They just started about the same time, maybe even earlier than Tivo. Webtv started in 1995 and had units already in beta by 1997 (Microsoft bought WebTV at this time). Tivo was introduced in CES on January 1999. In May 99 Echostar introduced the Dishplayer (which nobody ever mentions when they talk about PVRs, why is that?). The Dishplayer is a satelite receiver with an integrated PVR (much like DirectTivo) and WebTV services. UltimateTV is actually a 3rd generation product: WebTV -> Dishplayer-> UltimateTV.
Anyway, Tivo has the patent now so they are screwed.
You should have enough protection already for your development. Or am I talking bullshit here?
The host OS (Windows, Linux) will be protected from the hosted one (Amiga) but if a program crashes in the Amiga side it will bring all of the Amiga side with it. At least that's how I see it.
Well I have the SDK so I think I could answer some of your questions:
Real-time only means it meets timing guarantees. Not that it is fast. Real-time only means when I say it'll take 100 days to add two numbers, it absolutely won't take 101 days.
Yes, its true. It only means that it will meet the timing requirements. I'm sure that it doesn't meet them when it is hosted, but for a virtual processor is really fast. I always read here comparisons with Java. Java is slow, very slow. I have the Windows SDK and everything runs as fast as the host. I heard the Linux SDK is even faster. I was really surprised with the speed of the alpha blending demos that come with the SDK.
It is either new or it has a legacy. I don't understand how it can have both. In any case I seriously doubt this statement is anything other than marketing vapor.
You are right, this line is just marketing stuff.
Multiplatform and multimedia-centric are relatively useless buzzwords for game developers. Until Amiga's SDK becomes as powerful as DirectX (not that I'm saying DirectX is perfect, just that it's nice not to have to reinvent the wheel all the time) the Amiga will never be a dream come true for developers.
The Amiga DE will come with RenderWare (according to the manuals) and the framework is used in PS2, Dreamcast, PC and Mac. Don't know anything about sound or input devices but they are supposed to be working on something. We'll see.
That's a lot. The original Playstation only has 2 MB of system memory. The N64 has 4 MB. The Dreamcast has 16 MB. I'm not sure I want the OS eating up over 1/4 of the available memory on my console. Since it doesn't sound like they're talking about consoles, what do they mean when they say "multiplatform"?
The PS1 and the N64 don't count anymore. Everyone will start programming for the Dolphin, PS2, and Dreamcast only. They are talking about consoles and computers as well. The OS can run hosted in other operating systems and native in a lot of chips. Why everyone that posts here doesn't even bother to look for information before posting? Visit TAO which is the basis of the new OS.
Another thing you guys should know. Not everything is 'virtual-assembly'. When you compile a program the extension is program.00 (.00 means VP, the virtual processor instructions). You could compile to native code if you wanted but you will lose the portability. There is an extension for each native processor, for example.04=386,.16=PPC,.24=Pentium2, etc.
The only thing that I actually is a huge, but HUGE mistake is, believe it or not, that it doesn't have memory protection. It only protects the addresses from 0-128. I heard they were going to add it, and that currently it wasn't there because it was an embedded os. I hope is true.
There is a firmware problem with the DishPlayer when it records more then 50 hours (or 50 events, no one is sure) it erases all the recordings and configurations and you have to set up the unit again. People have been upgrading to a max size of 46GB, anything over that and it may crash. Some people says it has to do with the hard-disk geometry, but who knows.
Yes it is a pimp. You go to him and he points you to the ones who give you the actual service.
You:Could you hook me up with some news? Slashdot:Sure my friend. I can hook you up to some very hot-looking news, but it will cost you. You:How much? Slashdot:Just look at the add, then you can go and have some hot and kinky news!
give credit where credit is due. If you run slashcode, then you (should) have a Slash logo with a link to slashcode.com, and it would seem appropriate to provide a link to Slashdot, too.
I know I'll get moderated down for this but here it goes. As soon as someone takes any of your code (source, HTML,...) and doesn't gives you any credit for it, you get all pissed. Well, learn to live with it, it's GPL'd they don't have to. As long as they release the code they can do anything they want with it, including not giving you credit for it.
If I wanted I could take the GNOME code call it DWARF, make a few changes and I dont have to give credit for the programming to anyone. As long as I release the source code. Yes, I'll get flamed to hell and back, but I can do it. That's why I like the BSD license more than the GPL, give credit where credit is due.
