tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33801994.post952565257848133388..comments2024-02-14T02:30:36.732-05:00Comments on The Blog of Helios: Beware the Razer's EdgeAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13978117986484281976noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33801994.post-30858781005918573182012-11-12T13:28:05.728-06:002012-11-12T13:28:05.728-06:00Crow,
We were given an unlimited license for Wor...Crow, <br /><br />We were given an unlimited license for World of Goo by 2d boy and we include it in all of our computer installs. We'll take a look at serious sam for inclusion though. We also have a copy of Crossover Games we include as well.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13978117986484281976noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33801994.post-57884832453360667972012-11-12T13:22:00.107-06:002012-11-12T13:22:00.107-06:00Mice apart, come on, we all suck at gaming when pl...Mice apart, come on, we all suck at gaming when playing with teenagers, that's why I choose cooperative gaming without lives limit to play with my kids.<br /><br />An old game like Serious Sam which runs using Wine can give you lots of fun, give it a try.<br /><br />CrowAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33801994.post-51183791676893800212012-11-10T23:35:32.049-06:002012-11-10T23:35:32.049-06:00I did not know that about Razer's mice. I have...I did not know that about Razer's mice. I have been eyeing them for gaming peripherals. But now they are off my list until they change their ways! Probably no big deal for Razer to lose me as a customer. But me and everyone who listens to my advice? Priceless! :D<br /><br />I had been hearing the first whispers of Roccat lately, so thanks for that tip, Anonymous #1. Any peripheral company that supports Linux gets my Windows gaming dollars! (I know, it sounds funny, but I use so many OSes...)Gavinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33801994.post-31749923699663246452012-11-10T23:30:02.688-06:002012-11-10T23:30:02.688-06:00It is not surprising to me that Nvidia's lates...It is not surprising to me that Nvidia's latest driver supports the GeForce 8800 GT. It is a DX10 part, after all. The unified shader architecture of the Direct3D 10 and OpenGL 3.0 functionality level was essentially a redesign of the rendering pipeline used by PCs. Hardware and rendering APIs were changed and aligned to a single model which wiped the slate clean (DX9c and OGL 2.x were messes!). All subsequent hardware has been "DX10+", making it much easier to support.<br /><br />The latest and greatest right now is DX11.1 and OGL 4.3, which really are extensions of DX10 and OGL 3.0 (just like they promised!). So that line in the sand represents everything that was deprecated, and that line is nearly 6 years old now. My GeForce 8 series vid card died a while back now, but if I still had it, it would still be supported. A very nice change of pace compared to DX7 throught DX9c. Very nice.Gavinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33801994.post-80301278595374073212012-11-10T23:17:40.157-06:002012-11-10T23:17:40.157-06:00DRM is a tricky subject. We never have figured out...DRM is a tricky subject. We never have figured out all the facets of copyright and patents. But I do believe that publishers are the main brick wall in terms of DRM applied to electronic games. Many computer games are released with DRM without any prior knowledge on behalf of the developers. The devs know that some sort of DRM will be applied to their game, but they have no idea of the specifics nor do they usually have control over it. The limited install aspect of the DRM applied to Bioshock is a good example of publisher-driven DRM that was really not a good idea at all (as evidenced by the fact that it was modified several times before being completely removed).<br /><br />The current electronic games publisher model is also completely unusable IMHO because publishers often retain complete rights to any content created by the devs. So the devs get funded by the publishers but lose everything in the process (again, IMHO). This interpretation of the publisher model is reminiscent of rock & roll bands a few decades ago who were taken for quite the ride by their publishers, some even ending up owing money to their publishers for activities for which they neither asked nor wanted.<br /><br />A terrific modern example of this whole ordeal is Halo 4. The Halo franchise is "owned" by Microsoft, despite the fact that no one at MS had anything to do with the initial ideas or concepts surrounding the Halo world/universe. Bungie originally came up with Halo. Bungie then went on to make Halo 2 and Halo 3 for MS (rather reluctantly). But MS owns Halo, so they brought in 343 Industries for Halo 4 (although Bungie was likely glad to be off the hook in any case). Now 343 Industries is working on Halo for MS, even though neither party created Halo in the first place. Even more odd, Halo 4 was released after Windows 8 hit RTM, and yet Halo 4 will apparently NEVER come over to Windows. The details of this situation confuse me to no end.