How many games have come out recently that are FPS? ALL OF THEM.
What's worse than that is they're the same FPS! I'm not just talking about look and feel, I mean codebase. Are the Quake 3, UT, and Half-life engines so perfect that nobody is even trying to design new ones?
And don't get me started on RTSes. It's kind of sad, the computer game industry went from one where people designed games out of love to one where everyone's trying for the next blockbuster. Kind of like what the movie industry went through in the early 80's.
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So, while it's not the typical lot of a sysadmin or programmer, it is possible:)
Actually, I work in a disgustingly trendy section of Manhattan, and there are a few modelling agencies in the building. Sometimes run into the models in the elevator; for some reason they act a little chilly around me.
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There was also a story on this slashcode-using site.
Seriously though, looks like they might be rolling this out a lot sooner than we thought, which is pretty cool. I've put off getting lasik myself partly because I'd like to see how far they can stretch this technology first. --
Although while I must say I am not "skilled" at pool, I am fairly adequate and can hold my own, most of the time.;)
It's interesting, but pool is one of those few pursuits where nobody seems to want to admit to inadequacy. Even the most modest people seem to boast how much they "rock" at it. Who knows.
With PC "speech codes" to some wacko colleges even outlawing ALL male pronouns, things have gotten very stupid.
Can you name some of these colleges? This isn't a flame, I'm just curious as to whether you have concrete examples.
Feminist professors get to exclude men from here classes and NOT end up getting fired (what would happen in reverse?).
I assume you're talking about the Mary Daly case. If so, the administration removed her from her position because of her insistence on female-only classes. If you have any other examples, I'd like to hear them.
As for the rest of your statements, I think you're overreacting. While many colleges have attempted to initiate regulates based on political correctness, they've been constantly defeated in court when they try to enforce them. I think a lot of this is just so much media hype; despite attacks from both the left and the right, most colleges have managed to remain free-speech safe.
In all honesty, these days, if you are going to be anything but a teacher, doctor, or lawyer, avoid college like the plague. Lack of a college degree really won't hinder you at all if you have IT skills and experience. Saving yourself 4 years of falling behind in the job market, and a LOT of money will put you ahead.
College isn't about money. It's a cliche, I know, but it's still true. If you have IT skills that will easily get you a job, be thankful; it gives you the freedom to study solely for enjoyment. Take the 4 years; if you're that eager to work, go part-time at least, to see if you enjoy it. --
Sounds a lot like region coding on DVDs. Take your DVD outside zone X, and it won't work any more.
This is far, far worse. DVDs aren't restricted to regions, they're restricted to DVD players set with the same region. If you moved to Calcutta, and brought your DVD player, you could still play your DVDs. --
But what about magic of games? What about that nights only with computer? What about sitting alone and thinking how to win?
Good point. I have not found anything that compares to the olden days, sitting alone in front of a text adventure, staring at the screen for an hour as my mind thrashes on some seeming impossible puzzle.
The good thing about multiplayer though, is in the replay value it adds to the game. --
ARCHON!!!!!!!!! Oh man that was a great game. Running up to the phoenix with the goblin, hitting him, then running away before he could flame you... --
The problem I think is the move towards multiplayer games. Personally I get a little impatient when the computer takes it turn in Alpha Centauri; do I really want to wait for 3 human players to take theirs? I like turn-based games solo, but give me Starcraft when I'm playing against opponents who can't process a hundred million floating point operations per second. --
I think Nintendo just resents the hell out of the fact that they're continually being forced to invest in designing and marketing new hardware. Remember how much they dragged their feet on the SNES and the N64? --
although not always classed as Sci-Fi he always makes me want to read more and sorry to finish a story: Ray Bradbury. No forget that, IMNSHO the best US writer so far.
I don't care if you agree or not, but I couldn't let his name be overlooked if you're talking literary merit.
I agree totally; I was going to put Bradbury down, but I thought I'd stick with the more modern, overtly artsy kind of authors because of the nature of the troll I was replying to. But Bradbury is easily one of the best authors of any genre that America ever produced. --
Alright, I'm going to have to disagree with just about everything you've said.
The New Wave was simply a literary movement. It wasn't some grand turning point in the genre, and it didn't make the Golden Age material obsolete. It was a reflection of mainstream literature of the time, and the elements it explored weren't unique to science fiction.
To explain, the New Wave was a literary genre
As opposed to the lowly popular sci-fi that came before? I'm sure you would agree New Worlds had its share of inferior material, just like Astounding and the other pulps had theirs.
how characters react and grow, unlike the Golden Age writers who always seemed to have a more basic and mechanical approach.
I don't think you should really dismiss a body of work spanning several decades and consisting of thousands of works as "always" being mechanical and basic. There were plenty of Golden Age writers who explored human elements; they didn't necessarily deal with the existentialism that was the style of the times during the New Wave, but their characters and stories were just as human.
Nowadays, the best SF writers are to be found in Scotland
One usually prefaces a statement like that with the words "I believe" or "It seems to me". This is an opinion.
