I could care less if they make GH games. I'm glad people have fun with them. Some of my best friends are even ga....I mean like Guitar Hero. I just want to know if the system offers other more creative platforms before I invest in it.
This is the problem I have with Microsoft's technologies in general (think ASP.net's asinine oversimplification of the http protocol) - instead of improving new programmers' understanding of existing technology, they re-warp the programmers' heads around their idea of how the technology should be implemented.
I can't really comment on the specific, Microsoft-related instances you're talking about - but I would say that this sometimes really is how progress works. Moving forward, coming up with better ways to do things, sometimes means leaving old ideas behind. Microsoft has the power to do that and make it stick.
Going with the established pattern just because it is the established pattern can make programmers more comfortable but it isn't necessarily the best decision.
Most importantly, the GNU project does actually include its own kernel, which was written before Linux, and is fully capable of independent existence. That is why the GNU people claim it is more fundamental, and make a big deal about the GNU/Linux thing.
Hurd? Does anybody seriously use that thing? Saying that GNU has its own kernel is like saying that Linux can be run with system software other than GNU. It may very well be true but hardly anybody bothers to try it.
Look, I understand the arguments behind the whole GNU/Linux thing. I agree that the GNU stuff is very important to the system, and that the GNU project deserves a lot of credit... Like I said, the kernel wouldn't be much good without GNU and vice versa. But you specifically talked about sorting those bits of software in order of "most fundamental to the system to least" - given the difficulty in running anything without the kernel, I question the idea of putting system software before kernel under those sorting criteria, is all.
RMS deserves credit for the GNU project. Linus Torvalds deserves credit for the Linux (kernel) project. So, like I said, why not give RMS credit for things RMS was actually responsible for, and celebrate those things on days relevant to those accomplishments?
Well while you're thanking Linus, don't forget to thank Richard M. Stallman, without whom Linux (a.k.a. GNU/Linux) would not exist as we know it today.
How about we celebrate the GNU project on the GNU anniversary, and celebrate the Linux project on the Linux anniversary?
I agree that the software made available through the GNU project should not be underrated... But just as Linux is no good without software to run on it, the software to run on it is no good without a kernel...
It goes left-right from most fundamental to the system to least, in the order of use. I suspect.
OK, but consider this:
On the one hand, the damn system can't boot without the kernel. It is the fundamental environment upon which all the other tools must run. That's pretty frikkin' "fundamental to the system"...
And then, on the other hand, you can't do anything with the bloody thing without the shell, the legion of tools running in the shell, or the compiler and C library used to build all that stuff...
So you got a mutual dependence going on here: GNU can't run without a kernel, and the kernel's no good without an operating environment running on top of it...
I think splitting hairs on this issue is pretty ridiculous. Terminology does not equate to respect. I respect the GNU project, I just don't believe in straining my word choice as a way to share that respect with others. Simply saying "Linux" communicates the nature of my PC's software environment quite effectively.
I've got this great thing I'm gonna write someday!
on
Linux Turns 17 Today
·
· Score: 1
(Incidentally, at the risk of starting a flamewar, I think the 28th of September was also a fairly important anniversary...)
You know, I really respect the GNU project and everything the FSF has accomplished... And really a lot of the things on that list were, in fact, accomplished...
But what really strikes me about that old RMS post is how much it reminds me of all the times I've gotten really excited about something I was planning to make, told everybody I could about the project and all the grand things I'd accomplish and then... often, nothing would come of it. The real similarity here, I guess, is the posting that comes out of the "initial excitement" stage of the project, before there's anything substantial to actually show... (I usually try to avoid postings like that, these days...)
Not only that, but it was a negative term before, too.
A "hack" is an ugly thrown-together bit of code that is used because "it works" rather than coming up with a proper solution. A "hacker" is someone who largely produces this low quality, but mostly functional code.
