Surely by now you have heard about "Throwies". It seems that everywhere I turn around I read about them in Make, Digg, Instructables, or any of the other DIY websites out there. (So why not add another? =) Actually this is going to be a little different. Instead of ordering parts to make "perfect" throwies, we are going to do it the I-hacked way... That's right we are going to make throwies out of crap we already have laying around.

Before you waste too much time here on my homemade Power Squid, I have to point out that the real "Power Squid" is a commercially available product.  These are instructions on how to build your own knock off version.  When I decided to build my own I was looking at advertisements that suggesting a retail price of $29.99 for the original non-surge protected version and between $50 and $80 for the surge protected ones.  At those prices I was convinced that I could build my own cheaper, better version easily from parts available at Home Depot.  It turns out that while you can build your own, making on that is "better" is subjective, and making one "cheaper" is actually quite difficult.  Then I found out that the ads I was looking at were grossly overpriced.  If you shop around, the non-surge protected version can be found for as little as $10, and the entry level surge protected one I found at my local Walmart for $19.99.  Therefore making your own Power Squid becomes an excercise in the pride of making something yourself.  If this still interests you, please read on, if not, I'll meet you at the store.

• 2.50/2.60 PSP
   -NOTE: IT CANNOT BE A TA-082 PSP, TA-082 refers to the motherboard, here's an easy way to check.
  
• Access to a 1.50 PSP or the files available here.
  
• Power Cable
  
• MemStick greater than 32MB in size
  
• Grand Theft Auto: LCS
  -MAKE SURE IT ISN'T THE UPDATED ONE WITH THE 2.60 UMD FIRMWARE UPDATE, IT SHOULD HAVE 2.00 ONLY
  
• Fanjita's GTA exploit eloader installed (See readme inside file)
  
• Balls
  
• About 5 minutes

We will continue our discussion using the BetaBrite 1036 series LED signs. I chose these displays because they are the most common model, and very easy to come by. I must note that the cable we are going to construct will probably work on MOST BetaBrite signs, and possibly other vendors as well. To quote the last article "Once you start looking for them, you will be surprised how many places have them.. They are EVERYWHERE. Problem is they always have a boring message on them, advertising Specials, News, etc..  I would seriously prefer they say "I-Hacked.com" =)" Except, this time I want them to show people what I-hacked is all about!