I completely disagree with you on your point about OnLive and Gakai being useless. For existing PC gamers, yes, they are entirely useless. But existing PC gamers aren't the target audience of those services. Instead, those services are designed for those who either (a) can't afford or (b) aren't interested in maintaining hardware.

It speaks volumes that their demos so far centered around putting their tech in cable boxes (something usually made as cheaply as possible) or as client software for thin & light laptops (I think the exact demo unit was a MacBook Air). The devices are far outside of the usual "gaming hardware" group.

Also, its not so much DRM on an item you own as a monthly service. Slashdot, in general, needs to realize when things aren't necessarily DRM. You enter into the agreement knowing that you're paying for a limited time use of their system, which they maintain, and are limited to the titles they offer. You enter the agreement knowing that you haven't bought the game and therefore aren't allowed the usual rights that come with owning a product. Such services can exist without DRM as we know it (software or hardware copy protection) because the actual software is running remotely and they serve a stream -- and if you don't pay, they just simply kill the stream. Its roughly equivalent to your local power station killing your service if you don't pay your electricity bill.

AFAIK, this isn't quite true. They make the NCAA football games because nobody else wants to (and theirs doesn't sell particularly well anyway). 2K is still making the NHL2k series, but has lost the mark and hasn't done a good job since the X360 launched. Konami is still working on the Pro Evo series for soccer, and has the FIFA license.

The formal body of the European Union (not the general European community) was formed in 1993.

As someone only a few years younger (mid-'80s birth), CC got a good rap in grammar school, but got progressively worse as I got older.

The first HDTVs and plasmas started coming out in the late 1990s (1997 IIRC). They were "flat", but I still remember my family's first TV set.

*shudder* I'm with you on that.

The VP has the tiebreaking vote in the Senate; although, I'm not sure if thats in an amendment or in the Constitution.

Media didn't really start to go online until 1997, or at around age 6 for this group. They might have recognized a computer, but not that their news was online (if they were even old enough to comprehend the news).

Here's a big one to add: For this age group, Bill Clinton always had an unfortunate dry-cleaning incident with a Gap dress.

... and that would have explained so much about the current global banking crisis.

It's because QL is free to end users. The server isn't so much for the traditional model of game server (you run server and everyone buys said game) as for clans to customize their servers as they see fit. For example: if you ran a clan that absolutely hated the rocket launcher, you could pay to get a server and turn the rocket launcher off on that server.

Its not that the physics are wonky -- cars really are that slippery in real life. I was lucky enough to take Chevy Lacetti (a pretty common European touring car) out on a road track in PA -- and it is incredibly hard to drive at speed without skidding. Wheels lock up, breaks lock up, and you spin off the track. If you want great examples of sims, look at the GTR/GT Legends/GTR2/Race/Race 07 series for PC. They all blow even Forza 2 out of the water in terms of realism. When I started on those, it took me a good half hour to even complete a lap without going off. An aside: Forza has had damage modelling since day 1 (although Forza 2 let chunks of the car come off), while Gran Turismo has long been without damage. Having no damage is killer for a sim, since you can take a hairpin at full speed and just ram another car to slow down and turn, all without any penalty.

This was their intent. However, most sellers didn't want to have any exposure to potential buyers. That shouldn't come as much of a surprise, considering how hostile relations on eBay can get between buyers and sellers.

The government gets taxes based on capital gains (i.e.: your net profit/loss). Stock sales themselves are not considered taxable in the US.

That is more what I didn't want to point out-- more hardware just for the sake of graphics that don't impact gameplay. A breaking window is a breaking window. It needs to provide a cathartic satisfaction when it shatters, not do so in the most realistic manner.

Bad example. I expect WoW to have no LAN play since its an MMOG -- its supposed to be online. In fact, I'd be shocked if there was ever a "legal" LAN version of any MMOG.

In one interview, 2K Boston (the developers) said they didn't like their ending and it was more a matter of not enough time than about really putting and ending on it.

What are you talking about? About a month ago I bought a new CPU (Q8400), RAM (8GB of it, to be exact), Mobo, HDD (500GB), and GPU (GeForce 8800GT). Granted, not the best system money can buy, but it can play games like TF2, BioShock, and even Far Cry 2 at high/very high details at 1680x1050. Total price: ~$650-$700. As for games evolving, I don't care so much for the graphics or physics unless they actually have an impact on the gameplay. Little titles like Audiosurf do a far better job of using new hardware to make a new gameplay experience.

That got leaked circa 2003, in The Big Half-Life 2 Leak of 2003.

I wouldn't trust an OS from a torrent aggregator unless I have some way to check its veracity (i.e.: Ubuntu posts md5's of its ISOs, but you won't find one for an iffy torrent.

This doesn't matter much anyways, since most corporate environments are on a volume license, and most home users will get Win7 preinstalled. It really only matters to geeks like us.

They want it browser based so its stupid simple to set up and play. Think about a site like Kongregate or Newgrounds: the barrier to entry is minimal (just install the latest Flash plugin) and you can play all the games for free + ads. QuakeLive is an attempt to move that model to more "hardcore" games.