Hmm, sorry, but some of us have money to make. That means catering to broken browsers.
That being said, Opera just happens to be amazing to develop web sites in because of its incredible level of compliance, so my sites happen to work in Opera, simply because they are developed in Opera FIRST, then fixed to work in other browsers.
But thats only because the move makes sense from a business point of view. Not to please some minority.
Really now? Well, guess I got screwed then! I bought my computer and it had no OS on it! I actualy had to -shell out- for Windows. And even though I was able to buy an OEM copy, it was not included, and would have been a hell of a lot cheaper if it had been bundled...
Explain that to me?
Oh wait...the only way to buy computers is through Dell, HP, whatever, right? I forgot about that...::COUGH::
Joke aside, it is quite interesting: for ONCE, Slashdot's community is not being hypocrite. What the FSF is doing right now, is the exact same thing we've been bitching at Microsoft for years. Spreading senseless fud over competition in an attempt to gain mindshare from uneducated potential "customers". And for once, it seems like the community NOTICED that FSF is pulling a Microsoft (it does on a regular basis, but its one of the few times when it was obvious, I guess). And thus, the community is being consistant and reacting in a, again, consistant manner.
Actualy, Express is mostly used for local usage. Like, so a lap-top can use data while on the go, or to do particularly intensive reports that would kill the main database. Or in situations where you would need something like Access, but need full SQL Server features. Or even more, as a full fledged database where you don't need more than 4 gigs and 1 CPU.
While SQL Express -is- used for development with the Express serie of Visual Studio, any companies that do actual SQL Server development seriously, will use SQL Server Developer edition: otherwise you don't have all the tools you require.
Worse is, if someone DARED say something similar about Linux, everyone would be up and arm against them. Like if we saw a "MySQL doesn't work on the new version of Ubuntu!" or something. People would flip, -EVEN- if MySQL was only in some ultra-unstable-experimental-of-doom branch.
Indeed. And then no one can say people using these customised IE7 are doing so because of some monopoly forcing them: since Google also pushes Firefox... so IE7 installed that way would be so because the user actualy wants to.
hahahahaha. Unfortunately, it only means I have the english spelling skills of your average 1st grader. I guess being french excuses me a little bit, but since almost everyone who lives in my area knows 3 languages or more, I still suck.
While you don't have as much time for gaming, it is still more convenient than the more...traditional ways of entertaining one self.
If I have a kid, and want to go see a movie, go to the restaurant, etc, I either need to find a baby friendly place, or find a baby sitter. Both can cost me extra (if you have a kid and go to the restaurant, well you have to feed the darn thing...).
If, instead, i'm playing an online game with my friends, the only thing I need to be worried about, is that I play a game that can be paused (let say Warcraft III), or a game where I can go away for a few minute at any given time (these are harder to find but still). Or even better, I can simply play solo. All around, its a form of entertainment that has tens of thousands of hours worth of amusement, and is within reach of the kids: going back to take care of diapers is only a hit of the pause button away.
Definately more convenient than, let say, going to a bar and coming back home drunk, then having to take care of the kid once the baby sitter is gone.
It doesn't, but it clashes with other beleifs religious people have. For example, I have a friend who's "independant batist", and is 100% positive and will swear on his own life, that the earth is no more than 5000 years old. So if you pop that evolution happened over millions of years, it clashes and he's not happy.
I think we need to come up with the theory of Devolution. Because its what is happening to man kind now. We hit our pinacle, and now we're back tracking. I'm going to laugh from my grave when a hardcore christian's kid is born with a tail and brown fur.
Am I the only one who thinks that, even if ID was 100%, beyond a doubt, true, that it STILL wouldn't have place in a biology class? Biology is (not the exact definition, bear with me) the science of how organic stuff works. Organic stuff can evolve, period. Whats unclear is how it originaly got jump started. If its some superior being that jump started it, and you know that at 100%, the only thing that changes, is that we'd stop talking about how it all got jump started (beyond maybe a quick mention in 1 sentence in the intro of the book). The intelligent design stuff would still belong to another class, and the explaination of how complex organics change with each iteration (generation) would still be in the biology class.
