*Update* Last week's launch of Microsoft's new online service for its Xbox video game console created headaches for some customers, who reported not being able to use the service or their game machines.
According to a document posted on one of Microsoft's Xbox online forums, Xbox Live will check for the presence of mod chips or unauthorized software when a console connects to the service. If such modifications are detected, Xbox Live will record the serial number of the unit and permanently ban that machine from accessing the Xbox Live network.
Numerous owners of modified Xbox units reported in forums at the box Hacker site that they were locked out of Xbox Live. "All I know is I have two machines--one modded, and the other not," wrote one poster. "The one that's modded can't connect at all, and the unmodded one works perfectly."
