Great Question. I'd love to know if Sony really appreciates the role of the blogosphere and their PR failures in Sony's current situation.
It seems like choosing the MS (embrace and extend) or Nintendo (shut up until there's something to say) PR strategies would have served the company better than the current Sony Plan.
This is the real problem with the Article. Has nothing to do with the Cell per se, just that we're getting PR crap instead of engineering information.
Ask someone whose salary is not tied to the success of the platform.
A used game at Gamestop "valued at $19.99" is only worth $5 to the store (that's how much they bought it for). AND you only get it if you wait around for them to provide you a system.
So GS/EB is giving you what amounts to a $5 discount on a $600 system you waited in line for xxx hours to get.
PS2:
Purchasers had a lot of money as an early 20-something, since they had no family or real responsibility. Heck, they were living in their Mom's basement and the only expenses were car insurance and slim jims.
PS3:
Prospective purchasers now have 2.5 children and a mortgage.
It's not the economy. Unless you keep your money under your mattress, you will have generous capital gains taxes to pay this year.
This raises an interesting issue, which many posters have alluded to. Here's a thought experiment:
Suppose using the best and most widely accepted principles of human evolution, scientists conclude that people of race X evolved along a different path than race Y (please don't argue this point, it's just a thought experiment). Suppose then that the same principles led scientists to believe that X is superior to Y.
How would a moral person deal with this information? (don't argue morality... just a TE). If science is based on truth, and our current version of "truth" is viewed as racist, what do we make of it, regardless of how unpleasant it is?
Some of the posters have tried to reconcile the finding (which can be viewed as racist), with an emotional reaction of "but of course this doesn't mean..."
I find this topic interesting because it shows how a rational/moral conflict can exist even among people who may not consider themselves religious.
My father (70 years old this year) has finally gotten into First-Person Shooters. He's playing Far Cry and Call of Duty 2 on a new dual-core box I built for him.
The funny part is that during his younger gaming years, he was an aficionado of Avalon Hill and SPI wargames. When he got his first computer, he would play Steel Panthers, Age of Rifles, etc. He moved up to Real Time Strategy games (He loved Age of Empires), and now plays FPSs.
I don't think he's ready for online yet, though. Probably spend most of the time telling the CS babies to "watch their language". But, I'm proud of him:)
String theory is at times one of the biggest con jobs in Physics, and at other times some of the most interesting speculation. It's also the 'Theory that will NOT die!' reminding me of so many late night C rate thrillers.
Why? Because everytime string theory gets disproven, they come out with a new theory and call it 'String Theory'.
This reminds me of Evolution, in the sense that the label "Evolution" is applied to all areas of science: Biology, Astronomy, Geology... It's as if no one would ever refute anything called "Evolution" for fear of being labeled a religious fundamentalist.
I'm uncomfortable with the automatic acceptance (at the popular level, anyway) of anything labelled evolution, without proper scientific examination. I see this all the time on documentaries, TV shows, talk shows. Some scientist will say "Oh, that's evolution." and the host will just nod his head as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
Maybe it's just me, but if we want to keep religion out of science, we need to start with ourselves.
Sony has claimed to have sold around 100 million, not 200 million. Of course, 100 million is a huge amount, and there's no denying that the PS2 is the best gaming bargain around.
Which brings me to the next point (made by many before me). Sony has the unenviable position of having the best gaming value on the shelf right next to the worst. Final Fantasy is a big draw, it's true. FFXII for PS2 is looking better than any PS3 launch title.
If I were Sony, I'd just stop selling the PS2 when the PS3 came out. After all, the PS3 plays all the PS2 games, right?
Sony laughing at MS because the PS2 is outselling the 360 is like them saying "Ha ha! Your half of the boat is sinking!"
This is not a troll. Even though it refers to religious topics, the post is not about religion. Please read it all before modding it down.
Mr. Pullman --
Although I have some sympathy for your sentiments expressed in the letter, I am more alarmed at the content and agenda espoused by your own writings, targeted at children.
