Valve and Linux... my, my, things are getting interesting! - by lost_soul
Sg3 on 29/7/2012 at 22:05
[nod] I had to be dragged kicking and screaming from Windows XP to Windows 7, and there are still quite a few areas in which I prefer the way XP did things (and quite a few areas where XP was absolutely superior). However, there are several things that 7 really does do better, such as running certain programs (games, mostly) better. The flight sim game Rise of Flight ran at about 20 FPS average on XP and 30 FPS average on 7, with no other changes except for the operating system.
The Alchemist on 29/7/2012 at 22:41
I've been waiting twelve years to say this! I tol..... I dont care anymore.
june gloom on 30/7/2012 at 01:00
Let me clarify -- as much as I (
http://art.penny-arcade.com/photos/697221235_AxzRa-L.jpg) surprisingly like Win 7, I feel that in its heyday (as in, right now) it's not as good an OS as XP was when XP was
the OS to use. XP ran up against constraints as it aged, for example the RAM issue; but when it was still relatively brand new, it was
awesome. Windows 7's claim to fame is it's Vista minus the bullshit.
lost_soul on 30/7/2012 at 01:57
But when XP came out (and for years after), 4 GB was an insane amount of memory. Most boards couldn't support more than 2 GB and it was very expensive to get your hands on 4 GB anyway.
Mainstream Mobos these days already support 32 GB of memory. People who think they're going to get a decade out of W7 as they were able to do with XP while still upgrading hardware may be disappointed in this area. A wile back, I got a second-hand Win 7 family pack, so I figure I got a good deal anyway.
june gloom on 30/7/2012 at 03:02
That was... kind of my point, yes.
Aerothorn on 30/7/2012 at 03:49
Quote Posted by Phatose
Well, I'm sure Microsoft is as happy as a clam about this. Trying to push Linux as a gaming platform further fragments the already badly fragmented computer gaming base.
Yeah, as you allude to in your final sentence, Microsoft doesn't give a shit. They *should* give it a shit, but it's clear that at least at the executive level no one has ever quite figured out that PC gaming genuinely benefits Microsoft. Their view (which is correct) is that dedicated gamers are only a small subset of the total Windows user base and therefore who gives a shit. What they DON'T realize is that they are an ever-increasing portion of the consumer base, as more and more consumers (particularly the young and the wealthy, the two demographics you most want) go to OSX. At the end of the day, gaming is one of the few reasons that you wouldn't even consider using a Max (the other two being price and ideology, though of course a solid chunk of the latter group uses Linux).
Basically, the day Microsoft broke up Ensemble because they wanted to focus on the Xbox was the day they started cannibalizing their own market. Bullshit like "no Windows release allowed" Xbox exclusives are only further hurting them.
Yakoob on 30/7/2012 at 05:13
Quote Posted by Renzatic
Eh. Just think of it like this: if they get too crazy and stupid, they'll probably end up getting sued by the government again. I doubt MS would want that, considering all the harm it's caused them over the last 10 years. They're more likely to toe the line these days.
Eh I don't know, with the prevalence of marketplaces and similar tactis on iOs / Droid devices, I don't think MS would be facing too much of a suing threat. Or in other words, if the Apple and Google marketplaces can dominate phones, there is no reason why MS's couldnt dominate the PC.
lost_soul on 30/7/2012 at 06:23
Yes, it could potentially be even worse with games/music than it was with browsers. All MS would have to do is wave around some cash in a publisher's face and get them to release games exclusively on the Windows store. I'm sure given enough cash, a publisher would do it.
june gloom on 30/7/2012 at 06:24
They kind of do that already, what with the timed exclusives deal they've got going, for example with DLC for New Vegas and Skyrim.
Renzatic on 30/7/2012 at 06:28
Quote Posted by Yakoob
Eh I don't know, with the prevalence of marketplaces and similar tactis on iOs / Droid devices, I don't think MS would be facing too much of a suing threat. Or in other words, if the Apple and Google marketplaces can dominate phones, there is no reason why MS's couldnt dominate the PC.
MS still controls well over 90% of the PC market, and can easily tie it into a strict monopoly situation by using their platform against the competition. Them doing something stupid like blocking Steam to force people into using their store front in a market they have a near unbreakable grip on would draw the feds on them like a hobo on a hot ham sandwich.
The mobile market, on the other hand, is still an open game. Apple and Google are on roughly equal footing, with MS currently a bit player with the potential to be bigger. All these companies can do what they want with their platforms because they're competing, and are allowed any advantage they can come up with so long as it's not grossly unfair. Which a locked down marketplace isn't in this case, because any software developer or any end user can always jump over to the alternative and not lose anything if they don't like it. No one has to play by any one company's rules there.
