Looking at a (possibly dated) "model", the prices of the two are actually about the same.
Example:
Mom ($9) and Dad ($9) take two children ($18 - they're over 12) to the movies. Once there, they buy popcorn ($10 - two medium tubs), drinks ($10 - at least), and maybe a pretzel or a box of candy ($5). Total movie experience for the night? $61.
And just to cut off the obligatory "You don't have to buy the ass mass increasing junk at the movies", face it -- most people do. So, it's included in the cost, like it or not.
I realize that the cola, popcorn, candy, etc... isn't part of Hollywood's gross (well, you can actually argue this both ways), but that's semantics. It comes out of the consumer's pocket either way -- so it counts -- if to no one else, the consumer.
Even when elminating the extra costs of the movie experience, it still evens out. The quick and obvious challenge to the given argument is when you consider the amount of entertainment time (subjective, I know) vs. cost. In other words, a $10 movie gives me 90 minutes of entertainment, whereas a $50 game gives me 20 hours of entertainment. Which has more value?
Xbox using a XBMC and pulling media off my file server via a samba share.
Handles everything I've thrown at it (w/ the exception of Apple's protected AAC's - and those are merely burned for the car and re-ripped for the house). And as it handles both audio and video, it works well if you're looking to migrate your video stash to your fileserver as well.
XBMC has a really nice HTML front end so accessing and controlling data over the network is all done via an old Visor Prism w/ wireless addon if I'm not able to use the remote control (If I'm in another room, outside, etc...).
The whole thing is pushed through my receiver which also feeds into a low powered FM transceiver for use on the patio, in the yard, etc...) -- I just figured it'd be easier (and more cost efficent) to put all those old boomboxen to use instead of running speakers throughout the house). Keep 'em all tuned to 87.9 and there you go, perfect portable music in every room and on my tiny little headset while mowing the yard.
I've toyed with other setups for a few clients (everything from laptops to small scale PC's). Lots of things will work...usually depending on budget and needs/wants. But, personally, I'm sold on my Xbox solution. Of course, 4 controller MAME parties (Gauntlet, Golden Axe and Rampage) on the projector really sealed the deal for me.
And without a proper search tool, how is it, exactly, that we're supposed to keep track of our fellow insurgents, plans for sneaky attacks, plots to undermine the "powers that be" and means of crippling the status quo?
A disorganized revolution is just a waste of time.
Keeping one's data organized is a priority, bucko.;)
Another fun book is...
on
Digital Retro
·
· Score: 1
The story of America's independance from England is very well known; but did you know that Canada was once also a part of the British Empire? It's true! We Canadian's threw of the same British yoke as you, only we took a more leisurely route to liberation. In fact you might say we've been declaring our independence for more than two hundred years... kind of.
Our style of revolution centered less on bloodshed and gorilla warfare and more on the time tested strategy of not making a fuss. For example, at the same time you were declaring war on the English monarchy, we were enjoying privlidges granted to us by King George in the treaty of Versailles which gave us fishing rights off the coast of Newfoundland - provided we did not dry or cure fish on land. And by the way, we later got the right to dry and cure fish on land thank you very much.
All I'm saying is, there's more than one way to skin a cat. Not that I'm saying in any way that I'd like to harm a cat. Quite the contrary! I like cats... unless America wants Canada to skin a cat, in which case we'll gladly do it.
The point is, we took our time waiting for the Canadian moment to arrive rather than forcing it upon the world. We waited in the cold watching the US, most of Central and South America, Africa and Asia throw off its colonial oppressors. I think it was us and Belize that held out. And our patience ultimately paid off for in the glorious year of 1982 we took the bold step of getting permission from England to amend our constitution so we could amend our constitution without getting permission from England. Let freedom ring!
Now the only remnants of the tyrannical rule of Queen Elizabeth II are an appointed governor general who represents her in Canadian governmental affairs. And the Queen is officially still our head of state, plus she's on all our money, and when we take government job we have to swear a loyalty pledge to her. All in all, a small price to pay for an independence achieved without bloodshed, violence, glory or independence.
I'm sorry if this in any way seems like I'm bragging.
Kidding aside, as some others here have mentioned, there are times when I wonder about getting out. Many a morning finds me having coffee at my favorite local breakfast dive and staring across lake Erie... wondering if I'm up for a swim today. However, usually before my feet are wet I remember that I love my country. I also recognize the differences between patriotism and blind nationalism and often wonder how those differing animals became the same ugly beast that is our national symbol today.
