Re:what is this feature.. is it those nice fonts?
on
Xft Support For Mozilla
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· Score: 2, Redundant
And does windows already have this...
Font Smoothing has been available to Windows since at least OSR2 (or Win95 with Plus). ClearType further extend this in Windows XP, and it looks REALLY nice.
X11 as others have pointed out, does in fact have support for font antialiasing. For whatever reason, Mozilla apparently needed a patch in order to take advantage of it. I'm not too sure what the technical reasons are that all applications don't just automatically take advantage of it -- but I'm sure there are people who would be willing to clearify that.
And all consoles follow the Gillette model. Sell them the razors, and they'll buy the blades from you for years to come.
That highly spread misconception really annoys me. First off, it's not ENTIRELY true.
Everyone likes to think game consoles manufacturers make ALL of their money on software sales, and ALWAYS take a loss on the system. It quite simply isn't all there is to it.
Normally when a system debutes all of the real profit comes from software sales, this is true. The system still "Costs" more than it sells for because the R&D revenue hasn't been made back. The first two years of console sales tend to make that back. After that, continued sales tend to lean more and more towards the profit side, simply because the costs of manufacturing fluctuates and most companies that make a whole lot of something are constantly trying to cut costs in one form or another.
So while software sales ARE the most important factor in the end, the company STILL generates a lot of it's revenue from hardware sales as well because when selling systems you also get the bonus of selling controllers and accessories which have very high profit margins.
If console manufacturers didn't make profit on the consoles, there wouldn't be any console manufacturers. They would ALL be concentrating on software like Sega did.
It took two consecutive lost battles (32x and Saturn) to weaken Sega enough that they were in a state to give up so quickly on the Dreamcast. Had they been able to endure another year, they could've easily been profitable while making consoles. However, with the Gamecube and XBox adding to the Playstation 2 threat, Sega didn't have much hope.
But don't think it's because there's no money in hardware, that simply isn't true. There's PLENTY of money in hardware, even Nintendo claims they never take a loss on hardware sales (though that's hard to believe considering the Gamecube only costs $199). I think it simply stands true that while there is money in hardware, there is MORE money in software, and that will probably always be the case.
There are many reasons why the Linux game market is failing.
The lack of DirectX is the other big one.
Re:You are confusing the window manager with X11
on
Xfree86 4.2.0 Out
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· Score: 1
It is the window managers fault and not X11's.
I've always suspected that, but I've used quite a wide variety of Window Managers and they all seem to act the same, leading me to believe that the underlying X is the problem.
Either that, or everybody in the world is so used to being told what to do and how to live that they don't mind they're computer telling them where things go. I for one tell my computer what to do, not vice versa.
If X11 is really so extensible that the Window Managers should be able to be made more usable, I'm lead to wonder why they HAVEN'T been? Once the obnoxious bahavior is done away with, and the performance issues are done away with, I'd be more inclined to use X more often. But right now I'll just hang around in Bash, thanks.
Plenty. Most X11 based applications have a crappy look and feel. Even when you run the nicer desktop environments such as KDE, they still inherit some of that really bad feel, and I don't just mean lagging performance. Everything from how the Windows decide where they want to be to really obnoxious icon placement just irks some people (myself and many people I know) about X11 and friends.
X11 works fine. Yes, it is functionally. But a GUI is an interface, and a system is only as comfortable as the way you interact with it. Me personally, I'd rather sit all day in BASH than once pick up the mouse and do anything on the screen. But if I'm going to use a desktop at all I actually much prefer (in this order) Amiga(2.0+), Windows, and Mac. I can use KDE, but I'd still rather not.
Yes, X11 is extensible. Now, make it comfortable. Of course, comfort is subjective. So in that case they should make it's bahavior much more configurable.
I don't like tiled, cornered, or cascaded windows, for example. I like Window memory and I like Icons to stay where I put them... I like my Task/Tool bars at the top of the screen (where they belong), but I don't like systems that let me put them there and then continue to ignore the fact that I'm not running default setting so some things don't look right or misalign themselves.
I guess the bottom line is that X11 is old and and it still hasn't reached what I considered a comfort level. It's not polished, even after all these years. Maybe it --IS-- time for Unix to adopt something new.
