It's not a big deal that you have a hard time finding games you like. There are more games around, games get more ad coverage than ever, and you're getting older.
Plus, if you really think about it, the games you go back to again and again are a tiny, tiny, tiny fraction of the games you used to play, or was able to play, as a kid. There's always been a ton of cruft to sift through to find the gems; it's no different now, but it seems worse since your tastes have changed.
Just relax, keep gaming for fun, and you'll find the modern gems eventually. It's not a huge deal and a bit inevitable, really; you simply have less free time to sift through the muck now that you're older.
What it really comes down to is an awareness that these games are all about playing with other people. Human interaction is rich and nuanced; yes, there must be a minimum level of game mechanics to play effectively. However, there have been numerous times when I, as a lower character level/skill level player, will go out and beat higher level players in resource collection/pvp/what have you, simply because I try to figure out how they will approach this challenge, and act accordingly. To make a WoW analogy, just like the game of WoW really begins at max level, a player's skill in a multiplayer game merely starts with an understanding of game mechanics.
As such, future mmo's looking at skill or level based character development should really look at the context in which this system operates. What system will be more fun for the player?
While publishing it, and making it prior art would be nice, the only way for you to totally place it into the public domain would be for you to patent it yourself.
Sure, in a technical sense making it prior art would bar others from patenting it, effectively placing it into the public domain. However, in reality, people could still apply to patent the invention, and the burden would be on them to notify the patent examiner about your prior art.
Guess how much that will happen.
So, assuming they don't talk about your publication, and the examiner doesn't know, they get a patent. Once that happens, then it's up to an enterprising soul to file an appeal with the patent board... and sure, the patent would probably be revoked, but it would take time and money. During this time, people would be afraid to use the patent, etc etc.
Since a patent is a right to exclude others from using your invention, the easiest way would be to talk to your local law school, see if there's any sort of IP clinic, and ask them to help you file the patent. They will probably have someone student that has passed the patent bar early, and can help you file as a patent agent. Then you would just pay the fee, get the patent filed for you, and some law student would get some nice experience. After you get the patent, simply let people use it for free.
But that's exactly why Nintendo fascinates me. They manage to utilize all the protections and attacks the law provides for and still thrive; most companies can't, because you just drain goodwill too fast to do business. Nintendo, beyond anything else, does absurdly good PR.
Which, when you think about it, makes them the revived Apple before Apple.
"I'm told researchers like to come and dig through my files, to see if anything interesting turns up," Mr. Cheney said. "I want to wish them luck, but the files are pretty thin. I learned early on that if you don't want your memos to get you in trouble some day, just don't write any."
This really says it all, doesn't it? I mean, wasn't this essentially Nixon's view on things? That if the president (or his puppet master, vice-president Cheney) deems it not for the public's purview, it's none of your damn business? I mean, what part of PUBLIC office does this numbskull not understand? (Excuse me, the mastermind understands, just doesn't care.)
Sickening. What's even worse is that no one's gonna make this administration accountable for anything they've done. In fact, I'm sure no one's gonna really take a hard look at what exactly this administration has done until a looong time later; everyone's too preoccupied with moving on.
I agree with your post, except for one thing. You mention obsessive, addicted individuals and quote an example of two dating 17 year olds...
While this may be an example of obsession, technology has nothing to do with it. Teenagers have been communicating obsessively for ages. Before text, it was cell phones. Before cell phones, it was the dedicated phone line. Before that, it was reams of letters. People gossip, people like to chat, and the tech simply makes it easier.
Hell, I remember as a teen sneaking into bed with the house phone to talk to a girl for hours in the dark. And remember when teens would beg their parents for their own phone line? It's nothing new, is what I'm trying to say. There's just a new twist added with modern technology.
Why are you being so closed minded? By making sweeping generalizations, you are simply pulling a Jack Thompson. This study is not telling you to force your kid to play MMO's, nor is it telling you to let your kid play MMO's for hours on end. It is simply saying that there are benefits to playing MMO's that may not be readily apparent.
It is not a parenting manual, nor is it purporting to be. Moderation and adaptability is always key in any child-rearing environment, and that is something that is sorely lacking in your reply.
You may be trying to be snide, but yes, you really should always have a lawyer present when that kind of heat is being applied to you.
Federal investigators don't have to recite Miranda unless they're taking you under custody. (and depending on what kind of investigator they are, they might not have the authority to take you under custody.) And lying to a federal investigator is a serious no-no regardless of what the circumstances are. See 18 USC 1001. Simply put, don't lie when the feds come asking questions. It's a crime, plain and simple.
Or, like parent said, don't say anything unless you have a lawyer present.
Oh, and IANAL...yet.
