Personally I'm sick and tired of all the flood of crappy games for mobile, especially after you can see stuff like Civilization Revolutions, that proves that the platform can be used for much more than a pea shooter.
Civ: Rev is a port from 360/PS3/DS! Just like how that highly rated Android Bards Tale game is a port of the PS2 game.
If you liked Civ: Rev, maybe try Great Little War Game?
And they fixed the issue. Now if you upgrade the PS+ demo with the DLC, you can keep playing the full game even if you let your PS+ subscription lapse...which is the behavior everyone wanted. Figured they'd do it.
The objection you seem to have missed is that proprietors treat users badly
And Open Source programmers don't treat users badly? Guess you haven't been in various project IRC channels. Haven't you seen the way some free software advocates talk about "users"
without the user's ability to effectively improve the program for their own needs (even by hiring someone to do this work on their behalf).
And if I'm not a programmer, and if I have to hire someone, what's the difference between that and buying proprietary software. Either way, I'm not dealing with the source.
So better to rejecting non-free software on ethical grounds.
Free software Ethics is all well and good, but it's not practical for the vast masses out there, let alone me and I run Fedora! Say I reject non-free software.
Goodbye Nvidia driver, that would means my computer would not work as well for 3D applications.
Goodbye Star Trek Online, and Minecraft.
Goodbye acroread. (some PDF's still don't work well in the alternatives), and Adobe Flash. (we both know gnash still isn't up to snuff).
Goodbye Skype, (which I install to communicate with people for whom Skype is the de-facto voice IM client)
Goodbye cell phone, tablet, PS3 and PS4.
Goodbye Netflix.
The FSF would probably want me to give up Flickr, Dropbox, Amazon MP3 store, etc etc.
Guess what, you just took choices away from me, and didn't give me any alternatives. Nice job breaking my computing experience FSF Hero.
compared to asking whether anybody should have to choose a potential loss of privacy to play a videogame.
Wouldn't it depend on how much privacy was lost? Which information the game wanted? Some people are willing to give up limited information in exchange for playing a high quality commercial game, why take away that choice from them? You may not like their choices...tough cookies, their computing life their computing choices. Don't take away their choices...without giving them a good alternative.
Tracking users (no matter how) without their explicit knowledge is something people don't know about and, when they learn about it, don't like.
Course they don't like it, but perhaps they wouldn't be so upset if they had been paying attention. You can't expect privacy in everything one does on the net. If some websites want to "track" me I have no problem with that. I don't mind seeing "some" related ads on "some" websites I visit. But some of them I wouldn't be okay with. Google's probably got a profile somewhere with my likes/dislikes/shopping destinations etc. If they want to sell that to advertisers, to pay for their services, they can go right ahead. Because I can ignore ads, the buying choice is mine Ultimately, all choices in regards to my computing are mine. I'm a pragmatist.
It's a shame you have such personal anger toward Stallman that you refuse to convey understanding his points.
It's not personal, and it's not really anger. It's more like he's the the annoying uncle who has to tell you about his lint collection every time he sees you. He may have a point here and there... but the FSF is stuck in computing's past, not it's future.
Your namecalling ("bearded zealot"
Is he not bearded? Is he not so focused on his ideals that he ignores practical considerations even in his own computing?
"mooching"
Did he not himself refer to himself as being a squatter at MIT at one time? And thusly "mooch" off of MIT?
tacit acceptance of RMS's points without giving him due credit for bringing those points to the public.
He could do a better job of it by being less extreme in his viewpoints. And yes I know he does that as part of his point making but It simpy Is Not Wor
The demo version of this game is, in fact, a "free" PSPlus game. It's only available to PSPlus subscribers. So as soon as you drop your PSPlus subscription, you lose access to the demo.
And the "full unlock" is DLC to said "free game," so if you drop your PSPlus subscription, you lose access to the entire game as you can no longer play the "base" game (the "demo").
This whole thing strikes me more as laziness than out-right maliciousness.
Yeah laziness, and Sony thinking that people are going to need PS+ to play DriveClub online anyway and thusly wouldn't be worried about losing access and thus getting the game 10 bucks cheaper.
I have some of those PS+ freebies and if someone asked me "What happens when your PS+ subscription ends?"
My answer would be: "I'm not planning on it ending, I pay by the year."
I figure they'll either fix this, maybe by making the "base game" accessible to everyone not just PS+ subscribers, or start charging a fee for the "base game".
