I've been plugging away with Corel PhotoPaint for years, and previous ports of Gimp under Windows have reminded me of nothing so much as ProArtII for RISC OS (albeit with far more features)... but screenshots of the new release suggest it'll be friendly for users who like fewer windows and menus and more docked/inobtrusive toolbars.
The X-Box still doesn't do half the stuff the new PSX does, plus it has vastly more games available (and the prospect of more big titles to come in future)...
I think online gaming is going to be somewhat secondary to the ability to record to DVD and utilise TiVo tech for any consumer forking out for this kind of kit. The gaming aspect is almost secondary.
...the only area where I personally see a use for RealVideo for is porn. It seems to blurr slightly less than WMV. I prefer the DivX ethos.
The only thing which would convince me is the official promotion of Real codecs in other media players. I suspect the ready availability of RealAlternative is already a result of this; Real doesn't want to lose the custom of web sites encoding content in their format by forcing tech-savvy users to stick with their (historically lousy) front-end.
If people won't buy it, then stores won't sell it. Problem solved.
How many people do you know with the time or other resources to trace every purchasing decision back to source? Right. This is why we have some central controls.
I'm British. We seem to do slightly better with regard to things such as minimum wage laws and effective access to unions in the majority of industries.
Improving pay for Western workers (so that they have the spending power with which to consider buying more domestic product) is certainly an issue. However, local producers (whether in the US or UK) can't compete with companies who can cheerfully disregard conditions for workers in China. Result? Unemployment and lower wages in the West, forcing companies to keep prices even lower in order to shift product... which feeds back into the circle of working out off-shore dodges to ensure even cheaper production.
Consumers only seriously consider moral purchasing decisions when they have the maneuverability a comfortable income brings.
...after all, no effort is made to secure company secrets and intellectual property transmitted via plaintext.
Copyright: Sharman Networks Ltd does not condone activities and actions that breach the rights of copyright owners. As a Kazaa Media Desktop user you have agreed to abide by the End User License Agreement and it is your responsibility to obey all laws governing copyright in each country.
...Winamp3 isn't the same application as Winamp2, nor is Winamp5 the same application as Winamp2. Happily, everyone still gets Winamp free. Winamp Pro is Winamp with extras wot u pay for. Or not, as the case may be.:)
...no previews, no sales. Whereas I hear mindless pop rubbish on the radio and know not to buy it, record companies have lost one avenue to sell their less well-known artists. Not that they ever cared to promote many of them in the first place, but they definitely got money from me as a result...
...also have a more responsive server, from where I am. That should earn them a small prize, at least.;)
As has been noted elsewhere, 1996 has been trumped.
Cannot connect to word processor, please try later
on
AOL's $299 PC
·
· Score: 2, Interesting
Well, this might be exploitable by the tech-savvy... especially since I believe AOL has negotiated a branded version of StarOffice to round it out. Keep what you want, put up with the ISP solution for a while.
Worth it for a year for many families, I suppose. Whether the retention rate will be sufficient, given AOL's service record (presumably software [i]isn't[/i] going to time out or require frequent net connectivity, though I wouldn't put it past them)... only time will tell.
When physical media is cheap, there's no guaranteed return on anything which can easily be transmitted via that media. This has to do with rarity value... information isn't rare unless you hold a gun to the head of everyone who might tell someone else.
People like physical media. Books, newspapers, CDs, DVDs... are all nice things to own. Most people feel they convey a status or a convenience.
Software, on the other hand, has been fighting a losing battle forever. Trying to ban other people from using even basic algorithms in their own code, on the grounds it can somehow be said to be property. Unless you're happy with a society in which people can point the aforementioned word and shout "But that's my secret magic word! He can't use it too!" the only viable model is one in which people are paid for support and maintenance of code. Because people will produce code which benefits themselves, and this effect spreads.
Slashdot Mirror
As I say, I'll take a look, anyway...
I think online gaming is going to be somewhat secondary to the ability to record to DVD and utilise TiVo tech for any consumer forking out for this kind of kit. The gaming aspect is almost secondary.
I could pre-empt some of the responses, but that would take some of the fun out of SlashDot. ;)
The only thing which would convince me is the official promotion of Real codecs in other media players. I suspect the ready availability of RealAlternative is already a result of this; Real doesn't want to lose the custom of web sites encoding content in their format by forcing tech-savvy users to stick with their (historically lousy) front-end.
Let's see some third-party reviews first.
How many people do you know with the time or other resources to trace every purchasing decision back to source? Right. This is why we have some central controls.
Improving pay for Western workers (so that they have the spending power with which to consider buying more domestic product) is certainly an issue. However, local producers (whether in the US or UK) can't compete with companies who can cheerfully disregard conditions for workers in China. Result? Unemployment and lower wages in the West, forcing companies to keep prices even lower in order to shift product... which feeds back into the circle of working out off-shore dodges to ensure even cheaper production.
Consumers only seriously consider moral purchasing decisions when they have the maneuverability a comfortable income brings.
The only thing which will make a difference is legislation penalising companies which deal with off-shore producers who flout human rights.
Weirdest gift? Keyboard vacuum.
Happy holidays, everyone.
...Winamp3 isn't the same application as Winamp2, nor is Winamp5 the same application as Winamp2. Happily, everyone still gets Winamp free. Winamp Pro is Winamp with extras wot u pay for. Or not, as the case may be. :)
Detractors: it's worth giving it a try before slating. Worth checking out plugins as well before commenting on the feature list.
I wish they media library was included in a package which didn't have the video stuff and other large plugins.
...you're weighed down with the bigger hard drive your portable requires. ;)
...no previews, no sales. Whereas I hear mindless pop rubbish on the radio and know not to buy it, record companies have lost one avenue to sell their less well-known artists. Not that they ever cared to promote many of them in the first place, but they definitely got money from me as a result...
Quicktime Alternative, Real Alternative and the K-L codec packs are still easy enough to find... I don't think KLite++ will disappear for long.
As has been noted elsewhere, 1996 has been trumped.
Well, this might be exploitable by the tech-savvy... especially since I believe AOL has negotiated a branded version of StarOffice to round it out. Keep what you want, put up with the ISP solution for a while. Worth it for a year for many families, I suppose. Whether the retention rate will be sufficient, given AOL's service record (presumably software [i]isn't[/i] going to time out or require frequent net connectivity, though I wouldn't put it past them)... only time will tell.
....be it Clinton, Bush or Barney.
Hmmm?
...I can't see the American public being entirely enamoured with a President who asks them to reach into their pockets again for no guaranteed return.
I bet the Romans played by the old rules! And they remembered what the letters TSR stood for!
Those responsible should be charged as accessories to murder... and it'll happen, given the number of lynch-happy idiots out there...
Not exactly, but then they don't have any incentive to wipe out viruses permanently, either...
When physical media is cheap, there's no guaranteed return on anything which can easily be transmitted via that media. This has to do with rarity value... information isn't rare unless you hold a gun to the head of everyone who might tell someone else.
People like physical media. Books, newspapers, CDs, DVDs... are all nice things to own. Most people feel they convey a status or a convenience.
Software, on the other hand, has been fighting a losing battle forever. Trying to ban other people from using even basic algorithms in their own code, on the grounds it can somehow be said to be property. Unless you're happy with a society in which people can point the aforementioned word and shout "But that's my secret magic word! He can't use it too!" the only viable model is one in which people are paid for support and maintenance of code. Because people will produce code which benefits themselves, and this effect spreads.