The "His Dark Materials" trilogy (which I have read), is dark, shallow and agressive agenda fiction. In your own words, you hoped to create an atheist alternative to the "Chronicles of Narnia", which you have several personal issues with.
Regardless of ideology, you are neither the author nor scholar that Lewis is. While an Adults (and Christian children) may see religious themes in the works of Lewis, the Narnia books work on the level of children's fiction, with no direct allusions to Christ, God, or organized religion of any kind.
On the other hand, your ham-fisted works give us the following:
1. A god who is evil
2. That god is the god of human organized religion
3. Children whose mission it is to "kill god"
4. Priests and other representatives of this religion (Anglican, it seems) torture and kill children by removing part of their souls.
You talk about children growing up too fast. I believe that your books force issues on children that they are not prepared to deal with, by presenting them with a morality play slanted heavily in your own political/ideological agenda.
It is one thing for adults to discuss these things intelligently, it is another to hide your propaganda in thinly veiled hate-creeds posing as children's fiction.
I am not for censorship. I do not argue with anyone's right to believe what they want. I just argue that anyone who deals with children as a target audience has an obligation to deal with them on an intellectually honest level, and not stuff propaganda down their throats.
My best example is one you are familiar with, in that C.S. Lewis approached his fantasy and adult writings differently. Christian children do not like being preached at when they want to be entertained. I assume Atheist children don't either.
Obviously, we're all free to express our opinions here. But just for an experiment, I would like you to print out your post, and keep it in a safe place. In the event you do have children, wait until he/she is in 3rd grade, and re-read the post.
Having children may not change your stance on this. But in my experience, having children changes just about everything, especially (obviously) attitudes toward raising children.
I think a lot of young people have the attitude that being (or having been) a child somehow qualifies you for being a parent. That's sort of like saying being a shoplifter qualifies you for a career in law enforcement.:)
For full disclosure, I wouldn't let my 3rd grader play Vice City, or play with another 3rd grader who did.
How many lumens could a cell phone generate? Projecting on the palm of your hand, sure. Projecting on a wall from say, 6 feet? That's a lot of light energy, my friend. At best, It would have to be a very very dark room.
"Just in Time" requires precision calculation as to how much inventory is required to BUILD a product, not deliver a product. For example, if Sony Stockpiled too many Cell processors, that is bad, and wastes warehouse space (although cell chips wouldn't take up appreciable space). If there are too few, demand goes unmet.
"JIT" does not refer to completed product. That calculation is different, and is based on market demand, not manufacturing capacity (which is only indirectly based on market demand).
In short Sony does not have enough completed product, and no JIT strategy will get them there.
Echostar played fast and loose with Tivo's IP. It's great that you seem to think Tivo is owed money, but it's Echostar that decided it was worth the risk. Echostar's customers don't have Echostar DVRs because Echostar thought they could get away with something and didn't.
I don't see how Tivo takes the fall for that.
Well, I guess my attempt at humor didn't work. Anyway, I have nothing against FF. S/E are welcome to make as many FF/DQ games as they want... why not? People love them, and many folks would be disappointed if they went away.
I'm not saying S/E *can't* be innovative, I'm just saying their track record for innovation isn't there, in my opinion.
Any company that is about to release version 13 (and then some) of a game is hardly qualified to lead the charge for innovation.
Flame away, fanboys, I'm here all night:)
The next steps in that forward progression will be along the path of war. McDaniel pointed out that a big part of Star Wars is the Galactic Civil War, in which the Rebels are struggling to overthrow the oppressive Empire. To that end, the SWG development team will be looking at ways to ramp up the conflict.
OK SOE, you listening? Good. here's the Pitch: Empire develops a MMORPG, sure it's buggy, but they get all the Rebel planets to subscribe and improve it. Just when everything is going good, change all the rules and tell the Rebels it's for their own good. THAT will get your little war started.
I think MS probably meant "current gen" titles when talking about "game library", although the term needs to include ALL games you can play on the system (i.e. the insurmountable library available to DS owners).