So, since biology is a science, and thus only teach plausible theories (since everything in science is -always- open to debate. Thats the very definition), if in its current form, the evolution theory is not fit to be taught, -GRAVITY- isn't fit to be taught either. Should we stop teaching about gravity in physics classes? The hell?
Actualy, it isn't that weird. Both consoles have two totally different offerings, which are strong in different points. Microsoft is obviously pointing out theirs, the same way sooner or later Sony will be yelling all over the place that the PS3 is more versatile than anything the 360 can do because it has a full OS.
I agree Microsoft's wording could have been better, but the idea is still there. If you want to make homebrew game and have to pick between both console's homebrew enabling offering, and that ease of use is your only concern, XNA will do the trick. Thats only one factor obviously, and the decision isn't that easy to make:)
Just to use your last line as an example: Comparing Excel to Java DOES make sense, if you are speaking to everyday corporate accountants, and they ask you "I've heard of this Java thing. Would it make my life easier if I learnt to use it?". Same thing here.
I doubt people are willingly helping the child molesters with this law... they are just...mislead.
The "think of the children" movement is becoming so widespread, that I think people are losing track of WHY it "started" (for lack of better word) in the first place. They kind of forgot WHY child porn is illegal -> because kids are unable to make an informed decision about sex, and thus they virtually always get hurt in the process...
The people pushing this law literally think that child porn is wrong in itself. But it is only wrong because of the way it is created: from unwilling, unable to concent, victims. Thats the only reason. A reason that does not apply to "artificial" porn.
That is a bit how some PITA want to ban artificial fur and leather on top of the real thing, seeing it as a symbol. But no animal gets hurt when making artificial fur...
I see. Almost everyone i know using Office has a cracked copy or another. Usualy because Office does a lot less check, and usualy a simple copied CD from work is all you need. An incredible amount of computers come preloaded with illegal office (thats what my parents are using >.> ).
And well, the educational version of Office's price is so freagin low, it might as well be piracy (depending on your take as to the legitimacy of such pre-sale restriction on software usage, not to be confused with post-sale EULAs). There's no profit in these from Microsoft (the money they make from them is extra on top of the full versions being sold, so technicaly it IS profit. But if these were the only ones to sell, It wouldn't be worth it)
As for OpenOffice, when I mentionned it, I mostly had in mind all of the more computer savvy people who need basic office functionalities that will use it over MS Office (aka: a large amount of people reading this). It was simply mentionned so that someone wouldn't point it out, hehe.
Now take that, in opposition to the place I work at currently. 15000, legit, full version licenses of Office, 75% of which use more than just "simple word processor functionalities". Of course there's a HUGE discount because of the volume. But its still probably more profit total than 500000 average home users (including the pirates). Less customer support cost, too.
Blue Dragon alone cannot launch the 360 to the top in Japan. However, its a start. When 3-4 games of its caliber comes out, then people will be like "you know what? its starting to be worth it...".
There's simply no money to be made in a simple office suite. Too many people who use basic office features will either use open office, or downright crack MS Office. Even companies.
The ones that will actualy shell out for Office are high end corporate customers. And beleive it or not, these features are very useful when you get to that point.
Actualy, just to be safe and have EVERYTHING covered... we need to shape up a theory as to what the gaming world will be if a 3rd world war shapes up and the HQs of all 3 main players get blown up. You know, because when 90% of human population is gone, gaming will STILL matter, hell yeah.
And you got it. The statements by Square and Ubi were what I had in mind when I wrote that.
I see what you mean, and it makes sense. but I thought about that. Here is my logic:
Consoles dominate when they have incredible 3rd party support. When the developers put all their eggs in the same basket. Nintendo mistreated developers as soon as it got an advantage, back in the SNES days. Sony did the same during the PS2 days. The whole "fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me" thing comes into play. Developers got burnt, went to a promise of greener pasture, and got burnt again.