XP runs absolutely beautifully on my Pentium 3 800 and 256 megabytes of ram.
Stable. Fast. Relatively secure (as opposed to other Microsoft offerings). And compatible with most Windows software from either the 9x or 2K line.
XP is actually pretty good. Sorry, Linux people, you're going to have to bash XP for reasons other than technical, now. Call it ugly. Call it Expensive. Call it the work of satan. Call it Fred if you want. But you can't call it slow or unstable anymore without basically being full of crap.
Everyone seems to be forgetting the key phrase here. Most Patents. That does not mean ALL patents.
As I recall, Sony has their dirty little hands in the CD Audio pot, too. Sony also, as I recall, are the ones who were responsible for keeping audio CDs so expensive in the late 80's-early 90's. At one time I remember reading that a lawsuit against Sony was settled stating that Sony was to pay out so much money to effected parties, and the cost of CDs were to be decreased considerably. In the next couple of years I believe CD costs came down a few dollars, then through the mid 90's rose back up to the near anal-rape prices we pay today. The costs simply shifted from patent issues to publisher's copyright and artist royalty issues.
Somehow, I doubt anything really changed at all. The CD standard doesn't belong exclusively to either Sony or Phillips, and I believe there are other parties involved as well. It's been a long time since I read the specifics, but I always had the impression that Phillips was always the more "consumer friendly" amoung that crowd.
Also -- unless my memory has become cloudy over the years, I'd like to point out that once upon a time the average cost of a CD was around $9. Today, more CDs are sold than ever, but the price of CDs is almost twice the $9 price that was deemed unfair years back.
Something doesn't sound right to me, and it's not the white noise from a bad CD rip that I'm hearing...
This isn't EXACTLY on topic, but it's somewhat indirectly relevent. This is an actual letter I received today in the mail from the Union of which I'm a member, The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM). Take it for what it's worth.
December 26, 2001
Dear IAM Members:
This is a call to action.
Your right to vote on a contract offer is under attack. Your right to bargain directly with your employer is in jeopardy.
Politicians want a piece of the action. They want to vote on the terms of your contract... To set work rules for your job... to peg the value of your labor... to cut your benefits.
And their attack has already begun.
On December 20, 2001, President George W. Bush appointed a Presidential Emergency Board to block a lawful strike at United Airlines. This Emergency Board sets the stage for Congress to forcibly impose a contract on 45,000 workers at United Airlines.
Why should you care?
If Congress can dictate the terms of their contract, it can dictate the terms of your contract just as easily.
This is not about some far away Union. These are your brothers and sisters, your IAM brothers and sisters.
So it's time to fight back... to react like the Fighting Machinists we are.
Any political interference in negotiations is wrong. But taking away your right to vote on a contract is like taking away your right to free speech... or your right to bear arms.
One right protects our democracy. The other right protects our lives. But the right to vote on a contract, now that right protects our livelihoods.
Look at it this way: One right lets us talk freely around the dinner table. One puts dinner on that table a couple days each year. The third right puts food on our table every night.
Losing any of our rights is totally unacceptable.
But losing the right to vote on what you have earned... well, that means someone else gets to dictate your wages, benefits and working conditions.
Right now, the IAM members at United Airlines have been waiting for a tentative contract offer from management for two whole years. They're still waiting.
Sure, agreements were reached on some non-economic issues. But all economic offers were withdrawn after September 11th.
Two years - twenty-five months to be exact - and still nothing to vote on.
The laws covering airlines and railroads are strange, to say the least.
But the recommendations of a Presidential Emergency Board can be strnger still. They do not have to be voted on by the IAM members at United. President Bush could simply forward them to the Congress. And Congress could impose those terms.
Yes, it would take a vote of the Congress. But not a single IAM member working at United would have voted on those terms.
Key decisions about their livelihoods will have been taken from them. A politician - elected or un-elected - will have stolen not just their right to vote. They will have stolen their vote.
And that is exactly why you need to get involved... now.
Make an appointment with your congressman or senator. Call their office and ask to see them when they travel back home.
You won't be alone. The entire IAM - general vice presidents, district business representatives, general chairpersons and local lodge officials - will help you make an appointment.
And be sure to bring along co-workers, family, friends, and anyone who is interested in defending the rights of American working families.