To the chagrin of many friends, family, colleagues and associates I am under the opinion that four more years of President Bush is exactly what we need. If for no other reason than to have undeniable proof that change is essential, necessary and unavoidable. It is time to tear apart the useless mechanism of the Electoral College, it is time to cast aside elitist political agendas that form in the stagnant water of bipartisanism. It is time to educate ourselves in the language of our liberty and take the responsibility of keeping it alive and healthy.
One thing is for sure... one way or another, this hazy, incoherent notion that we live in a democracy needs to come to an end. Look it up folks... our system of government is a Federalist Republic. If you want Democracy... you're going to have to fight for it.
As one of the people you are speaking of, I would have to say "Nothing at all".
I have spent the better part of a couple of years converting all of my and my wife's albums, cd's, out of print tapes, VHS collection, DVD collection, etc... to a (IMO) very nice file server based system.
We use our Xbox as a system to access this information and play it over our entertainment system.
I also have a 160 GB drive in the Xbox itself where I back up every game I buy -- I never need to touch the disc after that. While my chip (like most on the market) does allow itself to be turned off for Live use, I've never turned it off... because I don't do multiplayer on my Xbox.
I have tested games before buying. I don't rent and copy them, however. I have downloaded games before buying (if my local video store doesn't carry the title) and tested them. If I like a game, I'll buy it (as I get older, I'm realizing there aren't many games I care enough about to buy... much less actually play). However, unlike the PC, the Xbox doesn't often have demos (outside of specific gaming rags which I don't purchase).
As long as that is the case -- I will continue to try a game out before I purchase it. Especially when it is something as overlyhyped as Halo 2. I've already been disappointed this year (Doom 3 for PC, Second Sight & Ninja Gaiden for the Xbox) -- and unlike going to the theatre, nobody's going to refund my bread if I turn it off half way through and never touch it again.
So, Bungie, the way I look at it I've already spent a load on you guys (as many ex-Mac gamers have): Abuse, Pathways into Darkness, Marathon 1-3, Halo 1, Oni, Myth 1 and Myth 2... and you usualy did me right. Regardless, I will still be testing Halo 2 out before I buy it -- whether you like it or not. And if Halo 2 is up to snuff, I'll break out my mastercard and stand right in line. If not, after a couple of hours, I'll know it, delete it and probably never think about it again.
Kim Jong II has a long history of "bait and switch" tactics when it comes to powering down NK's nuclear development program.
Essentially, he has surmised that nuclear alarmism (like it? That's a half-cup-o-coffeeism, feel free to use it) is the only tool available to North Korea to achieve a constant flow of financial assistance from the US (among others).
This cat has a track record of not living up to negotiated terms... plain and simple. From a pragmatic view it's understanable. Speaking purely in terms of economic gains, North Korea has nothing else going for it. This is a one trick pony that (in the past) has continued to pay off.
The United States is a federal republic. Canada is also a republic (a confederate republic, to be exact), but a republic with a parliamentary democracy.
Kidding aside, considering the power of corporate lobbyists and political corporate apologists, I wonder if we're not actually on the road to a plutocracy.
Meanwhile, those four little words pretty much describe the entire situation.
University rolls out major wireless network for students.
Univesity places some restrictions on what type of services may utilize the wireless network (I'm guessing this is why certain students chose to subscribe to a commercial cable/DSL package).
"Information Wants To Be Free" chanting students begin providing "unofficial" wireless access points.
Uninformed, thoughtless students providing unofficial access begin to disrupt normal usage.
University says stop it.
Uninformed, thoughtless "Information Wants To Be Free" chanting studetns cry that their rights have been soiled.
Sure, there are ways around this... to a degree. Require authorization before accessing unauthorized network, etc... But really, doesn't that just create more work for the university? They are, after all, there to provide an environment for education... and should not be forced to watch dog students 733t off-campus activities.
If you want to use an outside service... make sure it doesn't effect those who are happily using the service provided by the institution -- regardless of your post-teen angst driven need to rebel.
A girlfriend that you can TURN OFF when you're ready to go out for brews and pool.
I should like to add that I proudly made that last statement confident in the fact that my wife will never read that comment.
On a side note... when you break up... will she erase your address book, make thousands of dollars in long distance phone calls and phone all of your friends to tell them how lame you really are?
Just wondering about how complete this sim girlfriend really is...
2 $200 cards plus a PCI Express mobo (say, a Gigabyte GA-8I915P) @ $130-200 plus switching CPU's (if necessary) will still wind up costing you more than his single card. Add to this, his single card may well outperform your new setup (as far as GPU benchmarks go).
Of course, you will definately be ahead of the game in terms of mobo technology... which is quite right by me. =)
I downloaded this beast Saturday night and have played about 4 hours into it.
