The precedent on modding (through company tools or not) is that it's illegal when a person begins to profit from it. Prior to that, as a 'hobby' it's fine. Think about the people who design clothing, furniture, skins, etc for the Sims(2). They aren't breaking a law because they don't profit from it.
Which is why nobody can stop you from modding your PC game to put in stick figures instead of 3d avatars if you want (ok, my first thought was naked avatars, but that's dull eh?). It's only if you sell it that is illegal -- which was covered by the article. Modding? Fine. Selling Mods without a license? Bad.
While there is definite synergy between the E3 and Gen Con audience (I play tabletop and video games and I'm not alone), mixing the two events together at the same time could be counter productive. On the one hand I'd want to walk the video game side of the event and see everything in every booth. On the other hand this means I'd have less time to sit down and game. It would cause people to really weigh their priorities as to what they want over the course of those days, and one side would eventually loose out as the other trends better with traffic, etc. End result could be that one half, or the other is just there as an afterthought -- which won't sit well with the hardcore fans (of either).
When you are talking about 90 million users, you aren't talking about hardcore gamers with gaming PC's -- you are talking about Joe and Jane Normal, who just want a computer to do basic work and keep the kids quiet/busy at home. That's the mass market -- and if you can deliver quality games that function on those computers (that are bought stock at the retail stores) you are delivering to a huge potential audience -- which makes great business sense.
It's not about those of us who will build our own computers, it's about the Eloi who think Geek Squad is a lifesaver.:)
There is some wisdom in that. Get a team of volunteer coders to insert Hot Coffee into a random game each week as a 'mod' and make the point again and again until someone gets it: You can't rate what people do after they buy the product...
It's akin to changing the rating on a movie because someone may touch themselves inappropriately when certain actreses are on screen. Even clothed.
Well that and the whole thing about totalitarian states being able to kill their citizens with impunity - I think a good number of people would rather be offended than dead...
No real problems. While they are exaggerated in form they are so to represent fertility and the power of child bearing. Which was referenced in her article (prior to movies big breasts and hips were seen as an idea). This just reinforces that idea and shows where it came from (primitive women who were able to survive childbirth due to big hips were preferred).
I have three kids. We have educational toys. We have a computer they can use. Ages 8, 5, and 3. My wife is a college professor, and we homeschool. So we pay attention to 'educational value' in a toy/game.
Understand this, even if you buy them both - they are toys. Period. Whatever learning that comes from them will be small and slow. You can impact her in a greater way through every interaction if you make that choice.
Also know that she will model what she sees and experiences from you. If you play with her using these toys every day, she will want to use them. If you hand them to her with batteries your odds of her engaging with them goes down fast.
We have had toys like this over the years. At this point we don't buy them. I'm giving my oldest kid my PDA for christmas (one of us might as well use it daily), and they all have access to a simple computer and games that say they are educational. Because Mom & Dad use the computer daily, the kids use the computer daily. Heck, we give them each two tickets for 30 minutes of 'game time' on the computer each day and they cash them in during 'free time' and play whatever they want.
If you really want to get a head start on education, give her the options and then whatever she likes, use. I taught one of my kid colors with Playdough at a very young age. It was what she liked to play with. That's the important factor, the kid wanting to play with it. If they want to do it you can teach through it. If they don't care... you are wasting your time.
This is a slick move that I didn't know was coming, it's the right move to make as BBY looks to penetrate the growing gaming market, and you can bet that more things like this will happen in that chain.
Fact: People buy used games. The smaller retail chains based on gaming earn most of their profit from the lure/sale of used merchandise. Need a second controller? Why not get it used? Want to try a game that you know is not great, but may hold your interest for a week? Why not get it used? Used sales happen. There is a market for them.
Fact: BBY is a publically traded company with a bottom line need to protect and grow shareholder value. So they are going to make moves that allow them to gain 40% more margin on product sales. That's good profits and good for the bottom line.
Fact: BBY is currently in a program that is targeting customers and adapting the stores to fit their needs. Doubt me? Do a bit of google on Best Buy and the Demon Customers that made headlines last year. The company is focusing on customers, meeting their needs, getting their loyalty, keeping their sales. Gamers spend money. Crazy video card upgrades, consoles, and games, games, games. Moving to a used games model makes sense. Sell the game, buy it back cheaper than you sold it, then sell it again for profit. Wash, rinse, repeat. It makes sense in the capitalistic world.
