I didn't catch that C&C is also released by EA. *blush* Still, I don't see EA releasing any Origin titles as freeware any time soon. I'd love to see a revamped version of all of them to use today's technology. In fact, a great marketing tool would be to release the originals as freeware (do they run under DosBox?) while they re-tool the series to work under modern technology as a commercial project.
Same thing with the old LucasArts games. Sam and Max are now under Tell Tale Games, so why does Lucas hold onto the original? Release it to freeware, for crying out loud! Wishful thinking, I suppose.
Huh? I remember hearing a while ago that Freespace 2 was released as freeware. A quick glance at its Wikipedia entry also shows that its source code was made available. In fact, a Google search will list a number of freeware web sites that have links to the game.
In short, you've been missing out all this time.:)
But don't expect the Wing Commander series to be released as freeware any time soon. It's own by EA now.:(
You obviously don't own a Wii. When in the browser, press that little "+" button on the Wiimote. Text size increases. Yeah, that was difficult. Same thing with the News function on the Wii. For basic viewing of uncomplicated web pages, it works great. Pages like CNN, BBC, Google, and so forth load up fine. If the newest Macromedia Flash (version 7, I think) is required, you're screwed, but otherwise the Wii browser should work well.
Look at my first two sentences, emphasis mine: "Okay, if this is to watch the videos on a non-Windows system or if you ha[t]e being forced into Windows/IE, fine. I'm okay with that as long as you manually adhere to the rental terms and delete the file."
Okay, if this is to watch the videos on a non-Windows system or if you have being forced into Windows/IE, fine. I'm okay with that as long as you manually adhere to the rental terms and delete the file. I know the reality of that, but on principle I agree that the DRM stripping can be a viable option for fair use for those who don't have or like Windows/IE.
But if anyone wants to do this to download and keep the file, I really have to question WHY?? The only way to do this is if you have a Netflix account. So, if you're hell-bent on keeping a copy, you might as well go through the whole process of having the DVD sent to you and then do a rent-rip-return. At least that way you'll get the whole thing in full DVD quality with all of the bells, whistles, commentaries, and additional material.
Not only do you need a Netflix account, but you also obviously need to have a broadband connection. In that case there are plenty of other outlets from Usenet to P2P to IRC to obtain copies of movies that already have any DRM stripped off.
And if it's a movie that you really would like but don't want to pay $20 for a new DVD, why not just pay $5 for a used DVD from Netflix from whom you already are paying $xx per month for the subscription? I did that for a movie that my wife wanted, and the movie was in our mailbox in three days, complete with Amaray case and cover art.
I honestly don't see why this is a big deal. There are so many other outlets to get movies illegally, even the complete DVD images. I know very well that the Linux crowd would love to make this an example of how people don't want DRM in order to enforce Fair Use with non-Windows systems and I agree with that. But we all know that the conspiracy-loving media, the studios, and the only-pirates-talk-about-removing-DRM-under-the-dis guise-of-Fair-Use crowd (you know who you are, and Slashdot unfortunately has a lot) are going to only look at this as a method of piracy even though there are lots of other ways to do obtain pirated media, including just getting the DVD from Netflix.
And if so, then SO WHAT?! The point is to make math fun and interesting. If adding a horoscope does that, then there is no reason not to add one. Similarly, if a Feng Shui example can be properly made to provide a way to make someone understand some piece of geography, then why the hell should it not be added?
Stop looking at the delivery mechanism and look at the results. You sound like the kind who would get pissed off if his pizza was delivered by horse-and-buggy instead of by car even if the pizza was still delivered on time.
Do you mean free like those games (like Battlefield 2142 and Counter-Strike) that implemented in-game advertising in return for offering the game for free? Wait. You mean, they didn't offer the game for free? No? How about a steep discount. No? They didn't offer that either? Well, imagine that.
Okay, look at that PeoplePC deal from several years ago where people got PCs for a ridiculously low price as long as they kept the advertising! That worked great! Oh. You mean, it didn't work? Several companies tried it and they all failed? Really?
