Blizzard is in a very nasty situation right now. They want to be able to expire the beta, and then launch WC3. Bnetd prevents them from expiring their beta. If Blizzard delayed WC3 so that they could develop a method for validity checking, the customers would very likely turn to using a Cracked Beta on bnetd.
Blizzard cannot afford to delay launching WC3, and they cannot afford to let the beta software remain active. If it were possible, I would take the Beta users who let their discs get copied for use on Bnetd to court and try to get them some jail time.
In the end however, the current business model is not really viable with current technology. But for the moment, there is not much to be done about it.
A DNA identification system would probably be best. You do not need to carry a card, or remember some arbitrary number. It would be very difficult for someone else to impersonate you.
The real problem is in how much information should be allowed to any given individual or organization, and how long that information is kept on file. Its one thing for a Bank to learn that you have a history of defaulting on loans. But does a bank really need to know that you were arrested for Possession of a Controled substance and spent 2 years in Prison 15 years ago?
ID's should not be smart. They should only give you enough information that you can positively identify a person and gain access to the information. DNA ID could do that, and if the control of DNA reading equipment was very tightly regulated, there would not be many chances for abuse.
This sort of thing is just wrong on so many levels.
To start, telling China and Russia that they "made the short list" is not a way to help smooth out diplomatic relations. The only way to deal with such nations is to convince them that they can satisfy their own best intrests by working with the US rather then against them.
Also, though it is my own completely uninformed opinion, but destroying massive amounts of property is not a great way to win a war. This is especially true when your enemy has the same capability. If Japan had been able to drop some Atomic Bombs on California, does anyone doubt what their response would have been to Hiroshima and Nagasaki? Modern warfare will most likely take place in Cities and other urban environments. We would all be better off if military personal were all trained and used for such operations.
The only real bonus for Nukes is that using them does not endanger US soldiers who would otherwise need to go be put in harms way. If a nation is not willing to sacrifice the lives of its soldiers for a cause, then perhaps it should not be involved in the first place.
END C0OMMUNICATION
The whole argument is stupid
on
SSSCA Hearing
·
· Score: 2
Lets condence the entire problem into two sentences.
"Lets pass a law that makes it illegal to copy digital information. That way, we never have to worry about the effect of technological progress on our profit margins."
The problem is not that people are using computers to easily copy and distribute digital information. The problem is that the current business models are in complete and total ignorance of reality. The old business models no longer hold up. Rather then protecting the defunct and now retarded practices with laws, we should be creating new business models.
These laws are about as inteligent as passing a law that the value of Pi shall henceforth be three.
The reason they do not go after the individuals is that it is simply even more futile to enforce then Jay Walking is. The problem is not getting a Judge to agree, but in finding a satisfactory remedy.
Also, the argument has the same validity as Gun Control lobbiests have (and I do agree with Gun Control). The Tool makes it really easy to commit a crime, and seems to have few other legitimate uses.
I do not beleive that File Sharing should be considered a crime. I also want to be able to make a living at my kick ass job making video games, so I am not against copyright either. The problem is how to give the copyright holders a fair market value without ignoring the current state of technology. The problem is non trivial, and I really do not have much in the way of valid answers for it.
With way too many consumer goods, but especially electronics, current production methods make it cheaper to build new ones instead of repairing or upgrading old ones. Is there any really good reason why Monitors or circut boards, and other electronics cannot be designed with the intent of being able to cheaply repair it? Why not prepare an assembly line to dissassemble a finished but damaged object, and have its components either recycled or reused. And design each object with a 'diagnostic' port which can be used to figure out which part of the object is broken.
If it could be done cost effectively and profitably, the other benefits would be an added incentive.
Laws generally protect the citizens of a given nation, not forigeners. So 17th Century British law would not protect the rights of Native Americans or Africans.
This really just sucks. Alot of the early adopters, who are also the best customers of this sort of technology, are likely to be screwed over.
However, there is a good chance for those manufaturers to promote some really strong customer loyalty from those same customers. The manufaturers had best oppose this, loudly and they had best put their money behind it. The next bit, is that they will want to provide to all the customers who own an earlier model HDTV with a converter box to convert the signal to something their TV can handle.
As long as we are at it, why dont the DVD and TV manufaturers take a lesson from the PC industry, and create some removable hardware cards that can be used to adapt their hardware in the event of a standards shift? This feature alone could put a TV manufaturer ahead of the game since it appears obvious that encryption standards will be a moving target.
