It is good for Big Business because it encourages vendor lock in. Just look at the most popular pirated packages, Windows, Photoshop, Office, 3DStudio Max. The only people who are really hurt by this are people who need the money to eat. Most 'real' work is done on licenced copies of the software. There's always going to be a rogue program or two around the office, but it seems to me that more pirating is done on off hours at home.
Many of their 'losses' they claim are really not losses since many pirates don't actually use many of the programs they download. They just have them to have them, they are collectors. (Collect the entire Photoshop set version 1-10)
Pirating has always existed, will always exist and in general I think helps the software industry. A copy is not as good as the original and if a company is only selling you a cd of information, with no value added by actually purchasing the program from them (nice manual, good support, etc), then they probably won't be in business for long anyway.
All games before about 99 when they finally started to put AA features on video cards have had horrible jagged edges. Did you just not play these games?
Don't tell me that the edges are worse on the PS2 then any system that came before it cause it's really not true. The DC had slightly smothed edges, but it stilll had jaggies up the ying yang.
The ps2 is a good machine, as proven by the great games that have been written for it. I wish that playing Halo was worth 350 dollars to me because it's the only game that can't get on the PS2 that I want to play.
The big N also has the best selling game right now. Yes, Nintendo has it, it's no longer the juggernaught that is GTA3. Instead it's good old mario (or Super Mario Advance) for the GBA. Nintendo can run forever with these consoles because it has the GB. I'm personally waiting for Resident Evil to come out before I get the game cube.
Change always sucks, and if China were to suddendly unleash it's blocks on the internet the world would have to deal with a billion people all trying to get out there. Slashdot effect be dammed, if Chinese people suddendly thought that some web site was interisting, then it could go down in a microsecond. Cisco would love for china to be unleashed on the world, as it would probably mean more equipment for them.
First of all, there are ratings on all games like movies have. They did that back in the 90s in response to the backlash from games like Mortal Kombat. www.esrb.org has the details on their rating system.
Secondly, the only movies that children cannot buy are adult (porno) movies. Blockbuster will let children rent rated R movies if the parent doesn't say no. And no they are not restricted by law either.
Arcades are really the only place that possiably should be regulated, but then they should also regulate the machines that are in movie theaters and bars... etc.
Personally I hate this type of big brother regulation. I think that people should be allowed to make their own decisions. But then again, the lack of decision making seems to be popular.
---Begin Quote Limbaugh said he reviewed four different video games and found "no conveyance of ideas, expression, or anything else that could possibly amount to speech. The court finds that video games have more in common with board games and sports than they do with motion pictures." ---End quote
This guy didn't try and play and of the final fantasy games. All those games push a fairly similar agenda of machine == bad and protect the earth. Or MGS, if you don't think that killing is wrong after playing MGS, then you didn't watch the cut scenes ( that games lives in contridiction, because it preaches that violence and killing are wrong, but the only way to beat it is to be involved with killing people ).
If he was only playing MK4, SFXXXSuperCapcomMarvelFighterTurboMegaAlphaSpecial Edition aand racing games then yeah, I can see his point. But even shoot em up games like Time Crisis or Slient Scope have anti-terrorist agendas. Just like many (crappy) HollyWood movies.
I feel that most games released today resemble the HollyWood schlock rather then the artistic projects that get produced. More like Scorpion King rather then say Pi. For every artistic game like MYST, there are a hundred shoot-em-up death game 2000 knock offs.
The guy only saw 4 games, I bet that if you showed certain movies to a judge who had never seen movies before you could get the same verdict, that movies have no artistic merit as well.
What's so intutive about a GUI? How is a flashing button any better then a command prompt? I'll tell you, the difference is that a GUI LIMITS YOUR OPTIONS.
What if instead of a flashing cursor, you printed out a small list of commands before every prompt?
cd ls fortune netscape user@localhost / >
Repeat after me, computers are not intutive, computers are not intutive. They are not easy to use and they are hard and intimidating to beginners no matter what. The difference between a CLI and a GUI is that a GUI limits your options to those on the screen so that you always see what you have done and what oyu can do next ( at least in a GOOD GUI ). A CLI throws all that away to speed up the process of working if you actually know what you want to do next.
Children are very smart, they just need some sort of stimulation and feedback. Unlike adults, they are more likley to play with things just to play. While adults get fustrated when things don't go the way that they think that they should.
Only geeks are willing to spend the time playing with these infernal machines to get them to do what they want.