Be realistic here. Microsoft is not about to offer one of their cash cows (and monopoly controls) for free no matter how much advertising they throw in.
Huh? What? Noggin? NOGGIN??!! Your TV interests span from Spike to Noggin?! Dude, that's seriously hard core! I bow to thee! Who needs the BBC with Doctor Who when you can have Maggie and the Ferocious Beast!
Where have you been? Don't you know that even wanting to make a backup of media that you legally own means that you're a pirate-wannabe? If being on Slashdot has taught you anything, it should be that the mere mention of legitimate archives of optical media is grounds for suspicion and torment by the IP Protection Evangelist Death Squad(TM), a division of the BSA, MPAA, and RIAA. BAD! If you could afford to buy the game once, you should be able to afford to buy it two, three, or four times until you learn to protect your discs in a vacuum-sealed case when not in use and you learn to not blame manufacturers for defects in their hardware! BAD! Everyone who backs up an optical disc also needs to walk around with an eyepatch, peg leg, and parrot! Avast, ye scurvy backup fiend!
Oh, damn. I have to clean this sarcasm off my keyboard now. This will take weeks.
I was thinking the same thing - those damned key diskettes for the Commodore 64 and the like. They were more annoying than the booklets where you had to find word 8 of paragraph 3 on page 45 of the included adventurer's journal. At least you could photocopy the booklet at your parents' workplaces.:)
As for discs, I'd much prefer the ability to make a backup of the damned thing. But, no, no one would ever want to do that for any reason other than to pirate. No, no reason for legitimate backups at all according to the Slashdot anti-pirating gestapo. Forget children who don't know how to handle media properly (yet) or consoles that scratch the discs. They never occur. Nope. Backups are for pirates. { roll eyes }
Nice. Only on Slashdot could fact be modded as "troll".
Origin and Bullfrog were virtual pioneers in gaming. Anyone who's anyone knows about the Ultima series and how that series practically created the fantasy RPG genre. Bullfrog released some absolutely phenomenal games. Syndicate and Magic Carpet have yet to see their equals, and these games came out when the original Pentium line was relatively new. The Ultima series while it can be argued was nothing but sequels continued to build and build upon the world of Britannia. Each game was its own adventure with different challenges, tasks, difficulties, and storylines, so I would argue that each was an original in its own way. Magic Carpet was without a doubt one of the the most original games not only for being what could be argued as a strategy/action flight simulator, it included truly deformable terrain, a red/blue 3D mode, enhanced resolution for Pentium-class machines, and even a 3D "Magic Eye" mode. Then EA comes along and promptly ruins both companies.
Even with EA itself, what in blazes happened to them? Look back at EA's history for the Commodore 64 and you'll see unparalleled gaming with respect to originality. The opening sequence to Skate of Die was without a doubt the most intensive C64 intro (music-wise) of any game; games like Arctic Fox were incredible; Racing Destruction Set was one of the first to let you build your own race course, complete with jumps, and include decent physics. EA was in the top three, next to Epyx and Activition, of top gaming companies for the 1980s with new, exciting, and very original games being released what seemed like every few weeks.
Now, look at them. They buy developers and force them to release buggy code and even buggier patches (Battlefield 2, which I do enjoy even with the bugs, and Ultima Ascension) and they thrive on sequel after sequel after sequel (just about all of their sports titles with a year in the title). Yet they criticize the lack of originality in games? The phrase about "getting your own house in order" is very apropos.
But, look out! Point out these facts on Slashdot and get modded "troll". Yeah, that makes sense. But this is Slashdot. Since when did facts ever get in the way of some good moderation abuse? Fortunately, I have karma to compensate and it doesn't change the fact that EA is being completely hypocritical.
This comes from EA?! This from the company that bought and subsequently destroyed Origin Systems, the company responsible for the awesome Ultima and Wing Commander series, two of the best game series ever created? This from the company that bought Bullfrog only to dissolve them into oblivion? (Bullfrog created the brilliant Magic Carpet, which contained true destructible terrain, Syndicate, Dungeon Keeper, among others.)