I dont exactly like the current Copyright situations, but at least the hardware manufaturers can make things easier for the consumers.
Allow me to clairify. I was not refering to the potential of the hardware. I was refering to Sega's commercial success with that hardware. How many people do you know actually any of the following?
The Master System cartridge adaptor for the Genisis. The SegaCD. The Sega 32X. The Sega Nomad.
Some of their ideas were quite good, but were outright unsuccessful. The Sega Saturn was rushed due to fear of the Sony Playstation. If they had not rushed it, they might have been able to succeed with that system outside of Japan. The Dreamcast was a great system, and easy to program for (easier then the PS2). But Sega was unable to secure the Developer support, and that was largely because of how poorly the Saturn had done.
There are two possibilties. I can see this being used to make it easier to port Sega's and Namco's arcade titles to the GameCube. It may also be used to play GameCube games on other platforms.
But console games, especially Nintendo's, are targeted at their controller. So playing the games on different hardware could be a useless endeavor.
Other then a few development bonuses, I dont really see the upshot.
Besides, Sega has a horrible track record with Hardware.
While it is possible to use such devices to develop games, that is not the intended market for this product. This product is probably used to copy commercial games onto secondary media. In and of its self, Nintendo would not care too much. However, because anyone can buy it online, it makes casual piracy too easy. People can use this tool to buy a game, burn it, and return it. Or they can simply find the ROM online, and not even purchase it.
Emulators are not too much of a threat to a console. The games simply suck badly when played on a Keyboard, and PC controllers just dont feel right. But this allows you to play these games on a GBA. This is a direct threat to what is currently Nintendo's most consistent source of income. So of course they will go after it and try to kill it.
"The dilemma is, the technology is turning the business model upside down. But that doesn't mean it's copyright infringement."
That about sums it up for Napster as well as TiVo. New technology has basically made the old product no longer tenable. The only real complication is that since it removes the potential for the studios to make money at it, then no one will make any new content at all.
END COMMUNICATION
How do you set a fair price for Pure Content?
on
The Napsterization of TV
·
· Score: 2, Interesting
It used to be that to watch a TV show or Movie, you had to use a TV or go to a Theater. Or buy a VHS tape or DVD. To Listen to music, you had to listen to the radio, or buy a CD. If you want to read something, you have to buy a Magazine or Book.
With TV and Radio, they could force you to consume Advertisements, and sell the Ad space. With books, DVD, and CD's, you have to buy a physical object. With a Movie theater, you have to pay admission. However, new technology has presented a third option. Use the Internet.
You do not need to buy a new physical object each time you want to get new content with the internet. So they cannot sell you a physical object. They cannot easily charge admission to a web site, and competing with free content will cause you to lose. So most subscription websites do not work very well. You can edit out or block advertisements from websites. So Popup ads are dying, and with downloaded TV via TiVo, you can remove Ads. So you cannot sell Ad space since you have no guarantee that the Ad will be viewed.
So if all your getting is the Content, how can you make a profit?
While I do not underestimate the amount of bug fixing that can be accomplished by Microsofts large employee base, I wonder seriously if this is enough? While it is certantly enough time to seek and destroy the more obvious bugs, I am sure that many of the bugs are 'emergent' in nature. Given the size of their code base, it is entirely possible that some of the bugs are due to unforseen interactions.
Still, even if the bug hunting is purely greed based, it is something that can only benefit the consumer. I have no grudge against Microsoft, and do not even mind their de-facto monopoly that much. And like it or not, Microsoft is best positioned to inact major and good changes to online consumerisim. A fully realized.NET system would expand the market for other consumer software, and make such software much cheaper.
Case in point: Game developers have to rely on publishers to distribute their games, and as a result, the publishers get the bulk of the money. If enough people trusted online purchasing, and had the bandwidth needed, it would make it more viable for a game developer to distribute a game entirely online. Which means more money for those who actually create the content.
In removing the middlemen, Microsoft will be taking for themselves alot of the money that the middlement currently get. But they wont get all of it.
It seems that few of you read the article its self. The article suggests that Cocoa is ideal for designing custom tools since it is easier to make iterative changes to the tool. It is not saying that it is the best target platform to develop games for.
Mac's are also a good possiblity for console development (PS2, Gamecube). Especially since the compiler used is frequently based on GCC. OS-X's BSD core makes it easy enough to port the tools, and provides another alternative for those who are not intrested in using Linux or Cygwin based tools. However, since most of the art tools are used on NT/W2k boxes (Such as 3ds Max), it is probably simpler for the time being to stick to Windows based environments.