BTW, where are all these teachers that actually know how to use computers? All the teachers I know either don't use them, or just use them to check their friggin email. They don't actually teach teachers anymore, they just throw them some technology and hope that they learn how to use it. The problem is that for every dollar spent BUYING software or hardware, about ten cents is spent on training.
Also, have you ever heard that most teachers (at least in america) get insane amounts of time off? Maybe they could use that time to train these people.
The real problem isn't what computer system we use in the schools, it's that we just don't care about education anymore. Maybe America never did, but here in the land of the free, I think that the only reason we think we are free is because we are too stupid to realize how trapped and shackled we truly are.
Yeah, I never would to have learned how to use a computer without a flashy gui! --- begin rant --- Back when I was a kid the Commadore 64 used a text prompt, and we liked it! I loaded program off cassette tapes that broke and took 20 minutes to load a program, and we liked it!
The thing I don't like about gui's is that they don't teach you how to think! They only show you one way of doing things and if a program can't do something then you have to go and find another program that will do it for you. We shouldn't be teaching kids how to use windows, we should be teaching them to compute, to explore all the different things that computers can do instead of forsing them down a strict path of Windows domination.
Teach kids how to change things they don't like, you can't do this with windows, but with open source you can. And if you think that kids can't program, go and talk to all the 10-16 year olds that have started their own projects. --- end rant ---
Screw windows, I say that a standard PC arch is bad. Use something that is custom and engineered correctly, PC boards are cheaply designed and it shows.
The SunBlade 1000 is not a very fast machine, it's ok for desktop use, but it's no speed demon. It's really for those people who NEED to develop on a Sparc Solaris machine but cannot afford a fully loaded Workstation. x86 will always give you more bang for the buck since there are more companies making hardware for it. It's just a simple economy of scale.
However, I do believe it's the best deal for a Unix only workstation on the market today. I don't think that you can get an IBM AIX machine for less.
That's crazy, then why don't they just advertise everything as free in the flyer, then when you get to the store say that, oh yeah there's a 'stocking fee' or some such nonsense? Why, because it is illegal! The printed price is not an offer but it does mean something.
Just yesterday I was in Tower Records and I bought a CD, in the store and ON THE CD the sale price of 9.99 was printed, however when I got to the register, they charged it to me as 12.99! I was like what's going on here? They said that they sale had ended or some such nonsence. I know that they as simple button pushers can do nothing about it but it would be nice to have 3 more dollars.
This best buy thing is the same deal, since they offered the price on their WEB SITE and the web site is supposed to be the same as the actual store, aka one price honored at the web site ( when these people preordered it) should be the same price as for the people IN THE STORE!!! BB should just cough up the cards to the people that ordered them from the web site.
My point is that it's almost pointless to boycott Blizzard because the parent company will live through it, and they are the reason behind all this crap. I like all of the games Blizzard has made, even D2 (which kicks my ass on the upper levels). I don't know if Blizzard was an independent company that they would do this anyway, but it seems like smaller companies that don't focus only on the bottom line ( money ) tend to be very lenient twords regular people just wanting to play games. ( look at all the mod sites )
>>> P-T: what is your stance on making open source software illegal?
Vivendi Rep: If the open source code is being used by someone other than the creator for a profit, then it is illegal under the DMCA. >>> end quote
What does that mean? That anyone using Apache for servering pay content is illegal under the DCMA? It's like they don't understand what these words mean they just repeat them in hopes of brainwashing the public into letting them have their way.
At the same time, computer manufactures should be allowed to install whatever software they want on top of windows 'base' install (whatever that may be). Right now they can't. They can't change things as they see fit. There are very strict limitations to what Gateway, Dell, Sony, your local computer OEM can do without violating the MS agreement. This should be changed.
Just remove his articles, believe it or not, everyone doesn't think like you. Some of us have our own opinions on the matter and like to see what the crackpots have to say from time to time.
Slashdot Mirror
It is good for Big Business because it encourages vendor lock in. Just look at the most popular pirated packages, Windows, Photoshop, Office, 3DStudio Max. The only people who are really hurt by this are people who need the money to eat. Most 'real' work is done on licenced copies of the software. There's always going to be a rogue program or two around the office, but it seems to me that more pirating is done on off hours at home.
