No, your brain really does have to adjust. It reminds me of when I tried to play Counterstrike a few years ago after having played a lot of Counterstrike: Source. While I was able to play it with no problem when it came out, returning to it after several years was difficult because it no longer appeared to have depth to it. It looked like a flat cartoon with no dimensionality. It was a strange experience.
I have to see that I never thought this a problem myself, it looks and feels like a 3D environment to me. When I frst started playing, I saw a lot of similarities between WoW and WCIII and that is probably why I continue to play WoW - I like the Warcraft universe and those graphics are what I expect. I suppose people will have differing opinions though on the graphics - some people prefer the more photo-realistic approach.
I like the cartoony approach because it doesn't look odd. With fantasy worlds, there's difficult decision to be made. Cartoony graphics can work very well because it's easier to reproduce fantasy monsters. If you go down the photo-realistic approach, it becomes tricky because it can end up looking bad or just plain freaky. I'm probably not doing a good job of explaining this but I've seen rotoscoping used to recreate human animation and it just looked freaky. It wasn't a photo, it wasn't a drawing - it was a strange hybrid.
I hope the wowhead thing works out, they have a nice site there. It's true that interest in all games will wane but WoW seems to be going strong at the moment. Besides, there may be more to wowhead than the site itself. I'm sure there is some expertise and technology that comes along with it - stuff that can be applied when the next big MMO comes along.
The graphics are meant to look like that, you may as well complain about anime characters having strange hair styles. Warcraft has always been about having cartoony graphics, quite good ones in my opinion.
I can't speak for all the servers but mine certainly seems to have a healthy population. I've a reasonably large guild and we've only seen one person leave in the past few months.
If you're pitching Vanguard as a better game, mainly because of its graphics, but still saying it's boring as hell, I think you might want to consider a different genre or just rent LoTR on DVD. That looks better than WoW.
aybe they should make the contract conditional on Microsoft offering the relevant codecs for any OS with a user base over a certain threshold. I think Microsoft could easily offer its codecs for Intel Macs, for example, and Mac OS is probably the only other platform with a large enough user base to be important. I don't know if implementing the DRM on Mac OS would be a problem or not, though.
Yeah, it would be great if the BBC made that demand part of their contract. If that happens, some good may come of this.
Yes, but the point is they can't walk, not that they don't want to walk. If someone doesn't want to use Windows, it's their own choice.
Choice is the key word here. I have two choices - buy windows or go without. That's a less than ideal situation when we're talking about a state funded broadcaster. There is no real choice, it's all or nothing and that reminds me of the response often seen when people complain about a product or service - 'if you won't like it, no-one is forcing you to use it'. I try to avoid Microsoft products for ethical reasons so that makes it difficult for me think about buying Windows. Also, it's not exactly cheap to get another computer when I know I'd rarely use it.
My idea of choice would be a situation where there are two methods of accessing the content, ideally open standards so that users can obtain the client from a range of vendors. I suppose the DRM aspect is the big stumbling block.
Copying Microsoft's DLLs is illegal unless you have a Windows licence. They actual licence for individual DLLs may vary but on the whole, they would be protected the same way as the rest of the OS.
I see where your coming from regarding this being a first step for the BBC but I hope they get this expanded to other OSes. Having to buy a product from one company in order to view material from a state funded broadcaster is just a bad idea.
WMV suits the majority of users but it's troubling when a state funded organisation requires users to purchase a product available from just one company in order to use their services. It's even more troubling when the product in question is sold by Microsoft.
An overwhelming number of people can walk but state libraries still install wheelchair ramps to take care of the minority that can't. That's what a state organisation should doing.
It's about time the RIAA took a stand against these music thieves. A colleague at my work who is known for having copied music went on a shooting spree. If the RIAA had dealt with him, I would not have had to step over bodybags on my way to lunch.
It's all subjective really when it comes down it but your idea of buying things because they sound the way you want them makes a lot of sense. My hearing has been punished by too much metal so I'm content with a reasonably low bit-rate.
Blind-testing is the only way to establish whether there really is a difference, particularly with the cable freezing crowd. It's incredibly hard to do these tests though since people are often rating the way they think the music should sound rather than the way it is. I've plenty of Beatles songs that just don't sound right on CD because they're missing the little defects that crept in to the vinyl recording over the years.