"Our strategy is, if the environment is a Microsoft environment, we are going to work with Microsoft hardware and Microsoft documents better than Microsoft does,"
This statement is just wrong in so many ways.
First, they will have the problem that Linux users have with MS Word documents. Microsoft can change the format whenever they want.
Second, most Microsoft documents are meant to be edited from a Windows box, especially when you take into account embedded images, and other crap that bloats a word document. Those dont work so well on a platform with very real and pretty much fixed hardware specs.
The only way that Palm can deal with Microsoft documents better then Microsoft is if Microsoft ports up to date versions of its products to Palm's OS. Given the choice between supporting a competitor or supporting themselves, Microsoft will support its self.
I think they need a better plan. One that involves delivering features specifically targeted to their platform rather then emulating a different platforms capabilities.
To sum up the article, the super bargains were simply hurting all involved too much. And since the information on the pricing was too easily available to competitors, you would end up hurting your self in the long run in a tit for tat price war.
So the competition has changed, rather then price, they compete on service / quality. I dont see the great mystery.
Should some massive security hole be discovered in Linux, FreeBSD, or other simular free operating systems, the law would most likely be in-effective in punishing anyone.
This could create a big loophole for Microsoft if they ever decided to evade the law by opening up Windows. But of course that is unlikely.
As for getting the law its self passed, it really depends on who has more influence on the law makers? Does Microsoft really have more influence with US lawmakers then their customer base?
END COMMUNICATION
This is probably good news for Canada...
on
Broadband Obstacles
·
· Score: 2, Insightful
Canada is generally better off when it comes to Broadband access. All of my friends have access to broadband by way of DSL or Cable, and at a cost of $40.00. As in Forty Canadian Dollars.
It seems that every reasonably well off country has better consumer BroadBand service then the US with the exception of Australia. For many businesses, it might be easier to start up in Vancouver or Toronto then in LA or New York. The only obstacle I can see is the tendency for such businesses to want to be nearer other similar established businesses.
The one thing that I still find annoying is when people automatically react to the idea of Videogames as being an inferior form of entertainment. It is no more or less valid then watching TV or Movies. The only time you should feel lame about playing games all night is if you did not actually enjoy it.
With many games, console and PC, publishers really want to make that all important X-mas release, so sometimes, a game gets rushed out the door. With console games, this usually takes the form of levels or features.
PC games however, and especially MMPORGS, can and often are patched post release. In this case, I would guess that Sony really wanted a new EQ expansion on the shelves for christmas. What the fail to realize is that their decision can potentially backfire.
The business model is subscription based. I do not know how such expansions affect previous subscribers, but if they are forced to upgrade, they will be angry. And if the user gets too angry, they will seek alternatives. A really badly handled expansion could do wonders for the sale of Dark Age of Camelot (which may be another reason Sony rushed the release in and of its self).
On the Game Cube end of things, Rogue Leader and Super Monkey Ball are excellent. Also look into Pikmin and Super Smash Brothers. Really, who doesn't want to take Bowser and stomp the hell out of Pikachu?.
On the XBox, Project Gotham Racing, DOA3, Halo, and Amped are all good. Just make sure that the recipient actually likes a given game type before getting it for them. If they hate racing games, dont get a racer.
On the PS2, other then Metal Gear Solid 2, I am not qualified to offer an opinion due to lack of first or even 2nd hand knowledge.
A word on console sports games. The 3 consoles are going to look nearly identical. If there is not an obvious graphics or feature advantage, then make your decision based on the controller. If the game feels better on the Game Cube then the XBox, and the recipient owns both, get him the Cube version.
The one thing in the wired article that make sense is that at the present, The Powers that Be (Judges, Police, Etc), all too often do not understand the nuances and details of computer related crimes or other legal matters. This is something that should be remedied. It applies not only to the stereotypical hacking, but also to digital copyright.
I do not think that they should create a secret court. I do think that they should go out of their way to obtain 'expert' judges who know what the signifigance of the matters they preside over.
After all, a denial of service attack is not in the same league as flying a plane into a building. But it is certantly more serious then shoplifting or other petty crime.
Slashdot Mirror
Blizzard is in a very nasty situation right now. They want to be able to expire the beta, and then launch WC3. Bnetd prevents them from expiring their beta. If Blizzard delayed WC3 so that they could develop a method for validity checking, the customers would very likely turn to using a Cracked Beta on bnetd.
