For some reason even time this topic comes up the focus seems to shift word-processor type use.
What about simpler uses? How many basic tasks in the car require you to take your hands off the steering wheel? I'd like to see the basic functionality of the remote control mirrored in speech recognition. Things like stop/pause/increase/skip.
I'd imagine once this kind of simple recognition became common over-all speech recognition would (more) rapidly evolve.
I worked on the HL2CTF team and began coding a CSS based mod that would have been CTF. I'd have stuck with the project if I didn't see first hand what an uphill battle ANY HL2 mod would be.
The core team for HL2CTF had a good deal of experience, they didn't pull the long wait and I can explain to you *why* so many..possibly.. interesting looking mods do: experience.
The lead programmer for the HL2CTF mod was experienced, in fact last time we spoke he was working for SOE programming for console based games on the then upcoming PS3. This and the fact that the art assets they required where based on the existing assets (even the additions were intended to fit into the HL2 world) really helped them get out the door much earlier then many others.
But a moderately high-level programming language is a HUGE barrier to entry for many amateur or would-be amateur mod developers. I spent a good deal of time working on my own fork of the mod, programming CSS weapon behavior and including triggers for brass animation and what-not. Mods essentially exist based on 3 frameworks: 1) SDK (everything starts there and even silly things subvert the resource files and get programmed directly here) 2) the aforementioned Resource files and the resource forks, technically you should be able to manipulate a lot of the look and feel of the game here, I pulled my first full conversion from HL2MP to CSS resources solely using the right fork and reworking the resource files (which is how I got involved) 3) graphics assets/modeling.
That understanding becomes increasingly important when you choose to begin a mod for HL2. Learning each becomes somewhat beyond the scope of most, making the development of an amateur mod pretty challenging.
It's easy to put it all on the mod teams, but look around: some games they thrive, some they don't. The difference here was Valve actually had a pretty interesting idea and the ability to make it even more interesting. But they didn't. The mods mostly failed. HL2 MP arrived DOA.
Garry's Mod is somewhat of an anomaly. An interesting and admirable mod, but not quite where I was going. I'd like to see Valve learn from this. I think user generated modding is very powerful. Their approach was so close, but in the end it fell short.
And when I say HL2 MP arrived DOA I mean it was panned. I'd call it a bad game and it was the road-map unfortunately for most mod attempts that followed it. But amateur modders really shouldn't be blamed for their creativity out-reaching they abilities. At the very least make sure your SDK rocks so that every mod built on that will have a strong place to start, not a weak MP with a high learning curve.
I worked on a HL2 mod. It was terribly frustrating.
On one hand you had things like the SDK, all this great code laying right there for you to learn with and make your mod happen. On the other-hand you have all this code in C++ and on the mod forums you'd find 'conceptual' and artistic types begging for a programmer. A lot of modders are much more hobbyist then programmer and things like C++ scare the hell out of them. A lot of mods can be scripted, and while you can undoubtedly do a lot more with raw code, you'll lose a lot of potentially talented tinkers (I've played some of their games, they can be good too).
While Valve was busy shooting itself in the feet they rolled out this really great thing: Steam. What an awesome why for people to read about and install new mods....Right? While I was active at least (I've since uninstalled HL2, will be waiting for TF2) not only was there no way to download mods via Steam (which simply would have been nice) but there was no way to even know a mod existed unless someone told you or you specifically when to read about them. User created games existed completely separately.
Valve did try to support the mod community. The Valve team played a public match against the mod team and even mentioned the mod on their website. You knew they wanted the mod community to succeed.
I think in the end I'd guess Valves team thought too much like programmers. HL2MP was built as an example, as such it immediately turned serious players away from HL2 MP. I'd imagine Valve thought opening the SDK would be enough to encourage the community to build high-quality mods that would attract the players, kind of a chicken before the egg thing.
It's HIS interest. Hopefully if he's truly passionate about it he's got thick skin anyway. The story is about a company trying to sell sound, seems ripe enough for the odd joke. It's like smell-o-vision for the ears.
I was woI wonder how much more "intelligently" people drive when they have a display giving gas usage feedback like they do in hybrids (and some other newer cars?). I drive a Yaris, which does pretty differently depending on how I'm driving. Concrete feedback on the dash and I'd probably pay more attention.
I like your tone. I'm used to getting barked at when I go against the grain. The reason for the API regarding drivers is hardware support. We can hold our breath until we turn blue, but propriety drivers *are* currently a reality. The kernel developers have made a choice not to support this, but while in the short-term, idealism may seem to be the winner, the fact is non-religious users would be the loser. Choice, in fact, is the loser.