But, conversely, a hacker is also somebody who's comfortable dealing with that mess - someone who understands the machine well enough to be able to work with it, without necessarily wrapping every little thing in a comfortable abstraction. It's someone who, when confronted with something they're not entire able to handle, is willing to wade through the difficulty and confusion until they find their solution. This is important: not everybody is up for that. A "hacking" approach isn't the best way to deal with things from a professional, engineering standpoint, but on the other hand, if you're doing something as a hobby, the rigors of a professional approach aren't always the best choice, either.
Honestly, I'm OK with the fact that people don't agree on the usage of the term. It's just like any other niche group in society: those in the group have their own terminology and attitudes and everything and those outside the group will tend to see things differently. That's life, you know? You deal with it.
I've always thought "cracker" was just plain an awkward term to try to use, even before one considers the "honky" association. Personally I would call people who set out to ruin other people's systems "computer-vandals" or maybe "malicious hackers". Don't worry, I don't have any delusions of changing what words they use on the news... But when I talk to friends, or other people who are inclined to listen to what I have to say, I'll set 'em straight.
So was D-DAY landing at Normandy. You can TOTALLY see the pixelated artifacts around Tom Hanks. And I'm supposed to believe he lead the invasion AND went to the moon? COme on! How naive do they think we are?
Methinks the current (Nintendo DS) solution of downloading stubs of games over WiFi works a lot better than the hardware-junkie scheme Nintendo tried to sell before.
The only difference is the cables... The cables were needed 'cause neither the GBA or the 'Cube had wireless.
When I do play GBA games it's usually on a Game Boy of some kind - most often the Micro. It's more portable than the DS which is real handy sometimes. Plus I think it's just an all-around better experience than booting up a GBA game on the DS, not using the full screen or the full set of controls... Really, once I got a decent collection of DS games going, I found I'd rather play those on the DS.
But even if it was under-utilized, I liked the potential for the GBA slot as hardware expansion. Guitar Hero is a good example.
In terms of homebrew, I'm happy enough if I can use my R4DS... But I wouldn't be surprised if Nintendo arranged for that to not work on the new system...
...and it's possible to download games and keep them on the DSi.
I'm buying one.
Yeah, the possibility of downloadable "DSWare" on this thing is the one part of the whole deal that's really attractive. I don't care about MP3 playing or a crappy VGA-resolution camera (ugh), and the fact that homebrew may not work on the thing is unappealing... But downloadable titles? Hell yeah... On the Wii I've been playing tons of Dr. Mario online and Mega Man 9, and eyeing the new Bomberman online - having that kind of stuff on the DS would rock.
I surely sympathize with people who would want to play Guitar Hero and such on the new model (as well as the folks who developed Guitar Hero DS, and now may have a harder time selling it...) - that issue doesn't affect me so much, though.
Pretty sure that music precedes unicode, dude, and they write the sharp sign using anything that looks like a tiny smooshed tick-tack-toe board.
At any case, you're both wrong. "E#" is pronounced "eff" - there is a half step between E and F, and the "#" sign denotes "do this note, except take it up half a step."
E#==F.
That's actually not entirely true.
It is true that going a half-step up from E gives you F. However, in certain keys you'd still refer to the note as E#.
Here's the thing: a big part of his argument is based on what happens to the story of Moby Dick if you make it interactive - either you stick to the events of the book, making the player's ability to impact the world just an illusion, or else you open up the story, giving Ahab a chance to win, which defeats the message of the book.
What the article author ignores is that, first, different media are well suited to telling different kinds of stories. Where a fixed, sequential novel might excel at emphasizing the inevitability of fate, an interactive game could deliver an alternate message, showing people how their decisions allow them to make their own fate. (Moby Dick, then, may simply not be a good story to turn into a game...)
Second, if the game allows you all kinds of freedom, but you still ultimately die facing the white whale, doesn't that deliver the same message of inevitable fate that the book does? Or what if Ahab's choices are to run away (but still be tormented by the memory of the white whale) or confront the whale and die?