Blizzard cannot afford to delay launching WC3, and they cannot afford to let the beta software remain active. If it were possible, I would take the Beta users who let their discs get copied for use on Bnetd to court and try to get them some jail time.
In the end however, the current business model is not really viable with current technology. But for the moment, there is not much to be done about it.
END COMMUNICATION
A DNA identification system would probably be best. You do not need to carry a card, or remember some arbitrary number. It would be very difficult for someone else to impersonate you.
The real problem is in how much information should be allowed to any given individual or organization, and how long that information is kept on file. Its one thing for a Bank to learn that you have a history of defaulting on loans. But does a bank really need to know that you were arrested for Possession of a Controled substance and spent 2 years in Prison 15 years ago?
ID's should not be smart. They should only give you enough information that you can positively identify a person and gain access to the information. DNA ID could do that, and if the control of DNA reading equipment was very tightly regulated, there would not be many chances for abuse.
END COMMUNICATION
This sort of thing is just wrong on so many levels.
To start, telling China and Russia that they "made the short list" is not a way to help smooth out diplomatic relations. The only way to deal with such nations is to convince them that they can satisfy their own best intrests by working with the US rather then against them.
Also, though it is my own completely uninformed opinion, but destroying massive amounts of property is not a great way to win a war. This is especially true when your enemy has the same capability. If Japan had been able to drop some Atomic Bombs on California, does anyone doubt what their response would have been to Hiroshima and Nagasaki? Modern warfare will most likely take place in Cities and other urban environments. We would all be better off if military personal were all trained and used for such operations.
The only real bonus for Nukes is that using them does not endanger US soldiers who would otherwise need to go be put in harms way. If a nation is not willing to sacrifice the lives of its soldiers for a cause, then perhaps it should not be involved in the first place.
END C0OMMUNICATION
Lets condence the entire problem into two sentences.
"Lets pass a law that makes it illegal to copy digital information. That way, we never have to worry about the effect of technological progress on our profit margins."
The problem is not that people are using computers to easily copy and distribute digital information. The problem is that the current business models are in complete and total ignorance of reality. The old business models no longer hold up. Rather then protecting the defunct and now retarded practices with laws, we should be creating new business models.
These laws are about as inteligent as passing a law that the value of Pi shall henceforth be three.
END COMMUNICATION
The reason they do not go after the individuals is that it is simply even more futile to enforce then Jay Walking is. The problem is not getting a Judge to agree, but in finding a satisfactory remedy.
Also, the argument has the same validity as Gun Control lobbiests have (and I do agree with Gun Control). The Tool makes it really easy to commit a crime, and seems to have few other legitimate uses.
I do not beleive that File Sharing should be considered a crime. I also want to be able to make a living at my kick ass job making video games, so I am not against copyright either. The problem is how to give the copyright holders a fair market value without ignoring the current state of technology. The problem is non trivial, and I really do not have much in the way of valid answers for it.
END COMMUNICATION
With way too many consumer goods, but especially electronics, current production methods make it cheaper to build new ones instead of repairing or upgrading old ones. Is there any really good reason why Monitors or circut boards, and other electronics cannot be designed with the intent of being able to cheaply repair it? Why not prepare an assembly line to dissassemble a finished but damaged object, and have its components either recycled or reused. And design each object with a 'diagnostic' port which can be used to figure out which part of the object is broken.
If it could be done cost effectively and profitably, the other benefits would be an added incentive.
END COMMUNICATION
Laws generally protect the citizens of a given nation, not forigeners. So 17th Century British law would not protect the rights of Native Americans or Africans.
END COMMUNICATION
This really just sucks. Alot of the early adopters, who are also the best customers of this sort of technology, are likely to be screwed over.
However, there is a good chance for those manufaturers to promote some really strong customer loyalty from those same customers. The manufaturers had best oppose this, loudly and they had best put their money behind it. The next bit, is that they will want to provide to all the customers who own an earlier model HDTV with a converter box to convert the signal to something their TV can handle.
As long as we are at it, why dont the DVD and TV manufaturers take a lesson from the PC industry, and create some removable hardware cards that can be used to adapt their hardware in the event of a standards shift? This feature alone could put a TV manufaturer ahead of the game since it appears obvious that encryption standards will be a moving target.
I dont exactly like the current Copyright situations, but at least the hardware manufaturers can make things easier for the consumers.
