In short, gaming has a significantly-sized, time-dedicated audience compared to other entertainment media; however, other media have a much larger audience and probably always will(unless you make video gaming cheaper and easier to learn).
I know I'm a total fanboy, but as soon as I read that I thought "Wii!"
Even the Wii magically makes gaming Fun for All Ages, I wouldn't expect to see more of them in other media. Books are a huge market, and some even make it big (Da Vinci Code, Harry Potter), but they still don't get much screen time compared to movies. No actors and their silly antics, I suppose.
From the summary:... Nintendo's patent is relatively broad and could potentially lead to litigation... Although the text of the patent itself refers to the Nintendo64 and Game Boy Color by name...
So it applies specifically to the N64 and Game Boy Color... but it could lead to litigation?
Can someone explain to me how this isn't just Ars Technica stirring the pot?
How are they certain that the rules derived from these sites like MySpace or even Slashdot are even accurate? People post mis-information all the time & you can hardly call MySpace a reliable source for even seeding a semantic web. You can build a social network but even then it's hard because you're linking mostly aliases. Nowhere will you find my real name associated with my slashdot or myspace account--though you may be able to link them.
They likely won't even look at that information. Instead, they'll do some major hard-core graph analysis (like the people in the CS lab next to mine do), and identify cliques within the social network. When they identify someone as a terrorist or sympathizer, they'll use any clique he belongs to for leads.
You have a good point, that MySpace information is limited because of the quality of its information, but associations with other members aren't easily or often faked.
can't we technically qualify anything as an addiction? I mean if you define an addiction as a habbit that leads to anti-social behavior, then anything from excessive porn watching to video-games to overeating can count as an addiction.
Why don't we, and then just open some generic "addiction centers" where they'll help you get over anything?
"Hi, I'm Josh, and I'm addicted to trolling Slashdot..."
Seriously. You'd think they'd try their own search or something:P
Why would they do that? It gives us the opportunity to repost smart things someone else said in the other discussion without getting modded Redundant.
For instance, I might state:
- I'm sure Jack Thompson will use this to leverage his arguments - It'll be sandwiched between two hash-bars on Main street - They'll just be trading a gaming addiction for another kind of addiction, like AA does swapping alcohol for Jesus - Most "12 step" programs are quacky and don't work - That if you're in Amsterdam and you can't find anything more interesting to get addicted to than games, you really do need help - Gaming isn't a "drug," but it does stimulate pleasure centers and thus can be addictive (like sugary foods, I guess) - You could probably pay Chinese and Korean powerlevelers to shoot you right up through that 12-step program for a small fee
Think of how difficult it would be to play test a game like Oblivion versus a typical FPS.
It can be avoided.
I'm serious.
The problem is that game companies are some of the most behind in state-of-the-art testing. I'm not talking about QA process, either. I'm talking about Model Checking. It's the kind of thing military contractors do with their code to make sure missiles never accidentally blow up in the wrong spot.
(It was the topic of an article on Slashdot a few weeks ago - which, I'm sorry to report, nobody here actually understood, thinking it was about automatic code generation. Talk about not RTFAing.)
Here's how it works: you model your quests and quest variables as finite state automata. (Remember discrete math?) You use a very expressive language for this, which makes it easy to read. A character, say, killing a certain fish would change a boolean quest variable. Then you define properties that your FSM should have, so that if a quest becomes unsolvable, one or more properties fails. Throw it at a model checking system and in a few minutes, it tells you whether a quest can be made unsolvable and how to get into that state.
It's extremely simple with quests, most of which are totally independent, leading to a relatively small global quest FSM.
Someone competent in Model Checking could add a new quest to the system and check it in less than two hours.
Its not really clear about how much of your information is encryped. Your passwords yes, but your browsing history? Your bookmarks?
I've just downloaded and installed it. It automatically encrypts your cookies and passwords (it doesn't let you change this setting), and gives you the option of encrypting history, bookmarks, and tabs and windows if you choose to synchronize them. Additionally, it's all optional.
And if you were really security-conscious, you could tell it to not synchronize anything at all.
Assuming it keeps working (it has so far), I really like it. It makes keeping bookmarks actually worthwhile.
The grammar fascist would like to point out that the word "literal" means that whatever follows is not figurative.
Just to clear that up. It seems like the word "literal" has taken on a less-than-literal meaning lately, and it's entirely possible that the grandparent didn't actually know what it means.
Nintendo has some up-front costs for setting up the service, and some minimal costs to keep it running. Basically, they're sending you free bits (for them) for your money. And you're glad to pay it.