As for installing/burning you seem to kind of be heading in the same direction. People pay me to make their systems work. So in a way, it's my job to see to it that regular users have an optimal (acceptable by todays standards..) experience. If I gave a user blank hardware and a URL I would out of a job quicker then anything. Hell, I'd fire myself. I don't think it's so much ideal. People expect things these days and I have to say, I don't think it's that unreasonable.
Registery vs. text files.. if only it were that simple. The fact is, when I *HAVE* to work on the registry for a Windows user, it's because something has really gone wrong. They need me and that's fine, that's what I get paid for. But day to day use? No. Linux?..yes. There is no good equivalent to the control panel when using Linux. There have been some interesting attempts. But nothing that so clearly masks the complexity of a computer. Users aren't stupid, they just don't want to have to know how to do some things (I can't work on a car to save my life, I don't have unlimited time to learn things that are not going to be my focus).
KDE. I do love KDE. Just not *that* much. What I said was comprehensive and that is well beyond KDE's scope. A GUI should feel like the only available layer. It defines the operating system. Who cares if its not true? It should work and feel that way to people who don't want to get in and muck around. In the end the operating system is a tool, today, it's expected to be a graphics tool. Ordinary users don't care that you can create amazingly useful perl/bash/python/csh scripts. Their not interested in the details of the compilers. They want consistency. They want to be tired and in a hurry and be able to sleep walk through their interaction. Not *everyone* should be a compsci student. We need the rest of them too. And it turns out THEY use computers almost as much as we do. (:
It sounded so nice when I was young. Freedom, equality, education, justice, good government. I'm 35 and I feel like a stupid kid. Did I miss something? Shiny!
I mean, if someone is going to put the smack-down on me, at least Linus would make me laugh. Call it personal preference, but he is genuinely funny and I'll always give credit for that.
I've been using Linux on the desktop for over 8 years and in the server room professionally along side Solaris and a few Windows boxes.
A) Users shouldn't have to know how to burn an OS disk.
B) They shouldn't have to know how to boot from one (sorry, but it's true even if Microsoft uses it's advantage to force itself to be preinstalled).
C) Users should *NEVER* have cause to edit a file by hand.
D) Drivers should be supported with a stable API.
E) A DE should be seamless, simple, clear and UI functionality should be consistent across applications.
F) Any common task should be achievable with a clear and simple GUI utility.
I like KDE personally, a lot. But seamless, simple and clear it is not. I'd call it simplish and somewhat clear. But to be seamless would require reaching well beyond KDE's scope. A Linux desktop if made up of a number of layers, a number of programs each of which adheres to its programmer or programmers own ideas. There is no broader unified vision.
Linux as a cli is robust, mature. I work every day via ssh or terminal and I manage a number of servers this way, it's a pleasure.
But when I look at Linux as a viable desktop alternative for the non compsci crowd I tend to cringe. The patchwork that can make Linux so flexible, that *really* puts *you* in charge is the exact thing that makes Linux so unfriendly. Most people don't want tonnes of choice, not because their stupid, but because they don't want to spend a lot of time fussing with their computer. They want one way to do things and they want it to be well thought out and seamless. You still can't get that with a Linux distro. Instead you get choice and/or pieces of the patchwork.
Finn, I worked on a HL2 mod team for a little while (HL2CTF) and during that time I spent a little while doing research into HL2 cheats. What I found was not surprising, but disappointing: 1) there are a number of very active cheats 2) the communities surrounding these cheats already involve money 3) the anti-cheat mechanisms in place are woefully out-dated (Valve's VAC is not much better or worse then most) 4) reporting and active discovery of these cheats while very possible is not done seriously.
After having done the work on my own I was actually a little more disappointed in the state of cheat detection. My antivirus client updates almost daily yet VAC and even Punkbuster goes ages without updates. Cheating is, simply put, a reality.
Of course as a some-time competitive player the biggest problem with this *can* be telling to difference between being highly skilled and augmented. That goes for running a server (and trying to determine) as well as playing (and having less skilled players accuse you/your team).
There will always be kiddie. But Symantec should be focused on the CTO and the SMB/Enterprise customer. The kinds of places they've targeted these kinds products at.
Suggesting that DDOS attacks will go away would be silly, but as a business concern which security companies have whipped up to a somewhat feverish pitch this is a sign that these concerns are changing. Anyway, DDOS solutions where probably nowhere near as lucrative as other more trendy areas of network protection (spam/worms/malicious web-content filtering/ids/data retention etc).
