From Book News, Inc.
Grand, president and CEO of a product design and development firm, shows how to modify personal computer and electronics equipment at the hardware level. He describes essential tools for hardware hacking and reviews electrical engineering basics, then gives instructions, illustrated with b&w photos, for modifying the CueCat, building a custom Terabyte FireWire hard drive, taking apart the Mac, hacking Atari and PlayStation 2 systems, and upgrading memory on palm devices. Final chapters overview operating systems and introduce basic concepts of coding. The book is distributed by O'Reilly.Copyright © 2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Book Description
"If I had this book 10 years ago, the FBI would never have found me!" -- Kevin Mitnick This book has something for everyone---from the beginner hobbyist with no electronics or coding experience to the self-proclaimed "gadget geek." Take an ordinary piece of equipment and turn it into a personal work of art. Build upon an existing idea to create something better. Have fun while voiding your warranty! Some of the hardware hacks in this book include:* Don't toss your iPod away when the battery dies! Don't pay Apple the $99 to replace it! Install a new iPod battery yourself without Apple's "help".* An Apple a day! Modify a standard Apple USB Mouse into a glowing UFO Mouse or build a FireWire terabyte hard drive and custom case. * Have you played Atari today? Create an arcade-style Atari 5200 paddle controller for your favorite retro videogames or transform the Atari 2600 joystick into one that can be used by left-handed players.* Modern game systems, too! Hack your PlayStation 2 to boot code from the memory card or modify your PlayStation 2 for homebrew game development.* Videophiles unite! Design, build, and configure your own Windows- or Linux-based Home Theater PC.* Ride the airwaves! Modify a wireless PCMCIA NIC to include an external antenna connector or load Linux onto your Access Point.* Stick it to The Man! Remove the proprietary barcode encoding from your CueCat and turn it into a regular barcode reader.* Hack your Palm! Upgrade the available RAM on your Palm m505 from 8MB to 16MB.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

If I had this book 10 years ago, the FBI would never have found me!" -Kevin D. Mitnick

This book focuses on "Hacking" consumer and SOHO electronicdevices. Hacking in this sense refers to modifying these devices to perform in a manner not originally intended; not compromising the security of the devices. To successfully hack these devices, the reader must possess knowledge of electrical engineering, operating systems, software coding, and mechanics. The first part of this book will provide readers with a primer on all of these topics. After introducing the reader to these concepts, the real fun begins. The book goes on to detail how to hack Mobile devices (PDAs, Cell Phones, etc.), Gaming Systems (Xbox, PS/2, Atari), Internet appliances (iMachine, cable modems), Audio/Visual Equipment (TiVo boxes, Home Theater PCs), Computer Equipment (iMacs, Laptops, Mini-Motherboards), and much more. Each of the "Hacking" chapters is broken into the following four parts: 1. Product Introduction, 2. Description and Goals, 3. Step-by-Step Hack (with pictures), 4. Why The Hack Works?

SYNOPSIS

This book has something for everyone---from the beginner hobbyist with no electronics or coding experience to the self-proclaimed "gadget geek." Take an ordinary piece of equipment and turn it into a personal work of art. Build upon an existing idea to create something better. Have fun while voiding your warranty!
Some of the hardware hacks in this book include:
Don't toss your iPod away when the battery dies! Don't pay Apple the $99 to replace it! Install a new iPod battery yourself without Apple's "help." An Apple a day! Modify a standard Apple USB Mouse into a glowing UFO Mouse or build a FireWire terabyte hard drive and custom case. Have you played Atari today? Create an arcade-style Atari 5200 paddle controller for your favorite retro videogames or transform the Atari 2600 joystick into one that can be used by left-handed players. Modern game systems, too! Hack your PlayStation 2 to boot code from the memory card or modify your PlayStation 2 for homebrew game development. Videophiles unite! Design, build, and configure your own Windows- or Linux-based Home Theater PC. Ride the airwaves! Modify a wireless PCMCIA NIC to include an external antenna connector or load Linux onto your Access Point. Stick it to The Man! Remove the proprietary barcode encoding from your CueCat and turn it into a regular barcode reader. Hack your Palm! Upgrade the available RAM on your Palm m505 from 8MB to 16MB.
...Many more hacks and modifications inside!

FROM THE CRITICS

Library Journal

While most of us are content to use our technical toys as provided, hardware hackers constantly search for bigger, better, and more interesting ways to modify their equipment. Hardware Hacking Projects lives up to its title by outlining how to carry out various projects, from building an aquarium inside a Mac, to hacking a video periscope for your car, to building an Internet coffee maker. Cost, time, and difficulty are estimated for each, and project downloads are available online. Appendixes provide additional information on topics like creating schematics and different types of power sources. A clearly written, illustrated, and fun guide for larger libraries serving do-it-yourselfers, tinkerers, and power users. Hardware Hacking provides a similar step-by-step project approach, but projects differ in type and scale-find out here, for example, how to create a paddle for your Atari 5200, build a UFO mouse, and add a larger hard drive to your iPod. The last section includes an OS and coding overview, while beginning sections cover tools and electrical engineering basics. Appropriate for larger libraries. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.