Is it really a foregone conclusion that 60fps looks better than 30fps? Does Super Mario World (to use the author's own example) really look smoother in 60fps versus 30fps?
"Good framerates" aren't important. "Good enough" frame rates are important. Anything below good enough is obviously bad, and anything above is not noticeable.
Pardon my ignorance, but is 60hz really the same thing as 60 frames-per-second?
Damn, time for a new graphics card
on
Framerates Matter
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· Score: 1
...sounds like this entire article was sponsored by nVidia.
What this blog fails to discuss is the concept of "good enough" is good enough. A game running a 60 fps is plenty good enough and hardly anybody would notice an improvement if you bump that number up. That's why it's good enough, because the amount of money it takes to improve the frame rate isn't worth the return (little to no perceived quality improvement).
I know a few of you like your giant, uncompressed audio files as well, but I'm just fine with my 128 mp3s (anything below that is noticeably degraded, anything bigger than that makes no difference to this 40 year old drummer's ears).
I can't code two consecutive lines of code correctly, but I'm in charge of three people who can and my section has just earned a 110 million contract. So no, you don't have to know the tech you're working with...you just need to know the people who know the tech that are working on it for you.
But in my case, the "development of computer systems" exists solely to support the people who use the computer systems to write code for our company software product line. The software developers are NOT IT, because they aren't developing computer systems or applications that help them to develop software.
Making somebody be on call 24/7 is not illegal. Not paying somebody for when they DO get called in is illegal (for non-exempt employees). Most of our IT folks (except the entry level guys are exempted employees, so they are expected to work as much as it takes for whatever salary they get. Them's the breaks when you work in such a skilled labor category.
IT folks make more money on average than a job in other industries that requires the same amount of skill, work, hardship, etc. If you don't like your IT job, take a lower paying job that makes you happy.
I was pretty sure nexus was a real word, therefore ridiculous to try and patent. Android, I wasn't so sure on (and still inconclusive). Droid is obviously of Star Wars lore, but also an obvious variant of android, so curious as how that got patented.
Isn't "droid" a made-up word, whereas android is not? If this is indeed the case, then how can an author claim intellectual property rights to a word he didn't invent? Same with nexus. Did Dick invent the word nexus (honestly asking, because I don't know if android and nexus are real words or made up by a sci-fi author).
Not only is there nothing wrong with linear story lines, some of us actual prefer them. I hate those vast expansive worlds where you can just run around doing anything. I got flustered and overwhelmed when I get near the 25 quest limit in WoW, for example.
Part of the "entertainment" aspect (for me at least) is playing a game like watching a movie or reading a book...you get to unveil the author's vision...not make your own. Some people want to make their own art -- some of us like discovering the artistry of others.
When I worked in England, a typical day for my coworkers consisted of: taking child to school that starts much later than US schools (roughly 9 am), taking public transportation to work, getting there at roughly 10 am, nipping off to the pub for a bite to eat, some tea, and a beer (or three) from about 12-1:30, then leaving for the day at 3. Yet my coworkers were just as productive as my current coworkers in the US are, even though we work a full 8 hours.
While this post is slightly tongue-in-cheek, the reality remains that "hard work" is a relative term across global economies and cannot be measured in hours logged on your timecard.
And I would argue more people know Zork than Keen. I'm just trying to break you out of your egocentric playground for a moment and get you to see the bigger picture. Combat, Pitfall Harry, Jumpman, Krazy Klimber, Marble Madness, Galaga, Defender, Civ, Zork, Ultima, Wolfenstein, Marathon, Wing Commander, Duke Nukem, Warcraft II...hell even EARTHWORM JIM are more well-known, genre defining games than Keen.
I'm just saying as a 40 year old gamer who started with a Vic-20, an Atari 2600, an Atari 800 then a Commodore 64, I've got a bit of history on my side when I say that I never even heard of Cmdr. Keen until this thread. I looked it up and yes, Doom has a cute little homage to Keen, but that homage is lost on most people (and most/. nerds).
I work at a medium sized software company (500 employees) and was not aware that IT had any power to abuse.
They can be passive-aggressive and take their sweet time to fix my constantly messed up Active Directory, but other than that, they wield no real power.
Because emulation usually sucks for 3d games. The game barely runs on my Intel iMac under WinXP. I'm just going to guess it won't run at a playable rate under any emulator.
I know plenty of good developers who aren't good at keeping their machines running well. They are two different skill sets, thus two different positions (IT and Developer).
Race car drivers don't have to be good mechanics (for the mandatory car analogy).
No, the Microsoft UI is heavily flawed, but is "good enough". People just don't have high standards, and there's no incentive for Microsoft to make it better when they have (had) 90% market share. People changed their behavior to adept to the bad UI and grew to accept it. Now when something different and better comes along, people don't like it, because they have a heavy investment in the bad way of doing things.
2007 isn't great either, it's just better. I'm tired of people complaining about it because THEY don't want to change.
Slashdot Mirror
Is it really a foregone conclusion that 60fps looks better than 30fps? Does Super Mario World (to use the author's own example) really look smoother in 60fps versus 30fps?
"Good framerates" aren't important. "Good enough" frame rates are important. Anything below good enough is obviously bad, and anything above is not noticeable.
Pardon my ignorance, but is 60hz really the same thing as 60 frames-per-second?
...sounds like this entire article was sponsored by nVidia.
What this blog fails to discuss is the concept of "good enough" is good enough. A game running a 60 fps is plenty good enough and hardly anybody would notice an improvement if you bump that number up. That's why it's good enough, because the amount of money it takes to improve the frame rate isn't worth the return (little to no perceived quality improvement).