I saw this info sometime ago. I thought it was here. Maybe I was wrong. To view the info click here.
Re:GNOME vs KDE Episode 18: Pointlessness
on
KDE Strikes Back
·
· Score: 1
As someone that has to use Windows at work everyday let me clarify a few things:
- double-clicking a taskbar icon will iconify that application. great for getting stuff out of your way.
Windows does this.
- right-clicking a taskbar icon gives you a menu which includes 'iconify other windows', which is really handy since I usually have like 14 Konsoles, 11 Netscapes, GAIM, XMMS, Quanta+ and StarOffice open simultaneously.
Windows does this too. Instead of clicking the icon do it on the task bar (e.g. the clock). 'Minimize All Windows'.
- Alt-F2 brings up a little input field which I can use to start an app quicker than using the menus. It keeps a history too, so I can cycle through previous commands.
Ok, I'll give you this one.
- Rotating desktop wallpapers. I have a directory of about 450 hi-color psychedelic 1024x768 wallpapers, and I have KDE set to switch to a random one every 30 seconds. Keeps things interesting.
Every 30 seconds? How many aspirins you need daily?
- Right click on desktop gives you a menu which includes 'Logout'. I find that much easier to deal with than windows, which requires you to hit Ctrl-Alt-Del or click on the Start button.
You could click the desktop and press ALT-F4.
So, I guess it's subtle things like that, that make me like KDE so much.
I like KDE better too, but just because Windows it crashes every time a cloud moves over your head doesn't mean it isn't bad. Wait a second, it is. Heh, at least I can play Diablo in it. Man, my karma is going to hell with this one.
There is a new Monkey Island on the way. So, not all hope is lost. I always liked LucasArts adventure games more than Sierra's. I found them more fun. I'll take a Maniac Mansion or Monkey Island over Larry or a [King,Space,Police,Hero] Quest any day.
In other news, an unknown programmer hacked a robotic security guard in Bangkok today causing it to go on a killing rampage through the city. The robot is still at large. More news at 11:00.
....those for hours on end. Yes modern games have better graphics, no doubt this new Star Wars will too, but how good will the story line really be? Star Wars for N64 sucked in my....
Lately LucasArts has sucked, is true, but they have developed some of the best games (in my opinion) and most of them have great story lines. The last great LucasArts game I played was X-Wing:Alliance, awesome game and with a great plot, not like what most people here seem to like Doom and Quake (The story is great in those. Yeah right!). I have seen only 4 FPS with good stories and 2 are from LucasArts, the others are Half-life and Deus Ex. The zillion others are terribly boring.
The Dig, Full Throttle, The Maniac Mansions, the Monkey Islands, the Indiana Jones, Dark forces, X-Wings. All 3 different genres yet all have great stories. Give them a chance, they'll get better again, after all there's a new Monkey Island in the works, and I'm sure that it will rock.
AFAIK, if you make changes to a GPL program and use it internally you don't have to release the source. You do have to release the source if you give the binary to someone else. At least that's how it seems.
Not all recovery CD make you wipe out your entire system. My shiny new dell came with a Win2k Recovery CD, but when I used it, it gave me the option to do a recovery install along with a clean install. I belive my cd will only work on my dell however.
Now all new computers come with 'recovery' cd. The problem is that they only install in that model of computer. If I decide to make a computer myself I'm screwed. Why should I have to buy Windows again? I already payed for it once!! It sucks.
PS: For those who are saying "Don't install Windows, Linux is all you need!" I can't play Diablo II and Icewind Dale on Linux. For now...:)
That's why I didn't liked any of the Quakes. Yes they look beautiful, but this is the logic of most FPS games:
kill the monsters
flip switches
finish level
increase monster difficulty
goto 1
After a while it gets really old. What is Quake really? A better-looking Wolf3D. The only FPS I have ever bought were Dark Forces, Jedi Knight and Half-Life. They had a plot. You had a reason to finish the levels.
Speaking of games with plots. Why doesn't LucasArts forgets about those awful Episode 1 games and makes more Monkey Islands or Maniac Mansions!! Man I miss those.
Nor did it have memoy management in the front end of the machine Now do I read this correctly? The Transmeta does not have a MMU in the usual sense? No Memory protection and such? I can clearly see why something like that could be left to software, especially if you target more than one intruction set but this would definetly a problem if you ever wanted to build a native OS for Transmeta CPUs.