Anyway, the whole notion of "high art" (or Art with a capital A) is a bit overrated. The notion that games must establish themselves as a viable medium for "real art" is just a red herring... What's really going on is that some people don't take games seriously or think of them strictly as a bad influence... Those of us who feel otherwise are attempting to justify our opinions by asserting that games are art. But this ignores two important facts. First, even if they are truly art (and I believe they are - why not?), "art" does not carry some magical self-legitimizing power. The rights of artists to express themselves freely are not won easily. Second, (and this is the point that I think is important to realize, and one of the reasons this "games as Art" thing is an Ackbarian trap) there's no reason we should have to specifically legitimize games in the first place. The fact that we get drawn into such debates means this point is already lost.
Wasn't the hook of that movie that the scenes were arranged in a different order?
Backwards, yes. The idea was the main character lost track of all his recent thoughts every 5 minutes or so - and so successive scenes would generally fill in information that altered the interpretation of the preceding scenes. (So kind of a fractal Kaiser Sose deal...)
It's kind of a lame gimmick, and it makes the movie really hard to follow - and the overall premise is pretty ridiculous. But there was one bit in there I enjoyed...
Basically the scene starts with the main character frantically digging through a room, when suddenly a woman outside catches his attention. She comes in, upset, beaten, and tells him that some guy did this to her and she needs help getting rid of him, etc.
In the next scene it's revealed that the woman was just in the room with him a few minutes ago - before he arrived she went through the room removing all writing materials. IIRC she taunted the main character dude about his memory condition and his dead wife, prodded him until finally he hit her, then she left. He realized she was manipulating him and started searching for a pen and paper so he could write this crucial bit of information down - and then as she came back into the room he forgot all this...
The rules that made Memento work were, to me, an interesting experiment... Though I'd say once is plenty of that.:)
Let me assure you, there is nothing to be worried about. I'm watching a couple of guys fiddle with some of the magnets right now and they assure me that nothing can go wro
Oh, no! The LHC blew up and the explosion threw you from your keyboard, clicked "preview" and then clicked "submit"!
I hate it when that happens. That's the third time this week!
that means i'll be able to find an old DS for cheap. =P
aside from the size and aesthetics, is their any difference in functionality between 1st gen DS and the DS lite?
The biggest difference is the screen. The DS Lite's screen is a lot brighter.
The tactile response on the controls is different, too - but I haven't used the DS Lite enough to say whether it's an improvement or not. But the smaller form factor of the Lite does make it easier to reach the touch screen in games that use both the control pad and touch screen...
I agree with you. As the DS isn't forced to be connected to the internet all the time like the Wii or XBox 360, there's little chance that a user would install a console firmware update that would brick a hacked firmware or disable Slot1/2 card. So they use the carrot instead of the stick - new shiny carrot vs your old machine that can play homebrew/backup roms but has poor wifi and no camera...
OK, technically the Wii isn't "forced" to be connected to the internet all the time... You always have the option of not connecting the thing to your router - and if you do that, games will still just work. To my knowledge Nintendo doesn't push out firmware updates, either - they send you mails, suggesting you upgrade firmware, but that's it...
Now, regarding the matter of DS updates bricking DSes - it has happened before.
Specifically, old versions of FlashMe (from before Mario Kart DS, the first DS game with internet connectivity) wrote some of its own code into regions of flash ROM which would later be used by Ninteno Wi-Fi connection to store router settings and so on. So once the user booted up a game with Nintendo Wi-Fi support and configured their internet connection, their DS would be bricked. (Fortunately, FlashMe included a contingency that allowed people to re-flash their DSes even after something like this...)
Of course, I don't think it's entirely fair to say that's Nintendo's fault. I mean, after all, nobody told Flashme they could use that area of ROM...
Slashdot Mirror
I could care less if they make GH games. I'm glad people have fun with them. Some of my best friends are even ga....I mean like Guitar Hero. I just want to know if the system offers other more creative platforms before I invest in it.
Well, there's Rock Band!
(What can I say, I'm a HMX fanboy...)
Tasha Yar wants to know "How fully functional?"
...There will be no treaty, no vaccine, and NO LIEUTENANT YAR!
