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Xbox Live's First Big Update

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the downloading-in-the-background dept.

GameDaily reports on the first major Xbox Live update since the launch of the Xbox 360. From the article: "The forthcoming update will bring with it a number of additions designed to enhance the user experience, with perhaps the most notable function being the download manager. Currently, when downloading demos, trailers or other items from Marketplace users are tied to the download screen. The update will enable users to queue up and prioritize up to six downloads and users will be allowed to play music, games or do other things on the dashboard while downloads are in progress. If an online game is started, the current download in progress will be paused so as to avoid lag." For the visual among us, Joystiq has a number of screenshots showing off some of the new features.

22 comments

  1. Hallelujah. by blackraven14250 · · Score: 1

    We've been waiting for this download manager forever.

  2. Cool. by BaronSprite · · Score: 4, Interesting

    While I don't own an xbox 360 yet (too expensive, holding out for the wii-sonably priced nintendo), I did mess around with one at best buy recently and was impressed how far the UI has come since the first generation. It's good to see some user concerns being addressed, but really what's the problem with letting people play online while downloading? I'm sure XBL caps out your bandwith and that could cause some lag, but couldn't they just implement a cap to the download speed? With a broadband connection, gaming and downloading at the same time isn't far fetched.

    1. Re:Cool. by grammar+fascist · · Score: 1

      I'm sure XBL caps out your bandwith and that could cause some lag, but couldn't they just implement a cap to the download speed? With a broadband connection, gaming and downloading at the same time isn't far fetched.

      I don't know much about the 360 architecture, but you've got more than just network lag to worry about. If a game is taking every last cycle on every processor, a few downloads (in addition to the game's normal network connection, if there is one) might make it stutter just enough to ruin the playing experience. This goes double if the game designers counted on having every last resource at their disposal.

      That being said, there are plenty of games and connections for which this wouldn't be a problem. Hopefully they'll make it optional in a future update.

      --
      I got my Linux laptop at System76.
    2. Re:Cool. by assassinator42 · · Score: 1

      Wouldn't it mess with some offline games as well then? I believe it's required that games reserve some power for the in-game dashboard thing. I'd imagine that's what does the downloading. Also, it can only do one download at once, they're just queued.

    3. Re:Cool. by Keeper · · Score: 1

      I'm sure XBL caps out your bandwith and that could cause some lag, but couldn't they just implement a cap to the download speed?

      Capping the speed won't prevent lag.

      It makes sense if you think about it for a bit ... you have no way of knowing how the data transmitted will "come down" the line -- Best case, if you can have the server control the rate at which the data is sent, you aren't guaranteed to receive it at that rate consistantly. IE: the server could send the data at a constant rate, but you may recieve it in chunks.

      Ex: (. = no data, X = data)

      Server:
      * X....X....X....X....X....X....X....X....
      Client:
      * ................XXXXX.................XX

    4. Re:Cool. by Serzen · · Score: 1
      I don't know much about the 360, but I read a (print) article a couple years ago on Xbox Live that indicated the reason why broadband was required for Live was because of the way that the Xbox components were designed to work together. Basically, what was being intimated what that you had to have a minimum of 128Kbps down because that was the least amount of data that the Xbox was capable of processing.

      Since many people who have broadband don't actually have that fast of a connection (768K max downstream over variable speed DSL is common), I would think that the 360 pauses your download just to be sure that it is getting access to the most amount of data that it can; a machine can only operate as fast as its slowest component.

    5. Re:Cool. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Basically, what was being intimated what that you had to have a minimum of 128Kbps down because that was the least amount of data that the Xbox was capable of processing.

      The least it is capable of processing? That makes no sense! You think it'll lock the whole machine up waiting for 128Kbits of data on the network??? IP packets don't come that big! And the OS is based on proper Windows so it has a full IP stack, threading and probably pre-emptive multi-tasking too - it isn't going to hang waiting for network IO.

      I'd expect it was made broadband only as a minimum performance baseline for peer-to-peer multi-player games. You want to make sure everyone playing xbox online has a good user experience? Lock out the 56Kers who'll cause everyone lag.

    6. Re:Cool. by bigman2003 · · Score: 1

      As a heavy Xbox Live user, I would not want a cap. I would ask for exactly what they are doing- pause the download while I am playing, the resume it when I am done.

      If I even *thought* downloads *might* introduce lag during on-line play, I wouldn't do it.

