I bought Sims Online and I can tell you why it sucked horribly.
The user interface is great, but the way it connects to the world is horrible. There is no immersion. They didn't even TRY to facilitate immersion.
Honestly, for the 25+ million dollars they spent on this game, it doesnt look like it. There is no free form movement. "Zones" like you see in other MMO's are a single city block. You can't even walk from block to block without zoning.
If you work your way past that you have to spend time trying to get a house and a lot of other things right off the bat, but it just isn't fun.
Im on the treadmill of life all day long. I sure as hell dont want to come home from work and do it over again...
They focused to much on the "real" and not the fantasy that players want to experience...
I like Salon.
I hate Salon.
I would have purchased a subscription for Salon a long time ago exept that I find about 20% of the opinions to be offensively ignorant.
I go read day by day, every day and I used to get excited. When they started having problems with the business side of things, their reporting changed and the slant in the articles changed to be more sensationalist, but then, they tried to make it sensationalist for pseudo intellectuals.....and all of a sudden, I found Salon in a category between heaven and hell because I just couldn't support the demonic 20%.
I wanted a thinking paper. A living document put together by living individuals except they chose the blue pill.
Too bad.
Well, I was born into a family of Contractors. So my first exposure was to Structural Engineers and Inspectors.
My mom remarried to an Electrical Engineer (who worked for Bell Aerospace - - very cool dude) and all his friends were Engineers.
Then I went into Construction (go figure) and worked with Electrical Engineers, Structural Engineers, Architects, Mechanical, Civil, etc etc...
Then in 1998, I moved into the telecommunication industry and actually re-designed the whole A&E process (I was the Construction Project Manager and Environmental PM - - I had to wear two hats....that actually equals about 30 hats.)
Then I would be very spiffy =)
Seriouslly though, I think being a good PM and being a good project manager are on different ends of the thought spectrum
Engineers need to think linear and to cover all the details (sans the chaos of coders) while a good PM needs to look at the broader picture and depend on his team to execute their responsibilities (the details) correctly...
Thanks for replying, but Ive got some issues...like this is crap:
Some of Thunderhearts examples are bogus: Gannt charts are just a different sort of flowchart, the biggest challenge isn't handling the chart but understanding the stuff you are entering.
Im not talking about dinky little projects - - Im talking about Monster Multi Million Dollar Projects.
Any PM who knows his stuff knows that ANY schedule is worth crap.
All the Document Controls on any project are living documents and require constant attention.
Thats where the skill comes in.
I agree on the point about communication though.
Skilled Communication is key to any success.
Whether its IT, Municipal drafting Electrical or whatever, Engineers (regardless of how long they have "managed" projects) are NOT Project Managers.
You frustrate the hell out of me. I've been a Professional Project Manager for years and an Amateur computer geek. The thing that always stuck in my craw is the assumption that just because a person knows an Engineering Discipline that they automatically know how to manage projects.
Project Management is a complex discipline and to manage projects well takes a solid educational background in that arena. It is a skill set unto itself. Document Controls, managing Gaant charts and schedules and (especially) managing the "people" end of things takes a great deal of effort to excel at.
But NOOOOOO, Engineers always assume that because they can conceive a project, they MUST be able to manage it, and it always ends up as a grand jitterbug called, "Crisis Management".
Now, don't get me wrong. Its not like I hate engineers. Many of my friends are engineers. I have spent most of my life working in and around engineers.
Engineers are not Project Managers.
Project Managers are Project Managers
Engineers have to concern themselves with managing details.
Project Managers have to manage the "big picture".
In the end, if a correct perspective was given to the Project Management Profession was given more respect (or even an open minded consideration) a LOT more projects would complete more successfully.
What about the reality of users who are stuck with microsoft because its what they understand here.
Evolution as a product is cute, but the REAL evolution shows us that VHS can win too. Just because its a better product, DOES NOT mean it will gain market share.
I would LOVE these tools, but I can't take the time out of my overworked, underpaid life to change my entire PC IT platform for the sake of a hobby.
HOW does open source intend to get this into the mainstream?
these Ad agencies completely SUCK.
