The Age of Steam Begins Today!
in [UK Mac]
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From: T i m on 14 May 2010 09:42 On Fri, 14 May 2010 14:19:18 +0100, chris <ithinkiam(a)gmail.com> wrote: >On Fri, 14 May 2010 14:04:19 +0100, T i m <news(a)spaced.me.uk> wrote: > >> On Fri, 14 May 2010 12:40:02 +0100, Jaimie Vandenbergh >> <jaimie(a)sometimes.sessile.org> wrote: >> >>> I understand that the ability to keep a desktop going >>> for months on end is alien to Windows users... >> >> Or maybe the 'Windows users' you know aren't as unlucky as you and >> don't need to have their machines ready 24/7 to run their artificial >> lung or whatever life supporting thing you must need. >> >> I'm pleased to say that even my server turns itself off when it's not >> required, just as I do with my PVR and most other electrical gadgets >> in the house. >> >> IMHO all this 'my up time is 2 years 4 months 6 days' is all a bit >> geeky and irrelevant to me. > >It's got nothing to do with uptime (well maybe for some people it is), Maybe to those who feel the need to mention it then. ;-) > but >I'm like Jamie I like to have my desktop ready and waiting for me the same >way as I left it. So do I , it just happens 3 mins after I press the button on the back. (it used to be on the front ... <mutter> stoopid Apple Mini <grumble>). > I usually have several terminals open, Firefox with lots >of tabs open and several other apps too. Ok, (why?) > Being able to sleep/hibernate my >machine constantly is a great help. Constantly having to reboot the >machine, relaunch all the apps and get back to where I was could easily >take 10mins or more. Because 'back to where you were' is obviously something you need, like people wanting a particular homepage etc. For me that 'place' is any machine I switch on to use, be it the Wife's PC, my Mini, one of my laptops (most of which boot into Ubuntu) or my Palm T|X etc. Same in my workshop. Because I'm fortunate enough not to have to do the same thing every day there would be no point leaving all the welding stuff on the bench as I'm as likely to be woodworking or fiber glassing the next time I use it. The point is (for me anyway), 'null' is more flexible than 'something open that I don't need', like having to put the welding gear away *before* I can get the woodwork stuff out, because I don't have any set routines. Horses for courses of course. > >Although, I do find after a couple of months daily hibernating of my MBP >it can get it's knickers in a twist (apps not launching, samba mounts not >being found, etc.) and requires a reboot. Something else I avoid then. ;-) Cheers, T i m
From: T i m on 14 May 2010 10:00 On Fri, 14 May 2010 14:19:04 +0100, Woody <usenet(a)alienrat.co.uk> wrote: >On 14/05/2010 12:21, T i m wrote: >> On Fri, 14 May 2010 11:36:33 +0100, chris<ithinkiam(a)gmail.com> wrote: > >>> No. But as Windows is a popular gaming platform where speed freaks abound, >>> nVidia have an incentive to optimise the driver to the hilt. >> >> For nVidia I should also read Intel in the case of the GMA950 in this >> Mini? > >Less likely. intel generally make 'budget' video cards, and they would >tend to optimize for video rather than games. <Confused> So, nVidia are more likely to write a special 'games' driver for their cards under Windows than OSX yet my lower spec Intel card runs Portal ok under XP but (so far) won't run it at all under OSX. OK, this could still be a 'Steam_new_to_OSX'_in_general thing but it's not like Macs haven't been around for some years now ... > >> However, I'm still not quite sure what the goal is here. On the >> grounds that Windows is traditionally a better games platform than >> OSX(Linux) and given that many people already Bootcamp their Macs into >> Windows for other reasons (or have Winboxes) then doesn't it make >> sense to just run stuff like Steam, on Windows? > >I would say in the grand scheme of things only a very tiny fraction of >people have bootcamp on their macs. I don't actually know anyone who does. Oh really, ok. The *only* reason we bought our first C2D Mini (new) and I bought this (single core) second hand one was because they could be Bootcamped into Windows. And it's just as well since neither of us took to OSX (daughter and I) and in spite of the Wife working on a Mac daily for 14 years she turned down the offer of the (currently unused) C2D Mini as she was happy with her PC. Probably more to do with "I've got this and it works" than a particular preference to OSX or XP though. > >So the goal is to play games on the mac. For many people they wouldn't >mind playing some newer games, but not at the expense or faff of having >to use windows. In the same way that many people get an iPhone for use as a phone / email / Inet / PIM then find out it can also do games etc? > >> thing be as fast (or faster?) in a WinVM?)