When you meet with your elected representatives explain that your right to vote on a contract is absolutely essential. Your future depends on it. So call today.
Sincerely,
R. Thomas Buffenbarger
International President
Robert Roach, Jr.
General Vice President
Transportation
Employer Loyalty is not only at an all-time low, but right now companies (and our government) are doing everything they can to hurt labor unions.
Like them or not, Labor Unions are the only thing that keep employers in check. I've worked both as a Union member, and as a Non-Union member and having been on every side of the fence I can promise you being Union is definately the best position to be in, esspecially if you have a good union with good member participation. That's key, without there is no Union and you can't reap the benefit of organized labor.
In another reply I'm about to post a message that I got from my union today. It's not EXACTLY on topic, but it is somewhat related, and it's definately interesting.
Just because it happens to work for you, doesn't mean you shouldn't care. It might not work for someone else, or more importantly (for you) it might not work for you when you need it to.
There are vast differences between the types of DVD burners, and knowing which one fits your needs IS important. I'm glad it worked for you. With your attitude, however, I'm guessing you're not going to always be so lucky.
Sony will use its experience developing the PS2 OS (hey, wasn't it Linux based?)
No. There is however a version of Linux for the PS2. That hardly qualifies the PS2 as a Linux Based device. Almost no games (possibly none at all) have anything Linux in them.
I've heard it commented many times that the series as a whole is slowly declining...
Not having been much of a Final Fantasy 7 fan, I've not really followed the game futher beyond that. The previous games definately had more for me the newer ones, but then again I'm from the school of thought that says The Secret of Mana, The Secret of Everymore, and ChronoTrigger are the best games Square has ever done. Ever.
I've got Chronocross, but I've yet to actually get into it -- and I've had the game for a very long time so it's failure to reach out and grab me doesn't say very many good things to me.
In true game-fanatic style, I will pick up FFX probablyl -- but I expect it'll be stale with lots of really sweet eye candy.
As for those who think the music from the talents over at Square is declining, I would probably agree -- though I do admit it's still top notch... again having not seen FFX yet I can't really fully comment on it...
I think the Playstation and it's fans have a different outlook on gaming than those of us who have been playing for more than 20 years.
The gamers of today are heavily geared towards ProTainment, which Final Fantasy has become. Professionally crafted expensive productions for the mass market. "Games designed at the office desk" as (I believe) Yu Suzuki of Sega once said (maybe it was someone else from Sega...)
Anyway -- Multiplayer Final Fantasy might be cool -- but I would much rather see it more closely resemble Diablo II's simplicity and inpersistance (not necissarily gameplay of course) than I would care to see it follow the Everquest or Ultima model of wasting time+life+gaming-enthusiasm+reason-to-live+etc...
Basically what I'm saying is Multiplayer RPGs don't have to be drab life wasters, but game developers seem to think that's what the majority of gamers want. I would dare say they are dead wrong. I would say that a huge amount of gamers, particularly this new generation of gamers, DO want that. The rest of us... the old school people, we care about other things. Fun, mostly. Not insane states or years of life wasted building up virtual crap in a game to impress our fellow gamers.
if something breaks, you take it back to the place you got it, thats who your deal is with.
Maybe these people aren't doing the right things when trying to make returns.
Here is the right course of action for always getting your newest game system replaced.
1> Go to (insert one of many stores here: Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Target, Best Buy) to buy your video game hardware.
2> After getting home, place all packaging material BACK inside the box, and place the receipt someplace where you will not lose it, preferably also in the game box.
3> If the system breaks, you won't have any trouble getting a replacement.
You'll have problems if you take a system back without a box and no receipt, but then if you do that, you've already got problems to begin with.
Quit being a cheap ass, and go buy McAfee Viruscan for $29.99 at WalMart.
Why?
I don't mind commercial software, and I would pay much more than $30 for a good antivirus program, but the fact is, McAfee is bloated and ethically challenged, kind of like the operating sytems it runs on.
Norton isn't much better.
An Antivirus program should be small. It should take up little memory and only be as big as is needed to do the work. It's functions should be non-obtrusive and every function should be optional. It should not have compulsory splash screens or animations, or sounds, or any other "glitz" to make it look more like a multimedia extravaganza than a utility.
