I don't see any of those games as being "genre defining". A 3D platformer, a racing game, a fighter and a board game.
I like them - but I wouldn't call them "genre defining".
The point is that ALWAYS using the same characters can get dull. Look at Star Fox Adventures - which wasn't even going to be a Star Fox game originally. Did it need to be? Does it become better because it has Star Fox in it?
I would say, Pikmin and Animal Crossing feature about the only new characters or worlds. And Animal Crossing would have been much better if it was networkable.
The original poster's argument was speed of the computer and size. He responded and raised the issue of software "it doesn't come with iLife". I don't want to argue those points, nor the Linux one - but the previous poster's response raised those issues.
True the Mini Mac has DVI versus VGA. My mistake.
"Parallel and PS2 (on it or not) does not give it MORE connectivity - they are pretty much free things they can add to the motherboard to make it APPEAR it has more connectivity."
How can something "appear" to have more connectivity? If I plug mouse and keyboard into PS2 ports and a printer into the parallel port - then I have three devices plugged in without using any of the available USB or firewire. I wouldn't need a USB hub. As to USB being better - sure its more modern but plugging a keyboard into USB vs. PS2 hardly matters. In both cases the keyboard works. Same for mice, printers etc.
As I mentioned above the concerns I was addressing were speed and size. But you mention cost and appearance.
Looks are subjective, and ultimately not very important to a computers function. I don't really care if a computer matches my decor. The Mac Mini looks fine, just plain and generic. I don't really care for the Mocha PC looks either. But I wouldn't base a computer purchase on looks any more than I would buy a care based on what color it was.
For cost you are stating $800. Realistically that's about what you will want to spend on a Mac Mini. Consider:
1.42GHz Mini
512MB RAM
Mouse and keyboard (wired)
Superdrive
Uh ok. So please tell me what the technical definition of retarded is?
Lets check out the ports on the P4 model:
I/O: 2 x 4 pins mini type Firewire 1394 Ports 2 x USB 2.0 Ports 1 x 9-pin Serial Port (RS-232) 1 x 25-pin Parallel Port (EPP/ECP) 1 x 6-pin PS/2 Mouse Port 1 x 6-pin PS/2 Keyboard Port
Audio: One 3.5mm microphone input jack One 3.5mm earphone jack
Video: VGA
Lets now check out the Mac Mini: 2 USB 2.0 1 Firewire 10/100 Ethernet 56k Modem 1 Audio/headphone jack
How is this LESS connectivity??? I'm not going to argue about iLife (believe me there are LOTS of software not available on the Mac that is on Windows) or Linux (more likely on the PC as it is using a standard mobo chipset). Your original argument was size and processor speed. You sir are still spreading misinformation.
The usage in QuarkXpress was not to bring up context menus, it is to alter the pointer's effect on the objects below it. So you could switch between tools without clicking on the toolbar, or alter how text was selected. To be frank, once you learned the shortcuts your performance using the application skyrockets. You don't NEED to ever use them. You could just use the menu and toolbar if you like but you would be slower than someone who used the shortcuts. I don't know that this is bad interface design. One of the reasons everyone switched from Pagemaker to QuarkXpress in the 90s was that it was a very fast way to build pages. Consider the text selection mechanism:
2 click, select word 3 clicks, select line 4 clicks select paragraph 5 clicks, select all text in text box
I've often thought that having a quintuple click was pretty silly - but in practice this mechanism gives you excellent control over text selection. Something you do constantly in DTP and copyediting.
This one measures 6.18" x 5.75" x 2.2" vs the Mac Mini's 6.5" x 6.5" x 2".
I won't argue pricing - the Mac Mini has that down, but for size and power your statements are just plain false.
Please look around and inform yourself before spreading misinformation.
This message brought to you by the campaign for fair and unbiased posting on Slashdot (yes we realize it's a losing battle).
When they originally did this, the screens where special monochrome monitors (original Macs) that were much easier on the eyes than full RGB color monitors.
White on a color monitor means RGB at full intensity. For me this causes much higher eyestrain than white on black or green on black. For my terminals and code editing apps I always use a black background with colored text. This significantly reduces fatigue during long programming sessions.
More than one key. In QuarkXpress for example you commonly use command, option, shift, command+shift, option+shift etc. as well at ctrl for context menus. The more complex the application, the more key+mouse button combos.
