As a wal-mart (and k-mart) shopper, perhaps I can explain. Wal-mart usually has multiple price points of stuff. Really cheap low end stuff, slightly less cheap stuff that's not bad for the price and so on. For many things, they carry the same stuff that Circuit City/Best Buy carry, and they also have stuff made just for them.
For example, last month I bought a cheap LCD HDTV there because I was going to get a PS3. I wanted something between 15 and 17 inches with 1080p, and HDMI. Turns out, if you want 1080p you have to go big it seems. So I was looking at them and saw two models EXACTLY alike in capabilities, inputs, and even the exact same placement of the controls and inputs. one was this one:
Now when I looked at them the Polaroid was 298 and the Element was 278. But they are EXACTLY the same, so I bought the Element. It's a fine screen for my purposes, various PS3 related stuff: games, video, Linux.
After I got the screen but before I got the PS3 we found this: HP dv6809wm
It's a 2 GHz dual core 64 bit Turion with 3GB of RAM running Windows Vista Home Premium (32 bit). When we got it it cost around 578 I think, they were heavily promoting it. It replaced a Gateway 400SP plus (from 2003) for general use. It runs Vista better than that Gateway runs XP even with Aero enabled by default.
Now they are currently promoting in stores a $700 dell for back-to-school, that has a Celeron (single-core I think) and WinXP
There's quality to be had at Wal-Mart...if you keep your eyes open.
Good point about emulation vs compatibility layer. But it probably doesn't have 3D capabilities enough to do it. The PSP can do things in hardware the PS2 has to do in software
Like you, I wish there was more detailed info on the thing, and I am very surprised it doesn't have an ethernet port.
This thing is MIPS, not x86, no Win95 for you unless you run it under QEMU or bochs. There's no way this thing could ever emulate the PSP, the PSP has dedicated 3D hardware.
According to the linked pages, it has some kind of flash player, probably gnash or something, which won't be really sufficient capability wise. It'd be fast enough to watch flv's downloaded from youtube.
I thought the Linux kernel has had MIPS support for ages and I know there's a few MIPS Linux distro's out there for download. Heck, they could just borrow the source from PS2 Linux's Kondara-ized version of RH6.
It's got 128MB and 400MHz, it's a better Linux box than a PS2, which was fully capable of running Firefox with only 32MB of RAM. And if you don't want Firefox there's Dillo or Links.
Trust me, having run Linux on a PS2, I know this thing will be more usable. The main weakness of this thing is the 1GB of storage, the PS2 had a 40GB hard drive.
I saw the damn thing enough to be annoying. Sure it's not as bad as some (including me at times) exaggerate but I still saw far too many UAC dialogs for my comfort.
It is? How? Vista Explorer actually reminds me of Linux file explorers more than previous versions did. Sure, it's no match for Konqueror/Nautilus/Thunar/Rox, but it's not bad. It does seem slower in file operations than XP explorer.
You know how open source projects often go defunction or on hiatus and don't get updated or improved? CUPS is one of those projects that isn't going to go defunct now that Apple owns it.
I've personally thought that a good market for Linux users would be those console gamers who:
1. Like a good PC port now and then. 2. But play consoles because they don't want to have to spend a lot of time and money on gaming and want something that just works. 3. And are geeky enough to be willing to read a few books or join message boards to learn how to use Linux.
Heck maybe they could be encouraged to install Linux on their gaming console. Admittedly that gaming console would most likely be a PS3 since it's the easiest to get Linux on.
Yes, it wasn't originally owned by Apple, but it is now, and OSX and Linux uses it as the print system. Do you know why? Because it's better than what came before.
Hello. You're going to have to get specific on dates there. After all the SNES came out in 1991, with 256 color graphics. There were still people using EGA then, which was one of the reasons consoles became sucessfull. And consoles in general caught up with features fast.
You also forgot, or didn't know about the Xband devices for the Genesis and SNES The PS1's couldn't play doom over IPX, but you could use the Link Cable to link two PS1's. Not too many years later the Saturn had the NetLink.
