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I prefer Computer Games Magazine. The layout is much cleaner compared to PC Gamer or Computer Gaming World and a lot of the gaming commentary articles are well thought out. They also have a reader submitted article which is usually excellent.
I find there is a lot less of the self absorbed hipness and juvenile humor than in competing mags.

I find Computer Games Magazine to have the best commentary and least bias out of the gaming magazines. It's quite a bit different from the usual 2/3s glowing previews, 1/3 reviews model that most mags use. I get the feeling that most of the contributors are like me, long time gamers.
I'm kind of amazed they're still able to publish since their volume of advertising is a lot less than PC Gamer and the like.

Computer Games magazine. Written by adults, for adults. Go ahead, check it out next time you're at B&N or Borders, read a review on a new game, then shuffle over to PC Gamer or CGW and read a review about the same game. You'll see what I mean.

http://www.cgonline.com/

Computer Games Magazine reviewed this in the July issue (current issue).

Kidding aside, each realm has many servers, all geographically dispersed. And you're right, even certain zones in themselves are serviced by multiple machines. Your observation about distinct IP addresses doesn't necessarily mean distinct machines, however. Interview, Blizzards' Shane Dabiri.

So, you can bet that they have dynamic load balancing in place within a realm.

As an aside, Wish is now defunct. Story. Its point of distinction was one contiguous world that all subscribers would share. This is a true MMO in my opinion. We surmise that their subscriber base in beta did not survive sustainability projections, so in the end it was a casualty of simple finances.

The rest of the market that instances the VW into multiple 'shards' are inpure in my opinion. So when I see advertising that prides itself on "1.5 Million Subscribers!" I just think, "so what!". Splitting users into 90 distinct realms lessens the weight of these claims. If you have 100,000 user concurrency that means you're really only playing with 1,000 players, and we've seen what thats like.

IMO, WOW as a game system and a server system doesn't scale in any impressive way.

Kafka

Woeful name for a publication, however, I perceive their reviews as being extremely honest and balanced. They won't hesitate to pan a game, and I definitely don't get the feeling that they are giving a bia$ed apprai$al. Their coverage is detailed and offers a refreshing maturity compared with most of the magazines that I've read out there.

Check it out :

Computer Games Online

Cheers,
Kafka

Here, here! Or, for that matter, the magazines that release a review two days after they receive their copy of the game, acting as if they're doing us a favor by submitting a review based upon either rushing through the game without diverging from the main path, or getting only partway through the game. Computer Games Magazine, IMO, does a fairly good job at giving enough time to games rather than rushing out reviews. On the flipside of things, this means that their review typically comes out a month or so after the game's release, but they at least properly test drive it. And I've found few cases where I disagreed with their reviews.

Computer Games Online
This page says the artical is not from gamersdad, but from
"This article first appeared in the May 2002 issue of Computer Games Magazine." Just for your Info!

I prefer Computer Games Magazine. It seems to be a little more grown up than the rest. Even Computer Gaming World's editorial has degenerated to lame potty humor and "smack talking".
Computer Games has interesting articles on everything from religion in games to games in the classroom and actual discussion about violence and addiction in games.
They are also not afraid to trash games in their reviews. I recall one recent issue where nothing scored higher than 3 out of 5 stars.

Another good magazine for someone who wants to read about gaming is the aptly named Computer Games Magazine.

Back to the subject... As for making games run, try the following links: link1 link2 link3 on how to get older games to work with XP. One piece of gouge that is not above but I have read in a magazine is that you can try copying the game to your hard disk, then running the SETUP program in compatability mode. I haven't tried it but it worked for whoever wrote the article.

Getting A Job In The Game Development Industry

How To Get A Job In The Gaming Biz

So You Want to be a Game Designer?

You Can Get There From Here

(At least two of these articles have sections pertaining to programmers.)

A common thread throughout the articles seems to be that you should know someone who already works in the gaming biz.

If you have been succesful in finding a job, read this:

You've Been Given a Job Offer! (Let's Try to Avoid Getting Screwed)

plus a quote:

The job title "Game Designer" is probably the biggest misnomer in the industry. Everyone seems to want to be a game designer...the idea guy or "think tank" behind every aspect of a game. These jobs do not exist. The only way to become a game designer is to do one of two things: Start and finance your own game company, or work in the games industry for several years and work your way up to the presidency or development directorship of an existing game company. Game companies have more than enough ideas, more then they would ever have time to produce. Game development is a team effort that requires input from every developer on the project. Unless you're an industry legend with a long track record of shipping successful titles, it's impossible to obtain a "Game Designer" position.

Getting A Job In The Game Development Industry

How To Get A Job In The Gaming Biz

So You Want to be a Game Designer?

You Can Get There From Here

(At least two of these articles have sections pertaining to programmers.)

A common thread throughout the articles seems to be that you should know someone who already works in the gaming biz.

If you have been succesful in finding a job, read this:

You've Been Given a Job Offer! (Let's Try to Avoid Getting Screwed)

plus a quote:

The job title "Game Designer" is probably the biggest misnomer in the industry. Everyone seems to want to be a game designer...the idea guy or "think tank" behind every aspect of a game. These jobs do not exist. The only way to become a game designer is to do one of two things: Start and finance your own game company, or work in the games industry for several years and work your way up to the presidency or development directorship of an existing game company. Game companies have more than enough ideas, more then they would ever have time to produce. Game development is a team effort that requires input from every developer on the project. Unless you're an industry legend with a long track record of shipping successful titles, it's impossible to obtain a "Game Designer" position.

Except when they're not.

Computer Games Online was a better site before they switched to their new design. It used frames but in a good way. The new site *looks* better but I find it harder to find stuff and keep track of what's new.