If it makes you happy, I turned of my karma bonus when viewing my own posts. It doesn't affect you that much, but at least it will have some sort of cosmic balancing effect, somewhere.
OpenGL makes Linux, BSD, MacOS X and other ports practical as well as not having to deal with Microsoft's arbitrary API's.
Not to mention that Microsoft is basically a big cult. It's easy to get in, but they make getting out nearly impossible. First, it's Word documents, then it's your e-mail. Once people realize this, they turn around and see the big Bag-A-Bug looming overhead. Resistence is futile! Thankfully, we have OpenOffice.org, a very helpful rehabilitation program for new escapees from the Microsoft clan.
But a much higher percentage of people who use Linux at home are gamers. I'd bet it is over 90%. I use Linux at home and buy lots of games...the only reason I don't buy Linux games is that my PC is a piece of crap. If I had a better PC, that would change.
Better yet, why don't more developers program for OpenGL?
I hate to sound like a troll, but they use DirectX because they are whores. Direct X is the "winning team". We all know that Homer Simpson would use DirectX; that alone should be enough for intelligent people to move to OpenGL. But they don't. That speaks volumes about the types of people in major commercial game development.
Re:"DirectSound" equivalent is already on Linux
on
Does Linux Have Game?
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· Score: 1
we do have the sound driver problem solved as ALSA...Now we have a common sound architecture and that's a really good start.
ALSA is not a common sound architecture, as it is specific to the Linux kernel version 2.6 or can be compiled for the Linux kernel version 2.4. OpenAL is a common sound architecture, which, in turn, uses ALSA for audio on Linux.
People should not program to the ALSA APIs for application development, IMHO.
how do you know Linux has greater marketshare than OSX?
Every so often a browser market share report will come out or some other survey, and one trend is that Linux is now pretty much on parity with Mac OS, give or take a little. It's just that the Linux userbase is so different than the Mac OS userbase that no one has noticed (not trolling, Apple is really great at marketing and Macs are very visible in product placement, etc. All Linux has is a penguin no one identifies with.).
Why don't more games use OpenGL+OpenAL+SDL? It's cross platform, it works, and it's easy to learn and program with. Why do so many people jump on the Microsoft bandwagon, when it isn't even always the better choice?
Direct3D to OpenGL is far less of a hurdle than convincing a publisher to budget the time for a developer to spend porting for a niche market unfortunately.
Did you know that Windows is the niche market? Everyone else on the planet has standardized on OpenGL! It's Microsoft that doesn't play along, not the other way around!
No one has the right to run my computer NO ONE I SAY.
What if they explicitly say you own your own data? What if they provide applications based on open standards? What if they have excellent privacy policies?
You already don't have control over your cell phone, land line, cable TV, credit cards, ISP, or web-based e-mail. If people don't like them, they don't subscribe!
If managed PCs become a possibility, the main thing that matters is the genuine credibility of the company behind them. The company would really have to back off the data mining and have very consistent up-front policies about privacy. The company would have to legally separate itself from your data (even while hosting it), and this would all have to be in the contracts. But it is possible for the right company to step forward and make it happen.
The only thing left for the customer is to not do anything stupid or illegal on a hosted system. This is true, now, where stupid criminals get caught by calling from their cell phone after a heist, etc.
Sun's new version of their Sun Ray server software supports broadband (DSL, cable modems, etc.) and runs on both Solaris and Linux.
Imagine an AOL-like service, where they manage the servers (with high uptime), keep them patched and updated, and provide professionally managed firewalls, blacklists, etc. All the user would have to do is log in and do whatever they need for a monthly fee. If the monthly fee is less than the daily cost of a PC over, say, two years, they're probably set up to gain some customers.
...the only thing they know how to market is yet another Star Wars title.
Sad that they only way they know how to make yet another Star Wars title is to make it suck. Come up with a new game model, guys! There are only so many ways to rehash a speeder mini-game!
I wonder if game makers go through cycles where they are so overwhelmed with new technology that they can't make a non-linear game to save their lives. There was a whole series of RPGs for the playstation that were mind-numbingly linear, then they got better, then Final Fantasy X came out (linear again). Is there a trend where the "ground breaking" games are more hype than substance, because of the new technical challenges?
There are a handful of companies that are really cool. They are the ones that look towards the longer term, they value their employees as contributing to the bottom line rather than costing it. Even a big company can be like this, if they are significantly family owned. Having a family aspect is probably the most important part.
I had an internship with a family-run corporation (Fortune 500, even) that was awesome. While they were going through some growing pains due to the internet boom, it was obvious they invested in continuing education and had plenty of fringe benefits. It was a very comfortable work environment.
Then, I worked for a publically traded defense contractor that was run by the usual bunch of businessmen. Holy shit, no continuing education unless it could be billed to the government, and 20 years of service got you a nice paperweight.
Nintendo Power was the magazine back when I was in elementary school. Nintendo was so good at the hype machine, but they backed it up with their great games. Nintendo was the Disney of console gaming (until Disney became evil, that is). Magazines now are just flashy hype with no soul. I'd rather just search Google and go to GameFaqs and save my money.
GameFAQs reviews often gravitate towards the "THIS SUCKS!!! 0/10" or the "THIS RULES!!! 10/10."
Forum reviews should always be taken with a grain of salt, but there is usually one or two reviews with a serious author behind them. Not everyone is a game fanboy or doom-sayer. Also, it is easy to skim the reviews for meaningful details, like references to bugs or games that are really short or linear. "Professional" reviewers often have conflicts of interest that might cause these details to be buried (intentionally or not).
Bash on IGN, Gamespot, etc. all you want.
GameFaqs links to these reviews, too, for what it's worth.
I'm not particularly good at memory games, so breaking the locked doors was frustrating. Also, trying to beat the flying saucer on the moon got pretty old. Flying with the glider took too much finesse.
I think R&C 2 would have benefitted greatly from two or three difficulty settings. A slower setting for "old fogies" like me (I'm not even 30...) and a faster setting for 12-year-olds. It would not have been hard at all for the game programmers to have made the glider 15% slower or the damage done by enemies 15% less. These would be trivial programming additions.
Otherwise, it is truly a great game in every way. I just wish I could better enjoy the later stages of it.
With sites like GameFaqs, spending money on a gaming magazine is a true waste. Even strategy guides are a waste with all the detailed enthousiast faqs out there for free. Plus, the free faqs are actually honest. This is no longer the days of Nintendo Power.
The war in Iraq is 100% legal (I won't argue your other points).
1) The US was already there from 1991. 2) Iraq defied the UN for years. 3) We have support, probably even endorsement, from other countries in the middle east, who don't mind seeing Saddam go and want a piece of that oil, too.
Legality isn't the issue with Iraq. In fact, legality, IMO, is why the USA cannot invade any other country "preemptively". No other country would stand for it and GWB would be even further alienated as a result. That's why there's an entirely different approach with N. Korea and Iran.
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If it makes you happy, I turned of my karma bonus when viewing my own posts. It doesn't affect you that much, but at least it will have some sort of cosmic balancing effect, somewhere.
Linux geeks joining forces with Apple geeks would be unstoppable...
OpenGL makes Linux, BSD, MacOS X and other ports practical as well as not having to deal with Microsoft's arbitrary API's.
Not to mention that Microsoft is basically a big cult. It's easy to get in, but they make getting out nearly impossible. First, it's Word documents, then it's your e-mail. Once people realize this, they turn around and see the big Bag-A-Bug looming overhead. Resistence is futile! Thankfully, we have OpenOffice.org, a very helpful rehabilitation program for new escapees from the Microsoft clan.
But a much higher percentage of people who use Linux at home are gamers. I'd bet it is over 90%. I use Linux at home and buy lots of games...the only reason I don't buy Linux games is that my PC is a piece of crap. If I had a better PC, that would change.
Better yet, why don't more developers program for OpenGL?
I hate to sound like a troll, but they use DirectX because they are whores. Direct X is the "winning team". We all know that Homer Simpson would use DirectX; that alone should be enough for intelligent people to move to OpenGL. But they don't. That speaks volumes about the types of people in major commercial game development.
we do have the sound driver problem solved as ALSA...Now we have a common sound architecture and that's a really good start.
ALSA is not a common sound architecture, as it is specific to the Linux kernel version 2.6 or can be compiled for the Linux kernel version 2.4. OpenAL is a common sound architecture, which, in turn, uses ALSA for audio on Linux.
People should not program to the ALSA APIs for application development, IMHO.
how do you know Linux has greater marketshare than OSX?
Every so often a browser market share report will come out or some other survey, and one trend is that Linux is now pretty much on parity with Mac OS, give or take a little. It's just that the Linux userbase is so different than the Mac OS userbase that no one has noticed (not trolling, Apple is really great at marketing and Macs are very visible in product placement, etc. All Linux has is a penguin no one identifies with.).
More like OpenGL+SDL.
Why don't more games use OpenGL+OpenAL+SDL? It's cross platform, it works, and it's easy to learn and program with. Why do so many people jump on the Microsoft bandwagon, when it isn't even always the better choice?
Direct3D to OpenGL is far less of a hurdle than convincing a publisher to budget the time for a developer to spend porting for a niche market unfortunately.
Did you know that Windows is the niche market? Everyone else on the planet has standardized on OpenGL! It's Microsoft that doesn't play along, not the other way around!
Well, they sometimes do, but only for you.
No one has the right to run my computer NO ONE I SAY.
What if they explicitly say you own your own data? What if they provide applications based on open standards? What if they have excellent privacy policies?
You already don't have control over your cell phone, land line, cable TV, credit cards, ISP, or web-based e-mail. If people don't like them, they don't subscribe!
If managed PCs become a possibility, the main thing that matters is the genuine credibility of the company behind them. The company would really have to back off the data mining and have very consistent up-front policies about privacy. The company would have to legally separate itself from your data (even while hosting it), and this would all have to be in the contracts. But it is possible for the right company to step forward and make it happen.
The only thing left for the customer is to not do anything stupid or illegal on a hosted system. This is true, now, where stupid criminals get caught by calling from their cell phone after a heist, etc.
Sun's new version of their Sun Ray server software supports broadband (DSL, cable modems, etc.) and runs on both Solaris and Linux.
Imagine an AOL-like service, where they manage the servers (with high uptime), keep them patched and updated, and provide professionally managed firewalls, blacklists, etc. All the user would have to do is log in and do whatever they need for a monthly fee. If the monthly fee is less than the daily cost of a PC over, say, two years, they're probably set up to gain some customers.
This must be stoopid-mod day. Why don't you go mode down the Doom 3 thread as off topic, too, then!
...the only thing they know how to market is yet another Star Wars title.
Sad that they only way they know how to make yet another Star Wars title is to make it suck. Come up with a new game model, guys! There are only so many ways to rehash a speeder mini-game!
I wonder if game makers go through cycles where they are so overwhelmed with new technology that they can't make a non-linear game to save their lives. There was a whole series of RPGs for the playstation that were mind-numbingly linear, then they got better, then Final Fantasy X came out (linear again). Is there a trend where the "ground breaking" games are more hype than substance, because of the new technical challenges?
And the goat sex trolls actually link to good porn!
I was walking through Wal-Mart earier, and it seemed movies got more expensive than I remember! Is $20 normal for run-of-the-mill crap?
Never forget that about any company.
There are a handful of companies that are really cool. They are the ones that look towards the longer term, they value their employees as contributing to the bottom line rather than costing it. Even a big company can be like this, if they are significantly family owned. Having a family aspect is probably the most important part.
I had an internship with a family-run corporation (Fortune 500, even) that was awesome. While they were going through some growing pains due to the internet boom, it was obvious they invested in continuing education and had plenty of fringe benefits. It was a very comfortable work environment.
Then, I worked for a publically traded defense contractor that was run by the usual bunch of businessmen. Holy shit, no continuing education unless it could be billed to the government, and 20 years of service got you a nice paperweight.
So your mention of Nintendo Power makes no sense.
Nintendo Power was the magazine back when I was in elementary school. Nintendo was so good at the hype machine, but they backed it up with their great games. Nintendo was the Disney of console gaming (until Disney became evil, that is). Magazines now are just flashy hype with no soul. I'd rather just search Google and go to GameFaqs and save my money.
GameFAQs reviews often gravitate towards the "THIS SUCKS!!! 0/10" or the "THIS RULES!!! 10/10."
Forum reviews should always be taken with a grain of salt, but there is usually one or two reviews with a serious author behind them. Not everyone is a game fanboy or doom-sayer. Also, it is easy to skim the reviews for meaningful details, like references to bugs or games that are really short or linear. "Professional" reviewers often have conflicts of interest that might cause these details to be buried (intentionally or not).
Bash on IGN, Gamespot, etc. all you want.
GameFaqs links to these reviews, too, for what it's worth.
I'm not particularly good at memory games, so breaking the locked doors was frustrating. Also, trying to beat the flying saucer on the moon got pretty old. Flying with the glider took too much finesse.
I think R&C 2 would have benefitted greatly from two or three difficulty settings. A slower setting for "old fogies" like me (I'm not even 30...) and a faster setting for 12-year-olds. It would not have been hard at all for the game programmers to have made the glider 15% slower or the damage done by enemies 15% less. These would be trivial programming additions.
Otherwise, it is truly a great game in every way. I just wish I could better enjoy the later stages of it.
With sites like GameFaqs, spending money on a gaming magazine is a true waste. Even strategy guides are a waste with all the detailed enthousiast faqs out there for free. Plus, the free faqs are actually honest. This is no longer the days of Nintendo Power.
I had to set aside Ratchet & Clank 2 for a couple weeks to give it a rest, because that game was so persistently difficult.
Attacking Iraq was a) stupid, b) illegal
The war in Iraq is 100% legal (I won't argue your other points).
1) The US was already there from 1991.
2) Iraq defied the UN for years.
3) We have support, probably even endorsement, from other countries in the middle east, who don't mind seeing Saddam go and want a piece of that oil, too.
Legality isn't the issue with Iraq. In fact, legality, IMO, is why the USA cannot invade any other country "preemptively". No other country would stand for it and GWB would be even further alienated as a result. That's why there's an entirely different approach with N. Korea and Iran.
Are taxi drivers unionized?