EA is the epitome of a company that abhors creativity by buying out companies that are known for creativity and then destroying them all so that they can put more funds to Yet The Same Sports Game Series 2008.
Maybe if EA delivers a mea culpa about how they've helped to destroy creativity in gaming will I give them any credibility with respect to this statement. A long-overdue apology for the total disaster known as Ultima: Ascension wouldn't hurt either.
You're making a lot of assumptions in your statement, and most of them are completely off the mark.
I didn't buy the laptop to be a gaming laptop, so an integrated video chip is fine by me for what I need to do.
I completely disagree with your statement regarding Studio 10. In the past several years I've found Studio to be far superior to MSP on several points. The Firewire capture is far more stable. I've had nothing but problems with MSP's video capture since MSP 6.5 whereas I've had little to no problems with Studio's video capture function. Studio also has more complete SmartSound integration than MSP at this point.
More importantly, Studio completely blows away MSP with respect to converting still pictures to video. Still pictures in MSP are very jagged with evident stair-stepping. Studio's conversions by comparison are very sharp and crisp. The differences between the two are very obvious.
You clearly have no idea what my use of the hardware is. I use the Studio AV/DV hardware very infrequently nowadays, but I used it frequently for VHS, 8mm, and laserdisc conversion to DVD. I've found it to be one of the best and most stable analog-to-digital kits out there. A give me some credit, please. I'm not about to use an analog interface with a DV camcorder. I haven't done any VHS or laserdisc conversions in years, but I have the hardware and as I mentioned I still find Studio to be superior to MSP in several, important ways. So I have no problems paying for and using both MSP and Studio.
That might be true, but they now have someone else who's fervently on the anti-Vista bandwagon. I'll be more than happy to discuss the issues that I've had with Vista with anyone who is considering getting it. Honestly, I think that that is what Microsoft is fighting against by making this new statement of theirs. People don't want Vista. They know it. They're scared sh!tless about that. At least, that's the way I see it.
I don't care if they keep pushing it out as long as it's worth the wait. There have been too many examples of games that were totally destroyed because the publisher/developer demanded holding firm to an unrealistic release date. One of the most well known was that abomination called Ultima: Ascension that still was unplayeable even after several patches. EA demanded that it be released about 1 year before it should have been in order to meet the Christmas market for that year, and what a piece of sh!t that turned out to be.
In this case, if the Spore developers need more time to make the game bug-free and worthy of my dollars, I'll gladly grant them that time. Now, if it goes to the level of delays that we're seeing with DNF, that's a different story.
You are so right! I recently bought a Compaq laptop that had Vista Home Premium on it. I found Aero to be a massive resource hog, even with the latest system and video drivers. Even listening to WinAmp with no visualization turned on would result in 25% CPU utilization! So, I shut off Aero after which the CPU utilization when listening to WinAmp dropped to about 5-10%. All right. Great. One hurdle overcome.
The big kicker for me was that I was completely unable to use Ulead's Media Studio Pro, which is my video editing software. The laptop has a Firewire port, so that made it a big plus for me to be able to do some editing on the laptop when I'm not at home. Thanks to the new way that Vista talks to the hardware, MSP was useless for all but basic editing. The Preview window didn't work and the audio didn't work, which made it impossible to be able to sync up audio and splice video segments together. Changing the compatibility mode in Vista made no difference.
On top of that, I needed to download a Vista-compatible DVD of Stuido 10 Titanium from Pinnacle's site. It was a free download and it worked fine as far as I could tell, but I'm glad that I have FTTH/FIOS because it was a 1.4 GB download!
There are also a number of other issues with Vista that cumulatively made me decide that enough was enough, like the initial issue that I had where my account would work fine but my wife's account, which I set up as an administrator-level account, couldn't log on stating that she didn't have the rights to log on. (!!!) I bought a 160 GB hard drive from NewEgg, threw it into the laptop, and installed XP. All of my hardware and software are working just fine. And now Microsoft is trying to push me to go back to Vista? They can kiss my ass. It's not happening.