I will be, too. Everybody wins, but especially Nintendo.
Aren't you assuming a 1 g gravitaitonal field? How very Sol III centric of you.
It's horrible. What we need is some kind of affirmative action for gravitational fields.
The proportions of citations of Earth-pounds, Moon-pounds, Jovian-pounds, Rigel Kentarus A-4-pounds, etc., should all match the proportions of intelligent life forms on those planetoids. Of course, these ignorant Philistines will keep using Earth-pounds... except possibly those who listen to Coast to Coast AM...
There are many kinds of war, including political and economical wars. Not all wars are military ones.
If you consider those other kinds of war, the possibility doesn't sound so far fetched anymore, does it ?
Based on extremely advanced numerological and astrological techniques passed down to me from the ancient Samuri, I can unequivocally state that he really wasn't taking a hyperbolic dig at the United States. He was actually talking about a fashion war.
It's so hilarious, I stabbed my eyes out to make sure no lesser joke would sully my eyes by being not as hilarious as Dvorak's take on modern technology!
Great! If you're really done with them, you could donate them to a new fund I'm setting up: the Trust For People Who Clawed Their Eyes Out Reading John C. Dvorak.
Slashdot Mirror
Homer dumps his cat and dog in a burlap sack to breed "a miracle hybrid, with the loyalty of a cat and the cleanliness of a dog."
In short, gaming has a significantly-sized, time-dedicated audience compared to other entertainment media; however, other media have a much larger audience and probably always will(unless you make video gaming cheaper and easier to learn).
I know I'm a total fanboy, but as soon as I read that I thought "Wii!"
Even the Wii magically makes gaming Fun for All Ages, I wouldn't expect to see more of them in other media. Books are a huge market, and some even make it big (Da Vinci Code, Harry Potter), but they still don't get much screen time compared to movies. No actors and their silly antics, I suppose.
Aren't they making a movie out of World of Warcraft?
I think I'd rather see one based on Pac-Man, actually.
Or Super Monkey Ball. That would rule.
Ah, okay. Thanks!
From the summary: ... Nintendo's patent is relatively broad and could potentially lead to litigation... Although the text of the patent itself refers to the Nintendo64 and Game Boy Color by name...
So it applies specifically to the N64 and Game Boy Color... but it could lead to litigation?
Can someone explain to me how this isn't just Ars Technica stirring the pot?
How are they certain that the rules derived from these sites like MySpace or even Slashdot are even accurate? People post mis-information all the time & you can hardly call MySpace a reliable source for even seeding a semantic web. You can build a social network but even then it's hard because you're linking mostly aliases. Nowhere will you find my real name associated with my slashdot or myspace account--though you may be able to link them.
They likely won't even look at that information. Instead, they'll do some major hard-core graph analysis (like the people in the CS lab next to mine do), and identify cliques within the social network. When they identify someone as a terrorist or sympathizer, they'll use any clique he belongs to for leads.
You have a good point, that MySpace information is limited because of the quality of its information, but associations with other members aren't easily or often faked.
And they wonder how digg grew so fast...
Well, the article has 200 comments right now, so something must be working, right?
can't we technically qualify anything as an addiction? I mean if you define an addiction as a habbit that leads to anti-social behavior, then anything from excessive porn watching to video-games to overeating can count as an addiction.
Why don't we, and then just open some generic "addiction centers" where they'll help you get over anything?
"Hi, I'm Josh, and I'm addicted to trolling Slashdot..."
Seriously. You'd think they'd try their own search or something :P
Why would they do that? It gives us the opportunity to repost smart things someone else said in the other discussion without getting modded Redundant.
For instance, I might state:
- I'm sure Jack Thompson will use this to leverage his arguments
- It'll be sandwiched between two hash-bars on Main street
- They'll just be trading a gaming addiction for another kind of addiction, like AA does swapping alcohol for Jesus
- Most "12 step" programs are quacky and don't work
- That if you're in Amsterdam and you can't find anything more interesting to get addicted to than games, you really do need help
- Gaming isn't a "drug," but it does stimulate pleasure centers and thus can be addictive (like sugary foods, I guess)
- You could probably pay Chinese and Korean powerlevelers to shoot you right up through that 12-step program for a small fee
But I'd just be karma-whoring.
Think of how difficult it would be to play test a game like Oblivion versus a typical FPS.
It can be avoided.
I'm serious.
The problem is that game companies are some of the most behind in state-of-the-art testing. I'm not talking about QA process, either. I'm talking about Model Checking. It's the kind of thing military contractors do with their code to make sure missiles never accidentally blow up in the wrong spot.
