"They claim to be a solution to everything from wireless home automation to industrial control.""
Can they solve the "SUV drivers talking on Cellphones" problem?
You must have missed a few days in Consumer Application Math 235. See, "SUV drivers talking on Cellphones" doesn't exist in [wireless home automation, industrial control].
Interestingly, though, multiplying "SUV drivers talking on Cellphones" by sin[(industrial control)x] in the frequency domain yields 7 at pi and negative pi.
While this whole real cash game economy seems like a really interesting experiment, I'm not sure how eager I'd be to invest that much money into something so ephemeral (I welcome all luddite allegations hurled my way... just because). I hope there's a user-friendly EULA with this game.
None of those had the near complete mindshare in the TV console scene that Sony does now, though. Ask most any serious gamer, and if their primary system is not PS2, then they'll most likely at least own one, with the exception of people who own just an XBox and Halo (and of course Halo 2), who are unlikely to buy a handheld anyway. The best case was Sega, which was probably about even with Nintendo in the 16-bit console days. The Game Gear's battery-guzzling was not only the annoyance that the PSP might be, but also was expensive. 6 AA batteries is not a trivial expense for a few hours of play, and rechargeables at the time were slow to recharge and underpowered. Plus, Game Gear did not have Tetris, and was huge and heavy. This round, there's no killer app, and the PSP is about the same size as a closed DS, and considerably sleeker.
I agree, though, that Sony does have to put up a fight, but the situation is not nearly as grim as it was for most of the previous competitors.
Optical media works fine for the MD player when you could get 40+ hours out of a single aa.
Then there's the fact that a full cache of compressed audio lasts longer between required disc reads than the video, textures, models, animations, etc. necessary for a game. Add to that the increased power drawn from the processor to make use of all of that and the large, well-lit screen, and the short battery life, if not excusable, is at least understandable.
Sony Sony Sony, havent you learned anything from Sega? Leave the handhelds to Nintendo.
Yes, why try to enter a market in which Sega failed to succeed ten years ago? It makes no sense at all to release a sleek, comparatively sized unit with extra features in a market that couldn't support the Game Gear ten years ago. I'm sure nothing has changed in the interim.
Notes: post was sarcastic, and I own a DS. I don't begrudge Sony for entering the market and think they do stand a chance at success, though probably not domination. Screenshots look very nice, and the price is surprisingly low for what it can do. I may end up with one eventually.
The Minimo page says that their focus has been Linux-based devices with 32-64MB of RAM. The willingness to move to other platforms seems to really indicate PocketPC/Windows Mobile devices, which is one platform that lacks Opera (though there is apparently an Opera version for the fairly new Windows Mobile Smartphone 2003 edition).
I still need to install Opera on my Nokia 3660. The small-screen rendering features I've heard mentioned in this discusion make it all the more tempting.
My implication was that what they couldn't somehow avoid they would pass onto their end users in the form of increased prices. I wasn't assuming that they would be responsible for a majority of the cleanup, nor was I saying that they would pay out of pocket what they couldn't avoid.
And then there's the "to the extent that the vendors... are required" bit. Regulations can't cover all costs even if they tried. Like you said, some costs are long-term or indirect. This article, though, was primarily concerned with direct monetary costs.
And yeah, after posting, I regretted using the general term "costs." I forgot how liberally the term could be applied in economics.
Also: "naive," usually but not always with some mark or other above the "i."
Though I'm loath to inject levity into this conversation, I'm reminded of Morbo, the evil alien newscaster in Futurama:
(due to robot emissions-induced global warming, tortoises are migrating north into Holland)
Morbo (paraphrased): "Morbo wishes luck to the brave turtles."
Co-anchor: "Maybe those windmills will keep them cool!"
Morbo (to co-anchor, enraged): "WINDMILLS DO NOT WORK THAT WAY!"
Morbo (to camera, still enraged): "GOOD NIGHT!"
I'd imagine that cleanup costs are included to the extent that the vendors of the related energy sources are required to pay for such cleanup.
Then again, I imagine a lot of things.
Also, I think "Not that I expect the current administration to do anything about it" would make a great.sig, regardless of what the "current administration" is at the time.
Both of these movies are adaptations of books. I imagine neither director will use the previous movies significantly for inspiration. Burton's movie even uses the title of the book (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory rather than the previous movie's title, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory).