That's exactly the point, they don't want a native OS. They want to be able to change instructions in the chip (or the chip itself) without breaking existing programs. They could make a new chip, with completely different instruction sets and as long as you have the firmware for that chip, the software will run.
Why do you think Intel are still using x86 instructions? Because they have to. If they change something, they will break every program out there. All they can do is raise clock speed or add new instructions, and if you use the new instructions the program won't run in previous processors. Transmeta won't have this problem.
The gaming software would have to support putting out Dolby/DTS, the card can't make up the signals. But if quake supports true 5.1-channel digital sound, any sound card with digital out (S/P-DIF) can send that digital signal to a Dolby/DTS decoder.
There is EAX and A3D for positional audio but that uses 2 or 4 speakers. What I would like to see is a card that takes the positional audio information from EAX or A3d and makes a AC-3 or DTS 5.1 stream. I think that it would require to much processing power but with the speeds we have today, who knows.
I have my computer hooked up this way right now with a SonicVortex2 (Aureal chipset) so that I can get true 5.1 channel dolby digital surround on my DVD movies. But I don't know of any other application that uses true 5.1 surround. I know a few games are starting to support quadraphonic surround, but that's generally using direct3D or Aureal/Creative APIs, not Dolby/DTS.
I have almost the same setup. The thing is that sound card just sends the AC-3 stream directly to the digital out so no processing is done by the computer. What I would like is to connect the computer to my home-theater to play games. Imagine, listening to missiles REALLY coming from behind you in Quake, the room shaking every time your Mech steps in the ground. I hope someone makes one soon.
It seems that the Playstation 2 will have AC-3 and DTS out. It could be connected to a home-theater for real surround sound. I have been looking for a sound card that has real surround (AC-3 and DTS) but it seems they don't exist. Does anyone know of one? Playing Quake with DTS sound must be awesome.
Slashdot Mirror
Napster server was emulated, so was the Ultima Online server. Maybe someone will make an emulator for this server as well.
They just started about the same time, maybe even earlier than Tivo. Webtv started in 1995 and had units already in beta by 1997 (Microsoft bought WebTV at this time). Tivo was introduced in CES on January 1999. In May 99 Echostar introduced the Dishplayer (which nobody ever mentions when they talk about PVRs, why is that?). The Dishplayer is a satelite receiver with an integrated PVR (much like DirectTivo) and WebTV services. UltimateTV is actually a 3rd generation product: WebTV -> Dishplayer-> UltimateTV.
Anyway, Tivo has the patent now so they are screwed.
As long as I don't see a Coca-Cola add in a tavern in Diablo or Baldur's Gate I'm happy.
Did any of you actually read the interview? It has two pages, TWO PAGES. It mention BeOS clearly there.
You should have enough protection already for your development. Or am I talking bullshit here?
The host OS (Windows, Linux) will be protected from the hosted one (Amiga) but if a program crashes in the Amiga side it will bring all of the Amiga side with it. At least that's how I see it.
Well I have the SDK so I think I could answer some of your questions:
.04=386, .16=PPC, .24=Pentium2, etc.
Real-time only means it meets timing guarantees. Not that it is fast. Real-time only means when I say it'll take 100 days to add two numbers, it absolutely won't take 101 days.
Yes, its true. It only means that it will meet the timing requirements. I'm sure that it doesn't meet them when it is hosted, but for a virtual processor is really fast. I always read here comparisons with Java. Java is slow, very slow. I have the Windows SDK and everything runs as fast as the host. I heard the Linux SDK is even faster. I was really surprised with the speed of the alpha blending demos that come with the SDK.
It is either new or it has a legacy. I don't understand how it can have both. In any case I seriously doubt this statement is anything other than marketing vapor.
You are right, this line is just marketing stuff.
Multiplatform and multimedia-centric are relatively useless buzzwords for game developers. Until Amiga's SDK becomes as powerful as DirectX (not that I'm saying DirectX is perfect, just that it's nice not to have to reinvent the wheel all the time) the Amiga will never be a dream come true for developers.
The Amiga DE will come with RenderWare (according to the manuals) and the framework is used in PS2, Dreamcast, PC and Mac. Don't know anything about sound or input devices but they are supposed to be working on something. We'll see.