I don't think there will ever be a point again where a console dominates, because developers won't allow it. We have Mistwalker on the 360. Blue Dragon, while successful, is no Dragon Quest in Japan yet, but if Mistwalker continues the good work, the 360 will be a must have for a lot of japanese (amazingly enough), and eventualy, for western people too. Then you have the PS3. While the FF serie has been degenerating in the view of many, with a nice boost in the form of FF12, FFXIII Versus seems like it will put some life back in the serie, and the PS3 is getting a couple of other good games. Right now, I don't think its enough to get more than 30% marketshare though.
And then you have the Wii. We're on slashdot, we all saw the pools, I don't need to say anything here.
So while 33/33/33 is near impossible, something like 50/20/30 or something, could be a possibility. You'll still have a semi-dominating console, but nothing like 70/20/10 or whatsnot (pulling numbers out of my ass here, you get the idea), like we have seen at times in the past. To get a 70% market share, a console would need to have a mind boggling amount of AAA exclusives. I think the PS2 is the last time we're seeing that, at least for this generation and the next.
What will happen after that (hell, even just next generation) is up in the air, but unless there's something that REALLY shakes the industry (like one of the 3 current players pulling a Sega), I doubt we'll see this kind of market share ever again.
Yeah, I specificaly ignored the DS. While in my opinion, a console is a console is a console, and that includes handheld (I don't give a flying duck about handhelds being "hand held", I just like the games on them, since they are a bit more retro, in general, like 2d games, etc), the industry until very very recently have been pushing them in a different category, so they were not "competing" with the main consoles.
Obviously, the DS is totally annihilating everything else for the time being, and is most definately my favorite console (playing Portrait of Ruin as I'm typing this)
Its looking more and more like no console will dominate this generation. All of the consoles made mistakes, all of the consoles have good points and bad points, and none totally overwhelm the others, with good games of all categories hitting all 3.
It seems like the ages where a single console could be sufficient if you picked well(unless you just HAD to have that ONE game...) are over.
I agree with your point. Like i posted in reply to someone else, while there are definately both kinds of people (those that can never be satisfied, and those that are easily), it seems the later group is always, for almost everything, the dominant one.
Best example is how many studies show that teens who are not put in the dark for all things sexual, and are actualy free to research it, tend to have sexual intercourse MUCH, MUCH later than the rest. This seems, to me, to be a pattern with most everything. If it becomes 100% impossible for pedophiles to see naked kids in any way, shape, or forms, they'll simply go in withdrawal, and go berserk. At least, thats what would happen to me, relatively speaking (aka: with women of my age, obviously) if I was to spend over 3 months without ever seeing a naked female, even fake. I'd go insane. I don't see how a pedophile would be any different. They work by the same "rules", its just their preference in women that are different.
Bingo. I'm so tired of people making laws for the sake of making laws... This would hurt a lot more than it will help. Honestly, ethical prudes aside, who does virtual porn hurt? #1 People who gets offended by it, and these people can simply avoid it (I mean, its not like anyone is advocating making it legal on signs in the street). #2 The hypothetical scenario where virtual porn gave ideas to some sicko. Reality check, all the news coverage on TV of the sickos who keep 12 years old captive for months as sex slaves do exactly that, times 1000+.
For all we can tell, the amount of sick bastards who go and rape kids after seeing these pictures, are evened out by the amount of sick bastards who are satisfied after fapping at fake porn.
I remember many studies showing that teenagers who were NOT restricted from seeing porn (normal porn), are less likely to engage is sexual acts at a early age, because they are less curious about it. I doubt pedophiles work any differently.
Slashdot Mirror
Hmm, sorry, but some of us have money to make. That means catering to broken browsers.