This is the problem I have with Microsoft's technologies in general (think ASP.net's asinine oversimplification of the http protocol) - instead of improving new programmers' understanding of existing technology, they re-warp the programmers' heads around their idea of how the technology should be implemented.
I can't really comment on the specific, Microsoft-related instances you're talking about - but I would say that this sometimes really is how progress works. Moving forward, coming up with better ways to do things, sometimes means leaving old ideas behind. Microsoft has the power to do that and make it stick.
Going with the established pattern just because it is the established pattern can make programmers more comfortable but it isn't necessarily the best decision.
Most importantly, the GNU project does actually include its own kernel, which was written before Linux, and is fully capable of independent existence. That is why the GNU people claim it is more fundamental, and make a big deal about the GNU/Linux thing.
Hurd? Does anybody seriously use that thing? Saying that GNU has its own kernel is like saying that Linux can be run with system software other than GNU. It may very well be true but hardly anybody bothers to try it.
Look, I understand the arguments behind the whole GNU/Linux thing. I agree that the GNU stuff is very important to the system, and that the GNU project deserves a lot of credit... Like I said, the kernel wouldn't be much good without GNU and vice versa. But you specifically talked about sorting those bits of software in order of "most fundamental to the system to least" - given the difficulty in running anything without the kernel, I question the idea of putting system software before kernel under those sorting criteria, is all.
RMS deserves credit for the GNU project. Linus Torvalds deserves credit for the Linux (kernel) project. So, like I said, why not give RMS credit for things RMS was actually responsible for, and celebrate those things on days relevant to those accomplishments?
Well while you're thanking Linus, don't forget to thank Richard M. Stallman, without whom Linux (a.k.a. GNU/Linux) would not exist as we know it today.
How about we celebrate the GNU project on the GNU anniversary, and celebrate the Linux project on the Linux anniversary?
I agree that the software made available through the GNU project should not be underrated... But just as Linux is no good without software to run on it, the software to run on it is no good without a kernel...
f x
| (x `mod` 5) == 0 = Important
| otherwise = Unimportant
Got it.
f x
|
GNU/Linux/X.org/Qt/KDE/Mozilla
It goes left-right from most fundamental to the system to least, in the order of use. I suspect.
OK, but consider this:
On the one hand, the damn system can't boot without the kernel. It is the fundamental environment upon which all the other tools must run. That's pretty frikkin' "fundamental to the system"...
And then, on the other hand, you can't do anything with the bloody thing without the shell, the legion of tools running in the shell, or the compiler and C library used to build all that stuff...
So you got a mutual dependence going on here: GNU can't run without a kernel, and the kernel's no good without an operating environment running on top of it...
I think splitting hairs on this issue is pretty ridiculous. Terminology does not equate to respect. I respect the GNU project, I just don't believe in straining my word choice as a way to share that respect with others. Simply saying "Linux" communicates the nature of my PC's software environment quite effectively.
(Incidentally, at the risk of starting a flamewar, I think the 28th of September was also a fairly important anniversary ...)
You know, I really respect the GNU project and everything the FSF has accomplished... And really a lot of the things on that list were, in fact, accomplished...
But what really strikes me about that old RMS post is how much it reminds me of all the times I've gotten really excited about something I was planning to make, told everybody I could about the project and all the grand things I'd accomplish and then... often, nothing would come of it. The real similarity here, I guess, is the posting that comes out of the "initial excitement" stage of the project, before there's anything substantial to actually show... (I usually try to avoid postings like that, these days...)
Not only that, but it was a negative term before, too.
A "hack" is an ugly thrown-together bit of code that is used because "it works" rather than coming up with a proper solution. A "hacker" is someone who largely produces this low quality, but mostly functional code.
But, conversely, a hacker is also somebody who's comfortable dealing with that mess - someone who understands the machine well enough to be able to work with it, without necessarily wrapping every little thing in a comfortable abstraction. It's someone who, when confronted with something they're not entire able to handle, is willing to wade through the difficulty and confusion until they find their solution. This is important: not everybody is up for that. A "hacking" approach isn't the best way to deal with things from a professional, engineering standpoint, but on the other hand, if you're doing something as a hobby, the rigors of a professional approach aren't always the best choice, either.
