A decent 2 megapixel JPG, which is a barely adequate for a point-and-shoot 35mm snapshot, will run you around 300-500kb depending on the compression settings and subject matter. I don't really consider floppies to be a viable medium for digital cameras, unless you're using them for webcam-quality shots. Which is definitely fun in its own right, though. Being able to take pictures at parties and hand floppies to people would be kind of fun.
Re:Much criticism and few ideas...
on
GUIs for Everyone
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· Score: 2
It seems to me that the next step in computer interaction has to bring the computer to a level that allows for it to seem more human
First of all, I'd like to say I think your post is insightful. However, regarding the statement I quoted above, I wonder if that's really true.
Human-Computer interactions can be much more efficient than Human-Human interactions, since a (good) UI is specialized for the particular tasks that computer system can perform. For example, I can click a "minimize" button more quickly than I can say "minimize that Microsoft Word window".
Also, for computers to become more human-like, they'd have to start making inferences about what the user wants. I think this could lead to ambiguities in what the computer's actions are for a given command. We're already seeing this now, with software that tries to be helpful and smart but really is just annoying and reduces the level of control the user has. (see "Clippy") Making "smart" software that genuinely works on the user's behalf is extremely time- and engineering-intensive and not even possible in all cases, depending on what functions the software is performing. Or at least it will be until some sort of AI breakthrough is made.:)
Frankly, sometimes I think the next frontier in computing will be achieved by computers and people meeting halfway. Computers need to be easier to use, but people also have to be more skilled at using them. Sometimes powerful devices simply have a bit of a learning curve and would lose functionality if dumbed down so that anybody could use them.
Having said that though, there is simply a lot of atrociously-designed software out there from a usability standpoint. I'm not downplaying the important of UI usability testing one bit!
Using different codecs for different parts of a single song would be technically possible, but I don't think it would be desireable.
Different codecs have different sound qualities, because of the different ways in which they discard information in order to achieve their lossy compression. So I think that using different codecs within the same song would result in a pretty wide variation of the way music sounded within a single compressed song...
The Ogg encoder supports this. Also, the LAME mp3 encoded can be configured to do this through some command-line trickery. I don't know about the other encoders; I don't use them.
That doesn't necessarily have to be the case. You would have two drives on the webserver... one for your swap partition and other stuff, and this read-only monster the article describes.
Like you, however, I'm still having a hard time understanding the real benefits of this contraption!
I wouldn't call the English-language cast "astounding". They really sounded like they were TRYING HARD to sound cool. Pretty good acting when viewed in a vaccuum, but compared to the original cast they got the characters wrong.
And of course Ed's voice couldn't really be matched anyway, now could it?
Could a moderator please explain how this was "flamebait"? aaargh.
I wouldn't call the English-language cast "astounding". They really sounded like they were TRYING HARD to sound cool. Pretty good acting when viewed in a vaccuum, but compared to the original cast they got the characters wrong.
And of course Ed's voice couldn't really be matched anyway, now could it?
I've seen the fair-quality DIVX (a little under 600MB, IIRC) that's available easily on the 'net. I also saw a 35MM subtitled showing at Anime Expo in Long Beach, CA this year.
This is definitely a movie worth seeing in the theater, shown right. The art is gorgeous and it looked wonderful on film.
Also, while I'm a huge fan of anime, I find the quality of most theatrical-length anime to be... lacking. Not so in this case! It's a great movie all around. It would be enjoyable for anybody, I think, because it doesn't require any prior knowledge of the series, but long-time Bebop fans will really love it because of their attachment to the characters, who are in fine form in this movie. I got chills seeing all of the characters "one more time".:)
Now we can all play games at 3x the refresh rate of the monitor. We don't need faster anymore.
I wasn't sure whether I should just mod you down, or reply. Obviously I'm replying.:P Anyway, you're obviously really clueless on this, or a troll.
First, most benchmarks measure average framerate. That's fine, but what's really more important is the LOWEST framerate in a benchmark. A card might average 80fps in a certain game, but dip down into the 30's, 40's, or lower during really intense action... which is when you need high framerates the most.
Second, PC games evolve. Sure, nobody needs to run Quake3 at 250fps, but future (and even current games... Q3 is several years old) games will be much more demanding. So when people drool over ridiculously-high Q3 benchmarks, they're really drooling over the raw power of the card, and how it's going to run games a year or two from now. Some people like to purchase for the future.
