on three seperate MUDs i began as a player, and graduated later to a creator. issues like, "who did it first?" were never brought up, because people didn't copy... of course, most of the people i played with were both intelligent and reasonable. the ones that weren't? never graduated to creators.
the whole, "players owning copyrights" is an attractive idea at first, but why bring copyright into it at all? if the community is active enough, people will notice when things are being copied and as a result shun those who copy. and i speak as a pretty hardcore gamer when i say, "games IS games"! this game nor any game in the near future is going to revolutionize the economy, social interaction, or anything else. the best in-game social experiences i've ever had are approximately equal to mediocre real-life social experiences i've had.
Since the email address given at the end of the article is apparently invalid, I will post my letter to Bill France here...
Mr. France,
I feel compelled to comment on your recent article on herald.net regarding the effect of violent videogames on youth. I feel your choice of Gary Ridgway as an example, and the implied statement, "kids can turn into Ridgway via videogames" is misguided, if not underhanded. I have read nothing that suggests Ridgway's behavior was influenced by videogames, nor that he learned any "valuable" skills from them, or that he played them at all. I am sure you would feel misrepresented if I wrote the following:
"People who try and restrict videogames' content at all are reminiscent of the book burners of the Nazi era. The Nazi's killed over 7,000,000 (seven million!) people! You shouldn't trust people like that, now, should you?"
Now I am always open to a debate on topics like "Violence in Videogames"; however, I expect the people I engage in such dialogue with to play on a certain level. It would have been nice, for instance, if you had named the study which links gaming to violent thought patterns, or explained how, exactly, using a keyboard and a mouse to drive a car is like the real thing. I also take severe issue with your paraphrase of Ridgway's statement that killing women gave him sexual gratification; quite frankly, if someone is taking sexual stimulation in even the thought of killing people, no amount of "good videogames", church, or morals is going to help them.
Finally, I would like to make the suggestion that the sense of community built around games allows many children to feel connected to their peers, and might actually help prevent violent behavior in an increasingly disillusioned youth. Also, it is important to note the increased violence in all forms of media, especially news media in which it is not faked.
Tolkien spent such a huge portion of his life designing one of the best fantasy books ever created, and it's only right that he be rewarded with the respect that a movie created in his books name will be the best ever.
actually, i'm pretty sure tolkeien's trilogy was based off of wagner's "ring of the nibelung" (or "Der Ring des Nibelungen" for any germans). certainly tolkien's adaptation is great, but the way i heard it was his books were mainly an exercize in language (as all of the languages are functional).
Slashdot Mirror
...i'm not the only person who ever MUDded, am i?
on three seperate MUDs i began as a player, and graduated later to a creator. issues like, "who did it first?" were never brought up, because people didn't copy... of course, most of the people i played with were both intelligent and reasonable. the ones that weren't? never graduated to creators.
the whole, "players owning copyrights" is an attractive idea at first, but why bring copyright into it at all? if the community is active enough, people will notice when things are being copied and as a result shun those who copy. and i speak as a pretty hardcore gamer when i say, "games IS games"! this game nor any game in the near future is going to revolutionize the economy, social interaction, or anything else. the best in-game social experiences i've ever had are approximately equal to mediocre real-life social experiences i've had.
Since the email address given at the end of the article is apparently invalid, I will post my letter to Bill France here...
Mr. France,
I feel compelled to comment on your recent article on herald.net regarding the effect of violent videogames on youth. I feel your choice of Gary Ridgway as an example, and the implied statement, "kids can turn into Ridgway via videogames" is misguided, if not underhanded. I have read nothing that suggests Ridgway's behavior was influenced by videogames, nor that he learned any "valuable" skills from them, or that he played them at all. I am sure you would feel misrepresented if I wrote the following:
"People who try and restrict videogames' content at all are reminiscent of the book burners of the Nazi era. The Nazi's killed over 7,000,000 (seven million!) people! You shouldn't trust people like that, now, should you?"
Now I am always open to a debate on topics like "Violence in Videogames"; however, I expect the people I engage in such dialogue with to play on a certain level. It would have been nice, for instance, if you had named the study which links gaming to violent thought patterns, or explained how, exactly, using a keyboard and a mouse to drive a car is like the real thing. I also take severe issue with your paraphrase of Ridgway's statement that killing women gave him sexual gratification; quite frankly, if someone is taking sexual stimulation in even the thought of killing people, no amount of "good videogames", church, or morals is going to help them.
Finally, I would like to make the suggestion that the sense of community built around games allows many children to feel connected to their peers, and might actually help prevent violent behavior in an increasingly disillusioned youth. Also, it is important to note the increased violence in all forms of media, especially news media in which it is not faked.
Donald Dunbar
Tolkien spent such a huge portion of his life designing one of the best fantasy books ever created, and it's only right that he be rewarded with the respect that a movie created in his books name will be the best ever.
actually, i'm pretty sure tolkeien's trilogy was based off of wagner's "ring of the nibelung" (or "Der Ring des Nibelungen" for any germans). certainly tolkien's adaptation is great, but the way i heard it was his books were mainly an exercize in language (as all of the languages are functional).
who has played Deus Ex 1...
...or maybe it's uncool to reference videogames on a yro thread. i should try and figure this out.
ICARUS is, in the game, an advanced version of the Echelon program. interesting how life follows art.