I'm not one to run around screaming "This game roxors!", and I do understand what many of the complaints here are about. No, there really isn't anything groundbreaking going on (graphics and sound excluded). However, having scarred my lungs from chainsmoking through the original Doom back in the 90's I think id has done a damn good job at recreating Doom for the modern PC.
If you had asked me to justify my usenet leeching Saturday night, I would have responded that I would buy a copy as soon as the linux binaries were released and I knew that it would run acceptably on my box. Truth be told, I'll be picking the box up tomorrow, filing the CD's away for safe keeping, reinstalling my downloaded copy with a legit serial and re-applying the patch.
Why? Because id made a kick ass game and I'll support it.
Something I think that the BBC (and so many in the market) are not considering is this... yes, there's going to be more than the usual amount of piracy going on with D3. Simply speaking, there are a lot of people who just are not sure if their hardware can take it... I wasn't. Now that I am (and that I know linux binaries are on the way), I'll happily throw down my change for the legal copy.
All of that being said... I was damn pleased to see [H]ard|OCP was playing it (mostly) straight. My AMD XP 2500+, 768 Mb, PNY Gefrorce 5600 Ultra, with XP Pro runs this just fine at 800x600 with medium detail. In a few places, I've turned it up to 1024x768 with fully glory effects and just stood still to examine the screen. Usually, if I do this I'm damned disappointed when I go back to playable settings... this time, I wasn't.
Anyway... longwided and sounding a bit like a fanboy, I know. But I just wanted to add my two cents in. Heavy piracy won't surprise me. Neither will users buying the game after they've tested it out, either.
The big reasons for going legit will be Coop mode. Whether it's a really well done user created mod, or an id add-on... that'll be the biggest reason for many to drop their burned CD's and pickup a serial.
The more attention a problem receives, the more prone that problem is to being solved. This is especially true in a competitive market. Cooperative systems require a constant of checks and balances -- and in modern commerce, negative attention can be a very productive countermeasure towards creative lethargy (in this case, as it relates to value of product on platform y compared with product x).
This is where human nature comes in. The average person reacts to valid negative attention with a desire to overcome critism by means of improving given endeavor -- or, in other words, by defending their self worth. Corporations mirror this by improving upon, radically changing, or cancelling a product that receives negative attention.
To me, it's the question of market apathy vs. proactive consumer choice. Or... silently dealing with it vs. pointing the stinky finger.
What interests me is whether or not the market, en masse, has made a deliberate decision to pursue one market (console) at the cost of another (PC). If this is the case, good... fine. Modify your business model and give it your all. But creating mediocrity as a solution to a market split... then bemoaning the lack of enthusiasm that the consumer base shows for a product is, well, simply inane.
Well, obviously it does to those who have posted here, to the article author, to GameDaily, to the gaming industry and even to you.
Functionally its still less incentive to make PC games. Pointing blame doesn't help.
What kind of corporate sympathy laden, bed wetting rationale is that?
Game Developing Asshat: Well, yes... we have reduced the quality of our products... but since nobody is buying them now, can we please be the victim?
Man, that's really twisted.
Pointing blame most certainly does help. Consumers have two very powerful means of showing displeasure with substandard products: A: Withholding purchases for those products B: Voicing their displeasure about those products to those who produce them.
You can hang that notion of consumer guilt by the door, because it's that kind of skewed thinking that created the problem.
It goes like this: Corporate entities have a responsibility to their consumer base if they wish to see a profitable return on their endeavor. That responsibility is to provide a product of desirable value. If they choose not to provide a product of value then the (intelligent) consumer has the responsibility to find another product to spend their hard earned money on. It's just that simple. There is no rule of commerce that says people must buy shite. I promise you, in the real world, if someone offers you a steaming plate of horseshit, you have the right to refuse it... and if they have the actually have the gall to expect payment for said horseshit; well, you have the right to inform them to shove their incredulity of your lack of consumer loyalty right up their ass -- as soon as they remove their head.
The other side of the issue is that that the big three (MS, Sony and Nintendo) have created console devices that effectively handle most consumer's expectations of "high end" games. It's very difficult to convince a family on a budget that the one (or more) console(s) in their home are not enough to handle their gaming needs. And when you add in the cost incurred by short-term PC obsolescence, well... let's just say the answer for the average (read: non-hardcore) gamer becomes obvious. I mean, my Xbox didn't need an upgrade between Halo and Doom 3... so why should I need to upgrade my CPU, RAM and graphics card on my PC that's actually newer than my console to play the same game?
That's the fault of the industry, plain and simple: Banking on people's willingness to purchase yearly upgrades for one product while providing a (relatively) equal product to another consumer base upgrade free.