Third, while I don't know of any open laptop standards, there's plenty of motherboards with integrated video and other components. While it still has SDRAM slots and 1 PCI slot, the motherboard has a built-in NIC, modem, video, and sound. And I don't see a downside to non-integrated memory... why would you want it soldered onto the motherboard?
It might be worth downloading one or two of these songs to a.) find out what all this is about (I never heard of Ziggy Stardust) and b.) see if the album is worthwhile to the younger generation.
Disclamer: I love mp3's, and spend about 10 hours a day or more listening to them.
But let me be frank - your post underscores everything that's wrong about mp3's. A lot of the great albums (particularly those from the 70's) are albums, things best listened to as a musical whole. Especially with Bowie, who had a fantastic visual aspect, the album cover and artwork is an important part of what makes these albums special.
I'm not saying there aren't some great singles on those albums - the "Ziggy Stardust" song itself is a great single - but with a lot of classic albums, "downloading a couple of singles" to see if you'll like it is like watching a couple of scenes from a movie to see if it's good. You're missing a big part of the experience!
If it's a good album, the songs WILL stand on their own because the music is of course the most important part... just saying that you'd be missing some of the magic that separates a couple of catchy songs from an actual cohesive whole that's greater than the some of its parts.
And don't paint me as an old fart. I'm only 26, and I think some of the best music ever has been produced in the past ten years, though much of it is underground... thanks to the radio sucking so badly.:)
True, but they don't really care about losing file-sharing customers. They eat up a disproportionate amount of the bandwidth, and they probably lose money on most of these customers.
Now I'm not agreeing with this ISP - this action totally sucks for the reasons the original poster outlined. They need a more diplomatic solution... a slightly-higher priced service plan that allows use of such programs, or maybe they could just throttle traffic on those ports. And above all else though, they need to disclose this practice- otherwise it's completely unethical, PERIOD.
But the point is they really don't care about losing that kind of customer from a business sense.
I'm a huge anime fan, so I'm probably more forgiving on anime than most movie-goers... and let me tell you, I thought the anime Metropolis was completely awful.
None of the characters were developed in a way that made me feel any empathy, and most of the plot was murky and full of babble. Animation was good but not good enough to make up for the weak story and characters.
Just a quick FYI, Osamu Tezuka based his Metropolis manga off of Fritz Lang's movie in the circa 1950's. He based it VERY loosely, since he'd never actually seen the movie, so it was more of an inspiration thing, rather than an adaptation.
I don't know how closely this modern animated version sticks to the manga- I'm guessing it's a fairly loose or at least highly compressed adaptation of the manga, since that's what happens when a multivolume printed work is crammed into a 2-hour movie.:P
a 'definitive' Star Wars game has not been forthcoming.
I guess the author of this post never played TIE Fighter on the PC. One of the most amazing games I've ever played, and I think my opinion matches the general concensus.
It often makes the Top 10 in "best games of all time lists". I think it may have been in the top five in one of those lists which appeared in a print PC gaming magazine several years ago.
actually, it's "speak Enlgish pretty well", not "speak pretty good English"
don't worry; 90% of native English speakers make this make this mistake as well, including myself. also, your English is much better than my Dutch, so I'm only teasing:)
According to the story (the VERY BEGINNING of the story), they're still selling the Lindows PC's. Please read the story before wasting time and bandwidth.
You don't need artists to make a "playable and interesting game"
I think you undervalue the role of artists in the creation of a successful game. At the heart of every great game is *great game design*, and if a game is lacking that, no amount of pretty graphics/sound/fluff/etc is going to make it fun. This much, I think, is incontrovertible, and I agree with you on this. I also agree that in some cases, graphics actually detract from the fun!
It's entirely possible to have an excellent game without great audiovisuals... look at Angband, Nethack, Robotron (my all-time fave twitch game), Asteroids, the classic coin-ops, etc.
But for many types of games, where character, atmosphere, and story play a more prominent role, I think artists ARE indispensible. Take a game like Metal Gear Solid, Tie Fighter, Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy Tactics, Final Fantasy 6, or Soul Calibur. They have great game design at heart, but I don't think they'd be nearly as enjoyable without the art that went into them as well.