And exactly how is that?! I have a Bluetooth earpiece when I drive (and only when I drive, unlike those who think they're cool by walking around everywhere with one stuck in their ear). My cell phone is almost entirely voice activated. I push one button on my earpiece and that's it. Everything else is vocal.. and this is an older, LG phone that wasn't even the top of the line! I would assume that the newer and the more expensive models have even more voice-activated bells and whistles.
How the hell is pushing a button on an earpiece that you can just barely see in your peripheral vision and giving your phone voice commands anywhere close to being as dangerous as some jackass with a phone plastered to the side of his head who head and has to physically manipulate the buttons in order to get the phone to do what he wants?
I'm really fed up with this enormous, broad brush that you anti-phone-while-driving people use.
True. I've had both exceptional customer service as well as "you don't have a clue, Mr. Customer" customer "service", if it can qualify as "service". In truth, though, I can understand things from the call center side as well.
I remember one time when I bought one of those new 4x AGP video cards. (Yes, it was that long ago.) I was having a lot of problems with it, so I tried the various speeds (1X, 2X, 4X), tried different driver versions, and so forth. I finally gave up and did the last resort - called tech support.
I explained the problem but I didn't go into what I did up to that point. The tech support rep asked if I had the card in my hands, which I did. "Okay. If you look on the card, there are a set of pins with a black square connecting them." I replied very simply, "Yes, the jumper." There was silence for about three seconds until I heard, "You know what a jumper is???!!" I chuckled and said, "Yes, I've been building my own PCs for a few years now."
His response says it all: "Oh, thank God! Someone who knows what he's doing!" The call was as smooth as glass after that and I ended up doing an RMA without all of the checklist bullsh*t.
Wait. Let me get this straight. eBay can deny their customers the ability to use alternate payment methods (Western Union, Google Checkout) in an anti-competitive move to try to force people to PayPal, which eBay owns. That's just a-OK. But if Google tries to take advantage of the opportunity to make people aware of Google Payments, which eBay is denying their paying sellers to implement, all hell breaks loose and eBay gets all upset!
Don't get me wrong. I like eBay and PayPal. I've never had a bad experience with either of them. But I found it to be more than coincidental that very shortly after eBay bought PayPal suddenly they have to ban Western Union and other payment services, citing "consumer fraud protection". Oh, f**king spare me!! I used Western Union several times for my auctions with no problems at all. Even eBay's sellers tools will reject the submission of an auction if the words "Western Union" are found in the description!
So, now Google decides to take advantage of an opportunity to make themselves known to eBay customers, and eBay gets all pissed off? Wow.
Another point on that is that there is an assumption anymore (and understandably so) that the accent is always Indian. That's definitely not always the case, especially on enterprise-level support calls. Fortunately, I'm quite adept at deciphering even the thickest accents; however, I know people who have a hell of a time understanding the person on the other end when the call gets routed to England or Ireland! I remember once when I had to be called over to work with an Irish tech support because the other admin couldn't understand what he was saying!
A dislike for thick accents != racism (unless Jesse Jackson or Al Sharpton hear about it, of course).
Wait... I'm really confused here. According to DNS records, TorrentSpy is in Holland. Last I checked, Holland is not a U.S. state or protectorate. Does this magistrate really expect TorrentSpy to hand over anything just because she says so? As much as I am against illegal downloading, in this case I really hope that the TorrentSpy guys give her the old Cartman line about making pies in the kitchen. This kind of arrogance from the judiciary that people in other countries are supposed to quake if they do something that is otherwise illegal here in the States really needs to stop.
(Sorry if this was already asked, but I didn't see it in the thread.)
Slashdot Mirror
I didn't catch that C&C is also released by EA. *blush* Still, I don't see EA releasing any Origin titles as freeware any time soon. I'd love to see a revamped version of all of them to use today's technology. In fact, a great marketing tool would be to release the originals as freeware (do they run under DosBox?) while they re-tool the series to work under modern technology as a commercial project.