I used to recommend Innoculate IT Personal until it went commercial, and even still I recommend it for those willing to pay.
Now I recommend AVG, from http://www.grisoft.com It's fairly small, it's free for personal home use, and it's effective.
As for the FBI Spyware crap -- I don't know if AVG reports it or not, but at least if it doesn't, it's not like you PAID money only to be betrayed, which is something I can't say about McAfee.
In order have have a fair comparison, you would need to also play PS2 and Gamecube.
While I personally agree with this statement -- I would have to say that it doesn't matter which is better. If the person likes the system, they like the system.
I own all three. My preference is still undecided between the XBox and Gamecube. Playstation 2 is straight out, even though it does have a handful of name saving titles. With those few titles though come horrible load times, terribly slow memory card access, the worst visuals of all three systems, only 2 controller ports, inferior video output options, mostly crappy games, and lots of other crap.
Anyway, all that aside, I can understand the philisophical beef with Microsoft, but SONY isn't any better. Not in the least bit. In some cases, much worse. And how much you want to bet they don't renew the Mad Kat's Liscense? (Knock out the 3rd parties, sell nothing but first party stuff -- corner the market with overpriced memory cards... Yikes!)
That leaves only Nintendo. Nintendo have been playing really nice the past few years, but they too have a dark history.
In the end -- it matters most which games you like most. That's why I bought all three systems. If I had to recommend just one -- I could feel comfortable telling someone to buy an XBox.
I've had my Xbox since launch day: No crashes, no freezes, no problems, and certainly no overheating.
Nor have I. I can't say the same for other consoles, but the XBox hasn't given me one bit of trouble.
I've seen just about everything lock up. Everything from the GENESIS (rarely), Playstation (OFTEN!!!!!!!), and Dreamcast (once or twice).
Consols are computers. They run software. Software has bugs. Sometimes those bugs crop up. It's (almost) forgivable. What I find hard to forgive is the instant dislike everyone took to the X-box due to it being a Microsoft console.
I have all of the systems, and I like the Playstation 2 the least. I don't quite hate the PS2, but it's certainly not a system I'm thrilled about. I can't say I like the XBox better than the Gamecube, but I definately can't say I hate the XBox, but I also can't say I like the Gamecube the best, either (not until Metroid Prime comes out anyway....) Overall I like all of the systems, but for right now I still think my Dreamcast has the most really excellent games. That will change since there won't be any new ones... but...
it was followed by something that could have set the series back on track but instead was just...
Am I the only person who thought that Resurrection was on the track to being down-right awesome right up until the point that the ugly psuedo-humanoid thing was given birth to?
I think the cut off for the greatness was when Ripley-Clone fell down into the alien nest-pitt-thing. After that it the movie went straight to shit.
The worst part is -- that if you think about it -- the plot could have easily been saved if they had made the baby alien something more interesting, such as a Ripley lookalike ala-species, maybe just a bit sexier with solid black skin and agility and speed that Ripley would have had to fight with witts. It could have been awesome.
Slashdot Mirror
And does windows already have this...
Font Smoothing has been available to Windows since at least OSR2 (or Win95 with Plus). ClearType further extend this in Windows XP, and it looks REALLY nice.
X11 as others have pointed out, does in fact have support for font antialiasing. For whatever reason, Mozilla apparently needed a patch in order to take advantage of it. I'm not too sure what the technical reasons are that all applications don't just automatically take advantage of it -- but I'm sure there are people who would be willing to clearify that.
I admit, SDL is bridging that gap, and with continued progress hopefully it will fill it entirely.
Until then, DirectX is still the single best reason to write games for Windows. For performance, ease of developement, and user base reasons.
Ethical reasons play no part in this. Video games have become a business, unfortunately.
And all consoles follow the Gillette model. Sell them the razors, and they'll buy the blades from you for years to come.
That highly spread misconception really annoys me. First off, it's not ENTIRELY true.
Everyone likes to think game consoles manufacturers make ALL of their money on software sales, and ALWAYS take a loss on the system. It quite simply isn't all there is to it.
Normally when a system debutes all of the real profit comes from software sales, this is true. The system still "Costs" more than it sells for because the R&D revenue hasn't been made back. The first two years of console sales tend to make that back. After that, continued sales tend to lean more and more towards the profit side, simply because the costs of manufacturing fluctuates and most companies that make a whole lot of something are constantly trying to cut costs in one form or another.