Or, if you want another angle, look at the classic Infocom text adventures. In a sense, he interesting writing, locations, characters, and stories were fluff or "icing", as you put it. The actual "game design" of an Infocom game was a series of puzzles that often made no sense at all, at least to me.:) It was the fluff that made the experience fun though, as it definitely pulled you into the fantasy. Without the fluff it would have been merely an exercise in machocism for the player!
i think Taco's point was that he doesn't particularly care if that makes him a criminal. asking it as an afterthought like that indicates his disdain for/lack of caring about the MPAA and the various bullshit laws that have been passed regarding content. duh.
And the iMac has been about being Apple's entry-level, low-cost computer. Now it's more likely to become like the G4 cube...
Chill! They're still going to make the 15-inch models, unless I misread the article. So while there will certainly be some higher-priced iMacs, there still will be the (relatively) affordable 15" entry-level iMac.
sounds like these things have loads of horsepower; i'm sure some pretty amazing games can (and will) be played on them.
games are pretty popular on PDAs, and this begs the question... why don't they make the controls better-suited to gaming?
you know games are one of the reasons people use to justify the purchase of these things. nobody is buying one solely to game, of course, but why else do you need a 400mhz cpu in your PDA?
just like the PC market, games are one of the driving forces behind ever more-powerful hardware, even if people don't always admit it/realize it.
the thing that sucks about gaming on these machines, though, are the controls! they're awful, and your hands get cramped up. why don't they build one with a slightly bigger control pad? also, they should move its location from the center, over to the left, to resemble a more traditional gameboy setup. i can guarantee the company to do this first will see a nice return on their tiny investment.:)
The Welsh group Super Furry Animals released their latest album (Rings Around The World) simultaneously on CD, and on DVD.
The DVD features videos for every song, bonus tracks, and the original album rememixed in 5.1
It sounds great and is a wonderful album of innovative,psychedelic (for lack of a better word) pop/rock. They don't sound like the Beatles per se, but the variety and depth of the album reminds me of great Beatles albums.
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A decent 2 megapixel JPG, which is a barely adequate for a point-and-shoot 35mm snapshot, will run you around 300-500kb depending on the compression settings and subject matter. I don't really consider floppies to be a viable medium for digital cameras, unless you're using them for webcam-quality shots. Which is definitely fun in its own right, though. Being able to take pictures at parties and hand floppies to people would be kind of fun.
It seems to me that the next step in computer interaction has to bring the computer to a level that allows for it to seem more human
:)
First of all, I'd like to say I think your post is insightful. However, regarding the statement I quoted above, I wonder if that's really true.
Human-Computer interactions can be much more efficient than Human-Human interactions, since a (good) UI is specialized for the particular tasks that computer system can perform. For example, I can click a "minimize" button more quickly than I can say "minimize that Microsoft Word window".
Also, for computers to become more human-like, they'd have to start making inferences about what the user wants. I think this could lead to ambiguities in what the computer's actions are for a given command. We're already seeing this now, with software that tries to be helpful and smart but really is just annoying and reduces the level of control the user has. (see "Clippy") Making "smart" software that genuinely works on the user's behalf is extremely time- and engineering-intensive and not even possible in all cases, depending on what functions the software is performing. Or at least it will be until some sort of AI breakthrough is made.
Frankly, sometimes I think the next frontier in computing will be achieved by computers and people meeting halfway. Computers need to be easier to use, but people also have to be more skilled at using them. Sometimes powerful devices simply have a bit of a learning curve and would lose functionality if dumbed down so that anybody could use them.
Having said that though, there is simply a lot of atrociously-designed software out there from a usability standpoint. I'm not downplaying the important of UI usability testing one bit!
Using different codecs for different parts of a single song would be technically possible, but I don't think it would be desireable.
Different codecs have different sound qualities, because of the different ways in which they discard information in order to achieve their lossy compression. So I think that using different codecs within the same song would result in a pretty wide variation of the way music sounded within a single compressed song...
The Ogg encoder supports this. Also, the LAME mp3 encoded can be configured to do this through some command-line trickery. I don't know about the other encoders; I don't use them.
Say goodbye to OS disc caching
That doesn't necessarily have to be the case. You would have two drives on the webserver... one for your swap partition and other stuff, and this read-only monster the article describes.
Like you, however, I'm still having a hard time understanding the real benefits of this contraption!
I wouldn't call the English-language cast "astounding". They really sounded like they were TRYING HARD to sound cool. Pretty good acting when viewed in a vaccuum, but compared to the original cast they got the characters wrong.
