Posts by Greg J Preece 2481 publicly visible posts • joined 10 Jun 2009
Yes, when buying a gaming machine, the specs of said gaming machine are not relevant, because "well no-one's forcing you to buy it." Not really the point, is it? I wasn't forced to buy any of the gaming machines I own, but every other manufacturer lets me know what's in them and what they do prior to that point.
Welcome to Nintendo, where prices do not depreciate, ever. I bought a U second hand and I haven't got any games for it yet because I'm not paying $75 for games that are years old that no-one bought. Nintendo never ever ever marks their stuff down. Even when the U was dying on its arse, they refused to discount it. It's the kind of arrogance I've come to expect from them. Christ, the megabomb known as The Wonderful 101 is still $50, a game that tanked so hard it took Wii U sales with it in Japan.
I could potentially swallow the $400CAD cost of the Switch (even though that's more than a PS4...) but $100 for additional controllers is a piss-take, as is charging for their horrific online service. The games are now all $80, too. Plus, they opened pre-orders without even telling anyone the device's specs, or even showing the menu working. It's selling out, of course, because there's no fanboy worse than a Nintendo fanboy.
It wouldn't surprise me if my Drupal site was vulnerable on any given day. There seems to be a patch every 5 minutes. Every time I log into the control panel it's yelling at me about something. Here, let's try right now....
Yup, new patch version of Drupal core. Admittedly, Drupal updates have gotten way easier over the years. Non-core modules can be updated with a couple of clicks, and core stuff can be done through drush with minimal pain.
Been a PC gamer my whole life, and I'd never consider a pre-built tower. Aside from wanting to know exactly what's in it/having it match my spec, and the honest satisfaction I get from putting one together, pre-builts are often a complete rip-off. $1400 towers labelled as "premium gaming" PCs that turn out to be running 750GTs, the lowest possible quality of PSU, that kind of thing.
Well, hang on a minute, isn't the fglrx driver dropped in favour of an entirely new driver stack? Where's that? I've been hearing bits and pieces that the new AMD drivers are light years better/faster than the old ones, and when Polaris drops later this year I'm hoping to finally start gaming on Linux as a primary platform.
I also remember the ZX80, ZX81 and ZX Spectrum all of which were hugely successful and, arguably, single-handedly kick-started the UK's home PC market.
They were also the reason that the console crash wasn't nearly as big a deal in the UK. Between the Speccy, the Commodore, etc, we still had plenty to play.
So, you didn't tell us what's wrong with a Desktop interface for desktops ? Why do I have to endure the same interface on a 5in and on a 25in screen ?
You don't. I simply can't accept arguments - from Linux users of all bloody people - that they're forced to endure any windowing system. You know full well that Ubuntu will happily run most major windowing systems and that ready-made spins are usually available.
Yup, I agree. My only beef with the Amazon search thing was the lack of an off switch at launch, which was shitty behaviour, but once that got added I didn't care.
But then again, I'm a Kubuntu user, so I didn't care much anyway. ;-)
Note to Microsoft: lack of a working off switch is why I won't be installing that malware you call Windows 10.
Where I work we recently rewrote all our web software. We ditched systems that relied on Java and Flash in favour of HTML5/AngularJS gear that does the job much more seamlessly. Wanna guess what the backend servers still run and will continue to run? Yup, Java. Lots and lots of Java.
It doesn't matter if you "can get it to work" by messing around for hours. The fact is that it doesn't just work out of the box. There is no purpose for you to try to defend that state. The point of DRM is for stuff to not work.
Huh, that's interesting. It does work for me, right out of the box. Chrome isn't my normal browser so I haven't tweaked any of the settings or "messed around for hours." I just loaded Netflix, and it worked.
So we are back to the situation of not having support on many platform (older Android, Linux, Windows XP, etc) and it is easier to torrent. Any how many tears do I see being cried over this?
This simply isn't true. The method they're using now is a standards-based method of delivering DRM extensions to your browser. It can work on any platform that supports the extensions (and does). Why are people saying that this means you can't watch Netflix on Linux, for example? I said in my first comment I've been doing that for ages. This methodology keeps everyone happy - the media wonks keep their DRM comfort blanket, and people running on minority systems keep their support, and this time on an indefinite basis.
The reality of services like Netflix is that it is so cheap and convenient, why would anybody go to the trouble of copying their stuff? The only actual effect of DRM is that it makes it so I cannot use my Linux box to watch Netflix and I'm a paying subscriber.
I'd disagree, based on the type of DRM being used (which is why I used the term "reasonable" when describing it). The DRM Netflix are using now is the kind that can be auto-configured by your browser seamlessly without your intervention, so long as your browser supports it. You can quite happily watch Netflix from Linux right now on Chrome, because they were the first to implement these extensions.
The DRM they had previously was Silverlight, which is restricted proprietary bullshit that doesn't work cross-platform and requires ongoing user intervention. I don't consider that kind of DRM acceptable/reasonable. Hopefully that clarifies my position a bit more.