OTOH, I think it's funny for (some of) the PS3 and Nintendo advocates to complain that 360 has had a head start (# of games, quality thereof). Of course they do. That's what happens when you release first. Of course that's a double-edged sword, in that Nintendo and Sony got to see exactly what MS went to market with, and now have had a year to make their offering all the better.
Slashdot Mirror
It seems like choosing the MS (embrace and extend) or Nintendo (shut up until there's something to say) PR strategies would have served the company better than the current Sony Plan.
Linux is a (great) operating system
I don't get the confusion.
This is the real problem with the Article. Has nothing to do with the Cell per se, just that we're getting PR crap instead of engineering information. Ask someone whose salary is not tied to the success of the platform.
A used game at Gamestop "valued at $19.99" is only worth $5 to the store (that's how much they bought it for). AND you only get it if you wait around for them to provide you a system. So GS/EB is giving you what amounts to a $5 discount on a $600 system you waited in line for xxx hours to get.
PS2: Purchasers had a lot of money as an early 20-something, since they had no family or real responsibility. Heck, they were living in their Mom's basement and the only expenses were car insurance and slim jims.
PS3: Prospective purchasers now have 2.5 children and a mortgage.
It's not the economy. Unless you keep your money under your mattress, you will have generous capital gains taxes to pay this year.
Suppose using the best and most widely accepted principles of human evolution, scientists conclude that people of race X evolved along a different path than race Y (please don't argue this point, it's just a thought experiment). Suppose then that the same principles led scientists to believe that X is superior to Y.
How would a moral person deal with this information? (don't argue morality... just a TE). If science is based on truth, and our current version of "truth" is viewed as racist, what do we make of it, regardless of how unpleasant it is?
Some of the posters have tried to reconcile the finding (which can be viewed as racist), with an emotional reaction of "but of course this doesn't mean..."
I find this topic interesting because it shows how a rational/moral conflict can exist even among people who may not consider themselves religious.
The funny part is that during his younger gaming years, he was an aficionado of Avalon Hill and SPI wargames. When he got his first computer, he would play Steel Panthers, Age of Rifles, etc. He moved up to Real Time Strategy games (He loved Age of Empires), and now plays FPSs.
I don't think he's ready for online yet, though. Probably spend most of the time telling the CS babies to "watch their language". But, I'm proud of him :)
Serioiusly, though. Don't let other people determine your career path. If that's what you want to do, then do it.
O.R. is not science. That's why it's not called "Occam's Law". It's about as useful as an analogy in a discussion, and about as scientific.
Just because something is easier to understand, doesn't make it true.
This reminds me of Evolution, in the sense that the label "Evolution" is applied to all areas of science: Biology, Astronomy, Geology... It's as if no one would ever refute anything called "Evolution" for fear of being labeled a religious fundamentalist.
I'm uncomfortable with the automatic acceptance (at the popular level, anyway) of anything labelled evolution, without proper scientific examination. I see this all the time on documentaries, TV shows, talk shows. Some scientist will say "Oh, that's evolution." and the host will just nod his head as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
Maybe it's just me, but if we want to keep religion out of science, we need to start with ourselves.
Which brings me to the next point (made by many before me). Sony has the unenviable position of having the best gaming value on the shelf right next to the worst. Final Fantasy is a big draw, it's true. FFXII for PS2 is looking better than any PS3 launch title.
If I were Sony, I'd just stop selling the PS2 when the PS3 came out. After all, the PS3 plays all the PS2 games, right?
Sony laughing at MS because the PS2 is outselling the 360 is like them saying "Ha ha! Your half of the boat is sinking!"
Mr. Pullman --
Although I have some sympathy for your sentiments expressed in the letter, I am more alarmed at the content and agenda espoused by your own writings, targeted at children.
The "His Dark Materials" trilogy (which I have read), is dark, shallow and agressive agenda fiction. In your own words, you hoped to create an atheist alternative to the "Chronicles of Narnia", which you have several personal issues with.