In short, as long as game publishers rush bug ridden products (of less than original content) out the door, blatantly disregard the value of the average consumer's income and continue to divide the market between PC's and consoles... well, yeah, I think it's actually rather fair to point blame where blame is due.
In all fairness, I actually agree with most of your argument. It's solid, fair and (for the most part) the exact reason I bought an Xbox.
Last year, three things happened (concerning PC's and games). I turned 32, I built a PC that would meet my required needs for (at least) several years and I bought an Xbox. I realized that while I still enjoy gaming, I do not enjoy the yearly costs incurred by continuing to upgrade my PC for those games.
For me it simply came down to want I wanted more:
I've got $150 to blow this week... do I want a mid range graphics card that'll disappoint me by the end of the year or do I want a new set of EMG's that will sound great in my guitar for the next 30 years?
I've got $300 to blow this month... do I want to replace my CPU and add more memory or do I want to take the wife for a quiet weekend in the mountains?
I've got a $2000 to blow this year... do I want to build a new kick ass PC or do I want to put a down payment on that Harley... add a deck... buy that nice leather sofa? This year I opted for the sofa and had enough left over to scale the deck down to a mixed stone patio, a new grill and some outdoor speakers. Now, I get to hang out on the patio having drinks, cooking chicken and/.'ing a great afternoon away. =)
In every single one of those scenarios, I chose the non-PC route -- and I would have to say that I'm happier for it.
My point is this... I still get to play current "PC" games... only, I play them on my xbox while sitting on my comfy leather sofa staring at the 8' screen that my projector allows for. When friends come over, we can play "group activity games" like Links 2k4, D&D Heroes, Soul Calibur 2 or Trivial Pursuit. In the meantime, since I'm not relying on my PC as my main game machine, I'm not in the constant -- upgrade countdown mode.
And as I've posted before concerning Xbox modding -- I've also got my entire emulation (MAME, NES, SNES, Genesis, Apple, C64, etc...) collection in the living room -- where it belongs. Not to mention, the modded Xbox makes a nice media player -- especially in combination with a wireless device and browser allowing for playlist selection while out on the patio. =)
In the meantime, my "still feeling new and powerful" (Shuttle MN31N, AMD XP 2800+, 768 MB Ram, GeForce 5600 FX Ultra) dual headed Gentoo Box doesn't give me any moments of remose or grief -- and if Doom 3 doesn't run that well... I know I'll be playing it on the xbox.;)
Sorry for being so long winded and sounding like a fanboy... I just wanted to point out that it always comes down to preference. I'm a gamer at heart (Hell, I grew up playing original Wolfenstein, Ultima ][-VI, Karateka and the like), and I really dig my computers. But it finally dawned on me that MS made a product that actually works for me. Afterall, if I plan on running my old dual MP 200 MHz PII file/web server into the ground... why should I feel any different about my desktop? Even my studio is based around an old G4 400 MHz Mac. I had to face up... my days of bleeding edge tech awe have come to an end (at least for now). If I want to play anything resembling the current PC releases... it's gonna be on my current console of choice, the Xbox which sits right by my last console of choice, the Dreamcast.
If you take a room full of 15 to 20 year old guys and throw women into the mix... games are not being developed.
Nerd 1: Okay, so today we're going to work on vertex lighting.
Nerd 2: Oh this is very exciting...
*Girl walks into room*
*Nerd boys adjust collars in unison*
Nerd 3: Adjusting Penis Size to Maximum Density!
Nerd 2: Careful Captain... any more and she's going to blow!
Nerd 1: Froy laven!
Girl Nerd: All your base are belong to Me!
Seriously though, $5k game development camp... no wonder the gaming industry is suffering from lack of creative thought. Teach 'em trends -- and how to develop within the confines of those same trends and watch the endless train of rip-off game design make it's way to a Best Buy near you.
Slashdot Mirror
That's not exactly the case.
Looking at a (possibly dated) "model", the prices of the two are actually about the same.
Example:
Mom ($9) and Dad ($9) take two children ($18 - they're over 12) to the movies. Once there, they buy popcorn ($10 - two medium tubs), drinks ($10 - at least), and maybe a pretzel or a box of candy ($5). Total movie experience for the night? $61.
And just to cut off the obligatory "You don't have to buy the ass mass increasing junk at the movies", face it -- most people do. So, it's included in the cost, like it or not.
I realize that the cola, popcorn, candy, etc... isn't part of Hollywood's gross (well, you can actually argue this both ways), but that's semantics. It comes out of the consumer's pocket either way -- so it counts -- if to no one else, the consumer.