So while software sales ARE the most important factor in the end, the company STILL generates a lot of it's revenue from hardware sales as well because when selling systems you also get the bonus of selling controllers and accessories which have very high profit margins.
If console manufacturers didn't make profit on the consoles, there wouldn't be any console manufacturers. They would ALL be concentrating on software like Sega did.
It took two consecutive lost battles (32x and Saturn) to weaken Sega enough that they were in a state to give up so quickly on the Dreamcast. Had they been able to endure another year, they could've easily been profitable while making consoles. However, with the Gamecube and XBox adding to the Playstation 2 threat, Sega didn't have much hope.
But don't think it's because there's no money in hardware, that simply isn't true. There's PLENTY of money in hardware, even Nintendo claims they never take a loss on hardware sales (though that's hard to believe considering the Gamecube only costs $199). I think it simply stands true that while there is money in hardware, there is MORE money in software, and that will probably always be the case.
There are many reasons why the Linux game market is failing.
The lack of DirectX is the other big one.
It is the window managers fault and not X11's.
I've always suspected that, but I've used quite a wide variety of Window Managers and they all seem to act the same, leading me to believe that the underlying X is the problem.
Either that, or everybody in the world is so used to being told what to do and how to live that they don't mind they're computer telling them where things go. I for one tell my computer what to do, not vice versa.
If X11 is really so extensible that the Window Managers should be able to be made more usable, I'm lead to wonder why they HAVEN'T been? Once the obnoxious bahavior is done away with, and the performance issues are done away with, I'd be more inclined to use X more often. But right now I'll just hang around in Bash, thanks.
So what is really wrong with X11? You tell me.
Plenty. Most X11 based applications have a crappy look and feel. Even when you run the nicer desktop environments such as KDE, they still inherit some of that really bad feel, and I don't just mean lagging performance. Everything from how the Windows decide where they want to be to really obnoxious icon placement just irks some people (myself and many people I know) about X11 and friends.
X11 works fine. Yes, it is functionally. But a GUI is an interface, and a system is only as comfortable as the way you interact with it. Me personally, I'd rather sit all day in BASH than once pick up the mouse and do anything on the screen. But if I'm going to use a desktop at all I actually much prefer (in this order) Amiga(2.0+), Windows, and Mac. I can use KDE, but I'd still rather not.
Yes, X11 is extensible. Now, make it comfortable. Of course, comfort is subjective. So in that case they should make it's bahavior much more configurable.
I don't like tiled, cornered, or cascaded windows, for example. I like Window memory and I like Icons to stay where I put them... I like my Task/Tool bars at the top of the screen (where they belong), but I don't like systems that let me put them there and then continue to ignore the fact that I'm not running default setting so some things don't look right or misalign themselves.
I guess the bottom line is that X11 is old and and it still hasn't reached what I considered a comfort level. It's not polished, even after all these years. Maybe it --IS-- time for Unix to adopt something new.
(That's going to hurt the Karma...)
Now they just need to read it themselves
Well, then it's obvious, the people at Microsoft who know how to write secure code have been writing books, not code. *snicker*
XP runs absolutely beautifully on my Pentium 3 800 and 256 megabytes of ram.
Stable. Fast. Relatively secure (as opposed to other Microsoft offerings). And compatible with most Windows software from either the 9x or 2K line.
XP is actually pretty good. Sorry, Linux people, you're going to have to bash XP for reasons other than technical, now. Call it ugly. Call it Expensive. Call it the work of satan. Call it Fred if you want. But you can't call it slow or unstable anymore without basically being full of crap.
That's called AMIGA DE.
Everyone seems to be forgetting the key phrase here. Most Patents. That does not mean ALL patents.
As I recall, Sony has their dirty little hands in the CD Audio pot, too. Sony also, as I recall, are the ones who were responsible for keeping audio CDs so expensive in the late 80's-early 90's. At one time I remember reading that a lawsuit against Sony was settled stating that Sony was to pay out so much money to effected parties, and the cost of CDs were to be decreased considerably. In the next couple of years I believe CD costs came down a few dollars, then through the mid 90's rose back up to the near anal-rape prices we pay today. The costs simply shifted from patent issues to publisher's copyright and artist royalty issues.