And of course Ed's voice couldn't really be matched anyway, now could it?
Could a moderator please explain how this was "flamebait"? aaargh.
I wouldn't call the English-language cast "astounding". They really sounded like they were TRYING HARD to sound cool. Pretty good acting when viewed in a vaccuum, but compared to the original cast they got the characters wrong.
And of course Ed's voice couldn't really be matched anyway, now could it?
I've seen the fair-quality DIVX (a little under 600MB, IIRC) that's available easily on the 'net. I also saw a 35MM subtitled showing at Anime Expo in Long Beach, CA this year.
:)
This is definitely a movie worth seeing in the theater, shown right. The art is gorgeous and it looked wonderful on film.
Also, while I'm a huge fan of anime, I find the quality of most theatrical-length anime to be... lacking. Not so in this case! It's a great movie all around. It would be enjoyable for anybody, I think, because it doesn't require any prior knowledge of the series, but long-time Bebop fans will really love it because of their attachment to the characters, who are in fine form in this movie. I got chills seeing all of the characters "one more time".
I just want to second your mention of Puffy AmiYumi!
Now we can all play games at 3x the refresh rate of the monitor. We don't need faster anymore.
:P Anyway, you're obviously really clueless on this, or a troll.
I wasn't sure whether I should just mod you down, or reply. Obviously I'm replying.
First, most benchmarks measure average framerate. That's fine, but what's really more important is the LOWEST framerate in a benchmark. A card might average 80fps in a certain game, but dip down into the 30's, 40's, or lower during really intense action... which is when you need high framerates the most.
Second, PC games evolve. Sure, nobody needs to run Quake3 at 250fps, but future (and even current games... Q3 is several years old) games will be much more demanding. So when people drool over ridiculously-high Q3 benchmarks, they're really drooling over the raw power of the card, and how it's going to run games a year or two from now. Some people like to purchase for the future.
Third, while I don't know of any open laptop standards, there's plenty of motherboards with integrated video and other components. While it still has SDRAM slots and 1 PCI slot, the motherboard has a built-in NIC, modem, video, and sound. And I don't see a downside to non-integrated memory... why would you want it soldered onto the motherboard?
It might be worth downloading one or two of these songs to a.) find out what all this is about (I never heard of Ziggy Stardust) and b.) see if the album is worthwhile to the younger generation.
:)
Disclamer: I love mp3's, and spend about 10 hours a day or more listening to them.
But let me be frank - your post underscores everything that's wrong about mp3's. A lot of the great albums (particularly those from the 70's) are albums, things best listened to as a musical whole. Especially with Bowie, who had a fantastic visual aspect, the album cover and artwork is an important part of what makes these albums special.
I'm not saying there aren't some great singles on those albums - the "Ziggy Stardust" song itself is a great single - but with a lot of classic albums, "downloading a couple of singles" to see if you'll like it is like watching a couple of scenes from a movie to see if it's good. You're missing a big part of the experience!
If it's a good album, the songs WILL stand on their own because the music is of course the most important part... just saying that you'd be missing some of the magic that separates a couple of catchy songs from an actual cohesive whole that's greater than the some of its parts.
And don't paint me as an old fart. I'm only 26, and I think some of the best music ever has been produced in the past ten years, though much of it is underground... thanks to the radio sucking so badly.
Wouldn't the amount of force be more than a parachute is used to receiving? This could possible rip a rope or the parachute itself.
Yeah! You're right! Maybe he shouldn't use those standard bargain parachutes you buy at Wal-Mart!
*mutters and shakes head*
True, but they don't really care about losing file-sharing customers. They eat up a disproportionate amount of the bandwidth, and they probably lose money on most of these customers.
Now I'm not agreeing with this ISP - this action totally sucks for the reasons the original poster outlined. They need a more diplomatic solution... a slightly-higher priced service plan that allows use of such programs, or maybe they could just throttle traffic on those ports. And above all else though, they need to disclose this practice- otherwise it's completely unethical, PERIOD.
But the point is they really don't care about losing that kind of customer from a business sense.
Anybody else read the headline this way?
Wishful thinking, I guess!
I'm a huge anime fan, so I'm probably more forgiving on anime than most movie-goers... and let me tell you, I thought the anime Metropolis was completely awful.
