I am unable to install linux to my xbox, but I've also read that it is possible to do it with a dashboard version over 5659 so I dont know. The main reasons I would want to mod my xbox would be for emulators, watching DivX movies and homebrew software, could someone please recommend a method for me (i.e. buy a old xbox, install a mod chip and flash it to install linux, connect the harddrive to pc, etc...). I have a decent amount of computer knowhow but I have no idea about how to write or compile kernels,flashing bios chips etc...
You're not really after linux then. Softmod and XBMC will do (read on).
You need AID3.0 or Slayers. I've been using AID2.11 for a while, and have done v1.6 xboxes with it. You can softmod your xbox with either of these but you will need some bits and pieces. (Memory card which the xbox will read and a way of getting the required files onto it prior to putting it back in your xbox.) I think that that is the trickiest bit, after that it's a piece of cake; so long as you have the required game and an Installer disk. Again I used AID2.11 with Splinter Cell (Original). AID is available on various torrent sites, etc. AID3.0 which is more functional (haven't tested it fully yet, but looking good) and a smaller download.
Once softmodded you can install Xbox Media Centre (XBMC) which will do everything your little heart desires, including reading all media on a sharing enabled PC. Maybe it doesn't play all media, but I haven't anything on my PC which it doesn't like. My .avi's look so much better on a TV than on my PC, dunno it seems to smooth away all artefacts/jaggies which show up on my PC.
Music, pictures, movies, emulators, you name it. My xbox sat idle for over a year until I started investigating Linux for it. Got a chip put in it to run Linux, but when it came back it was running XBMC, no more talk of Linux after that. The xbox is rarely off now. Cost me €70 for the chip, and since then I've softmodded about 8 or 9 for friends. If you feel up to the softmod, go for it, all going well, you'll be blown away. Plenty of help online too, easier to find though when you know what you want to do; so drop the Linux from your searches and concentrate on xbmc and AID3.0. I can post detailed step-by-step instructions for you if you have problems!
Just reread my post and it sounds like I'm dissing Linux. My PC only has Kubuntu (a Linux Distro) on it. My dual-booting WinXP setup crashed once to often, so I took it off my hard drive. My xbox also has a version of Linux on it (installed using AID2.11) but I seldom use it.
