Is It Possible to Build Dramatically Compelling Interactive Digital Entertainment
(in the form, e.g., of computer games)?
I guess the answer will be printed next month?
Sort of reminds me of Chris Crawfords `journal of interactive entertainment design`, which printed a monthly list of all that was wrong with computer games, but no ideas to help right those wrongs! That was amusing for about 5 mins too.
I`m pretty sure most games programmers wont be reading this stuff very much, in the same way that most madonna fans dont read those amusing post-modern deconstructions of her work in high-brow critical theory wank mags.
I wonder if it`ll tell us anything the average game player wont already know. "They are popular because they are fun", that sort of thing. "They engage the player far more than passively watching television". But no doubt they`ll remind us "Some games are better than others". Etc.
I read something about that, but i thought it was a hoax. There was an April fools joke in an electronic magazine about this years ago, but i`m sure this was not the only mention i`ve heard about it being not true. It sounds plausible though!
Then again, i`m sure some channels still use the little flashing box in the corner of the screen to alert networks that ads are approaching, so maybe its just done via a more advanced version of that system (maybe broadcast seperately from the tv signal).
Regards ads on subscription channels - i think thats just the same as adverts in magazines and newspapers. They could fix it so theres no ads, but you`d probably be paying a lot more for the channels.
I believe that for tabloid papers, the ratio between revenue received from cover price and ad revenue was something like 70:30, where for the broadsheets it was the other way around. God knows what the equivalent figures are for subscription channels!
Amusing that the other replies missed the Huxley reference....
In europe most channels have annoying logos in the corner of the screen so you know what you`re watching (like I care!). I use videoplus on my regular VCR, so i rarely remember which channel a film/show is on (unless there are ads, which i obviously skip through).
Oh, hope you dont mind me borrowing your spacecraft for f-zero advance!
Sounds like a sex-toy, but its the name of a type of audio processor, usually used to make a mix sound more `exciting`. Its part of the reason why adverts on tv/radio are so annoying - it makes sounds more bright and noticable, at least, until you overload on it!
Supposedly based on harmonics or what have you of sounds which babies make.
"the problem was that firemen have learned to associate the sound of the engine with excitement. So they arrived at fires unprepared, psychologically, and without the gusto to fight the fire. Weird, huh? "
If they were excited, surely they`d arrive all hyped up and ready to get to work?
I`m sure i heard about plans to intersperse sirens with white noise years ago. this story (or at least the manifestation of it i read in the papers the other day) went on about how the noise was created, but i got the impression from the older reports that it didnt matter.
so, hes still got someones computer, and, under uk law at least, its still yours (possession may have changed hands, but ownership hasnt).
i still vote for the eastern block buddy...something i`ll be employing when GPS systems become small and cheap enough to fit inside tv`s and computers.
Probably luck. Paranoia is a powerful force. I remember a friend being convinced the rocks were aiming for him in Asteroids. They dont. It just seems like they do!
was the world where you`d like to see something which is moving. When i`ve tried playing games on an LCD screen its a bit like playing a scrolling game on the old Gameboy - a big blurry mess.
Just 2 accounts - a spammy `post to usenet/slashdot/etc` one, which will get caned with badly spelt pyramid schemes etc, and another which you get your friends to set you up using something like
"password "
you set up a filter saying "if subject doesnt contain password then send to trash folder"
"I think that NASA and the media has stoped promoting the space program. "
Well, perhaps its for the best. They often screw up! In the same way that other space-bound devices arent named until they are in orbit (to prevent embarassment if they screw up and wipe out), perhaps NASA should shroud their launches in secrecy and only announce them when they are on mars or wherever?
"I know I'll never be able to change your mind since its already made up so their is really no reason to continue. "
Nonono! i agree with you about the pros and cons of each! i use both!! i still find my knowledge of assembler useful (and i`ve done a touch of intel, and yes, its a dog). i`ll use either C or VB where appropriate. I just happen to prefer VB, cos i like sitting down and writing a whole, small but useful app in an evening/week. C is cool for writing little dos command line apps, or thing which require speed, or which must be easily portable to other platforms!
"bad habit(which generally they are such as global variables, multiple return points within a single function/procedure, etc) "
No different to C! You can do all of that in both languages!
Speed isnt important for a lot of programs, outside of the tiresome world of game framerates, and server throughput. Some people still spend their time making 2d graphics cards run faster. Faster than what? Oh, faster than `fast enough`. Strange.
I`m not suggesting write kernals or games or drivers in vb. But for either knocking up demos, or for writing apps where speed isnt too important (stuff like Outlook, or a front end for anything, really), why bother with C/C++? Its just a waste of time.
I learned (68000) assembler first, and after i did a bit of C, i couldnt stand to go back. Now i`m doing VB, and the idea of doing tedious low lever stuff like string manipulation in C, now i`m used to :
Slashdot Mirror
No wait! Whats this? The question:
Is It Possible to Build Dramatically Compelling Interactive Digital Entertainment
(in the form, e.g., of computer games)?
I guess the answer will be printed next month?
Sort of reminds me of Chris Crawfords `journal of interactive entertainment design`, which printed a monthly list of all that was wrong with computer games, but no ideas to help right those wrongs! That was amusing for about 5 mins too.
I`m pretty sure most games programmers wont be reading this stuff very much, in the same way that most madonna fans dont read those amusing post-modern deconstructions of her work in high-brow critical theory wank mags.
I wonder if it`ll tell us anything the average game player wont already know. "They are popular because they are fun", that sort of thing. "They engage the player far more than passively watching television". But no doubt they`ll remind us "Some games are better than others". Etc.
Why has this story got a `compaq` icon?
and Denmark is the capital of Sweden!
"taking advantage of a well-known idea that many are already working on and was forecast many, many years ago."
:)
Perhaps it should be under the `patents` section then?
I read something about that, but i thought it was a hoax. There was an April fools joke in an electronic magazine about this years ago, but i`m sure this was not the only mention i`ve heard about it being not true. It sounds plausible though!
Then again, i`m sure some channels still use the little flashing box in the corner of the screen to alert networks that ads are approaching, so maybe its just done via a more advanced version of that system (maybe broadcast seperately from the tv signal).
Regards ads on subscription channels - i think thats just the same as adverts in magazines and newspapers. They could fix it so theres no ads, but you`d probably be paying a lot more for the channels.
I believe that for tabloid papers, the ratio between revenue received from cover price and ad revenue was something like 70:30, where for the broadsheets it was the other way around. God knows what the equivalent figures are for subscription channels!
So, now you can fake a photo, create some audio evidence, maybe a touch of DNA from their rubbish and voila!! Guilty as charged!
Amusing that the other replies missed the Huxley reference....
In europe most channels have annoying logos in the corner of the screen so you know what you`re watching (like I care!). I use videoplus on my regular VCR, so i rarely remember which channel a film/show is on (unless there are ads, which i obviously skip through).
Oh, hope you dont mind me borrowing your spacecraft for f-zero advance!
..oh, never mind.
I noticed spam getting past my filters recently...turns out they`ve taken to having
t o b e r e m o v e d f r o m o u r m a i l i n g l i s t
etc. Pity, as this was the easiest way to filter a lot of spam straight into my trash folder.
"'Twould be better for a hundred convenience store robbers to get away than for even one of our freedoms to be infringed. "
The freedom to own a convenience store, for example?
http://www.waldherr.org/blocklist
even if its not been updated for a year or so...
Sounds like a sex-toy, but its the name of a type of audio processor, usually used to make a mix sound more `exciting`. Its part of the reason why adverts on tv/radio are so annoying - it makes sounds more bright and noticable, at least, until you overload on it!
Supposedly based on harmonics or what have you of sounds which babies make.
"the problem was that firemen have learned to associate the sound of the engine with excitement. So they arrived at fires unprepared, psychologically, and without the gusto to fight the fire. Weird, huh? "
If they were excited, surely they`d arrive all hyped up and ready to get to work?
I`m sure i heard about plans to intersperse sirens with white noise years ago. this story (or at least the manifestation of it i read in the papers the other day) went on about how the noise was created, but i got the impression from the older reports that it didnt matter.
so, hes still got someones computer, and, under uk law at least, its still yours (possession may have changed hands, but ownership hasnt).
i still vote for the eastern block buddy...something i`ll be employing when GPS systems become small and cheap enough to fit inside tv`s and computers.
Same as software piracy perhaps?
Probably luck. Paranoia is a powerful force. I remember a friend being convinced the rocks were aiming for him in Asteroids. They dont. It just seems like they do!
was the world where you`d like to see something which is moving. When i`ve tried playing games on an LCD screen its a bit like playing a scrolling game on the old Gameboy - a big blurry mess.
"So why do many people think that China is the worst place on earth? "
Perhaps because they killed >1000 civilians for no reason, in front of the worlds media, and then denied it?
"Plain old text", eh? plain old text and no angled brackets, you mean?
that should have said
" password open-angle-brackets username @ whatever.com close-angle-brackets"
Just 2 accounts - a spammy `post to usenet/slashdot/etc` one, which will get caned with badly spelt pyramid schemes etc, and another which you get your friends to set you up using something like
"password "
you set up a filter saying "if subject doesnt contain password then send to trash folder"
and thats pretty much it - zero spam.
"I think that NASA and the media has stoped promoting the space program. "
Well, perhaps its for the best. They often screw up! In the same way that other space-bound devices arent named until they are in orbit (to prevent embarassment if they screw up and wipe out), perhaps NASA should shroud their launches in secrecy and only announce them when they are on mars or wherever?
"I know I'll never be able to change your mind since its already made up so their is really no reason to continue. "
Nonono! i agree with you about the pros and cons of each! i use both!! i still find my knowledge of assembler useful (and i`ve done a touch of intel, and yes, its a dog). i`ll use either C or VB where appropriate. I just happen to prefer VB, cos i like sitting down and writing a whole, small but useful app in an evening/week. C is cool for writing little dos command line apps, or thing which require speed, or which must be easily portable to other platforms!
"bad habit(which generally they are such as global variables, multiple return points within a single function/procedure, etc) "
:)
No different to C! You can do all of that in both languages!
Speed isnt important for a lot of programs, outside of the tiresome world of game framerates, and server throughput. Some people still spend their time making 2d graphics cards run faster. Faster than what? Oh, faster than `fast enough`. Strange.
I`m not suggesting write kernals or games or drivers in vb. But for either knocking up demos, or for writing apps where speed isnt too important (stuff like Outlook, or a front end for anything, really), why bother with C/C++? Its just a waste of time.
I learned (68000) assembler first, and after i did a bit of C, i couldnt stand to go back. Now i`m doing VB, and the idea of doing tedious low lever stuff like string manipulation in C, now i`m used to :
MyString = "File " & sFilename & "from drive " & !drivename & "is " & nSize " bytes."
strikes horror into my heart!