:P
None of the characters were developed in a way that made me feel any empathy, and most of the plot was murky and full of babble. Animation was good but not good enough to make up for the weak story and characters.
Just a quick FYI, Osamu Tezuka based his Metropolis manga off of Fritz Lang's movie in the circa 1950's. He based it VERY loosely, since he'd never actually seen the movie, so it was more of an inspiration thing, rather than an adaptation.
I don't know how closely this modern animated version sticks to the manga- I'm guessing it's a fairly loose or at least highly compressed adaptation of the manga, since that's what happens when a multivolume printed work is crammed into a 2-hour movie.
a 'definitive' Star Wars game has not been forthcoming.
I guess the author of this post never played TIE Fighter on the PC. One of the most amazing games I've ever played, and I think my opinion matches the general concensus.
It often makes the Top 10 in "best games of all time lists". I think it may have been in the top five in one of those lists which appeared in a print PC gaming magazine several years ago.
actually, it's "speak Enlgish pretty well", not "speak pretty good English"
:)
don't worry; 90% of native English speakers make this make this mistake as well, including myself. also, your English is much better than my Dutch, so I'm only teasing
According to the story (the VERY BEGINNING of the story), they're still selling the Lindows PC's. Please read the story before wasting time and bandwidth.
If you don't know what "GBA" or "SMB3" stands for, then this article is not for you anyway! So STFU... just kidding. :)
You don't need artists to make a "playable and interesting game"
:) It was the fluff that made the experience fun though, as it definitely pulled you into the fantasy. Without the fluff it would have been merely an exercise in machocism for the player!
I think you undervalue the role of artists in the creation of a successful game. At the heart of every great game is *great game design*, and if a game is lacking that, no amount of pretty graphics/sound/fluff/etc is going to make it fun. This much, I think, is incontrovertible, and I agree with you on this. I also agree that in some cases, graphics actually detract from the fun! It's entirely possible to have an excellent game without great audiovisuals... look at Angband, Nethack, Robotron (my all-time fave twitch game), Asteroids, the classic coin-ops, etc.
But for many types of games, where character, atmosphere, and story play a more prominent role, I think artists ARE indispensible. Take a game like Metal Gear Solid, Tie Fighter, Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy Tactics, Final Fantasy 6, or Soul Calibur. They have great game design at heart, but I don't think they'd be nearly as enjoyable without the art that went into them as well.
Or, if you want another angle, look at the classic Infocom text adventures. In a sense, he interesting writing, locations, characters, and stories were fluff or "icing", as you put it. The actual "game design" of an Infocom game was a series of puzzles that often made no sense at all, at least to me.
they make such a contraption already. it's by 3M, no less! http://www.3m.com/ergonomics/ergonomicmouse.jhtml
i think Taco's point was that he doesn't particularly care if that makes him a criminal. asking it as an afterthought like that indicates his disdain for/lack of caring about the MPAA and the various bullshit laws that have been passed regarding content. duh.
And the iMac has been about being Apple's entry-level, low-cost computer. Now it's more likely to become like the G4 cube...
Chill! They're still going to make the 15-inch models, unless I misread the article. So while there will certainly be some higher-priced iMacs, there still will be the (relatively) affordable 15" entry-level iMac.
sounds like these things have loads of horsepower; i'm sure some pretty amazing games can (and will) be played on them.
:)
games are pretty popular on PDAs, and this begs the question... why don't they make the controls better-suited to gaming?
you know games are one of the reasons people use to justify the purchase of these things. nobody is buying one solely to game, of course, but why else do you need a 400mhz cpu in your PDA?
just like the PC market, games are one of the driving forces behind ever more-powerful hardware, even if people don't always admit it/realize it.
the thing that sucks about gaming on these machines, though, are the controls! they're awful, and your hands get cramped up. why don't they build one with a slightly bigger control pad? also, they should move its location from the center, over to the left, to resemble a more traditional gameboy setup. i can guarantee the company to do this first will see a nice return on their tiny investment.
The Welsh group Super Furry Animals released their latest album (Rings Around The World) simultaneously on CD, and on DVD.
The DVD features videos for every song, bonus tracks, and the original album rememixed in 5.1
It sounds great and is a wonderful album of innovative,psychedelic (for lack of a better word) pop/rock. They don't sound like the Beatles per se, but the variety and depth of the album reminds me of great Beatles albums.