This being Slashdot, and text being a rather lossy format when compressing sarcasm thereto, you may be trolling. If it is indeed a troll, I commend you, for its subtlety is unrivaled by all but the most accomplished of trolls.
What the article fails to mention is that the family physician is a 20-foot robot. He processes all this morning information while he "sleeps" in a closet in his office.
Only because all related stories have clearly pointed to the fact that it's a "full-page ad" to be run on a specific, yet-to-be-determined date "in the New York Times." I don't often refer to an ad (or article, story, etc.) being "in" a particular website. Though to be fair, such language was not used in this article summary, the only clue to its printed nature being that the ad will be "run."
I suppose it's worth noting that the 3.5" floppy version of the game didn't even have voice actors. Not until the CD-ROM edition were the voice actors featured.
Also, I didn't mind the voice actors in the animated series, which featured the brilliantly named snack food "Frosted McGuffins" as the central goal of the duo in one episode.
I could argue that the inclusion of voice actors at all deviates too far from the spirit of the original comic books or the non-voiced version of the game.
I think the PSX mentioned there was something they tried last year or early this year in Japan, integrating something like PVR functionality and some other added features to the existing PS2 functionality. I never heard much about it after release, and now I guess I know why.
Also, didn't Nintendo mention production limitations just before the DS was released, and admitted that they could deliver "only" 2 million units by Christmas? A launch of only 200,000 units seems ludicrously small. I'd like it if this decision turned out to be some sort of postmodernist performance art playing off of business and consumer trends of late.
Yeah, but that still leaves us Marios 256, 512, 1024, 2048, 4096, and 8192, so we're fine for a while. Maybe after that they'll start using exponents. "Mario 2^14" or something. That's only one more syllable than "128" if you read the carat as "to the," and one syllable less than "eighty-one ninety-two."
Might the slight decline in prominence of mascots be due to the relatively recent possibility of semi-immersion? Many a game places the player in the shoes of an everyman of sorts. It's kind of hard for "the GTA guy" to become a mascot. To borrow a phrase from Gag Halfrunt, "He's just this guy, you know?"
Mascots are still around, and definitely provide brand identification. Nintendo still uses its stable of characters, especially Mario. Jak 3 just came out, starring the closest the PS2 might have to a mascot (worth noting that Naughty Dog is the studio behind both Crash Bandicoot and Jak & Daxter). Master Chief, while definitely the faceless everyman, is now quite iconic, and you can't see him without the XBox immediately coming to mind.
Anyway, while mascots don't seem to be as important for sales as they once were, many game characters still can become instantly recognizable and elicit mental associations with their respective platform or developer. Who doesn't think of Valve and headcrabs when they see Gordon Freeman?
My main problem with HijackThis is that it finds all potential instances of browser hijacking, benign or not. I've run it before, and a majority of what it found were things that did not need to be removed. It's good that it's so thorough, but it's definitely not friendly for those that need it most. However, I've seen forums in which you can post your results and other members will advise you on which entries are harmful and should be removed.
Having just finished reading the previous/. interview and some of the ensuing comments, I ran across the same question, worded surprisingly similarly, and, more importantly, answered by señor CleverNickName himself.
I think the revolutionary part is that Half-Life 2 is a game that could have done just as well as a retail-only release. Independent games' use of online delivery is generally viewed as a necessity because they have little chance of being picked up by a major publisher. When a major release game chooses to also offer such a delivery, it signifies that big publishers might not be quite as necessary an evil as previously thought. I'm reminded of Tycho's reply to another question, in which he applauds Halo for bringing the LAN party into the mainstream.
There are, of course, arguments that HL2 is only successful because of HL's original Sierra-published release, which does seem to support the claims of the necessity of a publisher for exposure. The fact remains, though, that HL2 is still a massive, high-budget game that you can obtain without going through the publisher. Also notable is that the original HL was pretty much independently funded, and that HL2 I assume was primarily funded by HL1 profits.
Slashdot Mirror
"They claim to be a solution to everything from wireless home automation to industrial control.""
Can they solve the "SUV drivers talking on Cellphones" problem?
You must have missed a few days in Consumer Application Math 235. See, "SUV drivers talking on Cellphones" doesn't exist in [wireless home automation, industrial control].