I do distinctly remember the Atari 5200 joysticks being analog, though it is funny that you mention how great it was the PC had them considering how much PC gamers seem to hate them now.
And as for sound the first popular stereo sound card was the Sound Blaster 16 series which came out in 1991, AFTER the Sega Genesis and the same time frame as the SNES in the US.
I've said more than once that the PS2 is still "King of the Consoles." Which is actually hurting the PS3. I'm beginning to wish the thing would just die already, but I'm not going to be surprised if there's still new games coming out for it in 2009. Earlier this year in EGM the game of the month was a PS2 RPG, goddamn that thing will not die.
On of the PS3's problem has been the "long legs" of the PS2, there's still new games coming out for it, and for RPG gamers in particular, there's been little reason to get a PS3 yet, since there's still PS2 RPG's coming out.
The PS2 does have the advantage over the original Xbox and Gamecube in particle effects and lighting effects. Which is why PS2 versions of multiplatform games often had lots of them, which was often noticed by reviewers. The PS2's textures and polygons might not have looked as good, but ooh look at the pretty fireworks n' lighting.
Not exactly true. There's a few PS1 games that have issues on the PS2. That big 4 or 5 disc X-Files graphic adventure for example. There's Japan only PS1 games that won't even work on a Japanese PS2.
The PS3 has issues too. You can't play online with Champions of Norrath, Champions Return to Arms or Marvel Ultimate Alliance (PS2 version) when you play them on the PS3 (80GB version). Single player and local multiplayer works fine though.
Slashdot Mirror
As a wal-mart (and k-mart) shopper, perhaps I can explain. Wal-mart usually has multiple price points of stuff. Really cheap low end stuff, slightly less cheap stuff that's not bad for the price and so on. For many things, they carry the same stuff that Circuit City/Best Buy carry, and they also have stuff made just for them.
For example, last month I bought a cheap LCD HDTV there because I was going to get a PS3. I wanted something between 15 and 17 inches with 1080p, and HDMI. Turns out, if you want 1080p you have to go big it seems. So I was looking at them and saw two models EXACTLY alike in capabilities, inputs, and even the exact same placement of the controls and inputs. one was this one:
Polaroid TLX-1911
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=9204672
the other is this one:
Element 1920b
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=9204671
Now when I looked at them the Polaroid was 298 and the Element was 278. But they are EXACTLY the same, so I bought the Element. It's a fine screen for my purposes, various PS3 related stuff: games, video, Linux.
After I got the screen but before I got the PS3 we found this:
HP dv6809wm
It's a 2 GHz dual core 64 bit Turion with 3GB of RAM running Windows Vista Home Premium (32 bit). When we got it it cost around 578 I think, they were heavily promoting it. It replaced a Gateway 400SP plus (from 2003) for general use. It runs Vista better than that Gateway runs XP even with Aero enabled by default.
Now they are currently promoting in stores a $700 dell for back-to-school, that has a Celeron (single-core I think) and WinXP
There's quality to be had at Wal-Mart...if you keep your eyes open.
If you're not one of those Sony-hating Slashdotters, get a PSP instead, and have a PS3 stream to it through remote play.
Good point about emulation vs compatibility layer. But it probably doesn't have 3D capabilities enough to do it. The PSP can do things in hardware the PS2 has to do in software
Like you, I wish there was more detailed info on the thing, and I am very surprised it doesn't have an ethernet port.
This thing is MIPS, not x86, no Win95 for you unless you run it under QEMU or bochs. There's no way this thing could ever emulate the PSP, the PSP has dedicated 3D hardware.
According to the linked pages, it has some kind of flash player, probably gnash or something, which won't be really sufficient capability wise. It'd be fast enough to watch flv's downloaded from youtube.
I thought the Linux kernel has had MIPS support for ages and I know there's a few MIPS Linux distro's out there for download. Heck, they could just borrow the source from PS2 Linux's Kondara-ized version of RH6.