Somehow, I doubt anything really changed at all. The CD standard doesn't belong exclusively to either Sony or Phillips, and I believe there are other parties involved as well. It's been a long time since I read the specifics, but I always had the impression that Phillips was always the more "consumer friendly" amoung that crowd.
Also -- unless my memory has become cloudy over the years, I'd like to point out that once upon a time the average cost of a CD was around $9. Today, more CDs are sold than ever, but the price of CDs is almost twice the $9 price that was deemed unfair years back.
Something doesn't sound right to me, and it's not the white noise from a bad CD rip that I'm hearing...
They'll be trolling slashdot
How do you know that they aren't already?
Employer Loyalty is not only at an all-time low, but right now companies (and our government) are doing everything they can to hurt labor unions.
Like them or not, Labor Unions are the only thing that keep employers in check. I've worked both as a Union member, and as a Non-Union member and having been on every side of the fence I can promise you being Union is definately the best position to be in, esspecially if you have a good union with good member participation. That's key, without there is no Union and you can't reap the benefit of organized labor.
In another reply I'm about to post a message that I got from my union today. It's not EXACTLY on topic, but it is somewhat related, and it's definately interesting.
I don't care.
Just because it happens to work for you, doesn't mean you shouldn't care. It might not work for someone else, or more importantly (for you) it might not work for you when you need it to.
There are vast differences between the types of DVD burners, and knowing which one fits your needs IS important. I'm glad it worked for you. With your attitude, however, I'm guessing you're not going to always be so lucky.
Sony will use its experience developing the PS2 OS (hey, wasn't it Linux based?)
No. There is however a version of Linux for the PS2. That hardly qualifies the PS2 as a Linux Based device. Almost no games (possibly none at all) have anything Linux in them.
One of them even mentioned coming to my house! I almost looked forward to that...
The game had callgirls!?
I've heard it commented many times that the series as a whole is slowly declining...
... again having not seen FFX yet I can't really fully comment on it ...
Not having been much of a Final Fantasy 7 fan, I've not really followed the game futher beyond that. The previous games definately had more for me the newer ones, but then again I'm from the school of thought that says The Secret of Mana, The Secret of Everymore, and ChronoTrigger are the best games Square has ever done. Ever.
I've got Chronocross, but I've yet to actually get into it -- and I've had the game for a very long time so it's failure to reach out and grab me doesn't say very many good things to me.
In true game-fanatic style, I will pick up FFX probablyl -- but I expect it'll be stale with lots of really sweet eye candy.
As for those who think the music from the talents over at Square is declining, I would probably agree -- though I do admit it's still top notch
I think the Playstation and it's fans have a different outlook on gaming than those of us who have been playing for more than 20 years.
The gamers of today are heavily geared towards ProTainment, which Final Fantasy has become. Professionally crafted expensive productions for the mass market. "Games designed at the office desk" as (I believe) Yu Suzuki of Sega once said (maybe it was someone else from Sega...)
Anyway -- Multiplayer Final Fantasy might be cool -- but I would much rather see it more closely resemble Diablo II's simplicity and inpersistance (not necissarily gameplay of course) than I would care to see it follow the Everquest or Ultima model of wasting time+life+gaming-enthusiasm+reason-to-live+etc...
Basically what I'm saying is Multiplayer RPGs don't have to be drab life wasters, but game developers seem to think that's what the majority of gamers want. I would dare say they are dead wrong. I would say that a huge amount of gamers, particularly this new generation of gamers, DO want that. The rest of us... the old school people, we care about other things. Fun, mostly. Not insane states or years of life wasted building up virtual crap in a game to impress our fellow gamers.
To some of us... it's just a game.
if something breaks, you take it back to the place you got it, thats who your deal is with.
Maybe these people aren't doing the right things when trying to make returns.
Here is the right course of action for always getting your newest game system replaced.
1> Go to (insert one of many stores here: Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Target, Best Buy) to buy your video game hardware.
2> After getting home, place all packaging material BACK inside the box, and place the receipt someplace where you will not lose it, preferably also in the game box.
3> If the system breaks, you won't have any trouble getting a replacement.