That's a lot. The original Playstation only has 2 MB of system memory. The N64 has 4 MB. The Dreamcast has 16 MB. I'm not sure I want the OS eating up over 1/4 of the available memory on my console. Since it doesn't sound like they're talking about consoles, what do they mean when they say "multiplatform"?
The PS1 and the N64 don't count anymore. Everyone will start programming for the Dolphin, PS2, and Dreamcast only. They are talking about consoles and computers as well. The OS can run hosted in other operating systems and native in a lot of chips. Why everyone that posts here doesn't even bother to look for information before posting? Visit TAO which is the basis of the new OS.
Another thing you guys should know. Not everything is 'virtual-assembly'. When you compile a program the extension is program.00 (.00 means VP, the virtual processor instructions). You could compile to native code if you wanted but you will lose the portability. There is an extension for each native processor, for example
The only thing that I actually is a huge, but HUGE mistake is, believe it or not, that it doesn't have memory protection. It only protects the addresses from 0-128. I heard they were going to add it, and that currently it wasn't there because it was an embedded os. I hope is true.
There is a firmware problem with the DishPlayer when it records more then 50 hours (or 50 events, no one is sure) it erases all the recordings and configurations and you have to set up the unit again. People have been upgrading to a max size of 46GB, anything over that and it may crash. Some people says it has to do with the hard-disk geometry, but who knows.
Yes it is a pimp. You go to him and he points you to the ones who give you the actual service.
You:Could you hook me up with some news?
Slashdot:Sure my friend. I can hook you up to some very hot-looking news, but it will cost you.
You:How much?
Slashdot:Just look at the add, then you can go and have some hot and kinky news!
... never asks for directions. That's why they are always late. :)
Amiga IS the real vaporware for non-wintel enthusiasts. How dare you compare the Amiga vapor to the Transmeta one? The living dead will return!!!
give credit where credit is due. If you run slashcode, then you (should) have a Slash logo with a link to slashcode.com, and it would seem appropriate to provide a link to Slashdot, too.
...) and doesn't gives you any credit for it, you get all pissed. Well, learn to live with it, it's GPL'd they don't have to. As long as they release the code they can do anything they want with it, including not giving you credit for it.
I know I'll get moderated down for this but here it goes. As soon as someone takes any of your code (source, HTML,
If I wanted I could take the GNOME code call it DWARF, make a few changes and I dont have to give credit for the programming to anyone. As long as I release the source code. Yes, I'll get flamed to hell and back, but I can do it. That's why I like the BSD license more than the GPL, give credit where credit is due.
I saw this info sometime ago. I thought it was here. Maybe I was wrong. To view the info click here.
As someone that has to use Windows at work everyday let me clarify a few things:
- double-clicking a taskbar icon will iconify that application. great for getting stuff out of your way.
Windows does this.
- right-clicking a taskbar icon gives you a menu which includes 'iconify other windows', which is really handy since I usually have like 14 Konsoles, 11 Netscapes, GAIM, XMMS, Quanta+ and StarOffice open simultaneously.
Windows does this too. Instead of clicking the icon do it on the task bar (e.g. the clock). 'Minimize All Windows'.
- Alt-F2 brings up a little input field which I can use to start an app quicker than using the menus. It keeps a history too, so I can cycle through previous commands.
Ok, I'll give you this one.
- Rotating desktop wallpapers. I have a directory of about 450 hi-color psychedelic 1024x768 wallpapers, and I have KDE set to switch to a random one every 30 seconds. Keeps things interesting.
Every 30 seconds? How many aspirins you need daily?
- Right click on desktop gives you a menu which includes 'Logout'. I find that much easier to deal with than windows, which requires you to hit Ctrl-Alt-Del or click on the Start button.
You could click the desktop and press ALT-F4.
So, I guess it's subtle things like that, that make me like KDE so much.
I like KDE better too, but just because Windows it crashes every time a cloud moves over your head doesn't mean it isn't bad. Wait a second, it is. Heh, at least I can play Diablo in it. Man, my karma is going to hell with this one.
There is a new Monkey Island on the way. So, not all hope is lost. I always liked LucasArts adventure games more than Sierra's. I found them more fun. I'll take a Maniac Mansion or Monkey Island over Larry or a [King,Space,Police,Hero] Quest any day.
In other news, an unknown programmer hacked a robotic security guard in Bangkok today causing it to go on a killing rampage through the city. The robot is still at large. More news at 11:00.