Regardless of ideology, you are neither the author nor scholar that Lewis is. While an Adults (and Christian children) may see religious themes in the works of Lewis, the Narnia books work on the level of children's fiction, with no direct allusions to Christ, God, or organized religion of any kind.
On the other hand, your ham-fisted works give us the following:
1. A god who is evil
2. That god is the god of human organized religion
3. Children whose mission it is to "kill god"
4. Priests and other representatives of this religion (Anglican, it seems) torture and kill children by removing part of their souls.
You talk about children growing up too fast. I believe that your books force issues on children that they are not prepared to deal with, by presenting them with a morality play slanted heavily in your own political/ideological agenda.
It is one thing for adults to discuss these things intelligently, it is another to hide your propaganda in thinly veiled hate-creeds posing as children's fiction.
I am not for censorship. I do not argue with anyone's right to believe what they want. I just argue that anyone who deals with children as a target audience has an obligation to deal with them on an intellectually honest level, and not stuff propaganda down their throats.
My best example is one you are familiar with, in that C.S. Lewis approached his fantasy and adult writings differently. Christian children do not like being preached at when they want to be entertained. I assume Atheist children don't either.
One time, at my friends house, he had a really short length of digital cable and a really strong signal, and the 1s were being rounded up to 2s!
No, Billy, them is trucks
What is in 'em?
Cows and Ducks!
fortibuses in ero
Nobili demis trux
Vatis enim?
Covsendux!
That was on my 8th grade Latin exam. ;)
Obviously, we're all free to express our opinions here. But just for an experiment, I would like you to print out your post, and keep it in a safe place. In the event you do have children, wait until he/she is in 3rd grade, and re-read the post. Having children may not change your stance on this. But in my experience, having children changes just about everything, especially (obviously) attitudes toward raising children. I think a lot of young people have the attitude that being (or having been) a child somehow qualifies you for being a parent. That's sort of like saying being a shoplifter qualifies you for a career in law enforcement. :)
For full disclosure, I wouldn't let my 3rd grader play Vice City, or play with another 3rd grader who did.
How many lumens could a cell phone generate? Projecting on the palm of your hand, sure. Projecting on a wall from say, 6 feet? That's a lot of light energy, my friend. At best, It would have to be a very very dark room.
"Just in Time" requires precision calculation as to how much inventory is required to BUILD a product, not deliver a product. For example, if Sony Stockpiled too many Cell processors, that is bad, and wastes warehouse space (although cell chips wouldn't take up appreciable space). If there are too few, demand goes unmet.
"JIT" does not refer to completed product. That calculation is different, and is based on market demand, not manufacturing capacity (which is only indirectly based on market demand).
In short Sony does not have enough completed product, and no JIT strategy will get them there.
You worked harder on that post than I did through most of High School.
Chances of getting PS3 without questionable ethics: slim Chances of getting Wii: 5.5 times slim (stout?)
Echostar played fast and loose with Tivo's IP. It's great that you seem to think Tivo is owed money, but it's Echostar that decided it was worth the risk. Echostar's customers don't have Echostar DVRs because Echostar thought they could get away with something and didn't. I don't see how Tivo takes the fall for that.
I'm not saying S/E *can't* be innovative, I'm just saying their track record for innovation isn't there, in my opinion.
Any company that is about to release version 13 (and then some) of a game is hardly qualified to lead the charge for innovation. Flame away, fanboys, I'm here all night :)
OK SOE, you listening? Good. here's the Pitch: Empire develops a MMORPG, sure it's buggy, but they get all the Rebel planets to subscribe and improve it. Just when everything is going good, change all the rules and tell the Rebels it's for their own good. THAT will get your little war started.
OTOH, I think it's funny for (some of) the PS3 and Nintendo advocates to complain that 360 has had a head start (# of games, quality thereof). Of course they do. That's what happens when you release first. Of course that's a double-edged sword, in that Nintendo and Sony got to see exactly what MS went to market with, and now have had a year to make their offering all the better.
All's fair in the console wars.