I just figured I chime in agreement. Tubes is simple and pretty convoluted. The description you've provided is succinct and provides enough building-block that a reasonable person could infer a number of complex uses based on this understanding. What am I supposed to do with pipes? (:
They are called typos. They happen. If you want mod points for OT nit-picking at least say something funny. There should be a rule. I'm mean if I'm going to waste my time at work, throw me a bone.
Hardly. I don't even sweat the in-fighting anymore. No-one cares really (aside from us). Right now as far as I'm concerned Linux isn't really even on the radar. Not really. People have heard of it, maybe.
That's the cool thing. We've needed the push and I'm sure in some ways that's what's making it OK for distro's like Ubuntu to include non-free software and changes without being widely panned but the community.
I don't agree that open source is taking away from anything. Linux (my favorite example) has grown quite dramatically and does quite well in my particular field (servers). Support is coming along with most major vendors providing acceptable support (Intel/Sun/Dell/HP).
I realize servers aren't as sexy as the desktop solution you're talking about, but its a clear example of Linux continuing to grow and mature. Even it its a little slower then you and a lot of people might like. Do we need a Steve Jobs? Probably not. But I think the process is still going to be slow as distros become increasingly clear in their ability to differentiate themselves and diverge from the safety and homogeny of "accepted" Unix/Linux practices. An expense and risk I don't think anyone anyone is ready or willing to take on just yet.
I haven't used either Movable Type or Textpattern. But after using Mambo/Joomla/PHPbb/PHPNuke and a few other CMS type apps I think when you get used to Wordpress's template system it's really pretty remarkable. It's probably simply a matter of preference, I like being able to take real HTML and make that part of my header or footer. I find it much easier and straight forward then other solutions I've seen, then if I want to dig down into the loop its all right there (and well documented to boot).
I imagine most templating systems would be difficult for people unfamiliar with PHP.
If they were open source you'd first have to put the soda together yourself and the documentation would be incomplete. Come to think of it I'm sure the cars do exist and we all know about he open source beer, right?
Next time you want to go out for drinks just tell your friends it will be a few weeks until their ready (or pay someone to do it for you...or just get tired of it and pick up a six-pack of propriety beer from the supermarket..). (:
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For some reason even time this topic comes up the focus seems to shift word-processor type use.
What about simpler uses? How many basic tasks in the car require you to take your hands off the steering wheel? I'd like to see the basic functionality of the remote control mirrored in speech recognition. Things like stop/pause/increase/skip.
I'd imagine once this kind of simple recognition became common over-all speech recognition would (more) rapidly evolve.
And some of us are willing to work or bear a little inconvenience to support what we believe in.
:)
I worked on the HL2CTF team and began coding a CSS based mod that would have been CTF. I'd have stuck with the project if I didn't see first hand what an uphill battle ANY HL2 mod would be.
..possibly.. interesting looking mods do: experience.
The core team for HL2CTF had a good deal of experience, they didn't pull the long wait and I can explain to you *why* so many
The lead programmer for the HL2CTF mod was experienced, in fact last time we spoke he was working for SOE programming for console based games on the then upcoming PS3. This and the fact that the art assets they required where based on the existing assets (even the additions were intended to fit into the HL2 world) really helped them get out the door much earlier then many others.
But a moderately high-level programming language is a HUGE barrier to entry for many amateur or would-be amateur mod developers. I spent a good deal of time working on my own fork of the mod, programming CSS weapon behavior and including triggers for brass animation and what-not. Mods essentially exist based on 3 frameworks: 1) SDK (everything starts there and even silly things subvert the resource files and get programmed directly here) 2) the aforementioned Resource files and the resource forks, technically you should be able to manipulate a lot of the look and feel of the game here, I pulled my first full conversion from HL2MP to CSS resources solely using the right fork and reworking the resource files (which is how I got involved) 3) graphics assets/modeling.
That understanding becomes increasingly important when you choose to begin a mod for HL2. Learning each becomes somewhat beyond the scope of most, making the development of an amateur mod pretty challenging.
It's easy to put it all on the mod teams, but look around: some games they thrive, some they don't. The difference here was Valve actually had a pretty interesting idea and the ability to make it even more interesting. But they didn't. The mods mostly failed. HL2 MP arrived DOA.
Garry's Mod is somewhat of an anomaly. An interesting and admirable mod, but not quite where I was going. I'd like to see Valve learn from this. I think user generated modding is very powerful. Their approach was so close, but in the end it fell short.
And when I say HL2 MP arrived DOA I mean it was panned. I'd call it a bad game and it was the road-map unfortunately for most mod attempts that followed it. But amateur modders really shouldn't be blamed for their creativity out-reaching they abilities. At the very least make sure your SDK rocks so that every mod built on that will have a strong place to start, not a weak MP with a high learning curve.