? I guess the goal for many >> would be to get away from Windows but for the average Mac I think that >> might be a long way off (ie, not an especially fast machine and >> considering how many games are unlikely to ever go native Mac). > >That depends on sale I would have thought. Obviously it is a smaller >market, especially with the console market dwarfing the PC market >anyway, but it depends entirely on costs. If it costs X to make your >game available on the Mac, you only need an amount greater than X to >make it worthwhile. True and I guess for most of the older / inappropriate games (ie, won't play on most Macs even when converted) that wouldn't add up. Good to see though, the Mac being more 'everyday' by a greater range of people (and you are certainly seeing them more in use on the telly but that might be more predictable). Cheers, T i m
From: T i m on 14 May 2010 10:08 On Fri, 14 May 2010 14:32:19 +0100, chris <ithinkiam(a)gmail.com> wrote: >> For nVidia I should also read Intel in the case of the GMA950 in this >> Mini? > >I doubt it as the GMA950 (or any other intel gpu) never was and never will >be a gaming platform. Understood, however Portal works well on my Intel (graphics) laptop and this Intel (graphics) Mini under Windows though. >The results are a red-herring. You may well be right. > >> However, I'm still not quite sure what the goal is here. On the >> grounds that Windows is traditionally a better games platform than >> OSX(Linux) and given that many people already Bootcamp their Macs into >> Windows for other reasons (or have Winboxes) then doesn't it make >> sense to just run stuff like Steam, on Windows? > >The point is that most people with a Mac haven't also got Windows for it. Ok I'll take your word for it (I have no reason not to and little Mac exposure outside here (and here isn't probably not representative etc)). >So the point from Valve's point of view is to *increase* their market not >supplant their Windows users. I never considered that to be the case. > It's a logical AND not an OR. Understood. > >I have no need for Windows and I certainly wouldn't buy it just to play >games. Ok. > >Now, however, at no extra cost to me (other than the games themselves) I >am able to play (some) >games on my current hardware. Everyone wins. Wahoo! ;-) Cheers, T i m
From: chris on 14 May 2010 10:10 On Fri, 14 May 2010 14:42:13 +0100, T i m <news(a)spaced.me.uk> wrote: > On Fri, 14 May 2010 14:19:18 +0100, chris <ithinkiam(a)gmail.com> wrote: >> but >> I'm like Jamie I like to have my desktop ready and waiting for me the >> same >> way as I left it. > > So do I , it just happens 3 mins after I press the button on the > back. (it used to be on the front ... <mutter> stoopid Apple Mini > <grumble>). > >> I usually have several terminals open, Firefox with lots >> of tabs open and several other apps too. > > Ok, (why?) Because with my work it takes several days to work through problems and when I get back to it from one day to the next I can continue my thought process where I left off. The problems invariably require writing scripts/programs (Textwrangler or Eclipse or vim) against files/databases (Textwrangler and SQL developer) and I need my source of information (the internet) available. Oh and this is mostly done over VPN on my MBP. >> Being able to sleep/hibernate my >> machine constantly is a great help. Constantly having to reboot the >> machine, relaunch all the apps and get back to where I was could easily >> take 10mins or more. > > Because 'back to where you were' is obviously something you need, like > people wanting a particular homepage etc. No. The 'place' is a thought process or a mindset: my desktop is a reflection of that (ah, that explains the chaos :) ). If it were as simple as a homepage there'd be no problem. > For me that 'place' is any > machine I switch on to use, be it the Wife's PC, my Mini, one of my > laptops (most of which boot into Ubuntu) or my Palm T|X etc. Same in > my workshop. Because I'm fortunate enough not to have to do the same > thing every day there would be no point leaving all the welding stuff > on the bench as I'm as likely to be woodworking or fiber glassing the > next time I use it. You must be a very tidy worker! My FIL's workshop is a state, but he's always in the middle of several projects (creating cement fence posts, fixing the lawnmower, rebuilding an antique tractor, etc.) that putting things away would be a waste of time. Of course he knows where everything is too. > The point is (for me anyway), 'null' is more flexible than 'something > open that I don't need', like having to put the welding gear away > *before* I can get the woodwork stuff out, because I don't have any > set routines. > > Horses for courses of course. Indeed. Not everyone 'gets' Windows.
