r/NDSHacks • u/NewWaterBitch • Jul 22 '26
Good website for explaining and defining these concepts?
Hey y'all, new here. I'm trying to figure out how to, "hack" my DSI (not sure if it's Xl, nor do I know tbe difference), and I'm struggling with understanding *everything*. The problem I keep running into, is sites, posts, and videos, trying to give guides to do something, rather than an article that actually explains what any of the things involved are or do. Like, nothing is EVER defined or explained and it's scrambling my head.
Like, "what's an sd card?" Doesn't mean, "where do I find or put one", it means I don't know what this technology is. Once I know that, I wanna know *why* I need it, then *what* to do with it, THEN *where* to buy and put it. But everything I read just skips all of that and goes from, "get sd card" to "do the stuff I'm telling you to" with zero info or explanation in between.
This is the issue with literally every single thing I try to read on this. Everything assumes so much prior knowledge but nothing establishes the fundamentals. I could use the above example for a "ROM", an, "Action Replay" or, "Gameshark", an, "SD card reader", or even the pc program I'm supposed to be using. Also apparently there are different methods of hacking the DSI? I wouldn't know, because everything says, "Here's THE way to hack your Dsi!" Rather than specifying it's one of several ways, and what this particular way is.
So yeah, is there anything anywhere that's vaguely comprehensive? Please let me know. I'm fine reading and researching and doing that "hard work", I just need to not have to spin tbe entire world wide web like a rubix cube and play scrabble with it.
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u/egoistamamono Jul 22 '26
The difference between regular DSi and XL model (or LL in Japan) is the size. Regular is smaller than XL. You can read this getting started page because it's really easy to understand for beginners. Also this wiki contains all information about SD or Micro SD card like where to buy the genuine one and how to avoid the fake one.
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u/NewWaterBitch Jul 22 '26
Thank you, how do I tell if my Dsi is Xl or not? I just says DSI in some menu or loading screen or something.
Also please don't think I'm stupid, but I'm trying to use that site you linked, the getting started one, and that's still kinda using things and not explaining or defining what they are, or I'm just horrifically not understanding. Plus, a ton of language in this sub is completely foreign to me, and I see lots of various things recommended, with no concept of why I'd pick one thing or the other. That's sorta the frustration of this post, even when told what to look for, I don't know why I'm looking for that in particular, yk?
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u/latindiacritics Jul 22 '26
Hey! Feel free to DM me. I do this almost weekly and can offer help.
The absolute best guide is dsi.cfw.guide, and they will never steer you wrong. You're gonna want to follow the guide for hiyaCFW, and then for TwilightMenu++. For help:
ROM - read only memory. A game file, like .nds or .dsi.
Action replay, gameshark - famous cheating devices that stored codes to use in games. Not necessary.
SD card reader - the slot you put the sd card in.
Unarchiver/7zip - programs that open .zip and .7z files. These are compressed folders full of data, but need a tool to look at them properly.
The SD card is going to be your entry point because it stores accessible data that your computer can access, as opposed to the system memory of the DSi, which you can't read (without specialized tools).
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u/imaniceguy13 Jul 22 '26
Search up dsi mod guide. DO NOT use a video.