Transmission is a bittorrent client, correct? And what sorts of video do people download with those? Not the paid for and legal kind I do believe.
And Angry Tux IS a clone, and it's not available for all the platforms that Angry Birds is.
If you want people to make a change that causes short-term discomfort, you don't tell them, "Everything's fine. You're fine. By the way, you should totally change your life." That's the type of thing you tell them when you want them to indulge. For example, religion. The strong ones are the ones going, "You're a sinner; find salvation here." They actually get stuff done, for peculiar definitions of "stuff." The weak religions go, "Everything's fine. You're fine. Please donate."
You DON"T have to say everything is fine, but you don't have to call people "servile" or "idiots" either. Perhaps you don't believe in or understand social niceties but other people expect them.
The Free Software movement is about tearing down that false idol, and bringing freedom to computer users.
No the FSF is about bringing freedom to computer programmers first. In many ways they want to take choice AWAY from computer users.
They added the Pakleds as an available PC race in STO in "Season 5" If I had one I'd make log entries like: "I went looking for upgrade equipment at HQ, equipment to make us go"
Actually he states on his website where he draws the line. It's at devices that let you upgrade the firmware. If you can't update it's firmware, it's okay.
Download DRM-free videos with Transmission and play them in VLC.
So I'm supposed to be a thief and not pay for media?
Play (and improve!) Angry Tux.
So I'm supposed to play some obvious knock-off clone rather than the original game? A clone that only exists on one platform, rather than the many the original game is on?
It's your own servileness that's holding you back.
If you want people to support the goals of the FSF, perhaps it would be a good idea to NOT insult them with terms like "servile"
No need to ask him what he actually thinks (his email address is readily available) or read any of his many essays.
You might be particularly interested in a list of surveillance examples found in proprietary software including one pertinant description for a program you just mentionedâ""Angry Birds spies for companies, and the NSA takes advantage to spy through it too.".
Pragmatism, do you understand it? Those of us who aren't former squatters at MIT have to deal with the world we are dealt with. The headline of the NYT article is misleading and the article doesn't actually say what you wrote. The world is "could" not that they have done so. There's more effective ways for snoops to get info than through angry birds.
And I don't consider things like "cookies" to be "surveillance". The internet costs money, a lot of things wouldn't have happened without a profit motive.being involved.
Normal people who didn't mooch off of MIT for years make compromises and decisions in regards to the computer use. They may decide that there's nothing wrong with using a DRM using application to access a streaming video catalog for 8 bucks a month. Or they might have a machine that uses close sourced BSD based software to play games on. Or they might use skype because it's easy enough for non-geeks to use and set up.
If you and the FSF doesn't want people to make those decisions then give them alternatives that do what THEY want to do with computers and that don't suck. To a lot of people the FSF's philosophies take THEIR choices away in favor of the ideals of a some bearded zealot living computing's past.
Besides, how does he know whether or not the Chinese government has a backdoor into his Loonsong MIPS machine.
There are better ways to watch movies than Netflix and better games than Angry Birds.
Perhaps, but people do like to do those things on computers and computing devices.
But you're right! he's out of touch with boneheaded idiots who watch Netflix and play Angry Birds.
If someone wants someone to support the goals of the FSF, then perhaps they shouldn't refer to prospective supporters as idiots.
The problem is that between 1962 and now, computers have been turned into consumer electronics for idiots.
So computers should only be used by a high priesthood bearded programmers at universities? Why shouldn't computers be for consumers, for "the masses, not the classes" as Jack Tramiel would say.
The thing is, I think he's the way he is because he never grew out of the 70's MIT AI Lab paradigms of computing. He's never used a computer the way I or you have. He's basically been sitting in front of a console in Emacs for almost 40 years. And Emacs itself is based on the even earlier paradigm of TECO. So basically RMS computes like it was 1962. You've read how he uses a computer, right?
Not a fantasy world, but the past of computing paradigms. He doesn't use computers in the "modern way" so he really doesn't understand the realities of "modern computing". His brand of activism isn't helping as much as he thinks it is.
Simply put, programmers need to eat, they can't all be guys who get paid to talk who used to squat at MIT. They make apps and proprietary software to live.
I read an interview with his mother once where she talks about his youth and other things...the symptoms were there.
But....of course he's autistic spectrum...it's as obvious in reading his writings as the beard on his face! He writes like Tepples! (and myself to a certain extent)
Nothing like a nice session of "firmware updates" before watching the movie you paid good money for?
