Android is a step in the right direction, but it's not uniform enough to be a compelling game platform on it's own. Dealing with different screen resolutions/sizes, CPU power, and memory differences on a PC is bad enough, but on a mobile device we're talking differences of a factor of 10x or more.
For the sole purpose of gaming apps, I think Google will have to start segregating Android phones into different classes in order to provide a coherent user experience.
The market penetration of game consoles has been decreasing ever since the 80's.
And now smartphones are taking over. Only caveat is they market is even more fragmented as consoles were in the mid 80's. In those days there was basically one major console at a time. Now we have many smartphone OSes and handsets at a time.
"Hey, I'm looking to buy a music player, like an iPod or something."
"Oh, okay, well what features you you want?"
"Well, I don't really care about having good software, an intuitive interface, or mind if my device will stop working on random days. I just want something that's poop brown."
As pointed out in the Dave Neary's blog post, the same issues of opaque communication, people who are hard to deal with, and difficulty in implementing system-wide changes exist in KDE and many other open source projects. It's not limited to Gnome or Ubuntu.
But this is exactly the point I was making in my original post;
...the choice shouldn't have to be between incompetence and a walled garden.
Jailbreaking an iPhone is a hobby, so there's no professionally made software, add-on drivers, external hardware, etc. that works with a jailbroken iPhone.
Apple can still be a tyrant with the OS and allow for openness with regards to applications, drivers (to some extent) etc. without causing carriers any grief. Will it be harder to use for consumers? I don't see why it would, as long as those same consumers continue to live within the walls provided by Apple.
Once again, I'm confounded by how Slashdotters will obviously put quite a bit of time and thought into a reply that doesn't address a single point of the parent topic.
Slashdot of 2011 seems suspiciously like/b/ of 2008.
But a nuclear reactor experiencing trauma without immediate human intervention by experienced and well-trained engineers could be a massive disaster.
Containment walls can be breached, and in the event of a large-scale disaster it's quite possible that no humans will be nearby who are able to deal with such a disaster.
While a nuclear reactor can be run safely, it's only as safe as long as there are people there to tend to it in case something goes wrong; and if there are not, it's potentially dangerous for people many miles away.
LSD is effectively non-toxic in humans. People occasionally do stupid things while on LSD that result in death, but keep in mind that people also do stupid things while excited, agitated, or depressed.
Slashdot Mirror
How can it be a 0 day attack when Acrobat takes 2 days to start?
Hey, when you're as drunk as I am it makes sense. Try knocking back a few drinks and THEN tell me I'm wrong.
It's funny you mention that, I was just telling someone today that there's no longer such a thing as AFK.
Android is a step in the right direction, but it's not uniform enough to be a compelling game platform on it's own. Dealing with different screen resolutions/sizes, CPU power, and memory differences on a PC is bad enough, but on a mobile device we're talking differences of a factor of 10x or more.
For the sole purpose of gaming apps, I think Google will have to start segregating Android phones into different classes in order to provide a coherent user experience.
Nice try, but no.
Crush the Castle: released April 28, 2009
Angry Birds: released December 10, 2009
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crush_the_Castle
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angry_Birds
The market penetration of game consoles has been decreasing ever since the 80's.
And now smartphones are taking over. Only caveat is they market is even more fragmented as consoles were in the mid 80's. In those days there was basically one major console at a time. Now we have many smartphone OSes and handsets at a time.
How can it stop playing?! I have PlaysForSure(TM)!
Don't be silly, bashing Microsoft is the only proven way to get modded up on Slashdot. Doesn't even matter if what you say is true or not.
Those aren't crickets! That's a WMA file of recorded cricket sounds being streamed from Microsoft directly to my Zune!
"Hey, I'm looking to buy a music player, like an iPod or something."
"Oh, okay, well what features you you want?"
"Well, I don't really care about having good software, an intuitive interface, or mind if my device will stop working on random days. I just want something that's poop brown."
"Great! Well we have just the product for you..."
Yesterday I consumed food, drank liquids, brushed my teeth, showered, and slept. I also breathed.
I guess I'd better not do any of those things today, or I'm "doomed to repeat" myself.
Email: president@whitehouse.gov
Date of birth: 01/01/01
Address: 123 Fake St., Fakesville, ZZ
Phone: 666-HELL
Well that and the pointy-haired boss didn't help anyone.
They're both going to be irrelevant?
Great, because the "screw you guys, I'm doing it my own way" mentality has worked SO well in the past for Linux on the desktop.
As pointed out in the Dave Neary's blog post, the same issues of opaque communication, people who are hard to deal with, and difficulty in implementing system-wide changes exist in KDE and many other open source projects. It's not limited to Gnome or Ubuntu.
Considering how much money they've made up until this point, that's hardly surprising.
But this is exactly the point I was making in my original post;
Jailbreaking an iPhone is a hobby, so there's no professionally made software, add-on drivers, external hardware, etc. that works with a jailbroken iPhone.
Apple can still be a tyrant with the OS and allow for openness with regards to applications, drivers (to some extent) etc. without causing carriers any grief. Will it be harder to use for consumers? I don't see why it would, as long as those same consumers continue to live within the walls provided by Apple.
Once again, I'm confounded by how Slashdotters will obviously put quite a bit of time and thought into a reply that doesn't address a single point of the parent topic.
Slashdot of 2011 seems suspiciously like /b/ of 2008.
Whereas calling someone a moron when you disagree with them is a sure sign of a high IQ.
Funny how "I'm wrong" yet the news seems to indicate there's nothing passively safe about this plant.
Passively safe nuclear energy is nice in theory, but I've never heard of any major implementation in practice.
But a nuclear reactor experiencing trauma without immediate human intervention by experienced and well-trained engineers could be a massive disaster.
Containment walls can be breached, and in the event of a large-scale disaster it's quite possible that no humans will be nearby who are able to deal with such a disaster.
While a nuclear reactor can be run safely, it's only as safe as long as there are people there to tend to it in case something goes wrong; and if there are not, it's potentially dangerous for people many miles away.
LSD is effectively non-toxic in humans. People occasionally do stupid things while on LSD that result in death, but keep in mind that people also do stupid things while excited, agitated, or depressed.
...harder, better, and stronger.
While I agree to some extent, the choice shouldn't have to be between incompetence and a walled garden.
It would drive the carriers insane, but Apple could open up iOS a bit more without causing compatibility problems between apps and OS versions.
Let's hack the Gibson!