I know a few of you like your giant, uncompressed audio files as well, but I'm just fine with my 128 mp3s (anything below that is noticeably degraded, anything bigger than that makes no difference to this 40 year old drummer's ears).
I can't code two consecutive lines of code correctly, but I'm in charge of three people who can and my section has just earned a 110 million contract. So no, you don't have to know the tech you're working with...you just need to know the people who know the tech that are working on it for you.
You can't solve a tech problem without knowing the tech.
And this mentality is why you will always be working FOR me.
But in my case, the "development of computer systems" exists solely to support the people who use the computer systems to write code for our company software product line. The software developers are NOT IT, because they aren't developing computer systems or applications that help them to develop software.
I work for a software company. IT here means "people who fix computers, printers, user accounts, and networks".
My 70 year old parents, on the other hand, refer to anything that uses a computer as IT.
Making somebody be on call 24/7 is not illegal. Not paying somebody for when they DO get called in is illegal (for non-exempt employees). Most of our IT folks (except the entry level guys are exempted employees, so they are expected to work as much as it takes for whatever salary they get. Them's the breaks when you work in such a skilled labor category.
IT folks make more money on average than a job in other industries that requires the same amount of skill, work, hardship, etc. If you don't like your IT job, take a lower paying job that makes you happy.
I was pretty sure nexus was a real word, therefore ridiculous to try and patent. Android, I wasn't so sure on (and still inconclusive). Droid is obviously of Star Wars lore, but also an obvious variant of android, so curious as how that got patented.
Maybe you could download a torrent of the book and read it on your phone, just to spite the author.
Unless you are arguing that every proper noun ever used in any copy right protected creation is also protected against trademarks.
-Rick
See Apple's "Trash" and why Microsoft had to call theirs "Recycle Bin". Same goes for "Quit" versus "Exit"...or so the legend goes.
Isn't "droid" a made-up word, whereas android is not? If this is indeed the case, then how can an author claim intellectual property rights to a word he didn't invent? Same with nexus. Did Dick invent the word nexus (honestly asking, because I don't know if android and nexus are real words or made up by a sci-fi author).
Not only is there nothing wrong with linear story lines, some of us actual prefer them. I hate those vast expansive worlds where you can just run around doing anything. I got flustered and overwhelmed when I get near the 25 quest limit in WoW, for example.
Part of the "entertainment" aspect (for me at least) is playing a game like watching a movie or reading a book...you get to unveil the author's vision...not make your own. Some people want to make their own art -- some of us like discovering the artistry of others.
When I worked in England, a typical day for my coworkers consisted of: taking child to school that starts much later than US schools (roughly 9 am), taking public transportation to work, getting there at roughly 10 am, nipping off to the pub for a bite to eat, some tea, and a beer (or three) from about 12-1:30, then leaving for the day at 3. Yet my coworkers were just as productive as my current coworkers in the US are, even though we work a full 8 hours.
While this post is slightly tongue-in-cheek, the reality remains that "hard work" is a relative term across global economies and cannot be measured in hours logged on your timecard.
And I would argue more people know Zork than Keen. I'm just trying to break you out of your egocentric playground for a moment and get you to see the bigger picture. Combat, Pitfall Harry, Jumpman, Krazy Klimber, Marble Madness, Galaga, Defender, Civ, Zork, Ultima, Wolfenstein, Marathon, Wing Commander, Duke Nukem, Warcraft II...hell even EARTHWORM JIM are more well-known, genre defining games than Keen.
I'm just saying as a 40 year old gamer who started with a Vic-20, an Atari 2600, an Atari 800 then a Commodore 64, I've got a bit of history on my side when I say that I never even heard of Cmdr. Keen until this thread. I looked it up and yes, Doom has a cute little homage to Keen, but that homage is lost on most people (and most /. nerds).
I work at a medium sized software company (500 employees) and was not aware that IT had any power to abuse.
They can be passive-aggressive and take their sweet time to fix my constantly messed up Active Directory, but other than that, they wield no real power.
See, that's my point. EVERYONE knows Donkey Kong. A few slashdot people know Cmdr. Keen.
Because emulation usually sucks for 3d games. The game barely runs on my Intel iMac under WinXP. I'm just going to guess it won't run at a playable rate under any emulator.
They do? Damnit, I've been running it with Boot Camp for no reason!?
I know plenty of good developers who aren't good at keeping their machines running well. They are two different skill sets, thus two different positions (IT and Developer).
Race car drivers don't have to be good mechanics (for the mandatory car analogy).
No, the Microsoft UI is heavily flawed, but is "good enough". People just don't have high standards, and there's no incentive for Microsoft to make it better when they have (had) 90% market share. People changed their behavior to adept to the bad UI and grew to accept it. Now when something different and better comes along, people don't like it, because they have a heavy investment in the bad way of doing things.
2007 isn't great either, it's just better. I'm tired of people complaining about it because THEY don't want to change.
I looked it up. Guess I missed it. I was busy playing C64 games I guess, or Atari 800 versions of Ultima?
In any case, it's not a defining, pioneering video game that most non-nerds can identify.
Let's try another example. Say I want to disable spell-checking in my document. I've never used a Microsoft interface before.
Well, as a tech writer, I'm biased and have an easy solution -- you open the help file, which is easy enough to find in the menus (or F1).
If you are obstinate like me, an even easier solution would be to keep looking until you find it.