It's a @#$@#$ blu-ray player, it does more than DVD and so they tend to have upgradeable firmware (besides new AACS keys). Think of it as more akin to a piece of computing hardware/game console and not just a playback machine. The updates don't happen all that often either. Would you rather the thing check for updates at 3AM in the morning?
Does it allow you to skip previews?
Blu-ray players can already do this, it just depends on the disc. You can do it on some.
Does it load faster?
It would depend on the player, but in some cases, yes.
Allow you to Bookmark your disk so it plays back where you left off (something almost every DVD player did)?
Blu-ray players already have resume, what makes you think they don't?
having my "BR" player be connected to the internet is pretty high up there
What, the manual for yours didn't recommend a net connection for BD-Live, updates or other network-centric features? While not having your Blu-Ray player connected to your network isn't as bad as not having your tablet or PC connect, it's still not optimal.
Slashdot Mirror
When they added POP3 and IMAP access, so a few years ago.
Have you tried him on K-9 mail for Android?
[song joke]Our mail clients make us so hard, makes us say oh my FSM, thank you for blessing me with an e-mail client that follows RFC's [/song joke]
Yeah, but only us nerds do it that way.
You do know a lot of people find it far more convenient to use the browser, right? People with multiple devices, for instance?
The default Android mail client supports proper IMAP, I think the iOS one does too.
People who, say, travel a lot and find themselves using computers in hotels, libraries, foreign offices?
They trust those computers enough to not bring their own laptop, or even a tablet along?
Personally I'm sick and tired of all the flood of crappy games for mobile, especially after you can see stuff like Civilization Revolutions, that proves that the platform can be used for much more than a pea shooter.
Civ: Rev is a port from 360/PS3/DS! Just like how that highly rated Android Bards Tale game is a port of the PS2 game.
If you liked Civ: Rev, maybe try Great Little War Game?
And they fixed the issue. Now if you upgrade the PS+ demo with the DLC, you can keep playing the full game even if you let your PS+ subscription lapse...which is the behavior everyone wanted. Figured they'd do it.
Well, what drive is it on?
There's no worring about C: or D: or E: in Linux. It's all one filesystem.
Why is my thumb drive copied to the hard disk when I put it in?
What makes you think it is?
Why does Loinox use the wrong slashes?
Some might say that DOS/Windows is using the wrong ones because Unix-style paths' predate the use of "\" by Windows.
The objection you seem to have missed is that proprietors treat users badly
And Open Source programmers don't treat users badly? Guess you haven't been in various project IRC channels. Haven't you seen the way some free software advocates talk about "users"
without the user's ability to effectively improve the program for their own needs (even by hiring someone to do this work on their behalf).
And if I'm not a programmer, and if I have to hire someone, what's the difference between that and buying proprietary software. Either way, I'm not dealing with the source.
So better to rejecting non-free software on ethical grounds.
Free software Ethics is all well and good, but it's not practical for the vast masses out there, let alone me and I run Fedora! Say I reject non-free software.
Goodbye Nvidia driver, that would means my computer would not work as well for 3D applications.
Goodbye Star Trek Online, and Minecraft.
Goodbye acroread. (some PDF's still don't work well in the alternatives), and Adobe Flash. (we both know gnash still isn't up to snuff).
Goodbye Skype, (which I install to communicate with people for whom Skype is the de-facto voice IM client)
Goodbye cell phone, tablet, PS3 and PS4.
Goodbye Netflix.
The FSF would probably want me to give up Flickr, Dropbox, Amazon MP3 store, etc etc.
Guess what, you just took choices away from me, and didn't give me any alternatives. Nice job breaking my computing experience FSF Hero.
compared to asking whether anybody should have to choose a potential loss of privacy to play a videogame.
Wouldn't it depend on how much privacy was lost? Which information the game wanted? Some people are willing to give up limited information in exchange for playing a high quality commercial game, why take away that choice from them? You may not like their choices...tough cookies, their computing life their computing choices. Don't take away their choices...without giving them a good alternative.
Tracking users (no matter how) without their explicit knowledge is something people don't know about and, when they learn about it, don't like.
Course they don't like it, but perhaps they wouldn't be so upset if they had been paying attention. You can't expect privacy in everything one does on the net. If some websites want to "track" me I have no problem with that. I don't mind seeing "some" related ads on "some" websites I visit. But some of them I wouldn't be okay with. Google's probably got a profile somewhere with my likes/dislikes/shopping destinations etc. If they want to sell that to advertisers, to pay for their services, they can go right ahead. Because I can ignore ads, the buying choice is mine Ultimately, all choices in regards to my computing are mine. I'm a pragmatist.
It's a shame you have such personal anger toward Stallman that you refuse to convey understanding his points.
It's not personal, and it's not really anger. It's more like he's the the annoying uncle who has to tell you about his lint collection every time he sees you. He may have a point here and there... but the FSF is stuck in computing's past, not it's future.
Your namecalling ("bearded zealot"
Is he not bearded? Is he not so focused on his ideals that he ignores practical considerations even in his own computing?
"mooching"
Did he not himself refer to himself as being a squatter at MIT at one time? And thusly "mooch" off of MIT?
tacit acceptance of RMS's points without giving him due credit for bringing those points to the public.
He could do a better job of it by being less extreme in his viewpoints. And yes I know he does that as part of his point making but It simpy Is Not Wor
The demo version of this game is, in fact, a "free" PSPlus game. It's only available to PSPlus subscribers. So as soon as you drop your PSPlus subscription, you lose access to the demo.
And the "full unlock" is DLC to said "free game," so if you drop your PSPlus subscription, you lose access to the entire game as you can no longer play the "base" game (the "demo").
This whole thing strikes me more as laziness than out-right maliciousness.
Yeah laziness, and Sony thinking that people are going to need PS+ to play DriveClub online anyway and thusly wouldn't be worried about losing access and thus getting the game 10 bucks cheaper.
I have some of those PS+ freebies and if someone asked me "What happens when your PS+ subscription ends?"
My answer would be: "I'm not planning on it ending, I pay by the year."
I figure they'll either fix this, maybe by making the "base game" accessible to everyone not just PS+ subscribers, or start charging a fee for the "base game".
I don't think RMS would go for a network connected power switch anyway since he's got a thing for privacy as well as "Libre" software
You seem to be saying that (a) expecting Blu-Ray disks to work with Blu-Ray players isn't reasonable,
I'm not saying that.
and (b) people without home internet access shouldn't buy Blu-Ray players.
But I am most certainly saying that.
BTW, who is the "them" you call up, and how are you sure you'll get updates?
The company that made it, give their support line a call. For the better quality players you should be able to get updates.
I admit, having the PS3 as my first BR player spoiled me.
Your other points are wrong and flamebait
Wrong, how so?
Transmission is a bittorrent client, correct? And what sorts of video do people download with those? Not the paid for and legal kind I do believe.
And Angry Tux IS a clone, and it's not available for all the platforms that Angry Birds is.
If you want people to make a change that causes short-term discomfort, you don't tell them, "Everything's fine. You're fine. By the way, you should totally change your life." That's the type of thing you tell them when you want them to indulge. For example, religion. The strong ones are the ones going, "You're a sinner; find salvation here." They actually get stuff done, for peculiar definitions of "stuff." The weak religions go, "Everything's fine. You're fine. Please donate."
You DON"T have to say everything is fine, but you don't have to call people "servile" or "idiots" either. Perhaps you don't believe in or understand social niceties but other people expect them.
The Free Software movement is about tearing down that false idol, and bringing freedom to computer users.
No the FSF is about bringing freedom to computer programmers first. In many ways they want to take choice AWAY from computer users.
You don't need to ask that question. Because the answer is in this question:
"Have you ever seen someone with a clip on controller attached to their phone?"
They added the Pakleds as an available PC race in STO in "Season 5" If I had one I'd make log entries like: "I went looking for upgrade equipment at HQ, equipment to make us go"
Activision was still a little indie studio in '84
Activision? Indie in 1984? No fucking way. They were already a big name then thanks to all their 2600 titles.
Consumers don't need general purpose programmable computers with operating systems
So you're okay with computing devices like Tablets and game consoles then?
Where does he draw the line?
Actually he states on his website where he draws the line. It's at devices that let you upgrade the firmware. If you can't update it's firmware, it's okay.
Download DRM-free videos with Transmission and play them in VLC.
So I'm supposed to be a thief and not pay for media?
Play (and improve!) Angry Tux.
So I'm supposed to play some obvious knock-off clone rather than the original game? A clone that only exists on one platform, rather than the many the original game is on?
It's your own servileness that's holding you back.
If you want people to support the goals of the FSF, perhaps it would be a good idea to NOT insult them with terms like "servile"
No need to ask him what he actually thinks (his email address is readily available) or read any of his many essays.
You might be particularly interested in a list of surveillance examples found in proprietary software including one pertinant description for a program you just mentionedâ""Angry Birds spies for companies, and the NSA takes advantage to spy through it too.".
Pragmatism, do you understand it? Those of us who aren't former squatters at MIT have to deal with the world we are dealt with. The headline of the NYT article is misleading and the article doesn't actually say what you wrote. The world is "could" not that they have done so. There's more effective ways for snoops to get info than through angry birds.
And I don't consider things like "cookies" to be "surveillance". The internet costs money, a lot of things wouldn't have happened without a profit motive.being involved.
Normal people who didn't mooch off of MIT for years make compromises and decisions in regards to the computer use. They may decide that there's nothing wrong with using a DRM using application to access a streaming video catalog for 8 bucks a month. Or they might have a machine that uses close sourced BSD based software to play games on. Or they might use skype because it's easy enough for non-geeks to use and set up.
If you and the FSF doesn't want people to make those decisions then give them alternatives that do what THEY want to do with computers and that don't suck. To a lot of people the FSF's philosophies take THEIR choices away in favor of the ideals of a some bearded zealot living computing's past.
Besides, how does he know whether or not the Chinese government has a backdoor into his Loonsong MIPS machine.
There are better ways to watch movies than Netflix and better games than Angry Birds.
Perhaps, but people do like to do those things on computers and computing devices.
But you're right! he's out of touch with boneheaded idiots who watch Netflix and play Angry Birds.
If someone wants someone to support the goals of the FSF, then perhaps they shouldn't refer to prospective supporters as idiots.
The problem is that between 1962 and now, computers have been turned into consumer electronics for idiots.
So computers should only be used by a high priesthood bearded programmers at universities? Why shouldn't computers be for consumers, for "the masses, not the classes" as Jack Tramiel would say.
The thing is, I think he's the way he is because he never grew out of the 70's MIT AI Lab paradigms of computing. He's never used a computer the way I or you have. He's basically been sitting in front of a console in Emacs for almost 40 years. And Emacs itself is based on the even earlier paradigm of TECO. So basically RMS computes like it was 1962. You've read how he uses a computer, right?
http://stallman.org/stallman-c...
So he's totally out of touch. He'd never be able to explain the average tablet/phone user why they shouldn't use it.
tablet user: I use it to watch netflix and play games
RMS: You shouldn't use ti for that because it requires non-free software.
tablet user: but if I don't, how can I watch movies and play games.
RMS: you should use a free tablet
tablet: where can I get one and can I use netflix and play angry birds.on it
RMS: You shouldn't play non-free games or use netflix.
You get the gist.
Not a fantasy world, but the past of computing paradigms. He doesn't use computers in the "modern way" so he really doesn't understand the realities of "modern computing". His brand of activism isn't helping as much as he thinks it is.
Simply put, programmers need to eat, they can't all be guys who get paid to talk who used to squat at MIT. They make apps and proprietary software to live.
I read an interview with his mother once where she talks about his youth and other things...the symptoms were there.
But....of course he's autistic spectrum...it's as obvious in reading his writings as the beard on his face! He writes like Tepples! (and myself to a certain extent)
Nothing like a nice session of "firmware updates" before watching the movie you paid good money for?
It's a @#$@#$ blu-ray player, it does more than DVD and so they tend to have upgradeable firmware (besides new AACS keys). Think of it as more akin to a piece of computing hardware/game console and not just a playback machine. The updates don't happen all that often either. Would you rather the thing check for updates at 3AM in the morning?
Does it allow you to skip previews?
Blu-ray players can already do this, it just depends on the disc. You can do it on some.
Does it load faster?
It would depend on the player, but in some cases, yes.
Allow you to Bookmark your disk so it plays back where you left off (something almost every DVD player did)?
Blu-ray players already have resume, what makes you think they don't?
having my "BR" player be connected to the internet is pretty high up there
What, the manual for yours didn't recommend a net connection for BD-Live, updates or other network-centric features? While not having your Blu-Ray player connected to your network isn't as bad as not having your tablet or PC connect, it's still not optimal.
I can understand your reaction, but it depends on the player. In some players the process is more transparent and less visible to the user.