Honestly, I'm OK with the fact that people don't agree on the usage of the term. It's just like any other niche group in society: those in the group have their own terminology and attitudes and everything and those outside the group will tend to see things differently. That's life, you know? You deal with it.
I've always thought "cracker" was just plain an awkward term to try to use, even before one considers the "honky" association. Personally I would call people who set out to ruin other people's systems "computer-vandals" or maybe "malicious hackers". Don't worry, I don't have any delusions of changing what words they use on the news... But when I talk to friends, or other people who are inclined to listen to what I have to say, I'll set 'em straight.
Still not sure why this is news though. I mean the headline could very easily be "Man presumed dead still dead."
Three words:
Generalissimo Francisco Franco
So was D-DAY landing at Normandy. You can TOTALLY see the pixelated artifacts around Tom Hanks. And I'm supposed to believe he lead the invasion AND went to the moon? COme on! How naive do they think we are?
Duh, how do you think we defeated Moon Hitler?
His name is Retik...
When I do play GBA games it's usually on a Game Boy of some kind - most often the Micro. It's more portable than the DS which is real handy sometimes. Plus I think it's just an all-around better experience than booting up a GBA game on the DS, not using the full screen or the full set of controls... Really, once I got a decent collection of DS games going, I found I'd rather play those on the DS.
But even if it was under-utilized, I liked the potential for the GBA slot as hardware expansion. Guitar Hero is a good example.
In terms of homebrew, I'm happy enough if I can use my R4DS... But I wouldn't be surprised if Nintendo arranged for that to not work on the new system...
From TFA:
...and it's possible to download games and keep them on the DSi.
I'm buying one.
Yeah, the possibility of downloadable "DSWare" on this thing is the one part of the whole deal that's really attractive. I don't care about MP3 playing or a crappy VGA-resolution camera (ugh), and the fact that homebrew may not work on the thing is unappealing... But downloadable titles? Hell yeah... On the Wii I've been playing tons of Dr. Mario online and Mega Man 9, and eyeing the new Bomberman online - having that kind of stuff on the DS would rock.
I surely sympathize with people who would want to play Guitar Hero and such on the new model (as well as the folks who developed Guitar Hero DS, and now may have a harder time selling it...) - that issue doesn't affect me so much, though.
Pretty sure that music precedes unicode, dude, and they write the sharp sign using anything that looks like a tiny smooshed tick-tack-toe board.
At any case, you're both wrong. "E#" is pronounced "eff" - there is a half step between E and F, and the "#" sign denotes "do this note, except take it up half a step."
E#==F.
That's actually not entirely true.
It is true that going a half-step up from E gives you F. However, in certain keys you'd still refer to the note as E#.
Cue South Park's portrayal of Johnnie Cochran and the Chewbacca defense in 5, 4, 3....
I love that bit! I know the whole thing by heart - Check this out...
"Hi. I'm Johnnie Cochrane. This is the Chewbacca Defense."
Heh, that bit cracks me up!
you ever been kicked in the nuts? even by accident? i'll take a bat the face before i experience that again
Mr. Wayne will be pleased to hear that. He enjoyed the last time.
My favorite part of that press release:
"RealNetworks' RealDVD should be called StealDVD,"
Oh yeah? Well my lawyers can beat up your lawyers! Yo' momma has weak access restrictions too!
Here's the thing: a big part of his argument is based on what happens to the story of Moby Dick if you make it interactive - either you stick to the events of the book, making the player's ability to impact the world just an illusion, or else you open up the story, giving Ahab a chance to win, which defeats the message of the book.
What the article author ignores is that, first, different media are well suited to telling different kinds of stories. Where a fixed, sequential novel might excel at emphasizing the inevitability of fate, an interactive game could deliver an alternate message, showing people how their decisions allow them to make their own fate. (Moby Dick, then, may simply not be a good story to turn into a game...)