Once you start adding a bunch of external peripherals you start to negate the benefit of having the small basic case. Back in the early 90s my desktop publishing machines would have a mountain of SCSI devices which took up as much or more space than the Mac IIci boxes (zips, bernoullis, external HD, syquest, MO drive). Sure it is an extreme case because we needed to support many client media types, but adding even a couple will more than double the desk space of the mini and add to clutter. The biggest complaints I have with the Mini are the single DIMM slot and the lower end video card. Mini-ITX motherboards usually have 2 DIMM slots in a similar form factor. Having only one makes it cost prohibitive to go to 1GB of RAM and also maxes you out at 1GB. I understand the choice in video card was due to heat/noise issues - but arguments that it's a great chip because it can play World of Warcraft are silly. It's an old chip, it may run some stuff but it isn't going to give you high end gaming goodness. To be fair, that's not the point of the Mini anyway but let's not call it a great video chip when it is actually a basic video chip. Once again Apple has shown that it will deliberately stratify it's product line to protect it's sales. They don't want potential PowerMac buyers to be tempted by either the iMac or the Mini. In the case of the G5 iMac they brought down the frontside bus and made them slower than the PowerMac. In the Minis case they limited the RAM expandability. This is certainly an intelligent move on Apple's behalf but it is a marketing move. and not a move that gets you the consumer the best tech. If you think I'm full of crap I would state that Apple has consistently followed this policy throughout the company's history. The Apple IIGS was castrated to prevent competition with the Mac line (thus killing it's chances against the Amiga and Atari ST at the time). The Classic and Color Classic low end machines were also deliberately made slow. In the case of the Color Classic, they ran a 32bit computer on a 16bit data bus, killing the speed. Don't get me wrong, I like the Mini and I think it's a great little computer. I don't think it's all that innovative or amazing though. The best part about it is that now there is an affordable little computer which will handle most people's needs (email, web browsing, a few games, word processing, digital photos, music) competently at a price competitive to the Walmart special, with none of the spyware/virus risk.
Why is it that a Mac troll gets modded informative? There is no information in this post, just noise. If you wanted to make a case, you should at least show some specs proving the points you made. There is a lot more choice in the PC world of laptops. Everything from tiny handheld PCs to sub-notebooks, to mid range, to desktop replacements that are as fast as a high end desktop PC (and are heavy). Small screens, big screens, widescreens whatever you like. The price is also relative to the size and components used.
I made an end run on this whole problem. With some carefully executed electro shock therapy, I erased all of my personal information from my own brain! Just try your evil identity theft tricks now!
Take back this LCD! The experience is hellish. Ooh, the lava, the pits of flames! Oh the burning the never ending torture of damnation encapsulated in crappy DVD playback! Take the LCD away from mine site for it burns us it does!
I keed. I still use a CRT for my main display, mostly for the better refresh in games and the ability to display multiple resolutions without interpolation. I do think that modern LCDs are excellent for general purpose desktop displays such as in office settings. For gaming, even if the LCD refresh is fine, you will get the best results by running it at its native resolution. So if you have a 17" LCD with 1280x1024 resolution you will get the best image quality if your video card can handle that res in your games.
Ok - I use multiple OSs so I won't flame the Windows tech sux0rs MacOS teh r0x0rs line. The oboard video is pretty lame on the Dell's but they are fine for office work. Personally I would drop another 256MB in there - the same as I would for the Mac Mini. Both Dells and Macs have one similar problem. Non standard components you need to source from the vendor directly to replace. Dell's have non standard cases, motherboards and power supplies. You can't just swap in normal PC parts if stuff breaks. Same deal on the Mac.
To be fair NCSoft's EULA states that copying characters that would infringe on other companies IP is not allowed and makes you subject to being banned. They do routinely do this - via forced renames and costume changes of characters. While I have seen a lot of copied characters - I have never seen them attain high level. All of the fake hulks and spider-men disappear pretty quickly.
True - provided you don't have a clue what you are doing and expose your machine bare to a DSL or cable connection without a firewall in the way. Service pack 2 for XP does help with this. Also some of our local ISPs have been bundling firewalls with the service or offering to firewall the connection. Certainly everyone who asks me about DSL or Cable connections gets the lecture and recommendation to install a firewall. I don't know many people who don't have a hardware firewall in place actually. If someone just wants to do word processing, basic accounting, web browsing. I would probably recommend a Mac. Mac's however due have their share of problems just as any other OS. Also most non-savvy Mac users I have seen do run their computers under the administrator account which means if someone can get in they will be able to play.
Slashdot Mirror
I don't see any of those games as being "genre defining". A 3D platformer, a racing game, a fighter and a board game.
I like them - but I wouldn't call them "genre defining".
The point is that ALWAYS using the same characters can get dull. Look at Star Fox Adventures - which wasn't even going to be a Star Fox game originally. Did it need to be? Does it become better because it has Star Fox in it?
I would say, Pikmin and Animal Crossing feature about the only new characters or worlds. And Animal Crossing would have been much better if it was networkable.
How about OMFG! Is that acceptable? As in:
OMFG! I can't believe you posted just to bitch about someone using OMG!
True the Mini Mac has DVI versus VGA. My mistake.