Many of their 'losses' they claim are really not losses since many pirates don't actually use many of the programs they download. They just have them to have them, they are collectors. (Collect the entire Photoshop set version 1-10)
Pirating has always existed, will always exist and in general I think helps the software industry. A copy is not as good as the original and if a company is only selling you a cd of information, with no value added by actually purchasing the program from them (nice manual, good support, etc), then they probably won't be in business for long anyway.
Did you own a PS one?
Have you played any games before 2000?
All games before about 99 when they finally started to put AA features on video cards have had horrible jagged edges. Did you just not play these games?
Don't tell me that the edges are worse on the PS2 then any system that came before it cause it's really not true. The DC had slightly smothed edges, but it stilll had jaggies up the ying yang.
The ps2 is a good machine, as proven by the great games that have been written for it. I wish that playing Halo was worth 350 dollars to me because it's the only game that can't get on the PS2 that I want to play.
The big N also has the best selling game right now. Yes, Nintendo has it, it's no longer the juggernaught that is GTA3. Instead it's good old mario (or Super Mario Advance) for the GBA. Nintendo can run forever with these consoles because it has the GB. I'm personally waiting for Resident Evil to come out before I get the game cube.
How many chinese people in China actually have access then? Does anyone know these numbers?
Change always sucks, and if China were to suddendly unleash it's blocks on the internet the world would have to deal with a billion people all trying to get out there. Slashdot effect be dammed, if Chinese people suddendly thought that some web site was interisting, then it could go down in a microsecond.
Cisco would love for china to be unleashed on the world, as it would probably mean more equipment for them.
First of all, there are ratings on all games like movies have. They did that back in the 90s in response to the backlash from games like Mortal Kombat. www.esrb.org has the details on their rating system.
Secondly, the only movies that children cannot buy are adult (porno) movies. Blockbuster will let children rent rated R movies if the parent doesn't say no. And no they are not restricted by law either.
Arcades are really the only place that possiably should be regulated, but then they should also regulate the machines that are in movie theaters and bars... etc.
Personally I hate this type of big brother regulation. I think that people should be allowed to make their own decisions. But then again, the lack of decision making seems to be popular.
Not by law, there is a difference between law and convention. You can't get sent to jail or fined for breaking convention.
Again, movies are not prohibited to minors by law, only theaters have that policy.
---Begin Quote
l Edition aand racing games then yeah, I can see his point. But even shoot em up games like Time Crisis or Slient Scope have anti-terrorist agendas. Just like many (crappy) HollyWood movies.
Limbaugh said he reviewed four different video games and found "no conveyance of ideas, expression, or anything else that could possibly amount to speech. The court finds that video games have more in common with board games and sports than they do with motion pictures."
---End quote
This guy didn't try and play and of the final fantasy games. All those games push a fairly similar agenda of machine == bad and protect the earth. Or MGS, if you don't think that killing is wrong after playing MGS, then you didn't watch the cut scenes ( that games lives in contridiction, because it preaches that violence and killing are wrong, but the only way to beat it is to be involved with killing people ).
If he was only playing MK4, SFXXXSuperCapcomMarvelFighterTurboMegaAlphaSpecia
I feel that most games released today resemble the HollyWood schlock rather then the artistic projects that get produced. More like Scorpion King rather then say Pi. For every artistic game like MYST, there are a hundred shoot-em-up death game 2000 knock offs.
The guy only saw 4 games, I bet that if you showed certain movies to a judge who had never seen movies before you could get the same verdict, that movies have no artistic merit as well.
What's so intutive about a GUI? How is a flashing button any better then a command prompt? I'll tell you, the difference is that a GUI LIMITS YOUR OPTIONS.
What if instead of a flashing cursor, you printed out a small list of commands before every prompt?
cd ls fortune netscape
user@localhost / >
Repeat after me, computers are not intutive, computers are not intutive. They are not easy to use and they are hard and intimidating to beginners no matter what. The difference between a CLI and a GUI is that a GUI limits your options to those on the screen so that you always see what you have done and what oyu can do next ( at least in a GOOD GUI ). A CLI throws all that away to speed up the process of working if you actually know what you want to do next.
Children are very smart, they just need some sort of stimulation and feedback. Unlike adults, they are more likley to play with things just to play. While adults get fustrated when things don't go the way that they think that they should.
Only geeks are willing to spend the time playing with these infernal machines to get them to do what they want.
BTW, where are all these teachers that actually know how to use computers? All the teachers I know either don't use them, or just use them to check their friggin email. They don't actually teach teachers anymore, they just throw them some technology and hope that they learn how to use it. The problem is that for every dollar spent BUYING software or hardware, about ten cents is spent on training.