Sounds good. Streaming video is one area where I can understand and accept reasonable DRM, as Netflix seems to use. Fights like VP9 vs H.264/265 are worth fighting to keep content creators free of bullshit, but media extensions not so much. Nice to see Firefox taking the practical route here. I'll soon be able to use my default browser on Linux for Netflix rather than having to switch to Chrome.
Also kudos to Netflix for ditching Silverlight and going with something that can work more universally. Not having to have a Wine-based hackaround any more is very pleasant.
That is just a con. To do proper development you need more than a pad with small screen and lightweight keyboard.
You can actually do programming on the iPad - there are environments for Python, Haskell, etc.
I could also observe that OS X and iOS developers (and users) have lots of windows open doing diverse activities. Most MS users you see, just maximise one window on the whole screen. OS X is much better for doing multiple activities at once. Thus Windows is already much more towards iOS than OS X. OS X is a much more capable OS.
This is about 80% twaddle. Surface Pros are x86 Windows machines. They can run full-fat IDEs. The iPads are better because they have Python interpreters?
As for how people use machines, that has nothing to do with how capable the systems are of doing certain tasks. I've got all three major OS's installed on my Macbook Pro (think on that before you engage the distortion field), and frankly the OSX windowing suite I consider the worst of the bunch. The clunky multi-window management in the dock, dodgy app switching, counter-intuitively keeping apps open eating resources when the user doesn't explicitly close them, their ridiculous implementation of fullscreen apps, their insistence on adding stuff like Launchpad (which does literally nothing), the barely competent and anticompetitive App Store (not that Microsoft's is better), and a file manager so dazzlingly shit that basic things like "rename file" are missing from the GUI....this is not a windowing ecosystem anyone should be crowing about. OSX might have made its name for usability in the 90s but now half of what it does seems archaic and the other half seems like pointless gimmickery.
For programming I'd rather use OSX than Windows because OSX has a competent-if-underdeveloped command line, but I'd rather use Linux over either of them because KDE is a competent windowing system with many advanced options and a great app suite, and Linux has far superior programming tools, package managers, etc. And I bet it could run on a Surface Pro, too.
To say that it's impossible to do "proper development" on a tablet that's more capable of programming more things in more languages with more tools because Windows users use the maximise button is.....twaddle.
How ironic that you complained of FUD...
Home users will NEVER buy the Microsoft kit as it costs more
I love watching people say things like this with a straight face. You're complaining - in favour of Apple, no less - that a tablet device is overpriced for home users. If that stopped people the iPad would have never gotten anywhere.
I actually know a number of "home" users that have Surfaces because they're just downright better than the iPad competition. Being able to run all their Windows apps inside a decently made portable touchscreen is top dollar for them. If I were to buy a premium tablet (unlikely, but I still have a laptop) the Surface is definitely one I'd be considering.
Modernisation like getting a 64-bit version out (about time too)?
Security updates like the ones described in the article?
Getting plugins signed to help fight against, amongst other things, malware?
Do you people even read the articles any more, or do you just see a piece of software you don't use and immediately start writing the comment slagging it off?
I might even buy a Moto now that the screen on my Nexus has bust.
Have you considered repairing it yourself? While it's a bit of a fiddle to do, I bought a kit to fix mine for $70 CDN (about 35 quid). It's basically a replacement screen, and there are good YouTube vids showing how to remove the old one and attach the new. Don't forget to get a bit of the correct adhesive (not UV glue) to affix the new screen to the casing.
So, maybe I should start leaving one of those out on the roof just in case one of my neighbours tries to order something...
I was thinking exactly this. One way around it would be to put some kind of embedded radio tag in each mat, and then assign a tag code to each Prime customer when they sign up, so it will only land on your mat. Not that that would be too hard to spoof or steal.
They seem to have spent a lot of development effort on that rather than fixing some long, long-running bugs. Like crappy network management, or buggy IMAP IDLE.
Or making it so that the store works on devices that don't have a SIM card, like my Nexus 7.
It's a real shame. I'm so desperate for a successor to Maemo but they never seem to get the backing or hype they need.
Silver gets you on the Special Watch List as a Subversive Element.
Ohhhhhhhhhh fuck.
On the upside, no chance of me getting upgraded to gold. There's no way I'm considered a net positive, given how much of a greenie I was when I joined.
For Silver, a copy of Windows 10.
Even though I only really use Windows for gaming, there's no way I'm putting that spyware on my gorgeous Plasma 5 box.
Perhaps more importantly, there are tens of millions of Xboxen out there.
Pluralising that "tens" may be premature. Last time Microsoft bothered to give us numbers, it had ten million sold at the end of last year, which is what the Wii U had sold at the middle of this year. Of course, for some reason Microsoft is being tight-lipped about its numbers this generation. Can't think why...
There are some good, even superb GW based video games already, stretching back to the Dark Omen and Chaos Gate games I played in the 90s. I think people fairly universally agree that the games made by Relic were the best in recent years. I have never seen any adaptation in any medium absolutely nail the aesthetic and feel of WH40K like Space Marine did.