You'll have problems if you take a system back without a box and no receipt, but then if you do that, you've already got problems to begin with.
Quit being a cheap ass, and go buy McAfee Viruscan for $29.99 at WalMart.
Why?
I don't mind commercial software, and I would pay much more than $30 for a good antivirus program, but the fact is, McAfee is bloated and ethically challenged, kind of like the operating sytems it runs on.
Norton isn't much better.
An Antivirus program should be small. It should take up little memory and only be as big as is needed to do the work. It's functions should be non-obtrusive and every function should be optional. It should not have compulsory splash screens or animations, or sounds, or any other "glitz" to make it look more like a multimedia extravaganza than a utility.
I used to recommend Innoculate IT Personal until it went commercial, and even still I recommend it for those willing to pay.
Now I recommend AVG, from http://www.grisoft.com It's fairly small, it's free for personal home use, and it's effective.
As for the FBI Spyware crap -- I don't know if AVG reports it or not, but at least if it doesn't, it's not like you PAID money only to be betrayed, which is something I can't say about McAfee.
In order have have a fair comparison, you would need to also play PS2 and Gamecube.
While I personally agree with this statement -- I would have to say that it doesn't matter which is better. If the person likes the system, they like the system.
I own all three. My preference is still undecided between the XBox and Gamecube. Playstation 2 is straight out, even though it does have a handful of name saving titles. With those few titles though come horrible load times, terribly slow memory card access, the worst visuals of all three systems, only 2 controller ports, inferior video output options, mostly crappy games, and lots of other crap.
Anyway, all that aside, I can understand the philisophical beef with Microsoft, but SONY isn't any better. Not in the least bit. In some cases, much worse. And how much you want to bet they don't renew the Mad Kat's Liscense? (Knock out the 3rd parties, sell nothing but first party stuff -- corner the market with overpriced memory cards... Yikes!)
That leaves only Nintendo. Nintendo have been playing really nice the past few years, but they too have a dark history.
In the end -- it matters most which games you like most. That's why I bought all three systems. If I had to recommend just one -- I could feel comfortable telling someone to buy an XBox.
This will sell well with all the hardcore hackers :)
Hardcore...?
Maybe if there wasn't so much pr0n on the web we wouldn't all be going blind? *heh*
I've had my Xbox since launch day: No crashes, no freezes, no problems, and certainly no overheating.
Nor have I. I can't say the same for other consoles, but the XBox hasn't given me one bit of trouble.
I've seen just about everything lock up. Everything from the GENESIS (rarely), Playstation (OFTEN!!!!!!!), and Dreamcast (once or twice).
Consols are computers. They run software. Software has bugs. Sometimes those bugs crop up. It's (almost) forgivable. What I find hard to forgive is the instant dislike everyone took to the X-box due to it being a Microsoft console.
I have all of the systems, and I like the Playstation 2 the least. I don't quite hate the PS2, but it's certainly not a system I'm thrilled about. I can't say I like the XBox better than the Gamecube, but I definately can't say I hate the XBox, but I also can't say I like the Gamecube the best, either (not until Metroid Prime comes out anyway....) Overall I like all of the systems, but for right now I still think my Dreamcast has the most really excellent games. That will change since there won't be any new ones... but...
Isn't that what a whole lot of the whining about Microsoft and 'bundling' is about?
Bundling, as you point out, is getting a lot of people annoyed over the XBox.
Funny though -- I bought my XBox without a bundle. If you don't like the bundles "Vote With Your Dollars", don't buy one. I didn't.
it was followed by something that could have set the series back on track but instead was just ...
Am I the only person who thought that Resurrection was on the track to being down-right awesome right up until the point that the ugly psuedo-humanoid thing was given birth to?
I think the cut off for the greatness was when Ripley-Clone fell down into the alien nest-pitt-thing. After that it the movie went straight to shit.
The worst part is -- that if you think about it -- the plot could have easily been saved if they had made the baby alien something more interesting, such as a Ripley lookalike ala-species, maybe just a bit sexier with solid black skin and agility and speed that Ripley would have had to fight with witts. It could have been awesome.
It could have been.
Instead... as it was said...
well, most of us saw what it was.
Yech.
Okay, so only a small percentage of the USERS are using the OS.
Now let's ask the SERVERS what they think!