Fact: Traditional boxed sale publishers can gnash their teeth all they want, but they will not boycott Best Buy or another major retailer that has hundreds of outlets to push the 'new' boxes out in.
Bottom Line: It's good for pofits, will draw in more repeat customers who will buy used, new, and whatever else they see on the way through the store as they shop, and you have a winning prospect.
The largest hurdle I see here is getting the stores on a program that is adequate for showcasing the used games available, and getting the manuals and cases together when a purchase is intended.
It works easy at GameStop for them to keep the manuals, etc. at the counter, there are two of them tops in any given GameStop. At Best Buy you have a bank of registers so there is some convenience factor to work out... beyond that it is gravy.
Expect this to roll out, not to every Best Buy, but to a good number of them.
Just ran a snap test at www.bandwithplace.com in another window and got these results:
Communications 536.6 kilobits per second Storage 65.5 kilobytes per second 1MB file download 15.6 seconds Subjective rating Not bad
I get service on par with DSL and have zero problems with latency. I have a few problems with Halo2 on Xbox live, but that is more due to Old Gamers Syndrome than it is connectivity.
I believe that I am running 2.4Ghz, because the owner of the ISP suggested that I run down to a 900Mhz phone, and not up to a 5.8Ghz saying that he could promise he would not scale down to 900..
Boy do I not feel vindicated. Ok, so all gamerrs are not geeks. How much did this guy get paid for this "study"? Sheesh.
Simple logic tells you this. Look at the console explosion. Over the years more and more people brought games into their homes. Usually through consoles. Not all of these people are "geeks". Some are too stupid to deserve that honor.
Still, we've had gaming in the household for over a generation now, it's plainly obvious that it's not just for geeks anymore. In fact, I know a stripper who plays MMOG's. Whenever I see her character online I can't decide if I should see if she wants to hunt loot, or if I should start masturbating and giving her all of my loot, but I digress...
Games make as much money as the movies, we are beyond the saturation point, and this is not news to anyone save for geeks and nerds who are certain that nobody understands them.
I'm a geek. I get a nice paycheck. Women are shallow. They like money. Come on guys, simple logic. Go score some snapper!
Ignore the Microsoft connection and look at what they are basically pitching: An operating system designed with a set of standards that will make it easy for developers to design games. Right down to the controller.
The only drawback I can find is that it's a "super console plus!" situation. I'm a gamer, and I'm fine with that.
I've often speculated that a distribution of Linux should be made that is specifically geared toward gaming. Coordinate hardware support with the major vendors so their product works with ease, and build the OS specifically to deliver fast processing for gaming. Anything that has nothing to do with playing games is cut out of it.
Keep it free. Let game distributors bundle it with the games they sell. If the OS was good enough to deliver DoomIII on the day of retail, and you were able to tie down some major title support, it could work. Suddenly every gamer out there is running a Linux distribution to play their games. Suddenly every major developer is developing games just for Linux. Why? Because the OS functions well as a gaming OS (by design), and because it's free so everyone can have it.
In effect, you create a Linux standard for gaming, that can run top quality games, and is free.
Many of us have Windows because the best games work on it. Games are designed to work on Windows because most of us have Windows. Circular, but true.
If Doom III, GTA IV, and EverQuest 2 all came out for Mac and Mac alone, I'd be typing this on a blue keyboard right now. If they all came from Linux, I'd be typing this in a Mozilla window.
Mind you, I'd try this myself, but I can't code myself out of a 486 and have to feed my kids so I can't go urchin and skip on the rest of my life.:)
I'm an avid gamer. I have been ever since my first step into Aladdin's Castle, in the Mapel Hill Mall, in Kalamazoo Michigan, one day ages ago. There were not enough quarters to sate me...
Even today, at 31, I'm nuts about games. I have two consoles, a gaming PC, and two laptops that play legacy games. I can't get enough. I've even written for Player2Player because I can't shut up about them.