I worked on a HL2 mod. It was terribly frustrating.
...Right? While I was active at least (I've since uninstalled HL2, will be waiting for TF2) not only was there no way to download mods via Steam (which simply would have been nice) but there was no way to even know a mod existed unless someone told you or you specifically when to read about them. User created games existed completely separately.
On one hand you had things like the SDK, all this great code laying right there for you to learn with and make your mod happen. On the other-hand you have all this code in C++ and on the mod forums you'd find 'conceptual' and artistic types begging for a programmer. A lot of modders are much more hobbyist then programmer and things like C++ scare the hell out of them. A lot of mods can be scripted, and while you can undoubtedly do a lot more with raw code, you'll lose a lot of potentially talented tinkers (I've played some of their games, they can be good too).
While Valve was busy shooting itself in the feet they rolled out this really great thing: Steam. What an awesome why for people to read about and install new mods.
Valve did try to support the mod community. The Valve team played a public match against the mod team and even mentioned the mod on their website. You knew they wanted the mod community to succeed.
I think in the end I'd guess Valves team thought too much like programmers. HL2MP was built as an example, as such it immediately turned serious players away from HL2 MP. I'd imagine Valve thought opening the SDK would be enough to encourage the community to build high-quality mods that would attract the players, kind of a chicken before the egg thing.
after their gone...not like that. Never mind.
It's HIS interest. Hopefully if he's truly passionate about it he's got thick skin anyway. The story is about a company trying to sell sound, seems ripe enough for the odd joke. It's like smell-o-vision for the ears.
I didn't expect so many responses, let alone something practical I could actually use.
I was woI wonder how much more "intelligently" people drive when they have a display giving gas usage feedback like they do in hybrids (and some other newer cars?). I drive a Yaris, which does pretty differently depending on how I'm driving. Concrete feedback on the dash and I'd probably pay more attention.
MythTv is good. I flip over, flip back during the commercial and *know* you're just trying to torture us. Cheers!
I like your tone. I'm used to getting barked at when I go against the grain. The reason for the API regarding drivers is hardware support. We can hold our breath until we turn blue, but propriety drivers *are* currently a reality. The kernel developers have made a choice not to support this, but while in the short-term, idealism may seem to be the winner, the fact is non-religious users would be the loser. Choice, in fact, is the loser.
..yes. There is no good equivalent to the control panel when using Linux. There have been some interesting attempts. But nothing that so clearly masks the complexity of a computer. Users aren't stupid, they just don't want to have to know how to do some things (I can't work on a car to save my life, I don't have unlimited time to learn things that are not going to be my focus).
As for installing/burning you seem to kind of be heading in the same direction. People pay me to make their systems work. So in a way, it's my job to see to it that regular users have an optimal (acceptable by todays standards..) experience. If I gave a user blank hardware and a URL I would out of a job quicker then anything. Hell, I'd fire myself. I don't think it's so much ideal. People expect things these days and I have to say, I don't think it's that unreasonable.
Registery vs. text files.. if only it were that simple. The fact is, when I *HAVE* to work on the registry for a Windows user, it's because something has really gone wrong. They need me and that's fine, that's what I get paid for. But day to day use? No. Linux?
KDE. I do love KDE. Just not *that* much. What I said was comprehensive and that is well beyond KDE's scope. A GUI should feel like the only available layer. It defines the operating system. Who cares if its not true? It should work and feel that way to people who don't want to get in and muck around. In the end the operating system is a tool, today, it's expected to be a graphics tool. Ordinary users don't care that you can create amazingly useful perl/bash/python/csh scripts. Their not interested in the details of the compilers. They want consistency. They want to be tired and in a hurry and be able to sleep walk through their interaction. Not *everyone* should be a compsci student. We need the rest of them too. And it turns out THEY use computers almost as much as we do. (:
It sounded so nice when I was young. Freedom, equality, education, justice, good government. I'm 35 and I feel like a stupid kid. Did I miss something? Shiny!
I mean, if someone is going to put the smack-down on me, at least Linus would make me laugh. Call it personal preference, but he is genuinely funny and I'll always give credit for that.
I've been using Linux on the desktop for over 8 years and in the server room professionally along side Solaris and a few Windows boxes.
A) Users shouldn't have to know how to burn an OS disk.
B) They shouldn't have to know how to boot from one (sorry, but it's true even if Microsoft uses it's advantage to force itself to be preinstalled).
C) Users should *NEVER* have cause to edit a file by hand.
D) Drivers should be supported with a stable API.