Slashdot Mirror
It's not a big deal that you have a hard time finding games you like. There are more games around, games get more ad coverage than ever, and you're getting older.
Plus, if you really think about it, the games you go back to again and again are a tiny, tiny, tiny fraction of the games you used to play, or was able to play, as a kid. There's always been a ton of cruft to sift through to find the gems; it's no different now, but it seems worse since your tastes have changed.
Just relax, keep gaming for fun, and you'll find the modern gems eventually. It's not a huge deal and a bit inevitable, really; you simply have less free time to sift through the muck now that you're older.
What's the problem with paying for online capability? Are they giving out free internet to PCs where you live?
What it really comes down to is an awareness that these games are all about playing with other people. Human interaction is rich and nuanced; yes, there must be a minimum level of game mechanics to play effectively. However, there have been numerous times when I, as a lower character level/skill level player, will go out and beat higher level players in resource collection/pvp/what have you, simply because I try to figure out how they will approach this challenge, and act accordingly. To make a WoW analogy, just like the game of WoW really begins at max level, a player's skill in a multiplayer game merely starts with an understanding of game mechanics.
As such, future mmo's looking at skill or level based character development should really look at the context in which this system operates. What system will be more fun for the player?
While publishing it, and making it prior art would be nice, the only way for you to totally place it into the public domain would be for you to patent it yourself.
Sure, in a technical sense making it prior art would bar others from patenting it, effectively placing it into the public domain. However, in reality, people could still apply to patent the invention, and the burden would be on them to notify the patent examiner about your prior art.
Guess how much that will happen.
So, assuming they don't talk about your publication, and the examiner doesn't know, they get a patent. Once that happens, then it's up to an enterprising soul to file an appeal with the patent board... and sure, the patent would probably be revoked, but it would take time and money. During this time, people would be afraid to use the patent, etc etc.
Since a patent is a right to exclude others from using your invention, the easiest way would be to talk to your local law school, see if there's any sort of IP clinic, and ask them to help you file the patent. They will probably have someone student that has passed the patent bar early, and can help you file as a patent agent. Then you would just pay the fee, get the patent filed for you, and some law student would get some nice experience. After you get the patent, simply let people use it for free.
But that's exactly why Nintendo fascinates me. They manage to utilize all the protections and attacks the law provides for and still thrive; most companies can't, because you just drain goodwill too fast to do business. Nintendo, beyond anything else, does absurdly good PR.
Which, when you think about it, makes them the revived Apple before Apple.
"I'm told researchers like to come and dig through my files, to see if anything interesting turns up," Mr. Cheney said. "I want to wish them luck, but the files are pretty thin. I learned early on that if you don't want your memos to get you in trouble some day, just don't write any."
This really says it all, doesn't it? I mean, wasn't this essentially Nixon's view on things? That if the president (or his puppet master, vice-president Cheney) deems it not for the public's purview, it's none of your damn business? I mean, what part of PUBLIC office does this numbskull not understand? (Excuse me, the mastermind understands, just doesn't care.)
Sickening. What's even worse is that no one's gonna make this administration accountable for anything they've done. In fact, I'm sure no one's gonna really take a hard look at what exactly this administration has done until a looong time later; everyone's too preoccupied with moving on.
I agree with your post, except for one thing. You mention obsessive, addicted individuals and quote an example of two dating 17 year olds...
While this may be an example of obsession, technology has nothing to do with it. Teenagers have been communicating obsessively for ages. Before text, it was cell phones. Before cell phones, it was the dedicated phone line. Before that, it was reams of letters. People gossip, people like to chat, and the tech simply makes it easier.
Hell, I remember as a teen sneaking into bed with the house phone to talk to a girl for hours in the dark. And remember when teens would beg their parents for their own phone line? It's nothing new, is what I'm trying to say. There's just a new twist added with modern technology.
Why are you being so closed minded? By making sweeping generalizations, you are simply pulling a Jack Thompson. This study is not telling you to force your kid to play MMO's, nor is it telling you to let your kid play MMO's for hours on end. It is simply saying that there are benefits to playing MMO's that may not be readily apparent. It is not a parenting manual, nor is it purporting to be. Moderation and adaptability is always key in any child-rearing environment, and that is something that is sorely lacking in your reply.
You may be trying to be snide, but yes, you really should always have a lawyer present when that kind of heat is being applied to you. Federal investigators don't have to recite Miranda unless they're taking you under custody. (and depending on what kind of investigator they are, they might not have the authority to take you under custody.) And lying to a federal investigator is a serious no-no regardless of what the circumstances are. See 18 USC 1001. Simply put, don't lie when the feds come asking questions. It's a crime, plain and simple. Or, like parent said, don't say anything unless you have a lawyer present. Oh, and IANAL...yet.