"Parallel and PS2 (on it or not) does not give it MORE connectivity - they are pretty much free things they can add to the motherboard to make it APPEAR it has more connectivity."
How can something "appear" to have more connectivity? If I plug mouse and keyboard into PS2 ports and a printer into the parallel port - then I have three devices plugged in without using any of the available USB or firewire. I wouldn't need a USB hub. As to USB being better - sure its more modern but plugging a keyboard into USB vs. PS2 hardly matters. In both cases the keyboard works. Same for mice, printers etc.
As I mentioned above the concerns I was addressing were speed and size. But you mention cost and appearance.
Looks are subjective, and ultimately not very important to a computers function. I don't really care if a computer matches my decor. The Mac Mini looks fine, just plain and generic. I don't really care for the Mocha PC looks either. But I wouldn't base a computer purchase on looks any more than I would buy a care based on what color it was. For cost you are stating $800. Realistically that's about what you will want to spend on a Mac Mini. Consider:
1.42GHz Mini
512MB RAM
Mouse and keyboard (wired)
Superdrive
Total cost at Apple Store: $832
Uh ok. So please tell me what the technical definition of retarded is?
Lets check out the ports on the P4 model:
I/O:
2 x 4 pins mini type Firewire 1394 Ports
2 x USB 2.0 Ports
1 x 9-pin Serial Port (RS-232)
1 x 25-pin Parallel Port (EPP/ECP)
1 x 6-pin PS/2 Mouse Port
1 x 6-pin PS/2 Keyboard Port
Comm:
Built-in Realtek 8139 10/100MB Fast Ethernet (RJ45)
Built-in PCtel HSP56MR 56K V.90 Modem (RJ11)
Audio:
One 3.5mm microphone input jack
One 3.5mm earphone jack
Video:
VGA
Lets now check out the Mac Mini:
2 USB 2.0
1 Firewire
10/100 Ethernet
56k Modem
1 Audio/headphone jack
How is this LESS connectivity???
I'm not going to argue about iLife (believe me there are LOTS of software not available on the Mac that is on Windows) or Linux (more likely on the PC as it is using a standard mobo chipset). Your original argument was size and processor speed.
You sir are still spreading misinformation.
But the brand new Mac Mini is shiny and new and has the same video as the not shiny and new powerbook.
Low contrast between text and background also causes eyestrain after prolonged viewing.
The usage in QuarkXpress was not to bring up context menus, it is to alter the pointer's effect on the objects below it. So you could switch between tools without clicking on the toolbar, or alter how text was selected. To be frank, once you learned the shortcuts your performance using the application skyrockets. You don't NEED to ever use them. You could just use the menu and toolbar if you like but you would be slower than someone who used the shortcuts.
I don't know that this is bad interface design. One of the reasons everyone switched from Pagemaker to QuarkXpress in the 90s was that it was a very fast way to build pages.
Consider the text selection mechanism:
2 click, select word
3 clicks, select line
4 clicks select paragraph
5 clicks, select all text in text box
I've often thought that having a quintuple click was pretty silly - but in practice this mechanism gives you excellent control over text selection. Something you do constantly in DTP and copyediting.
Espresso PC 6" x 4" x 1.25"
But that's a lowend Celeron system. How about a P4 system?
Mocha
This one measures 6.18" x 5.75" x 2.2" vs the Mac Mini's 6.5" x 6.5" x 2".
I won't argue pricing - the Mac Mini has that down, but for size and power your statements are just plain false.
Please look around and inform yourself before spreading misinformation.
This message brought to you by the campaign for fair and unbiased posting on Slashdot (yes we realize it's a losing battle).
Tivo really is a service. Without the service the Tivo's software usability is dramatically reduced.
When they originally did this, the screens where special monochrome monitors (original Macs) that were much easier on the eyes than full RGB color monitors.
White on a color monitor means RGB at full intensity. For me this causes much higher eyestrain than white on black or green on black. For my terminals and code editing apps I always use a black background with colored text. This significantly reduces fatigue during long programming sessions.
More than one key. In QuarkXpress for example you commonly use command, option, shift, command+shift, option+shift etc. as well at ctrl for context menus.
The more complex the application, the more key+mouse button combos.
I would hope so, considering Battlefield 1942 is more than 2 years old.
Once you start adding a bunch of external peripherals you start to negate the benefit of having the small basic case. Back in the early 90s my desktop publishing machines would have a mountain of SCSI devices which took up as much or more space than the Mac IIci boxes (zips, bernoullis, external HD, syquest, MO drive). Sure it is an extreme case because we needed to support many client media types, but adding even a couple will more than double the desk space of the mini and add to clutter.
The biggest complaints I have with the Mini are the single DIMM slot and the lower end video card.
Mini-ITX motherboards usually have 2 DIMM slots in a similar form factor. Having only one makes it cost prohibitive to go to 1GB of RAM and also maxes you out at 1GB.