That being said, Opera just happens to be amazing to develop web sites in because of its incredible level of compliance, so my sites happen to work in Opera, simply because they are developed in Opera FIRST, then fixed to work in other browsers.
But thats only because the move makes sense from a business point of view. Not to please some minority.
Really now? Well, guess I got screwed then! I bought my computer and it had no OS on it! I actualy had to -shell out- for Windows. And even though I was able to buy an OEM copy, it was not included, and would have been a hell of a lot cheaper if it had been bundled...
Explain that to me?
Oh wait...the only way to buy computers is through Dell, HP, whatever, right? I forgot about that...::COUGH::
Joke aside, it is quite interesting: for ONCE, Slashdot's community is not being hypocrite. What the FSF is doing right now, is the exact same thing we've been bitching at Microsoft for years. Spreading senseless fud over competition in an attempt to gain mindshare from uneducated potential "customers". And for once, it seems like the community NOTICED that FSF is pulling a Microsoft (it does on a regular basis, but its one of the few times when it was obvious, I guess). And thus, the community is being consistant and reacting in a, again, consistant manner.
I am impressed.
Actualy, Express is mostly used for local usage. Like, so a lap-top can use data while on the go, or to do particularly intensive reports that would kill the main database. Or in situations where you would need something like Access, but need full SQL Server features. Or even more, as a full fledged database where you don't need more than 4 gigs and 1 CPU.
While SQL Express -is- used for development with the Express serie of Visual Studio, any companies that do actual SQL Server development seriously, will use SQL Server Developer edition: otherwise you don't have all the tools you require.
Worse is, if someone DARED say something similar about Linux, everyone would be up and arm against them. Like if we saw a "MySQL doesn't work on the new version of Ubuntu!" or something. People would flip, -EVEN- if MySQL was only in some ultra-unstable-experimental-of-doom branch.
Indeed. And then no one can say people using these customised IE7 are doing so because of some monopoly forcing them: since Google also pushes Firefox... so IE7 installed that way would be so because the user actualy wants to.
hahahahaha. Unfortunately, it only means I have the english spelling skills of your average 1st grader. I guess being french excuses me a little bit, but since almost everyone who lives in my area knows 3 languages or more, I still suck.
While you don't have as much time for gaming, it is still more convenient than the more...traditional ways of entertaining one self.
If I have a kid, and want to go see a movie, go to the restaurant, etc, I either need to find a baby friendly place, or find a baby sitter. Both can cost me extra (if you have a kid and go to the restaurant, well you have to feed the darn thing...).
If, instead, i'm playing an online game with my friends, the only thing I need to be worried about, is that I play a game that can be paused (let say Warcraft III), or a game where I can go away for a few minute at any given time (these are harder to find but still). Or even better, I can simply play solo. All around, its a form of entertainment that has tens of thousands of hours worth of amusement, and is within reach of the kids: going back to take care of diapers is only a hit of the pause button away.
Definately more convenient than, let say, going to a bar and coming back home drunk, then having to take care of the kid once the baby sitter is gone.
Just an example.
I think we need to come up with the theory of Devolution. Because its what is happening to man kind now. We hit our pinacle, and now we're back tracking. I'm going to laugh from my grave when a hardcore christian's kid is born with a tail and brown fur.
Considering IE7 is a major step in "undoing" the ties between the OS and the browser...I think its more an attempt at avoiding to be convicted AGAIN.
Never noticed that if you have IE7 installed, and type a URL in windows' explorer, it will pop Firefox if its your default browser?
So i think that was a bad example
Am I the only one who thinks that, even if ID was 100%, beyond a doubt, true, that it STILL wouldn't have place in a biology class? Biology is (not the exact definition, bear with me) the science of how organic stuff works. Organic stuff can evolve, period. Whats unclear is how it originaly got jump started. If its some superior being that jump started it, and you know that at 100%, the only thing that changes, is that we'd stop talking about how it all got jump started (beyond maybe a quick mention in 1 sentence in the intro of the book). The intelligent design stuff would still belong to another class, and the explaination of how complex organics change with each iteration (generation) would still be in the biology class.
