Exactly, it's +5 Insightful/Informative, not +5 Agree

You're thrilled to have less options? 3D content can easily be downconverted to 2D, just play every other frame. Personally I like having stuff in 3D, though I won't watch stuff exclusively in 3D even if everything was available in it. It's just for special times when I really want to get into a movie or video game. For example, I loved Sony's 3D gaming push. I'm sad that it's over. I liked playing Resident Evil Revelations on 3DS in 3D, and when I got the PS3 version, I was sad to see that it wasn't in 3D for some reason, even though the game isn't that complex graphically and it would have been easy to include the option.

I just wish there was a plugin that would scramble this stuff automatically. Take each tab and generate a random browser string, garbage "clicked from" info, random cookies to scan, random history, etc. for every link I click.

That's how the internet is supposed to work. It's the INTERnet, not the localnet.

I agree, that does seem extreme...

Tablets are way more expensive, don't control as well, don't have high enough graphics fidelity, and don't offer the same gameplay experience. A tablet can be a fine companion device, but it won't take over as your main game device any time soon.

You can argue that they have some nice looking games, but most of them are a controlled linear experience. There are tons of clones, and the popular titles get lost in the sea of a constant stream of apps coming out.

I play games casually (when I just want a distraction) and hard core (when I want a couch experience that's going to last a few hours at least) and I'm happy with my 3DS and PS3. I've got a phone but only a couple of games on it, Dodonpachi and Deathsmiles, probably the only games which control better on a phone than on console. I don't see myself getting deeper into mobile games.

Slashdot, I don't want to disable ads on my account, I believe you deserve to get whatever revenue it is from me. But if the stupid slide-over-the-page ads continue, that's going to annoy me so I will disable advertisements.

Valve has guaranteed that if Steam shuts down they will flip the switch and turn off your DRM. You can also back up copies of your game and go completely offline with the system. The prices are also cheap so it offsets the inconveniences a bit. In that way, it would make me happier than the Xbox One.

Or if the phone had a projector for the screen and keyboard like this. I would get that right away if it ran Ubuntu.

I was going to build a steam box if this didn't happen. I collect consoles and games*, and I'm not sure if I want the Xbox One because it's not guaranteed I'll be able to play my games 10 years down the road.

* Not for the value, but my old games are still fun and if I keep them I don't have to re-buy them or wait for the stars to align for games like Earthbound to come out intact

Same here.

I'm collecting games so that I can re-play them in the future, or play them at all since I have quite a few that are unopened or at least unplayed. And I won't have to rely on any server authentication to do so! I'll also have the original unchanged and uncensored versions. Some games that have been re-released have included modifications and changes that are a result of expired agreements or what the developers deem "fixes" and other such things. Even NES and Genesis games.

Even if the next generation of game consoles holds me hostage, I'll still be able to go back to my game collection and play those however and whenever I want.

Wow, you are so lucky to be able to receive such a treatment! Congratulations and may your recovery be speedy!

What got me interested in even wanting to program in the first place though was the NES. Because of the tile-based nature of the graphics you could kind of pick the game apart with your eyes, and see how things like collision detection could work, or triggers, simple animations, etc.

I borrowed a book from the library that had simple BASIC programs, and I learned by modifying parts of the program, which was already simple to understand since it could be typed out as one routine that ran from A to Z with simple GOTO statements and IF THEN logic. I figured out that in QBASIC, you could press F1 on any keyword and it would tell you about the syntax, and would give you an example routine. This was invaluable. Coupled with the Find function in QBASIC, I could type in something that had to do with the functionality I wanted, and the Help system would show me the commands that would let me accomplish this.

After a few years of doing this, I started Visual Basic, then Delphi, which was great for my job, but I wanted to do more... I was able to download a tutorial by VLA off a BBS that taught me x86 Assembly, and when SDL came out, there were many great tutorials and I started learning that with C/C++.