Also, have you ever heard that most teachers (at least in america) get insane amounts of time off? Maybe they could use that time to train these people.
The real problem isn't what computer system we use in the schools, it's that we just don't care about education anymore. Maybe America never did, but here in the land of the free, I think that the only reason we think we are free is because we are too stupid to realize how trapped and shackled we truly are.
Yeah, I never would to have learned how to use a computer without a flashy gui!
--- begin rant ---
Back when I was a kid the Commadore 64 used a text prompt, and we liked it! I loaded program off cassette tapes that broke and took 20 minutes to load a program, and we liked it!
The thing I don't like about gui's is that they don't teach you how to think! They only show you one way of doing things and if a program can't do something then you have to go and find another program that will do it for you. We shouldn't be teaching kids how to use windows, we should be teaching them to compute, to explore all the different things that computers can do instead of forsing them down a strict path of Windows domination.
Teach kids how to change things they don't like, you can't do this with windows, but with open source you can. And if you think that kids can't program, go and talk to all the 10-16 year olds that have started their own projects.
--- end rant ---
Screw windows, I say that a standard PC arch is bad. Use something that is custom and engineered correctly, PC boards are cheaply designed and it shows.
Transformer named Opteron? If there wasn't then that would make a good name for one. He could he Optimus' cousin, and kick Hot Roddie's little butt.
The SunBlade 1000 is not a very fast machine, it's ok for desktop use, but it's no speed demon. It's really for those people who NEED to develop on a Sparc Solaris machine but cannot afford a fully loaded Workstation. x86 will always give you more bang for the buck since there are more companies making hardware for it. It's just a simple economy of scale.
However, I do believe it's the best deal for a Unix only workstation on the market today. I don't think that you can get an IBM AIX machine for less.
That's crazy, then why don't they just advertise everything as free in the flyer, then when you get to the store say that, oh yeah there's a 'stocking fee' or some such nonsense? Why, because it is illegal! The printed price is not an offer but it does mean something.
Just yesterday I was in Tower Records and I bought a CD, in the store and ON THE CD the sale price of 9.99 was printed, however when I got to the register, they charged it to me as 12.99! I was like what's going on here? They said that they sale had ended or some such nonsence. I know that they as simple button pushers can do nothing about it but it would be nice to have 3 more dollars.
This best buy thing is the same deal, since they offered the price on their WEB SITE and the web site is supposed to be the same as the actual store, aka one price honored at the web site ( when these people preordered it) should be the same price as for the people IN THE STORE!!! BB should just cough up the cards to the people that ordered them from the web site.
A better analogy would be one where you wrote a paper, then someone copied it and turned it in with their name, denying you your A.
My point is that it's almost pointless to boycott Blizzard because the parent company will live through it, and they are the reason behind all this crap. I like all of the games Blizzard has made, even D2 (which kicks my ass on the upper levels). I don't know if Blizzard was an independent company that they would do this anyway, but it seems like smaller companies that don't focus only on the bottom line ( money ) tend to be very lenient twords regular people just wanting to play games. ( look at all the mod sites )
Why not boycott all of vivendi? Oh yeah, they make every media we might BUY!
>>>
P-T: what is your stance on making open source software illegal?
Vivendi Rep: If the open source code is being used by someone other than the creator for a profit, then it is illegal under the DMCA.
>>> end quote
What does that mean? That anyone using Apache for servering pay content is illegal under the DCMA? It's like they don't understand what these words mean they just repeat them in hopes of brainwashing the public into letting them have their way.
At the same time, computer manufactures should be allowed to install whatever software they want on top of windows 'base' install (whatever that may be). Right now they can't. They can't change things as they see fit. There are very strict limitations to what Gateway, Dell, Sony, your local computer OEM can do without violating the MS agreement. This should be changed.
Just remove his articles, believe it or not, everyone doesn't think like you. Some of us have our own opinions on the matter and like to see what the crackpots have to say from time to time.
actually you can write to them once. and only once.
Same thing, usless for cameras, CF is like film you never have to replace.
Thank god the VooDoo 5 was never released, the Voodoo 6 would to have needed a 220 volt power source.
Actually, I ment that runs with an x86 chip, because as all mac people like to point out, the mac does support windows (via virtual PC).
If AMD/Intel would release a chip that is designed not to use a fan, it would be a huge step in this direction.