END COMMUNICATION
Allow me to clairify. I was not refering to the potential of the hardware. I was refering to Sega's commercial success with that hardware. How many people do you know actually any of the following?
The Master System cartridge adaptor for the Genisis.
The SegaCD.
The Sega 32X.
The Sega Nomad.
Some of their ideas were quite good, but were outright unsuccessful. The Sega Saturn was rushed due to fear of the Sony Playstation. If they had not rushed it, they might have been able to succeed with that system outside of Japan. The Dreamcast was a great system, and easy to program for (easier then the PS2). But Sega was unable to secure the Developer support, and that was largely because of how poorly the Saturn had done.
END COMMUNICATION
There are two possibilties. I can see this being used to make it easier to port Sega's and Namco's arcade titles to the GameCube. It may also be used to play GameCube games on other platforms.
But console games, especially Nintendo's, are targeted at their controller. So playing the games on different hardware could be a useless endeavor.
Other then a few development bonuses, I dont really see the upshot.
Besides, Sega has a horrible track record with Hardware.
END COMMUNICATION
Your damn right I love my job.
END COMMUNICATION
While it is possible to use such devices to develop games, that is not the intended market for this product. This product is probably used to copy commercial games onto secondary media. In and of its self, Nintendo would not care too much. However, because anyone can buy it online, it makes casual piracy too easy. People can use this tool to buy a game, burn it, and return it. Or they can simply find the ROM online, and not even purchase it.
Emulators are not too much of a threat to a console. The games simply suck badly when played on a Keyboard, and PC controllers just dont feel right. But this allows you to play these games on a GBA. This is a direct threat to what is currently Nintendo's most consistent source of income. So of course they will go after it and try to kill it.
END COMMUNICATION
"The dilemma is, the technology is turning the business model upside down. But that doesn't mean it's copyright infringement."
That about sums it up for Napster as well as TiVo. New technology has basically made the old product no longer tenable. The only real complication is that since it removes the potential for the studios to make money at it, then no one will make any new content at all.
END COMMUNICATION
It used to be that to watch a TV show or Movie, you had to use a TV or go to a Theater. Or buy a VHS tape or DVD. To Listen to music, you had to listen to the radio, or buy a CD. If you want to read something, you have to buy a Magazine or Book.
With TV and Radio, they could force you to consume Advertisements, and sell the Ad space. With books, DVD, and CD's, you have to buy a physical object. With a Movie theater, you have to pay admission. However, new technology has presented a third option. Use the Internet.
You do not need to buy a new physical object each time you want to get new content with the internet. So they cannot sell you a physical object. They cannot easily charge admission to a web site, and competing with free content will cause you to lose. So most subscription websites do not work very well. You can edit out or block advertisements from websites. So Popup ads are dying, and with downloaded TV via TiVo, you can remove Ads. So you cannot sell Ad space since you have no guarantee that the Ad will be viewed.
So if all your getting is the Content, how can you make a profit?
END COMMUNICATION
While I do not underestimate the amount of bug fixing that can be accomplished by Microsofts large employee base, I wonder seriously if this is enough? While it is certantly enough time to seek and destroy the more obvious bugs, I am sure that many of the bugs are 'emergent' in nature. Given the size of their code base, it is entirely possible that some of the bugs are due to unforseen interactions.
.NET system would expand the market for other consumer software, and make such software much cheaper.
Still, even if the bug hunting is purely greed based, it is something that can only benefit the consumer. I have no grudge against Microsoft, and do not even mind their de-facto monopoly that much. And like it or not, Microsoft is best positioned to inact major and good changes to online consumerisim. A fully realized
Case in point: Game developers have to rely on publishers to distribute their games, and as a result, the publishers get the bulk of the money. If enough people trusted online purchasing, and had the bandwidth needed, it would make it more viable for a game developer to distribute a game entirely online. Which means more money for those who actually create the content.
In removing the middlemen, Microsoft will be taking for themselves alot of the money that the middlement currently get. But they wont get all of it.
END COMMUNICATION
It seems that few of you read the article its self. The article suggests that Cocoa is ideal for designing custom tools since it is easier to make iterative changes to the tool. It is not saying that it is the best target platform to develop games for.
Mac's are also a good possiblity for console development (PS2, Gamecube). Especially since the compiler used is frequently based on GCC. OS-X's BSD core makes it easy enough to port the tools, and provides another alternative for those who are not intrested in using Linux or Cygwin based tools. However, since most of the art tools are used on NT/W2k boxes (Such as 3ds Max), it is probably simpler for the time being to stick to Windows based environments.