....those for hours on end. Yes modern games have better graphics, no doubt this new Star Wars will too, but how good will the story line really be? Star Wars for N64 sucked in my ....
Lately LucasArts has sucked, is true, but they have developed some of the best games (in my opinion) and most of them have great story lines. The last great LucasArts game I played was X-Wing:Alliance, awesome game and with a great plot, not like what most people here seem to like Doom and Quake (The story is great in those. Yeah right!). I have seen only 4 FPS with good stories and 2 are from LucasArts, the others are Half-life and Deus Ex. The zillion others are terribly boring.
The Dig, Full Throttle, The Maniac Mansions, the Monkey Islands, the Indiana Jones, Dark forces, X-Wings. All 3 different genres yet all have great stories. Give them a chance, they'll get better again, after all there's a new Monkey Island in the works, and I'm sure that it will rock.
AFAIK, if you make changes to a GPL program and use it internally you don't have to release the source. You do have to release the source if you give the binary to someone else. At least that's how it seems.
Not all recovery CD make you wipe out your entire system. My shiny new dell came with a Win2k Recovery CD, but when I used it, it gave me the option to do a recovery install along with a clean install. I belive my cd will only work on my dell however.
:)
Now all new computers come with 'recovery' cd. The problem is that they only install in that model of computer. If I decide to make a computer myself I'm screwed. Why should I have to buy Windows again? I already payed for it once!! It sucks.
PS: For those who are saying "Don't install Windows, Linux is all you need!" I can't play Diablo II and Icewind Dale on Linux. For now...
- kill the monsters
- flip switches
- finish level
- increase monster difficulty
- goto 1
After a while it gets really old. What is Quake really? A better-looking Wolf3D. The only FPS I have ever bought were Dark Forces, Jedi Knight and Half-Life. They had a plot. You had a reason to finish the levels.Speaking of games with plots. Why doesn't LucasArts forgets about those awful Episode 1 games and makes more Monkey Islands or Maniac Mansions!! Man I miss those.
Nor did it have memoy management in the front end of the machine Now do I read this correctly? The Transmeta does not have a MMU in the usual sense? No Memory protection and such? I can clearly see why something like that could be left to software, especially if you target more than one intruction set but this would definetly a problem if you ever wanted to build a native OS for Transmeta CPUs.
That's exactly the point, they don't want a native OS. They want to be able to change instructions in the chip (or the chip itself) without breaking existing programs. They could make a new chip, with completely different instruction sets and as long as you have the firmware for that chip, the software will run.
Why do you think Intel are still using x86 instructions? Because they have to. If they change something, they will break every program out there. All they can do is raise clock speed or add new instructions, and if you use the new instructions the program won't run in previous processors. Transmeta won't have this problem.
I want one.
So what if they change the pictures? Everyone knows people reads Playboy for the interviews. Right? :)
The gaming software would have to support putting out Dolby/DTS, the card can't make up the signals. But if quake supports true 5.1-channel digital sound, any sound card with digital out (S/P-DIF) can send that digital signal to a Dolby/DTS decoder.
There is EAX and A3D for positional audio but that uses 2 or 4 speakers. What I would like to see is a card that takes the positional audio information from EAX or A3d and makes a AC-3 or DTS 5.1 stream. I think that it would require to much processing power but with the speeds we have today, who knows.
I have my computer hooked up this way right now with a SonicVortex2 (Aureal chipset) so that I can get true 5.1 channel dolby digital surround on my DVD movies. But I don't know of any other application that uses true 5.1 surround. I know a few games are starting to support quadraphonic surround, but that's generally using direct3D or Aureal/Creative APIs, not Dolby/DTS.
I have almost the same setup. The thing is that sound card just sends the AC-3 stream directly to the digital out so no processing is done by the computer. What I would like is to connect the computer to my home-theater to play games. Imagine, listening to missiles REALLY coming from behind you in Quake, the room shaking every time your Mech steps in the ground. I hope someone makes one soon.
It seems that the Playstation 2 will have AC-3 and DTS out. It could be connected to a home-theater for real surround sound. I have been looking for a sound card that has real surround (AC-3 and DTS) but it seems they don't exist. Does anyone know of one? Playing Quake with DTS sound must be awesome.
Baldur's Gate is named after a famous pirate in the AD&D world. He was the founder of the city. It has nothing to do with the Asgardian gods.
If I were AMD I would be working fast in the SMP motherboard. I'm positively sure that everyone is interested in them.