<br /><br />This archaic distribution model has driven many to seek independent means of funding, with Kickstarter being the main source for electronic games. Obsidian recently ended a Kickstarter campaign rather successfully (I pledged) and the most important aspect of that campaign IMHO is the fact that Obsidian gets to <b>KEEP</b> anything and everything related to that game. They signed over zero rights to the Kickstarter/Paypal pledgers and so they get to do whatever they want with the game they are making. They are making their new game for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. They are making it DRM-free. They can make any sequels they want, when they want, for any platform they want. They can give away all source code for the game if they want, all the artwork, all the assets. They can market it how they want and even pick up publishers how they want. They now <b>OWN</b> the game they are making, not some publisher that gets all the rights unto perpetuity just for plopping down some green. For Obsidian, it must be a great feeling to finally own something after slaving away for publishers creating games such as Fallout and Baldur's Gate and not being able to even gift those games to friends. To create something and be able to do whatever you please with it - that is what DRM should protect. Protecting Microsoft's "rights" to own Halo - that is pure poison.Gavinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33801994.post-25301673662951627962012-11-10T22:20:59.750-06:002012-11-10T22:20:59.750-06:00I can understand the lack of open-source code for ...I can understand the lack of open-source code for a lot of hardware out there simply because of the fact that drivers can tell you quite a bit about the hardware they are intended to support. Such information released to everyone could eventually, over years, put even a huge company like Nvidia out of business.<br /><br />Hardware manufacturers today are in a giant cold war with each other, and everyone is trying to survive. (We may in fact be on the upswing of some rather large consolidations.) Nvidia in particular is fighting on multiple fronts, from Intel to AMD to Qualcomm; and anyone who knows hardware can pick apart minute details about your latest SoC or GPU just by looking at your driver code. Moreover, they can see where you are going with your overall strategy by picking apart your driver code over a year or two.<br /><br />Granted there are likely fewer than a hundred people on the planet who can reliably perform such a feat, but open-source means open-source. It is a catch-all for a reason.Gavinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33801994.post-84985806926049531772012-11-10T22:11:53.454-06:002012-11-10T22:11:53.454-06:00Technically, Microsoft is simply using a feature o...Technically, Microsoft is simply using a feature of UEFI (secure boot) to lock out the installation of other (unsigned) OSes on Windows RT devices. Secure boot is part of the UEFI specification. Where things become undesireable is the fact that device manufacturers are able, under the UEFI specification, to lock secure boot in enabled mode. Why this is even possible baffles me.<br /><br />On the flip side of the coin, MS specifically requires Windows 8 computers to have the ability to freely adjust the secure boot mode. Completely the opposite of Windows RT devices.<br /><br />MS is clearly trying to protect the devices running their new baby OS from tampering and other user-unfriendly attacks. It just also happens to lock out alternative ARM-bases OSes such as Android from being installed on their Windows RT devices. I imagine the MS execs are horrified at the idea of an Android-Surface marriage. But the fact that their stance on secure boot in UEFI is completely reversed for Windows 8 systems shows some signs of a company that is so huge they have schemes within schemes.<br /><br />Of course, it could also mean something completely different.<br /><br />http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uefi<br />http://lwn.net/Articles/447381/<br />http://www.winbeta.org/news/linus-torvalds-hackers-bypass-secure-boot-windows-8<br />http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trusted_Platform_ModuleGavinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33801994.post-63613175266583279682012-11-09T23:21:30.551-06:002012-11-09T23:21:30.551-06:00Roccat is rumored to have good linux support, with...Roccat is rumored to have good linux support, with configuration utilities included in some distro repositories. (gentoo and perhaps some others)<br /><br />For those looking for alternatives, that's where I would start looking at least.WorBluxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17237331780596277891noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33801994.post-88139860872725642502012-11-09T18:44:55.628-06:002012-11-09T18:44:55.628-06:00@Chance Griffitt - I found out about Roccat recent...@Chance Griffitt - I found out about Roccat recently, they're a gaming peripheral company that actually support linux, so I supported them with the mouse I got as a present for my friend. Hopefully it's good, will find out next month when I give it to him I guess :) Looks fancy thoughAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33801994.post-45734030552932132922012-11-09T15:42:41.977-06:002012-11-09T15:42:41.977-06:00Same her. My wife's DeathAdder is on it's...Same her. My wife's DeathAdder is on it's last legs, and I'm looking for a new one. Razer is now off my list.<br /><br />This thrust of theirs reminds me of Sony's rootkit fiasco/DRM. We haven't bought a single Sony item since we got bit on that one.<br /><br />Same intention re: Razer. Absolute BS "excuse" from them as to why registration and cloud access is mandatory to use the features of the mouse bought. burpnrunhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03544662299776351690noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33801994.post-46105915511213931412012-11-07T21:28:44.875-06:002012-11-07T21:28:44.875-06:00Good thing you pointed this out, I was about to bu...Good thing you pointed this out, I was about to buy one of these mice (the Razer Naga)literally within the week. I do have internet of course, and I don't really plan on taking my mouse with me since I don't have a gaming laptop, but I'd wager synapse would cause problems with Linux anyway. I guess I'll find another good gaming mouse.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17466317615289334958noreply@blogger.com