Even when elminating the extra costs of the movie experience, it still evens out. The quick and obvious challenge to the given argument is when you consider the amount of entertainment time (subjective, I know) vs. cost. In other words, a $10 movie gives me 90 minutes of entertainment, whereas a $50 game gives me 20 hours of entertainment. Which has more value?
All things being equal -- it's a fair comparison.
Go fuzzy logic!
Xbox using a XBMC and pulling media off my file server via a samba share.
Handles everything I've thrown at it (w/ the exception of Apple's protected AAC's - and those are merely burned for the car and re-ripped for the house). And as it handles both audio and video, it works well if you're looking to migrate your video stash to your fileserver as well.
XBMC has a really nice HTML front end so accessing and controlling data over the network is all done via an old Visor Prism w/ wireless addon if I'm not able to use the remote control (If I'm in another room, outside, etc...).
The whole thing is pushed through my receiver which also feeds into a low powered FM transceiver for use on the patio, in the yard, etc...) -- I just figured it'd be easier (and more cost efficent) to put all those old boomboxen to use instead of running speakers throughout the house). Keep 'em all tuned to 87.9 and there you go, perfect portable music in every room and on my tiny little headset while mowing the yard.
I've toyed with other setups for a few clients (everything from laptops to small scale PC's). Lots of things will work...usually depending on budget and needs/wants. But, personally, I'm sold on my Xbox solution. Of course, 4 controller MAME parties (Gauntlet, Golden Axe and Rampage) on the projector really sealed the deal for me.
Linux torrent [mozilla.org]
Win32 torrent
Sorry, no Mac torrent available... but, for completeness, here's a direct link
Thanks to Space (13455), below, for pointing out the linux torrent.
And without a proper search tool, how is it, exactly, that we're supposed to keep track of our fellow insurgents, plans for sneaky attacks, plots to undermine the "powers that be" and means of crippling the status quo?
;)
A disorganized revolution is just a waste of time.
Keeping one's data organized is a priority, bucko.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/076
There are some wonderful memories in this one... and some great "gotta finds" for the collector.
A pre-//c portable Apple? Sure! Page 84, Microsci HAVAC.
Early tape driven notebook? Sure! Page 46, Convergent Technologies WorkSlate.
Portable Commodore 64 with PET emulation? Sure! Page 36, Commodore Executive 64/SX-64.
Really wierd all-in-one (printer, monitor, 3" floppy)PC compat w/ funky calculator style keys from the early 80's? Sure! Page 31, Canon TX-50.
Lots of fun (much) older stuff as well... PCM-12, Scelbi-8B, OSI Challenger, IMSAI I-8080, Cromemco Z-1...
All your old favorites... Sinclair, Tandy, Commodore, Apple, NeXT, Wang, oh.... yippie.
Books like these are always fun bathroom reading...
The story of America's independance from England is very well known; but did you know that Canada was once also a part of the British Empire? It's true! We Canadian's threw of the same British yoke as you, only we took a more leisurely route to liberation. In fact you might say we've been declaring our independence for more than two hundred years... kind of.
Our style of revolution centered less on bloodshed and gorilla warfare and more on the time tested strategy of not making a fuss. For example, at the same time you were declaring war on the English monarchy, we were enjoying privlidges granted to us by King George in the treaty of Versailles which gave us fishing rights off the coast of Newfoundland - provided we did not dry or cure fish on land. And by the way, we later got the right to dry and cure fish on land thank you very much.
All I'm saying is, there's more than one way to skin a cat. Not that I'm saying in any way that I'd like to harm a cat. Quite the contrary! I like cats... unless America wants Canada to skin a cat, in which case we'll gladly do it.
The point is, we took our time waiting for the Canadian moment to arrive rather than forcing it upon the world. We waited in the cold watching the US, most of Central and South America, Africa and Asia throw off its colonial oppressors. I think it was us and Belize that held out. And our patience ultimately paid off for in the glorious year of 1982 we took the bold step of getting permission from England to amend our constitution so we could amend our constitution without getting permission from England. Let freedom ring!
Now the only remnants of the tyrannical rule of Queen Elizabeth II are an appointed governor general who represents her in Canadian governmental affairs. And the Queen is officially still our head of state, plus she's on all our money, and when we take government job we have to swear a loyalty pledge to her. All in all, a small price to pay for an independence achieved without bloodshed, violence, glory or independence.
I'm sorry if this in any way seems like I'm bragging.
Kidding aside, as some others here have mentioned, there are times when I wonder about getting out. Many a morning finds me having coffee at my favorite local breakfast dive and staring across lake Erie... wondering if I'm up for a swim today. However, usually before my feet are wet I remember that I love my country. I also recognize the differences between patriotism and blind nationalism and often wonder how those differing animals became the same ugly beast that is our national symbol today.