But in conservative America, people still have a backward attitude to SF
"Backward" of course meaning "not to your liking".
and think that SF begins and ends with Isaac Asimov and his retarded descendants
Now you're just being offensive. Just because you don't enjoy American sci-fi doesn't mean you can dismiss it all as lacking in intelligence.
It is a real shame that American readers are missing so much, and that the American SF movement is so behind the UK in this regard.
Ah, the ubiquitous "dim-witted Americans with their inferior culture" attack. Well, if it makes you feel better about yourself or your country, knock yourself out.
There is a substantial body of what even the most jaded pseudointellectual would admit is literary sci-fi in America.
Kurt Vonnegut. Harlan Ellison. Walter M. Miller, Jr. William Gibson. James Tiptree Jr. Octavia Butler. Phillip K. Dick. Can you honestly say their works don't count as "literary"? Or they're "basic" and "mechanical"?
AFAIK it was first used as a rather weak copy protection scheme (you saw this a lot on the C64, at least...) and later on as a way to transmit viruses between
floppies.
So THAT'S how they did it...seriously, I was always curious about that. Of course, there always was that PC program that could get past that, I forget what it was called though (something really generic, like PC Copy or something)./HTML. --
I'm no astrochemist, so could someone tell me how they can be so sure that these isotopes were created from carbon stars that they can be used as evidence? --
And tomorrow they're going to tell us the earth is round - shea right.
I've heard people use the first pictures taken of earth from space as the final proof that the earth is round. Like evolution, most people believed in it, it was just sort of the last nail in the coffin... --
Damn It was the biggest software company we Canadians had. I guess no one around feels like opening up a company in Canada and giving more than half of
their profits to the government?:)
Console yourself with the fact that you still have ATI... --
You're not thinking. If you looked at his list you'd see a huge list of tired stereotypes.
No, I looked at his list and saw an overly vague imperative. He didn't qualify any of his banned list, just assumed that they couldn't be made without resorting to tired old stereotypes. Not that I disagree with his main thesis, I just think that the fault doesn't lie with using those elements, but rather with a not-yet-mature art form (i.e. game design). --
Slashdot Mirror
How many games have come out recently that are FPS? ALL OF THEM.
What's worse than that is they're the same FPS! I'm not just talking about look and feel, I mean codebase. Are the Quake 3, UT, and Half-life engines so perfect that nobody is even trying to design new ones?
And don't get me started on RTSes. It's kind of sad, the computer game industry went from one where people designed games out of love to one where everyone's trying for the next blockbuster. Kind of like what the movie industry went through in the early 80's.
--
So, while it's not the typical lot of a sysadmin or programmer, it is possible :)
Actually, I work in a disgustingly trendy section of Manhattan, and there are a few modelling agencies in the building. Sometimes run into the models in the elevator; for some reason they act a little chilly around me.
--
As seen on this SlashCode using site
There was also a story on this slashcode-using site.
Seriously though, looks like they might be rolling this out a lot sooner than we thought, which is pretty cool. I've put off getting lasik myself partly because I'd like to see how far they can stretch this technology first.
--
could become useful if you're surrounded by a bunch of supermodels =)
Yes, being in the glamorous world of system administration, that situation comes up often.
--
Although while I must say I am not "skilled" at pool, I am fairly adequate and can hold my own, most of the time. ;)
It's interesting, but pool is one of those few pursuits where nobody seems to want to admit to inadequacy. Even the most modest people seem to boast how much they "rock" at it. Who knows.
Except me, btw. I'm really bad at it.
--
Oh, shut up you uneducated american boor. The quote belong's to Churchill and is in no way to be taken as "job advice."
We were too busy learning the correct usage of "belongs" and that we should capitalize "American".
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I assumed by the spelling in their posts that they never took those classes...
Sorry, I know it's mean, but I couldn't help myself.
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Yeah, do they take into account what happens when you propel the ball at relativistic speeds?
I thought not.
--
With PC "speech codes" to some wacko colleges even outlawing ALL male pronouns, things have gotten very stupid.
Can you name some of these colleges? This isn't a flame, I'm just curious as to whether you have concrete examples.
Feminist professors get to exclude men from here classes and NOT end up getting fired (what would happen in reverse?).
I assume you're talking about the Mary Daly case. If so, the administration removed her from her position because of her insistence on female-only classes. If you have any other examples, I'd like to hear them.
As for the rest of your statements, I think you're overreacting. While many colleges have attempted to initiate regulates based on political correctness, they've been constantly defeated in court when they try to enforce them. I think a lot of this is just so much media hype; despite attacks from both the left and the right, most colleges have managed to remain free-speech safe.
In all honesty, these days, if you are going to be anything but a teacher, doctor, or lawyer, avoid college like the plague. Lack of a college degree really won't hinder you at all if you have IT skills and experience. Saving yourself 4 years of falling behind in the job market, and a LOT of money will put you ahead.
College isn't about money. It's a cliche, I know, but it's still true. If you have IT skills that will easily get you a job, be thankful; it gives you the freedom to study solely for enjoyment. Take the 4 years; if you're that eager to work, go part-time at least, to see if you enjoy it.
--
Sounds a lot like region coding on DVDs. Take your DVD outside zone X, and it won't work any more.