END COMMUNICATION
"Our strategy is, if the environment is a Microsoft environment, we are going to work with Microsoft hardware and Microsoft documents better than Microsoft does,"
This statement is just wrong in so many ways.
First, they will have the problem that Linux users have with MS Word documents. Microsoft can change the format whenever they want.
Second, most Microsoft documents are meant to be edited from a Windows box, especially when you take into account embedded images, and other crap that bloats a word document. Those dont work so well on a platform with very real and pretty much fixed hardware specs.
The only way that Palm can deal with Microsoft documents better then Microsoft is if Microsoft ports up to date versions of its products to Palm's OS. Given the choice between supporting a competitor or supporting themselves, Microsoft will support its self.
I think they need a better plan. One that involves delivering features specifically targeted to their platform rather then emulating a different platforms capabilities.
END COMMUNICATION
To sum up the article, the super bargains were simply hurting all involved too much. And since the information on the pricing was too easily available to competitors, you would end up hurting your self in the long run in a tit for tat price war.
So the competition has changed, rather then price, they compete on service / quality. I dont see the great mystery.
END COMMUNICATION
Should some massive security hole be discovered in Linux, FreeBSD, or other simular free operating systems, the law would most likely be in-effective in punishing anyone.
This could create a big loophole for Microsoft if they ever decided to evade the law by opening up Windows. But of course that is unlikely.
As for getting the law its self passed, it really depends on who has more influence on the law makers? Does Microsoft really have more influence with US lawmakers then their customer base?
END COMMUNICATION
Canada is generally better off when it comes to Broadband access. All of my friends have access to broadband by way of DSL or Cable, and at a cost of $40.00. As in Forty Canadian Dollars.
It seems that every reasonably well off country has better consumer BroadBand service then the US with the exception of Australia. For many businesses, it might be easier to start up in Vancouver or Toronto then in LA or New York. The only obstacle I can see is the tendency for such businesses to want to be nearer other similar established businesses.
END COMMUNICATION
The one thing that I still find annoying is when people automatically react to the idea of Videogames as being an inferior form of entertainment. It is no more or less valid then watching TV or Movies. The only time you should feel lame about playing games all night is if you did not actually enjoy it.
END COMMUNICATION
If you read more then just the numbers, the article says the numbers are for November 11th to December 8th (roughly).
END COMMUNICATION
With many games, console and PC, publishers really want to make that all important X-mas release, so sometimes, a game gets rushed out the door. With console games, this usually takes the form of levels or features.
PC games however, and especially MMPORGS, can and often are patched post release. In this case, I would guess that Sony really wanted a new EQ expansion on the shelves for christmas. What the fail to realize is that their decision can potentially backfire.
The business model is subscription based. I do not know how such expansions affect previous subscribers, but if they are forced to upgrade, they will be angry. And if the user gets too angry, they will seek alternatives. A really badly handled expansion could do wonders for the sale of Dark Age of Camelot (which may be another reason Sony rushed the release in and of its self).
END COMMUNICATION
On the Game Cube end of things, Rogue Leader and Super Monkey Ball are excellent. Also look into Pikmin and Super Smash Brothers. Really, who doesn't want to take Bowser and stomp the hell out of Pikachu?.
On the XBox, Project Gotham Racing, DOA3, Halo, and Amped are all good. Just make sure that the recipient actually likes a given game type before getting it for them. If they hate racing games, dont get a racer.
On the PS2, other then Metal Gear Solid 2, I am not qualified to offer an opinion due to lack of first or even 2nd hand knowledge.
A word on console sports games. The 3 consoles are going to look nearly identical. If there is not an obvious graphics or feature advantage, then make your decision based on the controller. If the game feels better on the Game Cube then the XBox, and the recipient owns both, get him the Cube version.
END COMMUNICATION
The one thing in the wired article that make sense is that at the present, The Powers that Be (Judges, Police, Etc), all too often do not understand the nuances and details of computer related crimes or other legal matters. This is something that should be remedied. It applies not only to the stereotypical hacking, but also to digital copyright.
I do not think that they should create a secret court. I do think that they should go out of their way to obtain 'expert' judges who know what the signifigance of the matters they preside over.
After all, a denial of service attack is not in the same league as flying a plane into a building. But it is certantly more serious then shoplifting or other petty crime.
END COMMUNICATION