To the chagrin of many friends, family, colleagues and associates I am under the opinion that four more years of President Bush is exactly what we need. If for no other reason than to have undeniable proof that change is essential, necessary and unavoidable. It is time to tear apart the useless mechanism of the Electoral College, it is time to cast aside elitist political agendas that form in the stagnant water of bipartisanism. It is time to educate ourselves in the language of our liberty and take the responsibility of keeping it alive and healthy.
One thing is for sure... one way or another, this hazy, incoherent notion that we live in a democracy needs to come to an end. Look it up folks... our system of government is a Federalist Republic. If you want Democracy... you're going to have to fight for it.
As one of the people you are speaking of, I would have to say "Nothing at all".
I have spent the better part of a couple of years converting all of my and my wife's albums, cd's, out of print tapes, VHS collection, DVD collection, etc... to a (IMO) very nice file server based system.
We use our Xbox as a system to access this information and play it over our entertainment system.
I also have a 160 GB drive in the Xbox itself where I back up every game I buy -- I never need to touch the disc after that. While my chip (like most on the market) does allow itself to be turned off for Live use, I've never turned it off... because I don't do multiplayer on my Xbox.
I have tested games before buying. I don't rent and copy them, however. I have downloaded games before buying (if my local video store doesn't carry the title) and tested them. If I like a game, I'll buy it (as I get older, I'm realizing there aren't many games I care enough about to buy... much less actually play). However, unlike the PC, the Xbox doesn't often have demos (outside of specific gaming rags which I don't purchase).
As long as that is the case -- I will continue to try a game out before I purchase it. Especially when it is something as overlyhyped as Halo 2. I've already been disappointed this year (Doom 3 for PC, Second Sight & Ninja Gaiden for the Xbox) -- and unlike going to the theatre, nobody's going to refund my bread if I turn it off half way through and never touch it again.
So, Bungie, the way I look at it I've already spent a load on you guys (as many ex-Mac gamers have): Abuse, Pathways into Darkness, Marathon 1-3, Halo 1, Oni, Myth 1 and Myth 2... and you usualy did me right. Regardless, I will still be testing Halo 2 out before I buy it -- whether you like it or not. And if Halo 2 is up to snuff, I'll break out my mastercard and stand right in line. If not, after a couple of hours, I'll know it, delete it and probably never think about it again.
=)
I posted before finishing my first coffee... I was definitely hoping that I didn't come across like a complete prick.
Encoraging = 0
Reassuring.
Kim Jong II has a long history of "bait and switch" tactics when it comes to powering down NK's nuclear development program.
Essentially, he has surmised that nuclear alarmism (like it? That's a half-cup-o-coffeeism, feel free to use it) is the only tool available to North Korea to achieve a constant flow of financial assistance from the US (among others).
This cat has a track record of not living up to negotiated terms... plain and simple. From a pragmatic view it's understanable. Speaking purely in terms of economic gains, North Korea has nothing else going for it. This is a one trick pony that (in the past) has continued to pay off.
The United States is a federal republic. Canada is also a republic (a confederate republic, to be exact), but a republic with a parliamentary democracy.
However, if Baby Bush is to be believed, then we are more in line with a theocracy. I'm joking, of course (mostly).
Kidding aside, considering the power of corporate lobbyists and political corporate apologists, I wonder if we're not actually on the road to a plutocracy.
Just my morning mid-coffee thought for the day.
Good call.
;)
:D
Shame on me for missing that... my ownly excuse was posting that at the tale end of a nasty little stomach flu.
Poor me.
Maybe... I should whine about it!
Bingo Foo's (parent) post:
Here's an idea...
Let's whine about it!
...does not mean it's not funny!
Meanwhile, those four little words pretty much describe the entire situation.
University rolls out major wireless network for students.
Univesity places some restrictions on what type of services may utilize the wireless network (I'm guessing this is why certain students chose to subscribe to a commercial cable/DSL package).
"Information Wants To Be Free" chanting students begin providing "unofficial" wireless access points.
Uninformed, thoughtless students providing unofficial access begin to disrupt normal usage.
University says stop it.
Uninformed, thoughtless "Information Wants To Be Free" chanting studetns cry that their rights have been soiled.
Sure, there are ways around this... to a degree. Require authorization before accessing unauthorized network, etc... But really, doesn't that just create more work for the university? They are, after all, there to provide an environment for education... and should not be forced to watch dog students 733t off-campus activities.
If you want to use an outside service... make sure it doesn't effect those who are happily using the service provided by the institution -- regardless of your post-teen angst driven need to rebel.