Second, if the game allows you all kinds of freedom, but you still ultimately die facing the white whale, doesn't that deliver the same message of inevitable fate that the book does? Or what if Ahab's choices are to run away (but still be tormented by the memory of the white whale) or confront the whale and die?
Anyway, the whole notion of "high art" (or Art with a capital A) is a bit overrated. The notion that games must establish themselves as a viable medium for "real art" is just a red herring... What's really going on is that some people don't take games seriously or think of them strictly as a bad influence... Those of us who feel otherwise are attempting to justify our opinions by asserting that games are art. But this ignores two important facts. First, even if they are truly art (and I believe they are - why not?), "art" does not carry some magical self-legitimizing power. The rights of artists to express themselves freely are not won easily. Second, (and this is the point that I think is important to realize, and one of the reasons this "games as Art" thing is an Ackbarian trap) there's no reason we should have to specifically legitimize games in the first place. The fact that we get drawn into such debates means this point is already lost.
Wasn't the hook of that movie that the scenes were arranged in a different order?
Backwards, yes. The idea was the main character lost track of all his recent thoughts every 5 minutes or so - and so successive scenes would generally fill in information that altered the interpretation of the preceding scenes. (So kind of a fractal Kaiser Sose deal...)
It's kind of a lame gimmick, and it makes the movie really hard to follow - and the overall premise is pretty ridiculous. But there was one bit in there I enjoyed...
Basically the scene starts with the main character frantically digging through a room, when suddenly a woman outside catches his attention. She comes in, upset, beaten, and tells him that some guy did this to her and she needs help getting rid of him, etc.
In the next scene it's revealed that the woman was just in the room with him a few minutes ago - before he arrived she went through the room removing all writing materials. IIRC she taunted the main character dude about his memory condition and his dead wife, prodded him until finally he hit her, then she left. He realized she was manipulating him and started searching for a pen and paper so he could write this crucial bit of information down - and then as she came back into the room he forgot all this...
The rules that made Memento work were, to me, an interesting experiment... Though I'd say once is plenty of that. :)
Let me assure you, there is nothing to be worried about. I'm watching a couple of guys fiddle with some of the magnets right now and they assure me that nothing can go wro
Oh, no! The LHC blew up and the explosion threw you from your keyboard, clicked "preview" and then clicked "submit"!
I hate it when that happens. That's the third time this week!
that means i'll be able to find an old DS for cheap. =P
aside from the size and aesthetics, is their any difference in functionality between 1st gen DS and the DS lite?
The biggest difference is the screen. The DS Lite's screen is a lot brighter.
The tactile response on the controls is different, too - but I haven't used the DS Lite enough to say whether it's an improvement or not. But the smaller form factor of the Lite does make it easier to reach the touch screen in games that use both the control pad and touch screen...
I agree with you. As the DS isn't forced to be connected to the internet all the time like the Wii or XBox 360, there's little chance that a user would install a console firmware update that would brick a hacked firmware or disable Slot1/2 card. So they use the carrot instead of the stick - new shiny carrot vs your old machine that can play homebrew/backup roms but has poor wifi and no camera...
OK, technically the Wii isn't "forced" to be connected to the internet all the time... You always have the option of not connecting the thing to your router - and if you do that, games will still just work. To my knowledge Nintendo doesn't push out firmware updates, either - they send you mails, suggesting you upgrade firmware, but that's it...
Now, regarding the matter of DS updates bricking DSes - it has happened before.
Specifically, old versions of FlashMe (from before Mario Kart DS, the first DS game with internet connectivity) wrote some of its own code into regions of flash ROM which would later be used by Ninteno Wi-Fi connection to store router settings and so on. So once the user booted up a game with Nintendo Wi-Fi support and configured their internet connection, their DS would be bricked. (Fortunately, FlashMe included a contingency that allowed people to re-flash their DSes even after something like this...)
Of course, I don't think it's entirely fair to say that's Nintendo's fault. I mean, after all, nobody told Flashme they could use that area of ROM...