So, since biology is a science, and thus only teach plausible theories (since everything in science is -always- open to debate. Thats the very definition), if in its current form, the evolution theory is not fit to be taught, -GRAVITY- isn't fit to be taught either. Should we stop teaching about gravity in physics classes? The hell?
Actualy, it isn't that weird. Both consoles have two totally different offerings, which are strong in different points. Microsoft is obviously pointing out theirs, the same way sooner or later Sony will be yelling all over the place that the PS3 is more versatile than anything the 360 can do because it has a full OS.
:)
I agree Microsoft's wording could have been better, but the idea is still there. If you want to make homebrew game and have to pick between both console's homebrew enabling offering, and that ease of use is your only concern, XNA will do the trick. Thats only one factor obviously, and the decision isn't that easy to make
Just to use your last line as an example: Comparing Excel to Java DOES make sense, if you are speaking to everyday corporate accountants, and they ask you "I've heard of this Java thing. Would it make my life easier if I learnt to use it?". Same thing here.
I doubt people are willingly helping the child molesters with this law... they are just...mislead.
The "think of the children" movement is becoming so widespread, that I think people are losing track of WHY it "started" (for lack of better word) in the first place. They kind of forgot WHY child porn is illegal -> because kids are unable to make an informed decision about sex, and thus they virtually always get hurt in the process...
The people pushing this law literally think that child porn is wrong in itself. But it is only wrong because of the way it is created: from unwilling, unable to concent, victims. Thats the only reason. A reason that does not apply to "artificial" porn.
That is a bit how some PITA want to ban artificial fur and leather on top of the real thing, seeing it as a symbol. But no animal gets hurt when making artificial fur...
I see. Almost everyone i know using Office has a cracked copy or another. Usualy because Office does a lot less check, and usualy a simple copied CD from work is all you need. An incredible amount of computers come preloaded with illegal office (thats what my parents are using >.> ).
And well, the educational version of Office's price is so freagin low, it might as well be piracy (depending on your take as to the legitimacy of such pre-sale restriction on software usage, not to be confused with post-sale EULAs). There's no profit in these from Microsoft (the money they make from them is extra on top of the full versions being sold, so technicaly it IS profit. But if these were the only ones to sell, It wouldn't be worth it)
As for OpenOffice, when I mentionned it, I mostly had in mind all of the more computer savvy people who need basic office functionalities that will use it over MS Office (aka: a large amount of people reading this). It was simply mentionned so that someone wouldn't point it out, hehe.
Now take that, in opposition to the place I work at currently. 15000, legit, full version licenses of Office, 75% of which use more than just "simple word processor functionalities". Of course there's a HUGE discount because of the volume. But its still probably more profit total than 500000 average home users (including the pirates). Less customer support cost, too.
#4 isn't an issue with Microsoft though. Its simply human nature. That issue totally PLAGUES OSS too.
Blue Dragon alone cannot launch the 360 to the top in Japan. However, its a start. When 3-4 games of its caliber comes out, then people will be like "you know what? its starting to be worth it...".
There's simply no money to be made in a simple office suite. Too many people who use basic office features will either use open office, or downright crack MS Office. Even companies.
The ones that will actualy shell out for Office are high end corporate customers. And beleive it or not, these features are very useful when you get to that point.
Read them straight off the hard disk with your bare eyes. Obviously.
Actualy, just to be safe and have EVERYTHING covered... we need to shape up a theory as to what the gaming world will be if a 3rd world war shapes up and the HQs of all 3 main players get blown up. You know, because when 90% of human population is gone, gaming will STILL matter, hell yeah.
And you got it. The statements by Square and Ubi were what I had in mind when I wrote that.