Interestingly, though, multiplying "SUV drivers talking on Cellphones" by sin[(industrial control)x] in the frequency domain yields 7 at pi and negative pi.
I bet it was Bill Gates.
Yes, Bill "Zachurm 'Deathifier' Emegen" Gates.
I need to start using a full name as my nickname.
While this whole real cash game economy seems like a really interesting experiment, I'm not sure how eager I'd be to invest that much money into something so ephemeral (I welcome all luddite allegations hurled my way... just because). I hope there's a user-friendly EULA with this game.
I think the difficulty is in the application process rather than uniqueness of the idea.
None of those had the near complete mindshare in the TV console scene that Sony does now, though. Ask most any serious gamer, and if their primary system is not PS2, then they'll most likely at least own one, with the exception of people who own just an XBox and Halo (and of course Halo 2), who are unlikely to buy a handheld anyway. The best case was Sega, which was probably about even with Nintendo in the 16-bit console days. The Game Gear's battery-guzzling was not only the annoyance that the PSP might be, but also was expensive. 6 AA batteries is not a trivial expense for a few hours of play, and rechargeables at the time were slow to recharge and underpowered. Plus, Game Gear did not have Tetris, and was huge and heavy. This round, there's no killer app, and the PSP is about the same size as a closed DS, and considerably sleeker.
I agree, though, that Sony does have to put up a fight, but the situation is not nearly as grim as it was for most of the previous competitors.
Optical media works fine for the MD player when you could get 40+ hours out of a single aa.
Then there's the fact that a full cache of compressed audio lasts longer between required disc reads than the video, textures, models, animations, etc. necessary for a game. Add to that the increased power drawn from the processor to make use of all of that and the large, well-lit screen, and the short battery life, if not excusable, is at least understandable.
Sony Sony Sony, havent you learned anything from Sega? Leave the handhelds to Nintendo.
Yes, why try to enter a market in which Sega failed to succeed ten years ago? It makes no sense at all to release a sleek, comparatively sized unit with extra features in a market that couldn't support the Game Gear ten years ago. I'm sure nothing has changed in the interim.
Notes: post was sarcastic, and I own a DS. I don't begrudge Sony for entering the market and think they do stand a chance at success, though probably not domination. Screenshots look very nice, and the price is surprisingly low for what it can do. I may end up with one eventually.
The Minimo page says that their focus has been Linux-based devices with 32-64MB of RAM. The willingness to move to other platforms seems to really indicate PocketPC/Windows Mobile devices, which is one platform that lacks Opera (though there is apparently an Opera version for the fairly new Windows Mobile Smartphone 2003 edition).
I still need to install Opera on my Nokia 3660. The small-screen rendering features I've heard mentioned in this discusion make it all the more tempting.
My implication was that what they couldn't somehow avoid they would pass onto their end users in the form of increased prices. I wasn't assuming that they would be responsible for a majority of the cleanup, nor was I saying that they would pay out of pocket what they couldn't avoid.
And then there's the "to the extent that the vendors... are required" bit. Regulations can't cover all costs even if they tried. Like you said, some costs are long-term or indirect. This article, though, was primarily concerned with direct monetary costs.
And yeah, after posting, I regretted using the general term "costs." I forgot how liberally the term could be applied in economics.
Also: "naive," usually but not always with some mark or other above the "i."
Though I'm loath to inject levity into this conversation, I'm reminded of Morbo, the evil alien newscaster in Futurama:
(due to robot emissions-induced global warming, tortoises are migrating north into Holland)
Morbo (paraphrased): "Morbo wishes luck to the brave turtles."
Co-anchor: "Maybe those windmills will keep them cool!"
Morbo (to co-anchor, enraged): "WINDMILLS DO NOT WORK THAT WAY!"
Morbo (to camera, still enraged): "GOOD NIGHT!"
I'd imagine that cleanup costs are included to the extent that the vendors of the related energy sources are required to pay for such cleanup.
.sig, regardless of what the "current administration" is at the time.
Then again, I imagine a lot of things.
Also, I think "Not that I expect the current administration to do anything about it" would make a great
Both of these movies are adaptations of books. I imagine neither director will use the previous movies significantly for inspiration. Burton's movie even uses the title of the book (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory rather than the previous movie's title, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory).