I should like to add that I proudly made that last statement confident in the fact that my wife will never read that comment.
On a side note... when you break up... will she erase your address book, make thousands of dollars in long distance phone calls and phone all of your friends to tell them how lame you really are?
Just wondering about how complete this sim girlfriend really is...
# hdparm /dev/hdx
http://ucguides.savagehelp.com/Doom3/displaydriver s.htm
It's not a wealth of information, but it's at least a start.
2 $200 cards plus a PCI Express mobo (say, a Gigabyte GA-8I915P) @ $130-200 plus switching CPU's (if necessary) will still wind up costing you more than his single card. Add to this, his single card may well outperform your new setup (as far as GPU benchmarks go).
Of course, you will definately be ahead of the game in terms of mobo technology... which is quite right by me. =)
I know that this might not be the place, actually... nevermind, this is Rick James we're talking about. More info can be found here:
http://www.rickjames.com/
It's a sad day. One of my favorite American trainwrecks of an icon just passed away.
Well put.
I downloaded this beast Saturday night and have played about 4 hours into it.
I'm not one to run around screaming "This game roxors!", and I do understand what many of the complaints here are about. No, there really isn't anything groundbreaking going on (graphics and sound excluded). However, having scarred my lungs from chainsmoking through the original Doom back in the 90's I think id has done a damn good job at recreating Doom for the modern PC.
If you had asked me to justify my usenet leeching Saturday night, I would have responded that I would buy a copy as soon as the linux binaries were released and I knew that it would run acceptably on my box. Truth be told, I'll be picking the box up tomorrow, filing the CD's away for safe keeping, reinstalling my downloaded copy with a legit serial and re-applying the patch.
Why? Because id made a kick ass game and I'll support it.
Something I think that the BBC (and so many in the market) are not considering is this... yes, there's going to be more than the usual amount of piracy going on with D3. Simply speaking, there are a lot of people who just are not sure if their hardware can take it... I wasn't. Now that I am (and that I know linux binaries are on the way), I'll happily throw down my change for the legal copy.
All of that being said... I was damn pleased to see [H]ard|OCP was playing it (mostly) straight. My AMD XP 2500+, 768 Mb, PNY Gefrorce 5600 Ultra, with XP Pro runs this just fine at 800x600 with medium detail. In a few places, I've turned it up to 1024x768 with fully glory effects and just stood still to examine the screen. Usually, if I do this I'm damned disappointed when I go back to playable settings... this time, I wasn't.
Anyway... longwided and sounding a bit like a fanboy, I know. But I just wanted to add my two cents in. Heavy piracy won't surprise me. Neither will users buying the game after they've tested it out, either.
The big reasons for going legit will be Coop mode. Whether it's a really well done user created mod, or an id add-on... that'll be the biggest reason for many to drop their burned CD's and pickup a serial.
This is where human nature comes in. The average person reacts to valid negative attention with a desire to overcome critism by means of improving given endeavor -- or, in other words, by defending their self worth. Corporations mirror this by improving upon, radically changing, or cancelling a product that receives negative attention.
To me, it's the question of market apathy vs. proactive consumer choice. Or... silently dealing with it vs. pointing the stinky finger.
What interests me is whether or not the market, en masse, has made a deliberate decision to pursue one market (console) at the cost of another (PC). If this is the case, good... fine. Modify your business model and give it your all. But creating mediocrity as a solution to a market split... then bemoaning the lack of enthusiasm that the consumer base shows for a product is, well, simply inane.
rage
Well, obviously it does to those who have posted here, to the article author, to GameDaily, to the gaming industry and even to you.
Functionally its still less incentive to make PC games. Pointing blame doesn't help.
What kind of corporate sympathy laden, bed wetting rationale is that?
Game Developing Asshat: Well, yes... we have reduced the quality of our products... but since nobody is buying them now, can we please be the victim?
Man, that's really twisted.
Pointing blame most certainly does help. Consumers have two very powerful means of showing displeasure with substandard products:
A: Withholding purchases for those products
B: Voicing their displeasure about those products to those who produce them.
You can hang that notion of consumer guilt by the door, because it's that kind of skewed thinking that created the problem.
It goes like this: Corporate entities have a responsibility to their consumer base if they wish to see a profitable return on their endeavor. That responsibility is to provide a product of desirable value. If they choose not to provide a product of value then the (intelligent) consumer has the responsibility to find another product to spend their hard earned money on. It's just that simple. There is no rule of commerce that says people must buy shite. I promise you, in the real world, if someone offers you a steaming plate of horseshit, you have the right to refuse it... and if they have the actually have the gall to expect payment for said horseshit; well, you have the right to inform them to shove their incredulity of your lack of consumer loyalty right up their ass -- as soon as they remove their head.