From: T i m on 14 May 2010 10:35
On Fri, 14 May 2010 15:10:44 +0100, chris <ithinkiam(a)gmail.com> wrote: >>> I usually have several terminals open, Firefox with lots >>> of tabs open and several other apps too. >> >> Ok, (why?) > >Because with my work it takes several days to work through problems and >when I get back to it from one day to the next I can continue my thought >process where I left off. Ok. > The problems invariably require writing >scripts/programs (Textwrangler or Eclipse or vim) against files/databases >(Textwrangler and SQL developer) and I need my source of information (the >internet) available. Oh and this is mostly done over VPN on my MBP. Ok. > >>> Being able to sleep/hibernate my >>> machine constantly is a great help. Constantly having to reboot the >>> machine, relaunch all the apps and get back to where I was could easily >>> take 10mins or more. >> >> Because 'back to where you were' is obviously something you need, like >> people wanting a particular homepage etc. > >No. The 'place' is a thought process or a mindset: my desktop is a >reflection of that (ah, that explains the chaos :) ). If it were as simple >as a homepage there'd be no problem. Ok, I was not talking about the simplicity but the mind set. I've seen people in a complete panic 'because it's all changed' simply because they (inevitably) had allowed some app they were installing to set their homepage elsewhere (even if they didn't actually need said homepage and were able to get to it easily in any case etc). > >> For me that 'place' is any >> machine I switch on to use, be it the Wife's PC, my Mini, one of my >> laptops (most of which boot into Ubuntu) or my Palm T|X etc. Same in >> my workshop. Because I'm fortunate enough not to have to do the same >> thing every day there would be no point leaving all the welding stuff >> on the bench as I'm as likely to be woodworking or fiber glassing the >> next time I use it. > >You must be a very tidy worker! Hmm. I would say, given the opportunity I'm more methodical than tidy. > My FIL's workshop is a state, but he's >always in the middle of several projects (creating cement fence posts, >fixing the lawnmower, rebuilding an antique tractor, etc.) that putting >things away would be a waste of time. Oh, exactly ... my example was hypothetical. ;-) >Of course he knows where everything >is too. And that's the weird thing. A mate has just got into CB and I told him I had a SWR meter left over from my CB days he could borrow, if I could find it. Not seen it in 20 years and it was in a nest of 100 draws (true) and it was maybe the 5th or 6th draw I opened. How come I can remember where that was yet not remember I'm supposed to pick up some milk or that she 'would like a stir fry' (ready when she get's in). No, I work on the 'you don't need an ordered life if you have an ordered mind' and whilst I don't think mine is for many things I think it can be. > >> The point is (for me anyway), 'null' is more flexible than 'something >> open that I don't need', like having to put the welding gear away >> *before* I can get the woodwork stuff out, because I don't have any >> set routines. >> >> Horses for courses of course. > >Indeed. Not everyone 'gets' Windows. Or 'needs' ... and I have never suggested otherwise (especially here). However, we were talking about 'a' gaming system that has existed on Windows for years, just breaking out onto Mac (/ Linux) and how long have the Intel Macs existed now? However, better late than never eh and it's certainly a step in the right direction. Cheers, T i m |