I'm also a parent. Three children. 6/3/1 in age(s). My son (6) is nuts about games. I can't blame him. He's exposed to them daily. Loves playing Tony Hawk on the Xbox. Defeated Gauntlet for the PS1, all by himself. Is working on Jet Set Radio Future lately. Is going gonzo over Disney's ToonTown MMG. My daughter (3), is picking up on it. She can pilot a character in JSRF. Can't do much with it, but she'll spend 5 minutes making the avatar skate about.
I'm a gamer. I'm a parent. My kids are gamers. Games are art & entertainment on the same level as music, film, and television. They are not so passive, but they are there to fill idle time and give pleasure to the consumer. Not all games are for children. I screen what my kids see, and play adult games after they sleep. On the same level I don't let the kids listen to my Slayer CD's, or watch the latest Horror flick that my wife rented, or watch The Man Show with me.
As art, games should be protected. The government should not ban their creation and distribution, or sale. Like movies, games have ratings. Those should be enforced. Selling a minor GTA 3, Vice City should be no different than selling a minor the latest copy of Playboy. Or a beer. Or a pack of Camels.
There are games that are not meant for children. I have no problems with the government forcing retailers to enforce the ESRB ratings. When I buy a case of beer, I get carded. If I can't provide the card, I get denied the sale. If a kid brings GTA3 up to the register, he/she should be carded, and denied sale if not 18.
It's a good system. Extra laws are not needed to make things worse. Yeah, loopholes exist, but at least it is something, and it's rational. It's just like the movies, and there is no outcry that a few kids get by the ropes and into rated "R" films. It seems entirely logical to emulate that, even if I babble too much.
Dude, that would imply responsibility as a parent.
Here in the United States I trust the government to think for me.
Actually, my wife comes along, and has no interest in surfing the internet, so I'm covered quite well. I usually bring something to read and she tells me when one of the youngest ones is stuck at the top of the playland. At which point I climb in and "rescue" my children.
I know it made you feel all super and cynical to find a way to say I'm a crappy parent. Sorry, I'm not. Enjoy your day anyway.
It sometimes snows in Chicago, or gets darn cold. Especially in the winter.
At which point I am quite happy that there is a McDonalds down the street with a playland. I can take the kids there and cut them loose for an hour or so to burn off their energy. It's a great thing.
McD has been very family orientated for quite some time now, giving us a place to let our brats romp about, while we eat a McCoronary and pass the time. Having the ability to hook up to the net while my kids are going down the static electricity slide is a great thing. I'll be able to do something that entertains me, if I can ignore the screaming of the kids.
I dunno my friend. I've seen a good share of Americans treat pets like humans. We might give the UK a run for it, plus we have better teeth, unless you head into the Ozarks;)
On a less humorous note, it is right to put humans_always_above animas and plants. Given the choice between killing a person, an animal, or an acre of trees, I'll take my meat fried and when can you print some news on that bark?
Philosophical difference between us there will probably never be resolved.;) BTW, when did/. do a story transplant with the pet store?:)
Activism for the sake of activism?
on
Cat Organ Transplants
·
· Score: 4, Insightful
I don't get it...
"Britain's main animal charities, including the RSPCA, had expressed ethical concerns about the procedure, particularly over the issue of choice and consent."
It's a cat! I've got two cats. While I will certainly agree that they have a mind of their own (and for some reason think that the best place to be is underfoot while I'm walking in the morning), but consent??? It's a cat...
"Mr. Whiskers, this is a risky operation with potential complications. It is entirely possible that you could die due to this surgery. I still advise you to have it done, as your organs are failing and you won't live much longer without a transplant. We have a ready donor, do you give your consent for this transplant to be done?"
Slashdot Mirror
The precedent on modding (through company tools or not) is that it's illegal when a person begins to profit from it. Prior to that, as a 'hobby' it's fine. Think about the people who design clothing, furniture, skins, etc for the Sims(2). They aren't breaking a law because they don't profit from it.
Which is why nobody can stop you from modding your PC game to put in stick figures instead of 3d avatars if you want (ok, my first thought was naked avatars, but that's dull eh?). It's only if you sell it that is illegal -- which was covered by the article. Modding? Fine. Selling Mods without a license? Bad.
While there is definite synergy between the E3 and Gen Con audience (I play tabletop and video games and I'm not alone), mixing the two events together at the same time could be counter productive. On the one hand I'd want to walk the video game side of the event and see everything in every booth. On the other hand this means I'd have less time to sit down and game. It would cause people to really weigh their priorities as to what they want over the course of those days, and one side would eventually loose out as the other trends better with traffic, etc. End result could be that one half, or the other is just there as an afterthought -- which won't sit well with the hardcore fans (of either).
When you are talking about 90 million users, you aren't talking about hardcore gamers with gaming PC's -- you are talking about Joe and Jane Normal, who just want a computer to do basic work and keep the kids quiet/busy at home. That's the mass market -- and if you can deliver quality games that function on those computers (that are bought stock at the retail stores) you are delivering to a huge potential audience -- which makes great business sense.
:)
It's not about those of us who will build our own computers, it's about the Eloi who think Geek Squad is a lifesaver.
If they are going to spend a full day playing each game -- they are going to need more testers. Which means more jobs for the American video gamer! ;P
Imagine the office drama at a job like that.
"She always gets the good games to rate -- I hear she's playing with the bosses joystick!"
There is some wisdom in that. Get a team of volunteer coders to insert Hot Coffee into a random game each week as a 'mod' and make the point again and again until someone gets it: You can't rate what people do after they buy the product...
It's akin to changing the rating on a movie because someone may touch themselves inappropriately when certain actreses are on screen. Even clothed.
Well that and the whole thing about totalitarian states being able to kill their citizens with impunity - I think a good number of people would rather be offended than dead...
This was put where I could find it, and is a very interesting read. Lots of great detail about IGE/Allakhazam if you want to learn more.
http://wow.azzor.com/445/truth_about_IGE.php
I guess, if you know the size of my wife's breasts, that I should file for a divorce?
Let me ask my wife and see what she says:
No real problems. While they are exaggerated in form they are so to represent fertility and the power of child bearing. Which was referenced in her article (prior to movies big breasts and hips were seen as an idea). This just reinforces that idea and shows where it came from (primitive women who were able to survive childbirth due to big hips were preferred).
"Personally I would have requested a different copy from GameStop"
This matches well with the policies of most retailers who will only exchange a game that has been opened for a like title. Easy way out.
I have three kids. We have educational toys. We have a computer they can use. Ages 8, 5, and 3. My wife is a college professor, and we homeschool. So we pay attention to 'educational value' in a toy/game.
Understand this, even if you buy them both - they are toys. Period. Whatever learning that comes from them will be small and slow. You can impact her in a greater way through every interaction if you make that choice.
Also know that she will model what she sees and experiences from you. If you play with her using these toys every day, she will want to use them. If you hand them to her with batteries your odds of her engaging with them goes down fast.
We have had toys like this over the years. At this point we don't buy them. I'm giving my oldest kid my PDA for christmas (one of us might as well use it daily), and they all have access to a simple computer and games that say they are educational. Because Mom & Dad use the computer daily, the kids use the computer daily. Heck, we give them each two tickets for 30 minutes of 'game time' on the computer each day and they cash them in during 'free time' and play whatever they want.
If you really want to get a head start on education, give her the options and then whatever she likes, use. I taught one of my kid colors with Playdough at a very young age. It was what she liked to play with. That's the important factor, the kid wanting to play with it. If they want to do it you can teach through it. If they don't care... you are wasting your time.
Until just earlier this summer.
This is a slick move that I didn't know was coming, it's the right move to make as BBY looks to penetrate the growing gaming market, and you can bet that more things like this will happen in that chain.
Fact: People buy used games. The smaller retail chains based on gaming earn most of their profit from the lure/sale of used merchandise. Need a second controller? Why not get it used? Want to try a game that you know is not great, but may hold your interest for a week? Why not get it used? Used sales happen. There is a market for them.
Fact: BBY is a publically traded company with a bottom line need to protect and grow shareholder value. So they are going to make moves that allow them to gain 40% more margin on product sales. That's good profits and good for the bottom line.
Fact: BBY is currently in a program that is targeting customers and adapting the stores to fit their needs. Doubt me? Do a bit of google on Best Buy and the Demon Customers that made headlines last year. The company is focusing on customers, meeting their needs, getting their loyalty, keeping their sales. Gamers spend money. Crazy video card upgrades, consoles, and games, games, games. Moving to a used games model makes sense. Sell the game, buy it back cheaper than you sold it, then sell it again for profit. Wash, rinse, repeat. It makes sense in the capitalistic world.
Fact: Traditional boxed sale publishers can gnash their teeth all they want, but they will not boycott Best Buy or another major retailer that has hundreds of outlets to push the 'new' boxes out in.
Bottom Line: It's good for pofits, will draw in more repeat customers who will buy used, new, and whatever else they see on the way through the store as they shop, and you have a winning prospect.
The largest hurdle I see here is getting the stores on a program that is adequate for showcasing the used games available, and getting the manuals and cases together when a purchase is intended.
It works easy at GameStop for them to keep the manuals, etc. at the counter, there are two of them tops in any given GameStop. At Best Buy you have a bank of registers so there is some convenience factor to work out... beyond that it is gravy.
Expect this to roll out, not to every Best Buy, but to a good number of them.
Just ran a snap test at www.bandwithplace.com in another window and got these results:
Communications 536.6 kilobits per second
Storage 65.5 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 15.6 seconds
Subjective rating Not bad
I get service on par with DSL and have zero problems with latency. I have a few problems with Halo2 on Xbox live, but that is more due to Old Gamers Syndrome than it is connectivity.
I believe that I am running 2.4Ghz, because the owner of the ISP suggested that I run down to a 900Mhz phone, and not up to a 5.8Ghz saying that he could promise he would not scale down to 900..
Provider: West Michigan Wireless ISP
http://www.wmwisp.net/modules/news/
Good folks.
I disagree with what you said, but have more couth than to say more.
~Grimwell
www.grimwell.com
"It's my house, don't like it, don't read it."
Boy do I not feel vindicated. Ok, so all gamerrs are not geeks. How much did this guy get paid for this "study"? Sheesh.
Simple logic tells you this. Look at the console explosion. Over the years more and more people brought games into their homes. Usually through consoles. Not all of these people are "geeks". Some are too stupid to deserve that honor.
Still, we've had gaming in the household for over a generation now, it's plainly obvious that it's not just for geeks anymore. In fact, I know a stripper who plays MMOG's. Whenever I see her character online I can't decide if I should see if she wants to hunt loot, or if I should start masturbating and giving her all of my loot, but I digress...
Games make as much money as the movies, we are beyond the saturation point, and this is not news to anyone save for geeks and nerds who are certain that nobody understands them.
I'm a geek. I get a nice paycheck. Women are shallow. They like money. Come on guys, simple logic. Go score some snapper!
How does it invalidate my point?
I CAN'T RUN IE ON LINUX - I CAN RUN IT ON WINDOWS.
THUS: Were I running a Linux box for gaming, instead of the Windows rig that I made that post from, I would have been posting in Mozilla and not IE.
What is it about the internet that makes people feel superior for finding an exception to every damn thing someone says?
So Mozilla runs on a PC. Your point?
Plus it made him feel better about all that work learning how to pass the tests.
Be sure to have him throw the pickles under the burger when you order... it really adds to the flavor.
Ignore the Microsoft connection and look at what they are basically pitching: An operating system designed with a set of standards that will make it easy for developers to design games. Right down to the controller.
:)
The only drawback I can find is that it's a "super console plus!" situation. I'm a gamer, and I'm fine with that.
I've often speculated that a distribution of Linux should be made that is specifically geared toward gaming. Coordinate hardware support with the major vendors so their product works with ease, and build the OS specifically to deliver fast processing for gaming. Anything that has nothing to do with playing games is cut out of it.
Keep it free. Let game distributors bundle it with the games they sell. If the OS was good enough to deliver DoomIII on the day of retail, and you were able to tie down some major title support, it could work. Suddenly every gamer out there is running a Linux distribution to play their games. Suddenly every major developer is developing games just for Linux. Why? Because the OS functions well as a gaming OS (by design), and because it's free so everyone can have it.
In effect, you create a Linux standard for gaming, that can run top quality games, and is free.