They have NO RIGHT to choose which software I do or do not have on my machine - - its a clear violation of... oh hell.
I guess NOTHING is very clear - - except kiddy porn and botox shots.
Are they so desperate to hide behind a legal contract.
that can bite my shiny metal ass.
Slashdot Mirror
I bought Sims Online and I can tell you why it sucked horribly.
The user interface is great, but the way it connects to the world is horrible. There is no immersion. They didn't even TRY to facilitate immersion.
Honestly, for the 25+ million dollars they spent on this game, it doesnt look like it. There is no free form movement. "Zones" like you see in other MMO's are a single city block. You can't even walk from block to block without zoning.
If you work your way past that you have to spend time trying to get a house and a lot of other things right off the bat, but it just isn't fun.
Im on the treadmill of life all day long. I sure as hell dont want to come home from work and do it over again...
They focused to much on the "real" and not the fantasy that players want to experience...
I like Salon. I hate Salon. I would have purchased a subscription for Salon a long time ago exept that I find about 20% of the opinions to be offensively ignorant. I go read day by day, every day and I used to get excited. When they started having problems with the business side of things, their reporting changed and the slant in the articles changed to be more sensationalist, but then, they tried to make it sensationalist for pseudo intellectuals... ..and all of a sudden, I found Salon in a category between heaven and hell because I just couldn't support the demonic 20%.
I wanted a thinking paper. A living document put together by living individuals except they chose the blue pill.
Too bad.
Well, I was born into a family of Contractors. So my first exposure was to Structural Engineers and Inspectors. My mom remarried to an Electrical Engineer (who worked for Bell Aerospace - - very cool dude) and all his friends were Engineers. Then I went into Construction (go figure) and worked with Electrical Engineers, Structural Engineers, Architects, Mechanical, Civil, etc etc... Then in 1998, I moved into the telecommunication industry and actually re-designed the whole A&E process (I was the Construction Project Manager and Environmental PM - - I had to wear two hats....that actually equals about 30 hats.)
Then I would be very spiffy =) Seriouslly though, I think being a good PM and being a good project manager are on different ends of the thought spectrum Engineers need to think linear and to cover all the details (sans the chaos of coders) while a good PM needs to look at the broader picture and depend on his team to execute their responsibilities (the details) correctly...
Whether its IT, Municipal drafting Electrical or whatever, Engineers (regardless of how long they have "managed" projects) are NOT Project Managers. You frustrate the hell out of me. I've been a Professional Project Manager for years and an Amateur computer geek. The thing that always stuck in my craw is the assumption that just because a person knows an Engineering Discipline that they automatically know how to manage projects. Project Management is a complex discipline and to manage projects well takes a solid educational background in that arena. It is a skill set unto itself. Document Controls, managing Gaant charts and schedules and (especially) managing the "people" end of things takes a great deal of effort to excel at. But NOOOOOO, Engineers always assume that because they can conceive a project, they MUST be able to manage it, and it always ends up as a grand jitterbug called, "Crisis Management". Now, don't get me wrong. Its not like I hate engineers. Many of my friends are engineers. I have spent most of my life working in and around engineers. Engineers are not Project Managers. Project Managers are Project Managers Engineers have to concern themselves with managing details. Project Managers have to manage the "big picture". In the end, if a correct perspective was given to the Project Management Profession was given more respect (or even an open minded consideration) a LOT more projects would complete more successfully.
What about the reality of users who are stuck with microsoft because its what they understand here. Evolution as a product is cute, but the REAL evolution shows us that VHS can win too. Just because its a better product, DOES NOT mean it will gain market share. I would LOVE these tools, but I can't take the time out of my overworked, underpaid life to change my entire PC IT platform for the sake of a hobby. HOW does open source intend to get this into the mainstream?
these Ad agencies completely SUCK. They have NO RIGHT to choose which software I do or do not have on my machine - - its a clear violation of ... oh hell.
I guess NOTHING is very clear - - except kiddy porn and botox shots.
Are they so desperate to hide behind a legal contract.
that can bite my shiny metal ass.
The toys are cool, hey Big George, how about less pop-up ads and insulting flash ads that wont go away.... TH