I understand the choice in video card was due to heat/noise issues - but arguments that it's a great chip because it can play World of Warcraft are silly. It's an old chip, it may run some stuff but it isn't going to give you high end gaming goodness. To be fair, that's not the point of the Mini anyway but let's not call it a great video chip when it is actually a basic video chip.
Once again Apple has shown that it will deliberately stratify it's product line to protect it's sales. They don't want potential PowerMac buyers to be tempted by either the iMac or the Mini. In the case of the G5 iMac they brought down the frontside bus and made them slower than the PowerMac. In the Minis case they limited the RAM expandability. This is certainly an intelligent move on Apple's behalf but it is a marketing move. and not a move that gets you the consumer the best tech.
If you think I'm full of crap I would state that Apple has consistently followed this policy throughout the company's history. The Apple IIGS was castrated to prevent competition with the Mac line (thus killing it's chances against the Amiga and Atari ST at the time). The Classic and Color Classic low end machines were also deliberately made slow. In the case of the Color Classic, they ran a 32bit computer on a 16bit data bus, killing the speed.
Don't get me wrong, I like the Mini and I think it's a great little computer. I don't think it's all that innovative or amazing though. The best part about it is that now there is an affordable little computer which will handle most people's needs (email, web browsing, a few games, word processing, digital photos, music) competently at a price competitive to the Walmart special, with none of the spyware/virus risk.
Why is it that a Mac troll gets modded informative?
There is no information in this post, just noise. If you wanted to make a case, you should at least show some specs proving the points you made.
There is a lot more choice in the PC world of laptops. Everything from tiny handheld PCs to sub-notebooks, to mid range, to desktop replacements that are as fast as a high end desktop PC (and are heavy). Small screens, big screens, widescreens whatever you like.
The price is also relative to the size and components used.
Only due to the miracle of "remember my password on this computer"!
Translation: Bob's nifty 12 line perl hack doesn't seem to scale.
I made an end run on this whole problem. With some carefully executed electro shock therapy, I erased all of my personal information from my own brain!
Just try your evil identity theft tricks now!
Microsoft Works.
Hahahahaha!
This person can use so many words to say so little.
Summary:
NVIDIA is working on the Playstation 3 graphics chip
It will be based on the next generation NVIDIA GPU (the one after the 6800 series)
Sony and NVIDIA save money in the development since the next gen GPU was already in the pipeline and is already a year and a half into development
NVIDIA thinks it will see increased growth in non PC markets such as consoles and PDAs
The marketing director is really excited about all the hot new technologies and whee hoo!
Hooray!
Take back this LCD! The experience is hellish. Ooh, the lava, the pits of flames! Oh the burning the never ending torture of damnation encapsulated in crappy DVD playback! Take the LCD away from mine site for it burns us it does!
I keed. I still use a CRT for my main display, mostly for the better refresh in games and the ability to display multiple resolutions without interpolation.
I do think that modern LCDs are excellent for general purpose desktop displays such as in office settings.
For gaming, even if the LCD refresh is fine, you will get the best results by running it at its native resolution. So if you have a 17" LCD with 1280x1024 resolution you will get the best image quality if your video card can handle that res in your games.
Now that a ton of the userbase bailed to WoW - City of Heroes is virtually lag free!
One word:
Size.
Ok - I use multiple OSs so I won't flame the Windows tech sux0rs MacOS teh r0x0rs line. The oboard video is pretty lame on the Dell's but they are fine for office work. Personally I would drop another 256MB in there - the same as I would for the Mac Mini.
Both Dells and Macs have one similar problem. Non standard components you need to source from the vendor directly to replace. Dell's have non standard cases, motherboards and power supplies. You can't just swap in normal PC parts if stuff breaks. Same deal on the Mac.
Yep - that was exactly what came into my mind when reading the parent post.
To be fair NCSoft's EULA states that copying characters that would infringe on other companies IP is not allowed and makes you subject to being banned.
They do routinely do this - via forced renames and costume changes of characters.
While I have seen a lot of copied characters - I have never seen them attain high level. All of the fake hulks and spider-men disappear pretty quickly.
True - provided you don't have a clue what you are doing and expose your machine bare to a DSL or cable connection without a firewall in the way. Service pack 2 for XP does help with this. Also some of our local ISPs have been bundling firewalls with the service or offering to firewall the connection.
Certainly everyone who asks me about DSL or Cable connections gets the lecture and recommendation to install a firewall. I don't know many people who don't have a hardware firewall in place actually.
If someone just wants to do word processing, basic accounting, web browsing. I would probably recommend a Mac. Mac's however due have their share of problems just as any other OS. Also most non-savvy Mac users I have seen do run their computers under the administrator account which means if someone can get in they will be able to play.