Many of us have Windows because the best games work on it. Games are designed to work on Windows because most of us have Windows. Circular, but true.
If Doom III, GTA IV, and EverQuest 2 all came out for Mac and Mac alone, I'd be typing this on a blue keyboard right now. If they all came from Linux, I'd be typing this in a Mozilla window.
Mind you, I'd try this myself, but I can't code myself out of a 486 and have to feed my kids so I can't go urchin and skip on the rest of my life.
Even today, at 31, I'm nuts about games. I have two consoles, a gaming PC, and two laptops that play legacy games. I can't get enough. I've even written for Player2Player because I can't shut up about them.
I'm also a parent. Three children. 6/3/1 in age(s). My son (6) is nuts about games. I can't blame him. He's exposed to them daily. Loves playing Tony Hawk on the Xbox. Defeated Gauntlet for the PS1, all by himself. Is working on Jet Set Radio Future lately. Is going gonzo over Disney's ToonTown MMG. My daughter (3), is picking up on it. She can pilot a character in JSRF. Can't do much with it, but she'll spend 5 minutes making the avatar skate about.
I'm a gamer. I'm a parent. My kids are gamers. Games are art & entertainment on the same level as music, film, and television. They are not so passive, but they are there to fill idle time and give pleasure to the consumer. Not all games are for children. I screen what my kids see, and play adult games after they sleep. On the same level I don't let the kids listen to my Slayer CD's, or watch the latest Horror flick that my wife rented, or watch The Man Show with me.
As art, games should be protected. The government should not ban their creation and distribution, or sale. Like movies, games have ratings. Those should be enforced. Selling a minor GTA 3, Vice City should be no different than selling a minor the latest copy of Playboy. Or a beer. Or a pack of Camels.
There are games that are not meant for children. I have no problems with the government forcing retailers to enforce the ESRB ratings. When I buy a case of beer, I get carded. If I can't provide the card, I get denied the sale. If a kid brings GTA3 up to the register, he/she should be carded, and denied sale if not 18.
It's a good system. Extra laws are not needed to make things worse. Yeah, loopholes exist, but at least it is something, and it's rational. It's just like the movies, and there is no outcry that a few kids get by the ropes and into rated "R" films. It seems entirely logical to emulate that, even if I babble too much.
Here in the United States I trust the government to think for me.
Actually, my wife comes along, and has no interest in surfing the internet, so I'm covered quite well. I usually bring something to read and she tells me when one of the youngest ones is stuck at the top of the playland. At which point I climb in and "rescue" my children.
I know it made you feel all super and cynical to find a way to say I'm a crappy parent. Sorry, I'm not. Enjoy your day anyway.
I've got kids.
It sometimes snows in Chicago, or gets darn cold. Especially in the winter.
At which point I am quite happy that there is a McDonalds down the street with a playland. I can take the kids there and cut them loose for an hour or so to burn off their energy. It's a great thing.
McD has been very family orientated for quite some time now, giving us a place to let our brats romp about, while we eat a McCoronary and pass the time. Having the ability to hook up to the net while my kids are going down the static electricity slide is a great thing. I'll be able to do something that entertains me, if I can ignore the screaming of the kids.
It's a losing idea. Granted.
Everyone needs a writeoff. Seems like an easy one to me...
I dunno my friend. I've seen a good share of Americans treat pets like humans. We might give the UK a run for it, plus we have better teeth, unless you head into the Ozarks ;)
;) BTW, when did /. do a story transplant with the pet store? :)
On a less humorous note, it is right to put humans_always_above animas and plants. Given the choice between killing a person, an animal, or an acre of trees, I'll take my meat fried and when can you print some news on that bark?
Philosophical difference between us there will probably never be resolved.
It's a cat! I've got two cats. While I will certainly agree that they have a mind of their own (and for some reason think that the best place to be is underfoot while I'm walking in the morning), but consent??? It's a cat...
"Mr. Whiskers, this is a risky operation with potential complications. It is entirely possible that you could die due to this surgery. I still advise you to have it done, as your organs are failing and you won't live much longer without a transplant. We have a ready donor, do you give your consent for this transplant to be done?"
"Meow."
Boggling what people will do to have a cause.