Same thing with the old LucasArts games. Sam and Max are now under Tell Tale Games, so why does Lucas hold onto the original? Release it to freeware, for crying out loud! Wishful thinking, I suppose.
Huh? I remember hearing a while ago that Freespace 2 was released as freeware. A quick glance at its Wikipedia entry also shows that its source code was made available. In fact, a Google search will list a number of freeware web sites that have links to the game.
:)
:(
In short, you've been missing out all this time.
But don't expect the Wing Commander series to be released as freeware any time soon. It's own by EA now.
You obviously don't own a Wii. When in the browser, press that little "+" button on the Wiimote. Text size increases. Yeah, that was difficult. Same thing with the News function on the Wii. For basic viewing of uncomplicated web pages, it works great. Pages like CNN, BBC, Google, and so forth load up fine. If the newest Macromedia Flash (version 7, I think) is required, you're screwed, but otherwise the Wii browser should work well.
Wow. I'm glad you think that it was worthwhile to say that. Do you feel better now? { roll eyes }
Look at my first two sentences, emphasis mine: "Okay, if this is to watch the videos on a non-Windows system or if you ha[t]e being forced into Windows/IE, fine. I'm okay with that as long as you manually adhere to the rental terms and delete the file."
Heh. That was just assumed to be the reason for some people. :)
Okay, if this is to watch the videos on a non-Windows system or if you have being forced into Windows/IE, fine. I'm okay with that as long as you manually adhere to the rental terms and delete the file. I know the reality of that, but on principle I agree that the DRM stripping can be a viable option for fair use for those who don't have or like Windows/IE.
s guise-of-Fair-Use crowd (you know who you are, and Slashdot unfortunately has a lot) are going to only look at this as a method of piracy even though there are lots of other ways to do obtain pirated media, including just getting the DVD from Netflix.
But if anyone wants to do this to download and keep the file, I really have to question WHY?? The only way to do this is if you have a Netflix account. So, if you're hell-bent on keeping a copy, you might as well go through the whole process of having the DVD sent to you and then do a rent-rip-return. At least that way you'll get the whole thing in full DVD quality with all of the bells, whistles, commentaries, and additional material.
Not only do you need a Netflix account, but you also obviously need to have a broadband connection. In that case there are plenty of other outlets from Usenet to P2P to IRC to obtain copies of movies that already have any DRM stripped off.
And if it's a movie that you really would like but don't want to pay $20 for a new DVD, why not just pay $5 for a used DVD from Netflix from whom you already are paying $xx per month for the subscription? I did that for a movie that my wife wanted, and the movie was in our mailbox in three days, complete with Amaray case and cover art.
I honestly don't see why this is a big deal. There are so many other outlets to get movies illegally, even the complete DVD images. I know very well that the Linux crowd would love to make this an example of how people don't want DRM in order to enforce Fair Use with non-Windows systems and I agree with that. But we all know that the conspiracy-loving media, the studios, and the only-pirates-talk-about-removing-DRM-under-the-di
And if so, then SO WHAT?! The point is to make math fun and interesting. If adding a horoscope does that, then there is no reason not to add one. Similarly, if a Feng Shui example can be properly made to provide a way to make someone understand some piece of geography, then why the hell should it not be added?
Stop looking at the delivery mechanism and look at the results. You sound like the kind who would get pissed off if his pizza was delivered by horse-and-buggy instead of by car even if the pizza was still delivered on time.
Do you mean free like those games (like Battlefield 2142 and Counter-Strike) that implemented in-game advertising in return for offering the game for free? Wait. You mean, they didn't offer the game for free? No? How about a steep discount. No? They didn't offer that either? Well, imagine that.
Okay, look at that PeoplePC deal from several years ago where people got PCs for a ridiculously low price as long as they kept the advertising! That worked great! Oh. You mean, it didn't work? Several companies tried it and they all failed? Really?