This is far, far worse. DVDs aren't restricted to regions, they're restricted to DVD players set with the same region. If you moved to Calcutta, and brought your DVD player, you could still play your DVDs.
--
But what about magic of games? What about that nights only with computer? What about sitting alone and thinking how to win?
Good point. I have not found anything that compares to the olden days, sitting alone in front of a text adventure, staring at the screen for an hour as my mind thrashes on some seeming impossible puzzle.
The good thing about multiplayer though, is in the replay value it adds to the game.
--
ARCHON!!!!!!!!! Oh man that was a great game. Running up to the phoenix with the goblin, hitting him, then running away before he could flame you...
--
The problem I think is the move towards multiplayer games. Personally I get a little impatient when the computer takes it turn in Alpha Centauri; do I really want to wait for 3 human players to take theirs? I like turn-based games solo, but give me Starcraft when I'm playing against opponents who can't process a hundred million floating point operations per second.
--
I think Nintendo just resents the hell out of the fact that they're continually being forced to invest in designing and marketing new hardware. Remember how much they dragged their feet on the SNES and the N64?
--
Yes, and the US Government does so much better. If they keep it they will undoubtedly invest it in a $400 claw hammer or a $500 toilet seat.
Or maybe pay off some of the deficit so we're not crushed under huge interest payments.
--
although not always classed as Sci-Fi he always makes me want to read more and sorry to finish a story: Ray Bradbury. No forget that, IMNSHO the best US writer so far. I don't care if you agree or not, but I couldn't let his name be overlooked if you're talking literary merit.
I agree totally; I was going to put Bradbury down, but I thought I'd stick with the more modern, overtly artsy kind of authors because of the nature of the troll I was replying to. But Bradbury is easily one of the best authors of any genre that America ever produced.
--
Alright, I'm going to have to disagree with just about everything you've said.
The New Wave was simply a literary movement. It wasn't some grand turning point in the genre, and it didn't make the Golden Age material obsolete. It was a reflection of mainstream literature of the time, and the elements it explored weren't unique to science fiction.
To explain, the New Wave was a literary genre
As opposed to the lowly popular sci-fi that came before? I'm sure you would agree New Worlds had its share of inferior material, just like Astounding and the other pulps had theirs.
how characters react and grow, unlike the Golden Age writers who always seemed to have a more basic and mechanical approach.
I don't think you should really dismiss a body of work spanning several decades and consisting of thousands of works as "always" being mechanical and basic. There were plenty of Golden Age writers who explored human elements; they didn't necessarily deal with the existentialism that was the style of the times during the New Wave, but their characters and stories were just as human.
Nowadays, the best SF writers are to be found in Scotland
One usually prefaces a statement like that with the words "I believe" or "It seems to me". This is an opinion.
But in conservative America, people still have a backward attitude to SF
"Backward" of course meaning "not to your liking".
and think that SF begins and ends with Isaac Asimov and his retarded descendants
Now you're just being offensive. Just because you don't enjoy American sci-fi doesn't mean you can dismiss it all as lacking in intelligence.
It is a real shame that American readers are missing so much, and that the American SF movement is so behind the UK in this regard.
Ah, the ubiquitous "dim-witted Americans with their inferior culture" attack. Well, if it makes you feel better about yourself or your country, knock yourself out.
There is a substantial body of what even the most jaded pseudointellectual would admit is literary sci-fi in America.
Kurt Vonnegut. Harlan Ellison. Walter M. Miller, Jr. William Gibson. James Tiptree Jr. Octavia Butler. Phillip K. Dick. Can you honestly say their works don't count as "literary"? Or they're "basic" and "mechanical"?
--
AFAIK it was first used as a rather weak copy protection scheme (you saw this a lot on the C64, at least...) and later on as a way to transmit viruses between floppies.
/HTML.
So THAT'S how they did it...seriously, I was always curious about that. Of course, there always was that PC program that could get past that, I forget what it was called though (something really generic, like PC Copy or something).
--
The government *needs* to use our money to develop secret stuff so that we can be safe from all those other governments developing secret stuff.
Actually, it does.
--
I'm no astrochemist, so could someone tell me how they can be so sure that these isotopes were created from carbon stars that they can be used as evidence?
--
it looks like we won't have to worry much about OpenGL acceleration under Apple's new OS.
Yeah, worrying about that was keeping me up at night.
--
And tomorrow they're going to tell us the earth is round - shea right.
I've heard people use the first pictures taken of earth from space as the final proof that the earth is round. Like evolution, most people believed in it, it was just sort of the last nail in the coffin...
--
Damn It was the biggest software company we Canadians had. I guess no one around feels like opening up a company in Canada and giving more than half of their profits to the government? :)
Console yourself with the fact that you still have ATI...
--
You're not thinking. If you looked at his list you'd see a huge list of tired stereotypes.
No, I looked at his list and saw an overly vague imperative. He didn't qualify any of his banned list, just assumed that they couldn't be made without resorting to tired old stereotypes. Not that I disagree with his main thesis, I just think that the fault doesn't lie with using those elements, but rather with a not-yet-mature art form (i.e. game design).
--
> i
You have:
No tea.
--