The other side of the issue is that that the big three (MS, Sony and Nintendo) have created console devices that effectively handle most consumer's expectations of "high end" games. It's very difficult to convince a family on a budget that the one (or more) console(s) in their home are not enough to handle their gaming needs. And when you add in the cost incurred by short-term PC obsolescence, well... let's just say the answer for the average (read: non-hardcore) gamer becomes obvious. I mean, my Xbox didn't need an upgrade between Halo and Doom 3... so why should I need to upgrade my CPU, RAM and graphics card on my PC that's actually newer than my console to play the same game?
That's the fault of the industry, plain and simple: Banking on people's willingness to purchase yearly upgrades for one product while providing a (relatively) equal product to another consumer base upgrade free.
In short, as long as game publishers rush bug ridden products (of less than original content) out the door, blatantly disregard the value of the average consumer's income and continue to divide the market between PC's and consoles... well, yeah, I think it's actually rather fair to point blame where blame is due.
rage
In all fairness, I actually agree with most of your argument. It's solid, fair and (for the most part) the exact reason I bought an Xbox.
/.'ing a great afternoon away. =)
;)
Last year, three things happened (concerning PC's and games). I turned 32, I built a PC that would meet my required needs for (at least) several years and I bought an Xbox. I realized that while I still enjoy gaming, I do not enjoy the yearly costs incurred by continuing to upgrade my PC for those games.
For me it simply came down to want I wanted more:
I've got $150 to blow this week... do I want a mid range graphics card that'll disappoint me by the end of the year or do I want a new set of EMG's that will sound great in my guitar for the next 30 years?
I've got $300 to blow this month... do I want to replace my CPU and add more memory or do I want to take the wife for a quiet weekend in the mountains?
I've got a $2000 to blow this year... do I want to build a new kick ass PC or do I want to put a down payment on that Harley... add a deck... buy that nice leather sofa? This year I opted for the sofa and had enough left over to scale the deck down to a mixed stone patio, a new grill and some outdoor speakers. Now, I get to hang out on the patio having drinks, cooking chicken and
In every single one of those scenarios, I chose the non-PC route -- and I would have to say that I'm happier for it.
My point is this... I still get to play current "PC" games... only, I play them on my xbox while sitting on my comfy leather sofa staring at the 8' screen that my projector allows for. When friends come over, we can play "group activity games" like Links 2k4, D&D Heroes, Soul Calibur 2 or Trivial Pursuit. In the meantime, since I'm not relying on my PC as my main game machine, I'm not in the constant -- upgrade countdown mode.
And as I've posted before concerning Xbox modding -- I've also got my entire emulation (MAME, NES, SNES, Genesis, Apple, C64, etc...) collection in the living room -- where it belongs. Not to mention, the modded Xbox makes a nice media player -- especially in combination with a wireless device and browser allowing for playlist selection while out on the patio. =)
In the meantime, my "still feeling new and powerful" (Shuttle MN31N, AMD XP 2800+, 768 MB Ram, GeForce 5600 FX Ultra) dual headed Gentoo Box doesn't give me any moments of remose or grief -- and if Doom 3 doesn't run that well... I know I'll be playing it on the xbox.
Sorry for being so long winded and sounding like a fanboy... I just wanted to point out that it always comes down to preference. I'm a gamer at heart (Hell, I grew up playing original Wolfenstein, Ultima ][-VI, Karateka and the like), and I really dig my computers. But it finally dawned on me that MS made a product that actually works for me. Afterall, if I plan on running my old dual MP 200 MHz PII file/web server into the ground... why should I feel any different about my desktop? Even my studio is based around an old G4 400 MHz Mac. I had to face up... my days of bleeding edge tech awe have come to an end (at least for now). If I want to play anything resembling the current PC releases... it's gonna be on my current console of choice, the Xbox which sits right by my last console of choice, the Dreamcast.
If you take a room full of 15 to 20 year old guys and throw women into the mix... games are not being developed.
Nerd 1: Okay, so today we're going to work on vertex lighting.
Nerd 2: Oh this is very exciting...
*Girl walks into room*
*Nerd boys adjust collars in unison*
Nerd 3: Adjusting Penis Size to Maximum Density!
Nerd 2: Careful Captain... any more and she's going to blow!
Nerd 1: Froy laven!
Girl Nerd: All your base are belong to Me!
Seriously though, $5k game development camp... no wonder the gaming industry is suffering from lack of creative thought. Teach 'em trends -- and how to develop within the confines of those same trends and watch the endless train of rip-off game design make it's way to a Best Buy near you.