MySpace is a nice containment facility for the "HAI, IM ON TEH INTERNET LOL" crowd. As long as they don't bother us on the real Internet, everything is going to plan.
The only argument I can see against the system is that it could be the thin end of the wedge. However, the same could be said of any web site that requires you to register before posting there.
I agree that most people objecting are probably annoyed since the tags stop them casually sharing the music. This system is certainly better than DRM since it doesn't stop you from making backup copies for yourself, or even converting it in to other formats for use with different apps and devices.
The only thing that would stop me using iTunes music would be if they made it impossible to convert it to other formats. I don't want to left sitting there with the metaphorical box of betamax tapes and no player.
You have a pretty amazing security set-up there. Paranoid by my standards but then it depends on your needs. My home-setup is certainly considered paranoid by some people but it's necessary for what I do.
iTunes music probably isn't a good idea for you based on your set-up. That said, it's fine for most people. Even if your iPod was loaded up with music and it got stolen, it's very unlikely that someone is going to use it for sinister purposes unless that is the very reason why they stole the iPod (and associated data) in the first place. If that is the case, you probably have bigger worries than your email address leaking out.
It depends on the software being sold. If the makers have to pay a licence fee for some software or libraries they used, there's an additional cost. You also have to include the cost of supporting each copy you sell. I suspect that licencing is a reason why obsolete software, operating systems from 10 years ago being a good example, aren't released for free.
Overall though, I think you right. It's not like selling cars.
They spend so much time meddling in the corporate world, trying to build national champions that I have no doubt that there is a lot of information of commercial interest floating around.
Mind you, wouldn't surprise me if this is just an excuse to subsidise a French company and have them build a network.
I got it - nice joke, it's more interesting than this Fox Newsesque presentation of the article as yet another "OMG, VISTA SUX0RS COMPARED TO XP!!1!" piece.
I always saw it as an invitation or a frank admission by the poster.
Hey everyone, I anal! Who wants some?
It's the most useless word ever invented. It's not like you'd receive advice on Slashdot, get busted and tell the judge "How was I to know that NintendoTits22 wasn't a lawyer? He never offered me anal!"
Now that's a name I haven't seen around for while. Nice to see you're still around drinkypoo.
Yeah, the hope will be that they go for wide appeal instead of the Nintendo model. I wonder what the average consumer wants though. Do they want a system in which they can download and install software from anywhere or do they want to be able to just pick a box from the shelf and be happy with that?
Yeah, that whole idea worries the hell out of me - particularly if they take the approach of having the hardware involved in the authorisation. I reckon that us in the western world are in the future going to rely on hardware manufacturers in the places like China and the developing world if we want to run any software that isn't totally locked-down. I hope that prediction turns out as false as the crap Nostradamus churned out.
That would be tricky for MS to pull-off but they could just make it very difficult for certain applications to run on Windows. Require a certification process, implement technical measures to authenticate the applications and then use the DMCA to destroy anyone who dares to bypass the protection by using fake credentials.
Make it nice and expensive to obtain the credentials, or just use a clever licence agreement and that'll certainly stop the pesky open-source kids from meddling. The best thing is, if the DoJ decide to take an interest, MS can tell them that it's necessary for security.
I really can see Windows going the same as some console platforms. Either you make your software with permission or you don't do it at all.
Many people would also associate Genghis Khan with power and leadership. Czar is a piss-poor title to anyone who has cracked open a history book, unless you want to make it clear that the person being appointed should consider themselves above all legal checks.
You might want to check Julius Caesar's history, then move on to the Russian Czars.
Trying to negotiate is one thing. The school board and thestate legislators using this kind of public blackmail is totally different. I would not be surprised to turn on the TV and see these blackmailers holding up teary-eyed children who'll be asking the camera "Why do IBM hate us?"
If IBM do write-off the debt, they should be doing it because it's the best thing for IBM stock holders. I suspect that a settlement will be reached because it's difficult for IBM to just ignore their request. I hope they find a deal that works for both sides but certainly doesn't set a dangerous precedent.
Slashdot Mirror
No, your brain really does have to adjust. It reminds me of when I tried to play Counterstrike a few years ago after having played a lot of Counterstrike: Source. While I was able to play it with no problem when it came out, returning to it after several years was difficult because it no longer appeared to have depth to it. It looked like a flat cartoon with no dimensionality. It was a strange experience.