Be realistic here. Microsoft is not about to offer one of their cash cows (and monopoly controls) for free no matter how much advertising they throw in.
F*ck you, Mr. "I'm Going To Abuse My Mod Points By Using An Overrated Where It Doesn't Belong" assh*le.
Huh? What? Noggin? NOGGIN??!! Your TV interests span from Spike to Noggin?! Dude, that's seriously hard core! I bow to thee! Who needs the BBC with Doctor Who when you can have Maggie and the Ferocious Beast!
*cough*
Where have you been? Don't you know that even wanting to make a backup of media that you legally own means that you're a pirate-wannabe? If being on Slashdot has taught you anything, it should be that the mere mention of legitimate archives of optical media is grounds for suspicion and torment by the IP Protection Evangelist Death Squad(TM), a division of the BSA, MPAA, and RIAA. BAD! If you could afford to buy the game once, you should be able to afford to buy it two, three, or four times until you learn to protect your discs in a vacuum-sealed case when not in use and you learn to not blame manufacturers for defects in their hardware! BAD! Everyone who backs up an optical disc also needs to walk around with an eyepatch, peg leg, and parrot! Avast, ye scurvy backup fiend!
Oh, damn. I have to clean this sarcasm off my keyboard now. This will take weeks.
I was thinking the same thing - those damned key diskettes for the Commodore 64 and the like. They were more annoying than the booklets where you had to find word 8 of paragraph 3 on page 45 of the included adventurer's journal. At least you could photocopy the booklet at your parents' workplaces. :)
As for discs, I'd much prefer the ability to make a backup of the damned thing. But, no, no one would ever want to do that for any reason other than to pirate. No, no reason for legitimate backups at all according to the Slashdot anti-pirating gestapo. Forget children who don't know how to handle media properly (yet) or consoles that scratch the discs. They never occur. Nope. Backups are for pirates. { roll eyes }
Nice. Only on Slashdot could fact be modded as "troll".
Origin and Bullfrog were virtual pioneers in gaming. Anyone who's anyone knows about the Ultima series and how that series practically created the fantasy RPG genre. Bullfrog released some absolutely phenomenal games. Syndicate and Magic Carpet have yet to see their equals, and these games came out when the original Pentium line was relatively new. The Ultima series while it can be argued was nothing but sequels continued to build and build upon the world of Britannia. Each game was its own adventure with different challenges, tasks, difficulties, and storylines, so I would argue that each was an original in its own way. Magic Carpet was without a doubt one of the the most original games not only for being what could be argued as a strategy/action flight simulator, it included truly deformable terrain, a red/blue 3D mode, enhanced resolution for Pentium-class machines, and even a 3D "Magic Eye" mode. Then EA comes along and promptly ruins both companies.
Even with EA itself, what in blazes happened to them? Look back at EA's history for the Commodore 64 and you'll see unparalleled gaming with respect to originality. The opening sequence to Skate of Die was without a doubt the most intensive C64 intro (music-wise) of any game; games like Arctic Fox were incredible; Racing Destruction Set was one of the first to let you build your own race course, complete with jumps, and include decent physics. EA was in the top three, next to Epyx and Activition, of top gaming companies for the 1980s with new, exciting, and very original games being released what seemed like every few weeks.
Now, look at them. They buy developers and force them to release buggy code and even buggier patches (Battlefield 2, which I do enjoy even with the bugs, and Ultima Ascension) and they thrive on sequel after sequel after sequel (just about all of their sports titles with a year in the title). Yet they criticize the lack of originality in games? The phrase about "getting your own house in order" is very apropos.
But, look out! Point out these facts on Slashdot and get modded "troll". Yeah, that makes sense. But this is Slashdot. Since when did facts ever get in the way of some good moderation abuse? Fortunately, I have karma to compensate and it doesn't change the fact that EA is being completely hypocritical.