This being Slashdot, and text being a rather lossy format when compressing sarcasm thereto, you may be trolling. If it is indeed a troll, I commend you, for its subtlety is unrivaled by all but the most accomplished of trolls.
To be fair, Burton didn't direct The Nightmare Before Christmas.
Also, I like how you left out Planet of the Apes.
You're forgetting the crazy psychedelic scenes toward the end of 2001: A Space Odyssey.
What the article fails to mention is that the family physician is a 20-foot robot. He processes all this morning information while he "sleeps" in a closet in his office.
Only because all related stories have clearly pointed to the fact that it's a "full-page ad" to be run on a specific, yet-to-be-determined date "in the New York Times." I don't often refer to an ad (or article, story, etc.) being "in" a particular website. Though to be fair, such language was not used in this article summary, the only clue to its printed nature being that the ad will be "run."
Not gonna argue, as "McGuffin" is the important part of the name. Also, it would seem that you're right.
I suppose it's worth noting that the 3.5" floppy version of the game didn't even have voice actors. Not until the CD-ROM edition were the voice actors featured.
Also, I didn't mind the voice actors in the animated series, which featured the brilliantly named snack food "Frosted McGuffins" as the central goal of the duo in one episode.
I could argue that the inclusion of voice actors at all deviates too far from the spirit of the original comic books or the non-voiced version of the game.
Maybe there's some constant speed at which business is known to travel, and development time can be extrapolated from a distance measure.
I think the PSX mentioned there was something they tried last year or early this year in Japan, integrating something like PVR functionality and some other added features to the existing PS2 functionality. I never heard much about it after release, and now I guess I know why.
Also, didn't Nintendo mention production limitations just before the DS was released, and admitted that they could deliver "only" 2 million units by Christmas? A launch of only 200,000 units seems ludicrously small. I'd like it if this decision turned out to be some sort of postmodernist performance art playing off of business and consumer trends of late.
Yeah, but that still leaves us Marios 256, 512, 1024, 2048, 4096, and 8192, so we're fine for a while. Maybe after that they'll start using exponents. "Mario 2^14" or something. That's only one more syllable than "128" if you read the carat as "to the," and one syllable less than "eighty-one ninety-two."
Might the slight decline in prominence of mascots be due to the relatively recent possibility of semi-immersion? Many a game places the player in the shoes of an everyman of sorts. It's kind of hard for "the GTA guy" to become a mascot. To borrow a phrase from Gag Halfrunt, "He's just this guy, you know?"
Mascots are still around, and definitely provide brand identification. Nintendo still uses its stable of characters, especially Mario. Jak 3 just came out, starring the closest the PS2 might have to a mascot (worth noting that Naughty Dog is the studio behind both Crash Bandicoot and Jak & Daxter). Master Chief, while definitely the faceless everyman, is now quite iconic, and you can't see him without the XBox immediately coming to mind.
Anyway, while mascots don't seem to be as important for sales as they once were, many game characters still can become instantly recognizable and elicit mental associations with their respective platform or developer. Who doesn't think of Valve and headcrabs when they see Gordon Freeman?
My main problem with HijackThis is that it finds all potential instances of browser hijacking, benign or not. I've run it before, and a majority of what it found were things that did not need to be removed. It's good that it's so thorough, but it's definitely not friendly for those that need it most. However, I've seen forums in which you can post your results and other members will advise you on which entries are harmful and should be removed.
Having just finished reading the previous /. interview and some of the ensuing comments, I ran across the same question, worded surprisingly similarly, and, more importantly, answered by señor CleverNickName himself.
I think the revolutionary part is that Half-Life 2 is a game that could have done just as well as a retail-only release. Independent games' use of online delivery is generally viewed as a necessity because they have little chance of being picked up by a major publisher. When a major release game chooses to also offer such a delivery, it signifies that big publishers might not be quite as necessary an evil as previously thought. I'm reminded of Tycho's reply to another question, in which he applauds Halo for bringing the LAN party into the mainstream.
There are, of course, arguments that HL2 is only successful because of HL's original Sierra-published release, which does seem to support the claims of the necessity of a publisher for exposure. The fact remains, though, that HL2 is still a massive, high-budget game that you can obtain without going through the publisher. Also notable is that the original HL was pretty much independently funded, and that HL2 I assume was primarily funded by HL1 profits.
Yes, but you don't use guns, and there's not much blood, so that killing is fine.