I have to see that I never thought this a problem myself, it looks and feels like a 3D environment to me. When I frst started playing, I saw a lot of similarities between WoW and WCIII and that is probably why I continue to play WoW - I like the Warcraft universe and those graphics are what I expect. I suppose people will have differing opinions though on the graphics - some people prefer the more photo-realistic approach.
I like the cartoony approach because it doesn't look odd. With fantasy worlds, there's difficult decision to be made. Cartoony graphics can work very well because it's easier to reproduce fantasy monsters. If you go down the photo-realistic approach, it becomes tricky because it can end up looking bad or just plain freaky. I'm probably not doing a good job of explaining this but I've seen rotoscoping used to recreate human animation and it just looked freaky. It wasn't a photo, it wasn't a drawing - it was a strange hybrid.
I hope the wowhead thing works out, they have a nice site there. It's true that interest in all games will wane but WoW seems to be going strong at the moment. Besides, there may be more to wowhead than the site itself. I'm sure there is some expertise and technology that comes along with it - stuff that can be applied when the next big MMO comes along.
The graphics are meant to look like that, you may as well complain about anime characters having strange hair styles. Warcraft has always been about having cartoony graphics, quite good ones in my opinion.
I can't speak for all the servers but mine certainly seems to have a healthy population. I've a reasonably large guild and we've only seen one person leave in the past few months.
If you're pitching Vanguard as a better game, mainly because of its graphics, but still saying it's boring as hell, I think you might want to consider a different genre or just rent LoTR on DVD. That looks better than WoW.
aybe they should make the contract conditional on Microsoft offering the relevant codecs for any OS with a user base over a certain threshold. I think Microsoft could easily offer its codecs for Intel Macs, for example, and Mac OS is probably the only other platform with a large enough user base to be important. I don't know if implementing the DRM on Mac OS would be a problem or not, though.
Yeah, it would be great if the BBC made that demand part of their contract. If that happens, some good may come of this.
Yes, but the point is they can't walk, not that they don't want to walk. If someone doesn't want to use Windows, it's their own choice.
Choice is the key word here. I have two choices - buy windows or go without. That's a less than ideal situation when we're talking about a state funded broadcaster. There is no real choice, it's all or nothing and that reminds me of the response often seen when people complain about a product or service - 'if you won't like it, no-one is forcing you to use it'. I try to avoid Microsoft products for ethical reasons so that makes it difficult for me think about buying Windows. Also, it's not exactly cheap to get another computer when I know I'd rarely use it.
My idea of choice would be a situation where there are two methods of accessing the content, ideally open standards so that users can obtain the client from a range of vendors. I suppose the DRM aspect is the big stumbling block.
Copying Microsoft's DLLs is illegal unless you have a Windows licence. They actual licence for individual DLLs may vary but on the whole, they would be protected the same way as the rest of the OS.
I see where your coming from regarding this being a first step for the BBC but I hope they get this expanded to other OSes. Having to buy a product from one company in order to view material from a state funded broadcaster is just a bad idea.
WMV suits the majority of users but it's troubling when a state funded organisation requires users to purchase a product available from just one company in order to use their services. It's even more troubling when the product in question is sold by Microsoft.
An overwhelming number of people can walk but state libraries still install wheelchair ramps to take care of the minority that can't. That's what a state organisation should doing.
Better tell the guys at Gitmo to reserve a room for him.
It's about time the RIAA took a stand against these music thieves. A colleague at my work who is known for having copied music went on a shooting spree. If the RIAA had dealt with him, I would not have had to step over bodybags on my way to lunch.
Agreed, there are some things that I would only buy on CD but that has a lot to do with the album artwork.
iTunes Store's biggest advantages are convenience and the ability to cherry-pick the songs from albums.
It's all subjective really when it comes down it but your idea of buying things because they sound the way you want them makes a lot of sense. My hearing has been punished by too much metal so I'm content with a reasonably low bit-rate.
Blind-testing is the only way to establish whether there really is a difference, particularly with the cable freezing crowd. It's incredibly hard to do these tests though since people are often rating the way they think the music should sound rather than the way it is. I've plenty of Beatles songs that just don't sound right on CD because they're missing the little defects that crept in to the vinyl recording over the years.