The gothic architecture and lighting were perfect, the fact that three Space Marines were taken seriously as reinforcement to an entire forge world, the way the world shook slightly with every step you took... You really do feel like an 8 foot genetically engineered ruiner of worlds.
I'm a Skaven WHF player, and I love that they work best when played like a lunatic. Have absolutely no heed for your own survival, hurl yourself at the enemy, and a decent portion of the time the sheer resulting chaos will win you the day. I recall a 4th edition match where my doomwheel's steering broke, and it rolled over the rat regiment next to it. My opponent was greatly amused until he realised that the wheel was also headed right for - and indeed over - his general.
I can't remember grinning that hard in any other match.
While I am stoked to see the more niche GW games get what appear to be decent video game adaptations (I adore the tabletops of Mordheim and Battlefleet Gothic), it's saddening that the main reason I'm excited for them is what an absolute set of shitbiscuits GW are being with their tabletop games these days. Pricing was always an issue with GW, but now units are priced according to points value, and every other box in a store is a special unit costing $100. The rules are being butchered left and right, any game less mainstream than the fscking Ultramarines is being thrown out of the pram, and the money-grubbing is at disgusting levels.
I was in a store the other day seeing if I am rich enough to get back into some of my favourite games, and was told it would cost me $130 + tax to get just the rulebook and ONE codex. Holy shit.
It's getting to the point where video games are going to be the only practical and affordable way to play the GW games, especially those smaller titles that really have character to them. GW are whoring the licence out to anyone who'll have it, and with Relic now gone that's getting really risky. We're doing well right now for adaptations being treated with care, but let's not forget that GW was lunatic enough just a year ago to whore 40k out to Eutechnyx, of all fucking people. Not sure who Eutechnyx are?
Ride to Hell: Retribution.
Oh yes, those guys. And what did they do with the venerated universe of Warhammer 40 000? They re-skinned one of their existing mobile lane-defence games with Space Marines and called it "Storm of Vengeance". We can do without titles like that...
TL;DR - I still love the GW universes, especially WHF, but Games Workshop only seem to become bigger arseholes with each passing year.
I don't think you're quite getting this constitution thing...
Oh, while I think about it, anyone who says that the reason they should be allowed to gun is because it's in the Constitution is producing a stupid argument: firstly, it isn't in the Constitution, it's in an Amendment;
So it's in the Constitution.... Amendments to the Constitution are still part of the Constitution....
secondly, the right to own slaves is in the Constitution, but most people would agree that isn't a reasonable thing now;
Which is why it's no longer in the Constitution, as per Constitutional amendment. That said, please also be aware that changing the Constitution is such a serious thing to do, that particular amendment took a civil war...
thirdly, if we are talking about whether something should be legal or not, stating that it is legal is not an argument.
The entire point of a Constitution is that it's a basis for the most important parts of the law, and is much, much harder to alter. Other laws can be struck down if they contradict the Constitution, and often are. It is a special law, and special consideration regarding its tenets is indeed valid.
Absolutely, and I'm also in favour of gun ownership by responsible people, just as I am in favour generally of things being granted to responsible people. The argument that's been raging in recent years in the US has little to do with whether or not guns should be allowed as possessions - good luck with that one - and is actually about one side wanting to add controls/checks on who can have guns, which I have no issue with but apparently the gun lobby does. If you have a health issue likely to cause an accident, you're not allowed to drive, but apparently checking whether you have health issues before giving you a firearm is insane.
Back to the issue - good on the librarians! In the current climate it takes some brass balls to do something like that.
I was just coming here with soda all over my monitor to object to that quote. As a guy who's into his video games and game..."fandom" (for lack of a more appropriate term) that particular sector has been hit near-constantly by overreaching ContentID restrictions.
The idea behind ContentID is IMO sound, but it has some gigantic flaws. As you correctly mentioned, content can be (and very often is) claimed by people who do not own it. The most frustrating flaw for me though is in how they handle matches. The people claiming your content immediately begin receiving all monetisation from the video. Used a ten second music clip in a third minute video? You get no money at all for your efforts. That's disgusting.
The incredibly frustrating part of that is that they were so close to having an automatic music licencing system I'd have easily been in favour of: if you use someone's content for some of your video, they get a relative portion of the revenue, not all of it. Use someone's music for 5% of your runtime? They get 5% of any money you make off the vid. If I were a video maker I would be 1000000% OK with that, assuming that problem 1 - the overreach in matches - was fixed. It would mean that even the smallest content creator can licence music for use in their videos in a way that doesn't require a single lawyer, and music creators would get paid for their content also.
The overreach needs fixing first though. Currently people can have their accounts put in bad standing for using even screenshots or clips from trailers. You can be financially penalised for helping promote their product!
It's a fucking Surface. The way the multitasking is laid out, the stylus, the keyboard, everything - it's a fucking Surface.
I'm going to watch every goon who slagged off the Surface when it came out because of their hive-mind fanboying now buy one of these and rave about how much better it is than everything else, aren't I?
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