      But this new method lets me queue up a few downloads, and have them run while I watch a movie.

      Perfect for me (a real live Xbox user).

      --
      No reason to lie.
  3. If this is the first by Traiklin · · Score: 0, Redundant

    Then what was with the major downtime just before the 360 launch?

    They never bothered to update Xbox live for the 360?

    1. Re:If this is the first by Coopjust · · Score: 1

      GameDaily reports on the first major Xbox Live update since the launch of the Xbox 360. From the article:

  4. Fuck you Xbox Live by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I hate my life.

    1. Re:Fuck you Xbox Live by supasam · · Score: 0

      No, dog, it's cool. Just chill. And fuck Xbox live.

      --


      Suck a lemon?
  5. The question is, of course, when? by PSXer · · Score: 2, Informative
    I've known about this update for at least a couple of weeks (saw it on the Beyond3D forum), but still no release date. Shame.

    Guess I'll just have to keep checking every five minutes.

  6. And for your convenience... by Myria · · Score: 1, Interesting

    ...we've added a dozen new "security" updates to help prevent you from using the console as you wish!

    --
    "Screw Sun, cross-platform will never work. Let's move on and steal the Java language." - Visual J++ Product Manager
  7. Other features by PSXer · · Score: 5, Informative
    Looks like they've seperated game videos from demos. No more looking at the listing for a game and thinking "Hmm, 3 downloads, that's probably a 480p video, 720p video, and a demo, but there's only one way to find out"

    Also, you can choose to have it boot to the dashboard instead of loading the game automatically. Great for those of us who paid $400 for "next gen grafx, d00d" but got addicted to Xbox Live Arcade games

    Speaking of XBL Arcade, it's not mentioned in the article, but I hope they fix that interface. When you go to the menu, it takes like 15 seconds to count all the arcade games you have downloaded and to show you the one you last played, which makes the "last played" timesaver useless. Oddly, if you go to the list of arcade games you downloaded it shows you no problem, so I don't know what'w up with that.

    1. Re:Other features by ImaLamer · · Score: 1

      you can choose to have it boot to the dashboard instead of loading the game automatically

      I like this feature as my firewall blocks Xbox Live unless I initiate the login through the Dashboard.

      --
      Get your Unix fortune now!
  8. Re:So, basically... by tbmcmullen · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Huh... While I'm not a Microsoft fan-boy in any sense of the phrase, I have a hard time seeing how exactly they're failing.

    They've sold millions of Xbox 360s. Their operating system dominates the home PCs and a large share of servers. Their office suite is the "standard" (in the real world). Their .NET languages are dominating the programming market (around here anyway... trying to find a programming job without .NET experience is hellish).

    If by "failing" you mean that those with a technological background realize that many of their products are half-done turds, then I can agree. But thats hardly a realistic use of the word "failing".

  9. Re:So, basically... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Well, given what I was describing, that's exactly the sense of "failing" I was going for. I can't deny that Microsoft's marketing is about the best in the world; they've gotten their products to be everywhere, nearly unavoidable unless you go out into the dark heart of the jungles of some unknown jungle.

    But yeah, generally, they're failing at being a sane, organized company with focus.

  10. Re:So, basically... by TadZimas · · Score: 0

    So, wait. Spending too much time working on the X-Box is why windows is full of bugs?
    That makes perfect sense!

    X-Box debut in 2001, Windows ME in 2000. Of course, they must have been working on the X-box at least in 1998, because 1998 had it's own share of bugs... No, wait, 1995 was a buggy mess too... Hmm... 3.1? No. 3.1 was pretty terrible also.
    So the X-Box must have started development in late 1985, when windows 1.0 came out... Possibly as far back as late 70s, when DOS came out...

    So, the X-Box was in development before the NES came out! Wow, I call that a development cycle.

    Seriously though, the reason Windows sucks isn't because Microsoft is 'splitting it's focus'. They have enough money to do a dozen more projects. The reason Windows sucks is because 1: It was poorly coded 20 years ago, and that same code kept getting incorporated into stuff it wasn't designed to handle, and 2: The average Microsoft programmer is undermotivated to actually fix code as the closed source system makes most errors go unnoticed for years.

  11. Re:So, basically... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "But yeah, generally, they're failing at being a sane, organized company with focus."

    HUH? They haven't failed in any sense, they make billions and are increasing market share in almost every market they are in, server, desktop, DB, console, office etc. if that is failing to be sane, then count me in for insanity any day of the week.