(It was the topic of an article on Slashdot a few weeks ago - which, I'm sorry to report, nobody here actually understood, thinking it was about automatic code generation. Talk about not RTFAing.)
Here's how it works: you model your quests and quest variables as finite state automata. (Remember discrete math?) You use a very expressive language for this, which makes it easy to read. A character, say, killing a certain fish would change a boolean quest variable. Then you define properties that your FSM should have, so that if a quest becomes unsolvable, one or more properties fails. Throw it at a model checking system and in a few minutes, it tells you whether a quest can be made unsolvable and how to get into that state.
It's extremely simple with quests, most of which are totally independent, leading to a relatively small global quest FSM.
Someone competent in Model Checking could add a new quest to the system and check it in less than two hours.
Its not really clear about how much of your information is encryped. Your passwords yes, but your browsing history? Your bookmarks?
I've just downloaded and installed it. It automatically encrypts your cookies and passwords (it doesn't let you change this setting), and gives you the option of encrypting history, bookmarks, and tabs and windows if you choose to synchronize them. Additionally, it's all optional.
And if you were really security-conscious, you could tell it to not synchronize anything at all.
Assuming it keeps working (it has so far), I really like it. It makes keeping bookmarks actually worthwhile.
The grammar fascist would like to point out that the word "literal" means that whatever follows is not figurative.
Just to clear that up. It seems like the word "literal" has taken on a less-than-literal meaning lately, and it's entirely possible that the grandparent didn't actually know what it means.
Here Come the Comments... about this Not Being News.
Don't forget the preemptive comments about the comments about this not being news.
Also, the comments pointing out the preemptive comments about the comments about this not being news.
Is SMB3 really considered retro nowadays?
Yes. Also, John Lennon was shot, and Nixon resigned.
I'm getting tired of RPGs and FPSs.
You could always try Progress Quest. It really does take all the boring parts out of an RPG. It leaves you with... nothing?
Heading to the killing fields...
Slaying an adolescent Half-Dwarf... Got Half-Dwarf beard
Slaying a porn elemental... Got porn elemental lube
Heading back into town to sell your stuff...
Buying upgrades...
Heading to the killing fields...
In other words...Quad Damage!
Unfortunately, Quad Damage was reduced in Quake III Arena to 3x.
We need to get people to start using the "bsotd" tag: Bottom Story of the Day.
I just did it. How about you?
And nobody pays development or duplication costs.
Nintendo has some up-front costs for setting up the service, and some minimal costs to keep it running. Basically, they're sending you free bits (for them) for your money. And you're glad to pay it.
I will be, too. Everybody wins, but especially Nintendo.
...Are we paying attention?? You can make millions and make your customers happy without gouging your customers.
Microsoft tried, actually, but the number of available retro games is pitiful. Nintendo starts with a gigantic library that they already own.
Microsoft couldn't have done it the way Nintendo plans to. Sony might be able to with PS1 games.
"The Nadburner(TM): 'Ave You Got The Balls?"
Not anymore.
Imagine a Beowulf cluster of these... in Korea! That old people use!
What's next?
Aren't you assuming a 1 g gravitaitonal field? How very Sol III centric of you.
It's horrible. What we need is some kind of affirmative action for gravitational fields.
The proportions of citations of Earth-pounds, Moon-pounds, Jovian-pounds, Rigel Kentarus A-4-pounds, etc., should all match the proportions of intelligent life forms on those planetoids. Of course, these ignorant Philistines will keep using Earth-pounds... except possibly those who listen to Coast to Coast AM...
There are many kinds of war, including political and economical wars.
Not all wars are military ones.
If you consider those other kinds of war, the possibility doesn't sound so far fetched anymore, does it ?
Based on extremely advanced numerological and astrological techniques passed down to me from the ancient Samuri, I can unequivocally state that he really wasn't taking a hyperbolic dig at the United States. He was actually talking about a fashion war.
Cat fight!
Any exposure the the forbidden activity (even being around others doing it) becomes a personal crisis.
People need to learn to live with these things instead of hiding from them.
Have you ever overcome an addiction?
A real one? A compulsion so strong you can't control it on your own?
No? Then don't knock it. At least they're not doing it anymore.
It's so hilarious, I stabbed my eyes out to make sure no lesser joke would sully my eyes by being not as hilarious as Dvorak's take on modern technology!
Great! If you're really done with them, you could donate them to a new fund I'm setting up: the Trust For People Who Clawed Their Eyes Out Reading John C. Dvorak.