This comes from EA?! This from the company that bought and subsequently destroyed Origin Systems, the company responsible for the awesome Ultima and Wing Commander series, two of the best game series ever created? This from the company that bought Bullfrog only to dissolve them into oblivion? (Bullfrog created the brilliant Magic Carpet, which contained true destructible terrain, Syndicate, Dungeon Keeper, among others.)
EA is the epitome of a company that abhors creativity by buying out companies that are known for creativity and then destroying them all so that they can put more funds to Yet The Same Sports Game Series 2008.
Maybe if EA delivers a mea culpa about how they've helped to destroy creativity in gaming will I give them any credibility with respect to this statement. A long-overdue apology for the total disaster known as Ultima: Ascension wouldn't hurt either.
You're making a lot of assumptions in your statement, and most of them are completely off the mark.
I didn't buy the laptop to be a gaming laptop, so an integrated video chip is fine by me for what I need to do.
I completely disagree with your statement regarding Studio 10. In the past several years I've found Studio to be far superior to MSP on several points. The Firewire capture is far more stable. I've had nothing but problems with MSP's video capture since MSP 6.5 whereas I've had little to no problems with Studio's video capture function. Studio also has more complete SmartSound integration than MSP at this point.
More importantly, Studio completely blows away MSP with respect to converting still pictures to video. Still pictures in MSP are very jagged with evident stair-stepping. Studio's conversions by comparison are very sharp and crisp. The differences between the two are very obvious.
You clearly have no idea what my use of the hardware is. I use the Studio AV/DV hardware very infrequently nowadays, but I used it frequently for VHS, 8mm, and laserdisc conversion to DVD. I've found it to be one of the best and most stable analog-to-digital kits out there. A give me some credit, please. I'm not about to use an analog interface with a DV camcorder. I haven't done any VHS or laserdisc conversions in years, but I have the hardware and as I mentioned I still find Studio to be superior to MSP in several, important ways. So I have no problems paying for and using both MSP and Studio.
That might be true, but they now have someone else who's fervently on the anti-Vista bandwagon. I'll be more than happy to discuss the issues that I've had with Vista with anyone who is considering getting it. Honestly, I think that that is what Microsoft is fighting against by making this new statement of theirs. People don't want Vista. They know it. They're scared sh!tless about that. At least, that's the way I see it.
I don't care if they keep pushing it out as long as it's worth the wait. There have been too many examples of games that were totally destroyed because the publisher/developer demanded holding firm to an unrealistic release date. One of the most well known was that abomination called Ultima: Ascension that still was unplayeable even after several patches. EA demanded that it be released about 1 year before it should have been in order to meet the Christmas market for that year, and what a piece of sh!t that turned out to be.
In this case, if the Spore developers need more time to make the game bug-free and worthy of my dollars, I'll gladly grant them that time. Now, if it goes to the level of delays that we're seeing with DNF, that's a different story.
You are so right! I recently bought a Compaq laptop that had Vista Home Premium on it. I found Aero to be a massive resource hog, even with the latest system and video drivers. Even listening to WinAmp with no visualization turned on would result in 25% CPU utilization! So, I shut off Aero after which the CPU utilization when listening to WinAmp dropped to about 5-10%. All right. Great. One hurdle overcome.
The big kicker for me was that I was completely unable to use Ulead's Media Studio Pro, which is my video editing software. The laptop has a Firewire port, so that made it a big plus for me to be able to do some editing on the laptop when I'm not at home. Thanks to the new way that Vista talks to the hardware, MSP was useless for all but basic editing. The Preview window didn't work and the audio didn't work, which made it impossible to be able to sync up audio and splice video segments together. Changing the compatibility mode in Vista made no difference.
On top of that, I needed to download a Vista-compatible DVD of Stuido 10 Titanium from Pinnacle's site. It was a free download and it worked fine as far as I could tell, but I'm glad that I have FTTH/FIOS because it was a 1.4 GB download!