E) A DE should be seamless, simple, clear and UI functionality should be consistent across applications.
F) Any common task should be achievable with a clear and simple GUI utility.
I like KDE personally, a lot. But seamless, simple and clear it is not. I'd call it simplish and somewhat clear. But to be seamless would require reaching well beyond KDE's scope. A Linux desktop if made up of a number of layers, a number of programs each of which adheres to its programmer or programmers own ideas. There is no broader unified vision.
Linux as a cli is robust, mature. I work every day via ssh or terminal and I manage a number of servers this way, it's a pleasure.
But when I look at Linux as a viable desktop alternative for the non compsci crowd I tend to cringe. The patchwork that can make Linux so flexible, that *really* puts *you* in charge is the exact thing that makes Linux so unfriendly. Most people don't want tonnes of choice, not because their stupid, but because they don't want to spend a lot of time fussing with their computer. They want one way to do things and they want it to be well thought out and seamless. You still can't get that with a Linux distro. Instead you get choice and/or pieces of the patchwork.
Finn, I worked on a HL2 mod team for a little while (HL2CTF) and during that time I spent a little while doing research into HL2 cheats. What I found was not surprising, but disappointing: 1) there are a number of very active cheats 2) the communities surrounding these cheats already involve money 3) the anti-cheat mechanisms in place are woefully out-dated (Valve's VAC is not much better or worse then most) 4) reporting and active discovery of these cheats while very possible is not done seriously.
After having done the work on my own I was actually a little more disappointed in the state of cheat detection. My antivirus client updates almost daily yet VAC and even Punkbuster goes ages without updates. Cheating is, simply put, a reality.
Of course as a some-time competitive player the biggest problem with this *can* be telling to difference between being highly skilled and augmented. That goes for running a server (and trying to determine) as well as playing (and having less skilled players accuse you/your team).
There will always be kiddie. But Symantec should be focused on the CTO and the SMB/Enterprise customer. The kinds of places they've targeted these kinds products at.
Suggesting that DDOS attacks will go away would be silly, but as a business concern which security companies have whipped up to a somewhat feverish pitch this is a sign that these concerns are changing. Anyway, DDOS solutions where probably nowhere near as lucrative as other more trendy areas of network protection (spam/worms/malicious web-content filtering/ids/data retention etc).
Mexico?
you're new here aren't you. (:
You mean like bird or flip?
I just figured I chime in agreement. Tubes is simple and pretty convoluted. The description you've provided is succinct and provides enough building-block that a reasonable person could infer a number of complex uses based on this understanding. What am I supposed to do with pipes? (:
They are called typos. They happen. If you want mod points for OT nit-picking at least say something funny. There should be a rule. I'm mean if I'm going to waste my time at work, throw me a bone.
Hardly. I don't even sweat the in-fighting anymore. No-one cares really (aside from us). Right now as far as I'm concerned Linux isn't really even on the radar. Not really. People have heard of it, maybe.
That's the cool thing. We've needed the push and I'm sure in some ways that's what's making it OK for distro's like Ubuntu to include non-free software and changes without being widely panned but the community.
I don't agree that open source is taking away from anything. Linux (my favorite example) has grown quite dramatically and does quite well in my particular field (servers). Support is coming along with most major vendors providing acceptable support (Intel/Sun/Dell/HP).
I realize servers aren't as sexy as the desktop solution you're talking about, but its a clear example of Linux continuing to grow and mature. Even it its a little slower then you and a lot of people might like. Do we need a Steve Jobs? Probably not. But I think the process is still going to be slow as distros become increasingly clear in their ability to differentiate themselves and diverge from the safety and homogeny of "accepted" Unix/Linux practices. An expense and risk I don't think anyone anyone is ready or willing to take on just yet.
Man. Did it just get cold down there? Am I even at the right site?
(:
I haven't used either Movable Type or Textpattern. But after using Mambo/Joomla/PHPbb/PHPNuke and a few other CMS type apps I think when you get used to Wordpress's template system it's really pretty remarkable. It's probably simply a matter of preference, I like being able to take real HTML and make that part of my header or footer. I find it much easier and straight forward then other solutions I've seen, then if I want to dig down into the loop its all right there (and well documented to boot).
I imagine most templating systems would be difficult for people unfamiliar with PHP.
If they were open source you'd first have to put the soda together yourself and the documentation would be incomplete. Come to think of it I'm sure the cars do exist and we all know about he open source beer, right?
Next time you want to go out for drinks just tell your friends it will be a few weeks until their ready (or pay someone to do it for you...or just get tired of it and pick up a six-pack of propriety beer from the supermarket..). (: