You were there and saw them selling games without their packaging? ... If you were there and saw what they were doing, you can tell me one way or another.
They were taking new XBoxes, installing a larger hard-drive, copying 15 or more games to the drive, placing it back in the XBox packaging and selling them. Each box had a sticker attached listing the size of the drive and the installed games.
I watched someone purchase one of these systems while I was waiting to ask a question. The buyer did not have to prove that they already owned the pre-loaded games. The system was not accompanied with a stack of games or any other thing, just the original XBox packaging.
I neglected to mention before (and Xeni has already updated my remarks over at BoingBoing)...
Pandora's Cube keeps electronic records of who you are and what you purchase. Not so much with the game and DVD purchases, but defintely with the system purchases.
I doubt that the Feds will pursue the buyers, but if they obtain the records they will know who bought what system with the pirated games...
Did the preloaded games come with the original media on the side? If so, I still don't see it as something that should be illegal. If they were using the preloading to get away with "selling" the same purchased copy over and over by making clones off of one original, then of course there's a problem they should be seriously smacked down for.
Not that I could tell. I watched someone purchase one of the systems while I was waiting to ask a question. I've mentioned it in another post - standard XBox packaging, nothing extra. That's all the customer walked out with. The list of preloaded games was a selling point used to make the sale.
Not a problem *IF* the store had the original game and was just using this as a convienience. If not, then it's a problem. (Or if they sold or gave the customer the rom without the original.)
Agreed. This is the not the case. I watched someone come in and ask for a specific rare GameBoy cartridge which they did not have in stock (I checked). The employee reported that they didn't have the GameBoy game, but could sell an XBox preloaded with it and "many" other GameBoy games. I watched the buyer (not the same buyer as above) scroll through the list of emulators and then through the list of 100+ GameBoy ROMs.
These people were past grey areas and into straight piracy.
Regardless of everything else, this is actually a reasonable use of a modded console, IMO. Have you seen the wear on in-store Gameboys? Being able to demonstrate in-stock games on a more rigorous system would definitely be of advantage to a store.
Sure, that would be fine.
This store stocks less than 20 original GameBoy cartridges. The employee was offering to sell an XBox system preloaded with 100+ GameBoy cartridges - I watched the buyer scroll through the list. I know for a fact that they did not have the game in stock - it is a particularly hard to find cartridge. The customer came in asking for the cartridge and the employee offered to sell him the XBox loaded with tons of cartridges.
Time to wake up to reality. Mod chips exist to allow people to pirate games. That's their primary purpose. Sure, you could have legal uses for them.
It's one thing when the person who buys the modchip uses it to pirate games. It is another thing when a store is selling pirated copies themselves.
You can't paint everyone with the same brush. I visited the store because I wanted to mod a PS2 so I could play import games that I own. That's a legitimate use
When I saw them doing this a few weeks ago, I expressed to one of the employees that I found the preloaded XBox systems to be legally questionable. He just shrugged.
It's not clear from the article whether the modded consoles were sold without copies of the games which had been installed on their hard drives
Well, I watched somebody purchase one of these systems. What they were handed was standard XBox packaging with a sticker listing the size of the drive and the installed games. There wasn't anything else containing a set of games - not a bag or a box or anything.
The only way that legal copies of the games were being included was if they discarded the dvd cases and stuck the discs and paper manuals inside the box with the system. I seriously doubt it. $500 doesn't really cover a new XBox system, the mod hardware, the hard-drive and 15 recent $50 games.
See my other post for more details on what I saw in the store.
Sure, the article is vague, but I can confirm it. I dropped in the store recently to ask about mod chips.
They were selling modded XBox systems with larger hard-drives and games preloaded. Each box had a printed sticker attached with the size of the drive and a list of included games. You could pick your XBox based on the size of the hard-drive and the list of included games. And it was current games - things like Burnout 3 and Halo 2.
They were also preloading the XBox systems with tons of emulators (arcade and console) and as many ROMs as they could find. I watched a customer walk in and ask about a specific original GameBoy game - the employee immediately fired up a GameBoy emulator with the appropriate ROM right there on the demo XBox and handed the customer the controller to play with.
They appeared to be to be doing pretty brisk business. I left the place seriously disturbed by what I had seen and wondering whether to report them. Guess somebody already had. They definitely crossed the line. And it is sad to see that happen with one of the few reliable local suppliers of mod chips.
I think they were doing the same practice with PS2 systems as well. I recall seeing a game list that was split into domestic and imports and imports really aren't an issue on the XBox.
I heartily second the recommendation for the Sterlite ultra storage drawers. I've been using the 1804. I have only been able to find them at Wal-Mart, but the price runs an affordable $3-4 for a single drawer.
The drawers are a good size for holding all formats including old carts, cd-sized cases and newer dvd-sized cases. They are also a good size for holding misc. cables, and controllers, etc. Too small for holding the console generally, though (except for handhelds).
"It was like the boys from NeXT came in and simply assumed they knew better than everybody else, that a UI that had survived for over a decade-and-a-half and have been continually honed during that time was something to just throw away."
You think the NeXT UI didn't have >10 years of work put into it?
Besides Tog seems to like at least one item brought over from NeXT: Dialog Box Drawers.
I'm fairly certain Nintendo's original motive had to do with that fact that if people are using the machine to watch dvds, then Nintendo isn't making money (via game sales).
Pretty sure I saw it in an interview, but wasn't able to turn it up quickly.
Agreed, there are very good reasons why they use older hardware with "known" problems rather than newer hardware with "unknown" problems.
James Tomayko has written an excellent book entitled "Computers in Spaceflight: The NASA Experience". It appears to be available online - Computers in Spaceflight: The NASA Experience.
Having done similar work in the past, I'll second what other folks have said about the time and effort to create a rulebase from scratch via interviewing subject matter experts.
I will also agree that as small as the problem space is, an expert system may not be the best fit.
As for CBR, it is a different beast in terms of how you build your solution. You essentially use a set of known cases, or solutions instead of "rules of thumb". And that might be a better fit for this task.
For the record, ArtEnterprise does have CBR capabilities. It's now sold by MindBox.
Also, if you want to experiment with a free expert system, you might want to try Jess. Other folks have already mentioned it, but not provided a link. It's basically CLIPS rebuilt in Java, but it lets you use real Java objects instead of having to use the CLIPS COOL model.
There is also FIGlet. The site describes it thusly:
"FIGlet is a program for making large letters out of ordinary text".
It appears to be available on multiple platforms with source code.
And, if you've got a Mac or Windows machines handy, you can try out Email Effects from Sig Software.
This software is more like an ASCII-based Paint Shop Pro, etc. It can also import graphics files and convert them into ASCII drawings.
Slashdot Mirror
You were there and saw them selling games without their packaging?
...
If you were there and saw what they were doing, you can tell me one way or another.
They were taking new XBoxes, installing a larger hard-drive, copying 15 or more games to the drive, placing it back in the XBox packaging and selling them. Each box had a sticker attached listing the size of the drive and the installed games.
I watched someone purchase one of these systems while I was waiting to ask a question. The buyer did not have to prove that they already owned the pre-loaded games. The system was not accompanied with a stack of games or any other thing, just the original XBox packaging.
I neglected to mention before (and Xeni has already updated my remarks over at BoingBoing)...
Pandora's Cube keeps electronic records of who you are and what you purchase. Not so much with the game and DVD purchases, but defintely with the system purchases.
I doubt that the Feds will pursue the buyers, but if they obtain the records they will know who bought what system with the pirated games...
Did the preloaded games come with the original media on the side? If so, I still don't see it as something that should be illegal. If they were using the preloading to get away with "selling" the same purchased copy over and over by making clones off of one original, then of course there's a problem they should be seriously smacked down for.
Not that I could tell. I watched someone purchase one of the systems while I was waiting to ask a question. I've mentioned it in another post - standard XBox packaging, nothing extra. That's all the customer walked out with. The list of preloaded games was a selling point used to make the sale.
Not a problem *IF* the store had the original game and was just using this as a convienience. If not, then it's a problem. (Or if they sold or gave the customer the rom without the original.)
Agreed. This is the not the case. I watched someone come in and ask for a specific rare GameBoy cartridge which they did not have in stock (I checked). The employee reported that they didn't have the GameBoy game, but could sell an XBox preloaded with it and "many" other GameBoy games. I watched the buyer (not the same buyer as above) scroll through the list of emulators and then through the list of 100+ GameBoy ROMs.
These people were past grey areas and into straight piracy.
Regardless of everything else, this is actually a reasonable use of a modded console, IMO. Have you seen the wear on in-store Gameboys? Being able to demonstrate in-stock games on a more rigorous system would definitely be of advantage to a store.
Sure, that would be fine.
This store stocks less than 20 original GameBoy cartridges. The employee was offering to sell an XBox system preloaded with 100+ GameBoy cartridges - I watched the buyer scroll through the list. I know for a fact that they did not have the game in stock - it is a particularly hard to find cartridge. The customer came in asking for the cartridge and the employee offered to sell him the XBox loaded with tons of cartridges.
Time to wake up to reality. Mod chips exist to allow people to pirate games. That's their primary purpose. Sure, you could have legal uses for them.
It's one thing when the person who buys the modchip uses it to pirate games. It is another thing when a store is selling pirated copies themselves.
You can't paint everyone with the same brush. I visited the store because I wanted to mod a PS2 so I could play import games that I own. That's a legitimate use
So the display ones had games on them but did the one for sale?
Again, yes.
See my other posts for details.
Right.
When I saw them doing this a few weeks ago, I expressed to one of the employees that I found the preloaded XBox systems to be legally questionable. He just shrugged.
It's not clear from the article whether the modded consoles were sold without copies of the games which had been installed on their hard drives
Well, I watched somebody purchase one of these systems. What they were handed was standard XBox packaging with a sticker listing the size of the drive and the installed games. There wasn't anything else containing a set of games - not a bag or a box or anything.
The only way that legal copies of the games were being included was if they discarded the dvd cases and stuck the discs and paper manuals inside the box with the system. I seriously doubt it. $500 doesn't really cover a new XBox system, the mod hardware, the hard-drive and 15 recent $50 games.
See my other post for more details on what I saw in the store.
Sure, the article is vague, but I can confirm it. I dropped in the store recently to ask about mod chips.
They were selling modded XBox systems with larger hard-drives and games preloaded. Each box had a printed sticker attached with the size of the drive and a list of included games. You could pick your XBox based on the size of the hard-drive and the list of included games. And it was current games - things like Burnout 3 and Halo 2.
They were also preloading the XBox systems with tons of emulators (arcade and console) and as many ROMs as they could find. I watched a customer walk in and ask about a specific original GameBoy game - the employee immediately fired up a GameBoy emulator with the appropriate ROM right there on the demo XBox and handed the customer the controller to play with.
They appeared to be to be doing pretty brisk business. I left the place seriously disturbed by what I had seen and wondering whether to report them. Guess somebody already had. They definitely crossed the line. And it is sad to see that happen with one of the few reliable local suppliers of mod chips.
I think they were doing the same practice with PS2 systems as well. I recall seeing a game list that was split into domestic and imports and imports really aren't an issue on the XBox.
Does everyone forget that of the current console companies out there, the one with the most experience in networking game consoles is Nintendo?
They've been doing online services for their consoles since the Famicom (NES) system.
They need to check their facts a little better. The article claims that Nintendo created and released the SongBoy adapter for the Gameboy.
It was in fact made by a third party and resulted in a lawsuit and settlement.
I heartily second the recommendation for the Sterlite ultra storage drawers. I've been using the 1804. I have only been able to find them at Wal-Mart, but the price runs an affordable $3-4 for a single drawer.
The drawers are a good size for holding all formats including old carts, cd-sized cases and newer dvd-sized cases. They are also a good size for holding misc. cables, and controllers, etc. Too small for holding the console generally, though (except for handhelds).
So, does he have the official Zelda Ocarina also?
Well, it is the logical next step in the trend...
If you think that you are better than Alfred Hitchcock, feel free to try and out-edit him...
You think the NeXT UI didn't have >10 years of work put into it?
Besides Tog seems to like at least one item brought over from NeXT: Dialog Box Drawers.
Hard to say.
I'm fairly certain Nintendo's original motive had to do with that fact that if people are using the machine to watch dvds, then Nintendo isn't making money (via game sales).
Pretty sure I saw it in an interview, but wasn't able to turn it up quickly.
There is also Bruce's yearly visit to the Well's Inkwell.vue: The 2004 Bruce Sterling State of the World Address.
And, don't forget Bruce's new weblog at Wired: Beyond the Beyond.
If you read Fred Brooks' work, you'll see that adding software developers to a project often just makes it later...
Covering The Blues
Cringley did a profile of Ishikawa last year.
And there is speculation that RACTER didn't write the entire book by itself...
Racter FAQ: "The Policeman's Beard" Was Largely Prefab!
Agreed, there are very good reasons why they use older hardware with "known" problems rather than newer hardware with "unknown" problems.
James Tomayko has written an excellent book entitled "Computers in Spaceflight: The NASA Experience". It appears to be available online - Computers in Spaceflight: The NASA Experience.
Of particular interest would be Chapter Four: Computers in the Space Shuttle Avionics System
A good piece of companion reading to "Dealers of Lightning" is "Fumbling the Future: How Xerox Invented, Then Ignored, the First Personal Computer" by Douglas K. Smith, Robert C. Alexander.
Originally published in 1988, and largely based on a business school case study of PARC, it presents a nice second perspective on things. Thankfully, it is back in print again.
Cringely even cites it in his book "Accidental Empires".
Having done similar work in the past, I'll second what other folks have said about the time and effort to create a rulebase from scratch via interviewing subject matter experts.
I will also agree that as small as the problem space is, an expert system may not be the best fit.
As for CBR, it is a different beast in terms of how you build your solution. You essentially use a set of known cases, or solutions instead of "rules of thumb". And that might be a better fit for this task.
For the record, ArtEnterprise does have CBR capabilities. It's now sold by MindBox.
Also, if you want to experiment with a free expert system, you might want to try Jess. Other folks have already mentioned it, but not provided a link. It's basically CLIPS rebuilt in Java, but it lets you use real Java objects instead of having to use the CLIPS COOL model.
There is also FIGlet. The site describes it thusly:
"FIGlet is a program for making large letters out of ordinary text".
It appears to be available on multiple platforms with source code.
And, if you've got a Mac or Windows machines handy, you can try out Email Effects from Sig Software.
This software is more like an ASCII-based Paint Shop Pro, etc. It can also import graphics files and convert them into ASCII drawings.