Simon and Garfunkel's The Sound of Silence comes to mind.
MySpace is a nice containment facility for the "HAI, IM ON TEH INTERNET LOL" crowd. As long as they don't bother us on the real Internet, everything is going to plan.
The only argument I can see against the system is that it could be the thin end of the wedge. However, the same could be said of any web site that requires you to register before posting there.
I agree that most people objecting are probably annoyed since the tags stop them casually sharing the music. This system is certainly better than DRM since it doesn't stop you from making backup copies for yourself, or even converting it in to other formats for use with different apps and devices.
The only thing that would stop me using iTunes music would be if they made it impossible to convert it to other formats. I don't want to left sitting there with the metaphorical box of betamax tapes and no player.
You have a pretty amazing security set-up there. Paranoid by my standards but then it depends on your needs. My home-setup is certainly considered paranoid by some people but it's necessary for what I do.
iTunes music probably isn't a good idea for you based on your set-up. That said, it's fine for most people. Even if your iPod was loaded up with music and it got stolen, it's very unlikely that someone is going to use it for sinister purposes unless that is the very reason why they stole the iPod (and associated data) in the first place. If that is the case, you probably have bigger worries than your email address leaking out.
It depends on the software being sold. If the makers have to pay a licence fee for some software or libraries they used, there's an additional cost. You also have to include the cost of supporting each copy you sell. I suspect that licencing is a reason why obsolete software, operating systems from 10 years ago being a good example, aren't released for free.
Overall though, I think you right. It's not like selling cars.
They spend so much time meddling in the corporate world, trying to build national champions that I have no doubt that there is a lot of information of commercial interest floating around.
Mind you, wouldn't surprise me if this is just an excuse to subsidise a French company and have them build a network.
I got it - nice joke, it's more interesting than this Fox Newsesque presentation of the article as yet another "OMG, VISTA SUX0RS COMPARED TO XP!!1!" piece.
With jokes like that, looks like I picked a bad day to go internetting.
I always saw it as an invitation or a frank admission by the poster.
Hey everyone, I anal! Who wants some?
It's the most useless word ever invented. It's not like you'd receive advice on Slashdot, get busted and tell the judge "How was I to know that NintendoTits22 wasn't a lawyer? He never offered me anal!"
Yep. By 2022, excessive punctuation will make up 86% of all Internet traffic. I'm heading for Mars.
Oh that so gets my vote, if only because nouns have the right to not be turned in to verbs.
Now that's a name I haven't seen around for while. Nice to see you're still around drinkypoo.
Yeah, the hope will be that they go for wide appeal instead of the Nintendo model. I wonder what the average consumer wants though. Do they want a system in which they can download and install software from anywhere or do they want to be able to just pick a box from the shelf and be happy with that?
Yeah, that whole idea worries the hell out of me - particularly if they take the approach of having the hardware involved in the authorisation. I reckon that us in the western world are in the future going to rely on hardware manufacturers in the places like China and the developing world if we want to run any software that isn't totally locked-down. I hope that prediction turns out as false as the crap Nostradamus churned out.
That would be tricky for MS to pull-off but they could just make it very difficult for certain applications to run on Windows. Require a certification process, implement technical measures to authenticate the applications and then use the DMCA to destroy anyone who dares to bypass the protection by using fake credentials.
Make it nice and expensive to obtain the credentials, or just use a clever licence agreement and that'll certainly stop the pesky open-source kids from meddling. The best thing is, if the DoJ decide to take an interest, MS can tell them that it's necessary for security.
I really can see Windows going the same as some console platforms. Either you make your software with permission or you don't do it at all.
Many people would also associate Genghis Khan with power and leadership. Czar is a piss-poor title to anyone who has cracked open a history book, unless you want to make it clear that the person being appointed should consider themselves above all legal checks.
You might want to check Julius Caesar's history, then move on to the Russian Czars.
Trying to negotiate is one thing. The school board and thestate legislators using this kind of public blackmail is totally different. I would not be surprised to turn on the TV and see these blackmailers holding up teary-eyed children who'll be asking the camera "Why do IBM hate us?"
If IBM do write-off the debt, they should be doing it because it's the best thing for IBM stock holders. I suspect that a settlement will be reached because it's difficult for IBM to just ignore their request. I hope they find a deal that works for both sides but certainly doesn't set a dangerous precedent.