It's got 128MB and 400MHz, it's a better Linux box than a PS2, which was fully capable of running Firefox with only 32MB of RAM. And if you don't want Firefox there's Dillo or Links.
Trust me, having run Linux on a PS2, I know this thing will be more usable. The main weakness of this thing is the 1GB of storage, the PS2 had a 40GB hard drive.
Samba IS slower over wireless on Vista than I expected. Slow enough to be annoying.
I saw the damn thing enough to be annoying. Sure it's not as bad as some (including me at times) exaggerate but I still saw far too many UAC dialogs for my comfort.
It is? How? Vista Explorer actually reminds me of Linux file explorers more than previous versions did. Sure, it's no match for Konqueror/Nautilus/Thunar/Rox, but it's not bad. It does seem slower in file operations than XP explorer.
You know how open source projects often go defunction or on hiatus and don't get updated or improved? CUPS is one of those projects that isn't going to go defunct now that Apple owns it.
I've personally thought that a good market for Linux users would be those console gamers who:
1. Like a good PC port now and then.
2. But play consoles because they don't want to have to spend a lot of time and money on gaming and want something that just works.
3. And are geeky enough to be willing to read a few books or join message boards to learn how to use Linux.
Heck maybe they could be encouraged to install Linux on their gaming console. Admittedly that gaming console would most likely be a PS3 since it's the easiest to get Linux on.
CUPS http://www.cups.org/
CUPS http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Unix_Printing_System
Yes, it wasn't originally owned by Apple, but it is now, and OSX and Linux uses it as the print system. Do you know why? Because it's better than what came before.
You've never seen a nethack ttyrec? (I know, it's not truly a movie.)
the 20mb one you have to search for, the easily found one is the one with all the crap that's over 200MB.
Why are you not getting modded up? Thank you for the insightful link.
Hello. You're going to have to get specific on dates there. After all the SNES came out in 1991, with 256 color graphics. There were still people using EGA then, which was one of the reasons consoles became sucessfull. And consoles in general caught up with features fast.
You also forgot, or didn't know about the Xband devices for the Genesis and SNES The PS1's couldn't play doom over IPX, but you could use the Link Cable to link two PS1's. Not too many years later the Saturn had the NetLink.
I do distinctly remember the Atari 5200 joysticks being analog, though it is funny that you mention how great it was the PC had them considering how much PC gamers seem to hate them now.
And as for sound the first popular stereo sound card was the Sound Blaster 16 series which came out in 1991, AFTER the Sega Genesis and the same time frame as the SNES in the US.
Get a PS3, install Linux and nethack. That's what I did.
I've said more than once that the PS2 is still "King of the Consoles." Which is actually hurting the PS3. I'm beginning to wish the thing would just die already, but I'm not going to be surprised if there's still new games coming out for it in 2009. Earlier this year in EGM the game of the month was a PS2 RPG, goddamn that thing will not die.
Not money bags, hats made of money.
http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2000/10/23/
On of the PS3's problem has been the "long legs" of the PS2, there's still new games coming out for it, and for RPG gamers in particular, there's been little reason to get a PS3 yet, since there's still PS2 RPG's coming out.
The PS2 does have the advantage over the original Xbox and Gamecube in particle effects and lighting effects. Which is why PS2 versions of multiplatform games often had lots of them, which was often noticed by reviewers. The PS2's textures and polygons might not have looked as good, but ooh look at the pretty fireworks n' lighting.
Thanks for the clarification.
You haven't installed Linux on it?
Not exactly true. There's a few PS1 games that have issues on the PS2. That big 4 or 5 disc X-Files graphic adventure for example. There's Japan only PS1 games that won't even work on a Japanese PS2.
The PS3 has issues too. You can't play online with Champions of Norrath, Champions Return to Arms or Marvel Ultimate Alliance (PS2 version) when you play them on the PS3 (80GB version). Single player and local multiplayer works fine though.