There are also a number of other issues with Vista that cumulatively made me decide that enough was enough, like the initial issue that I had where my account would work fine but my wife's account, which I set up as an administrator-level account, couldn't log on stating that she didn't have the rights to log on. (!!!) I bought a 160 GB hard drive from NewEgg, threw it into the laptop, and installed XP. All of my hardware and software are working just fine. And now Microsoft is trying to push me to go back to Vista? They can kiss my ass. It's not happening.
And exactly how is that?! I have a Bluetooth earpiece when I drive (and only when I drive, unlike those who think they're cool by walking around everywhere with one stuck in their ear). My cell phone is almost entirely voice activated. I push one button on my earpiece and that's it. Everything else is vocal .. and this is an older, LG phone that wasn't even the top of the line! I would assume that the newer and the more expensive models have even more voice-activated bells and whistles.
How the hell is pushing a button on an earpiece that you can just barely see in your peripheral vision and giving your phone voice commands anywhere close to being as dangerous as some jackass with a phone plastered to the side of his head who head and has to physically manipulate the buttons in order to get the phone to do what he wants?
I'm really fed up with this enormous, broad brush that you anti-phone-while-driving people use.
True. I've had both exceptional customer service as well as "you don't have a clue, Mr. Customer" customer "service", if it can qualify as "service". In truth, though, I can understand things from the call center side as well.
I remember one time when I bought one of those new 4x AGP video cards. (Yes, it was that long ago.) I was having a lot of problems with it, so I tried the various speeds (1X, 2X, 4X), tried different driver versions, and so forth. I finally gave up and did the last resort - called tech support.
I explained the problem but I didn't go into what I did up to that point. The tech support rep asked if I had the card in my hands, which I did. "Okay. If you look on the card, there are a set of pins with a black square connecting them." I replied very simply, "Yes, the jumper." There was silence for about three seconds until I heard, "You know what a jumper is???!!" I chuckled and said, "Yes, I've been building my own PCs for a few years now."
His response says it all: "Oh, thank God! Someone who knows what he's doing!" The call was as smooth as glass after that and I ended up doing an RMA without all of the checklist bullsh*t.
Wait. Let me get this straight. eBay can deny their customers the ability to use alternate payment methods (Western Union, Google Checkout) in an anti-competitive move to try to force people to PayPal, which eBay owns. That's just a-OK. But if Google tries to take advantage of the opportunity to make people aware of Google Payments, which eBay is denying their paying sellers to implement, all hell breaks loose and eBay gets all upset!
Don't get me wrong. I like eBay and PayPal. I've never had a bad experience with either of them. But I found it to be more than coincidental that very shortly after eBay bought PayPal suddenly they have to ban Western Union and other payment services, citing "consumer fraud protection". Oh, f**king spare me!! I used Western Union several times for my auctions with no problems at all. Even eBay's sellers tools will reject the submission of an auction if the words "Western Union" are found in the description!
So, now Google decides to take advantage of an opportunity to make themselves known to eBay customers, and eBay gets all pissed off? Wow.
Okay, that makes sense. Thanks for clearing that up.
Another point on that is that there is an assumption anymore (and understandably so) that the accent is always Indian. That's definitely not always the case, especially on enterprise-level support calls. Fortunately, I'm quite adept at deciphering even the thickest accents; however, I know people who have a hell of a time understanding the person on the other end when the call gets routed to England or Ireland! I remember once when I had to be called over to work with an Irish tech support because the other admin couldn't understand what he was saying!
A dislike for thick accents != racism (unless Jesse Jackson or Al Sharpton hear about it, of course).
Wait ... I'm really confused here. According to DNS records, TorrentSpy is in Holland. Last I checked, Holland is not a U.S. state or protectorate. Does this magistrate really expect TorrentSpy to hand over anything just because she says so? As much as I am against illegal downloading, in this case I really hope that the TorrentSpy guys give her the old Cartman line about making pies in the kitchen. This kind of arrogance from the judiciary that people in other countries are supposed to quake if they do something that is otherwise illegal here in the States really needs to stop.
(Sorry if this was already asked, but I didn't see it in the thread.)