I see what you mean, and it makes sense. but I thought about that. Here is my logic:
Consoles dominate when they have incredible 3rd party support. When the developers put all their eggs in the same basket. Nintendo mistreated developers as soon as it got an advantage, back in the SNES days. Sony did the same during the PS2 days. The whole "fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me" thing comes into play. Developers got burnt, went to a promise of greener pasture, and got burnt again.
I don't think there will ever be a point again where a console dominates, because developers won't allow it. We have Mistwalker on the 360. Blue Dragon, while successful, is no Dragon Quest in Japan yet, but if Mistwalker continues the good work, the 360 will be a must have for a lot of japanese (amazingly enough), and eventualy, for western people too. Then you have the PS3. While the FF serie has been degenerating in the view of many, with a nice boost in the form of FF12, FFXIII Versus seems like it will put some life back in the serie, and the PS3 is getting a couple of other good games. Right now, I don't think its enough to get more than 30% marketshare though.
And then you have the Wii. We're on slashdot, we all saw the pools, I don't need to say anything here.
So while 33/33/33 is near impossible, something like 50/20/30 or something, could be a possibility. You'll still have a semi-dominating console, but nothing like 70/20/10 or whatsnot (pulling numbers out of my ass here, you get the idea), like we have seen at times in the past. To get a 70% market share, a console would need to have a mind boggling amount of AAA exclusives. I think the PS2 is the last time we're seeing that, at least for this generation and the next.
What will happen after that (hell, even just next generation) is up in the air, but unless there's something that REALLY shakes the industry (like one of the 3 current players pulling a Sega), I doubt we'll see this kind of market share ever again.
Yeah, I specificaly ignored the DS. While in my opinion, a console is a console is a console, and that includes handheld (I don't give a flying duck about handhelds being "hand held", I just like the games on them, since they are a bit more retro, in general, like 2d games, etc), the industry until very very recently have been pushing them in a different category, so they were not "competing" with the main consoles.
Obviously, the DS is totally annihilating everything else for the time being, and is most definately my favorite console (playing Portrait of Ruin as I'm typing this)
Its looking more and more like no console will dominate this generation. All of the consoles made mistakes, all of the consoles have good points and bad points, and none totally overwhelm the others, with good games of all categories hitting all 3.
It seems like the ages where a single console could be sufficient if you picked well(unless you just HAD to have that ONE game...) are over.
I agree with your point. Like i posted in reply to someone else, while there are definately both kinds of people (those that can never be satisfied, and those that are easily), it seems the later group is always, for almost everything, the dominant one.
Best example is how many studies show that teens who are not put in the dark for all things sexual, and are actualy free to research it, tend to have sexual intercourse MUCH, MUCH later than the rest. This seems, to me, to be a pattern with most everything. If it becomes 100% impossible for pedophiles to see naked kids in any way, shape, or forms, they'll simply go in withdrawal, and go berserk. At least, thats what would happen to me, relatively speaking (aka: with women of my age, obviously) if I was to spend over 3 months without ever seeing a naked female, even fake. I'd go insane. I don't see how a pedophile would be any different. They work by the same "rules", its just their preference in women that are different.
Bingo. I'm so tired of people making laws for the sake of making laws... This would hurt a lot more than it will help. Honestly, ethical prudes aside, who does virtual porn hurt? #1 People who gets offended by it, and these people can simply avoid it (I mean, its not like anyone is advocating making it legal on signs in the street). #2 The hypothetical scenario where virtual porn gave ideas to some sicko. Reality check, all the news coverage on TV of the sickos who keep 12 years old captive for months as sex slaves do exactly that, times 1000+.
For all we can tell, the amount of sick bastards who go and rape kids after seeing these pictures, are evened out by the amount of sick bastards who are satisfied after fapping at fake porn.
I remember many studies showing that teenagers who were NOT restricted from seeing porn (normal porn), are less likely to engage is sexual acts at a early age, because they are less curious about it. I doubt pedophiles work any differently.