Latest Comments by Purple Library Guy
Angels with Scaly Wings, a visual novel that's actually not bad at all
24 February 2017 at 8:36 pm UTC Likes: 3
24 February 2017 at 8:36 pm UTC Likes: 3
QuoteThey thrust boobs and other bits in your face constantlyYou say that like it's a bad thing. :D
MX Nitro, a positively rated motocross racing game is heading to Linux, should be here 'very soon'
20 February 2017 at 5:19 pm UTC Likes: 2
20 February 2017 at 5:19 pm UTC Likes: 2
Not my schtick at all, but it's not a niche where I've seen much for Linux so hurrah!
Total War: SHOGUN 2 looks like it will be heading to Linux & SteamOS
20 February 2017 at 5:17 pm UTC
20 February 2017 at 5:17 pm UTC
I'll probably get this. I've been interested in it for a while, but y'know, no Tux no Bux.
Motorsport Manager 'GT Series' DLC announced, looks and sounds like fun
20 February 2017 at 5:06 pm UTC
20 February 2017 at 5:06 pm UTC
"Closed-wheel". So up to now the wheels on all the cars have had gaps in them? You'd think that would make it hard to race.
Wine 2.2 released with even more Shader Model 5 instructions and work towards Direct3D command stream
19 February 2017 at 5:59 pm UTC
This isn't a problem with having Wine at all, it's a problem with Wine not being completely up to date and perfect in its not-emulation. Nothing you're saying suggests the situation would be better if you couldn't run Windows stuff on Linux at all. Well, sure, all of us including the Wine developers would prefer if Wine executed all Windows programs flawlessly without exception up to and including everything using DX12. But the current state is certainly far better than not having Wine.
And again, you're talking as if Windows itself runs everything perfectly--the situation as of Windows 10 and even to some extent the Windows 8's is that increasingly, modern Windows won't run old Windows software. On top of that, the situation where Wine runs only obsolete software--that's a very gamer-centric view. Games are much more vulnerable to that situation than other apps, most of which don't do big time bleeding edge graphics stuff. So for instance, the latest Wine runs the latest MS Office. I use LibreOffice myself, use MS Office at work and I tell you, I wouldn't switch if you paid me (um, depending how much), 'cause I dislike the Ribbon. But even so, it's clear the ability to run MS Office is huge.
But when it comes to switching for home users (or even offices), it's the old stuff that's most important. The Windows 7 base is still huge; those people can't run the latest games anyway. Going forward, getting new stuff, there are applications on Linux. Even for gamers, there's only a subset who care that much if New Game X is on Linux, as long as there are plenty of decent games they can get. The issue is the old stuff that you're attached to; for instance my dad is getting quite frustrated with Windows' attempts to force-upgrade him, and I think might totally switch to Linux--but only if I can get his genealogy program running on it, because he has tons of files in its format and he's used to its workflow. Gotta remember to experiment with that. Anyway, if Wine can successfully run all those old programs people are attached to--specifically, more successfully than modern Windows--it could be a serious aid to switching.
19 February 2017 at 5:59 pm UTC
Quoting: commodore256Quoting: qptain NemoWine increases the viability and appeal of moving to Linux and decreases those for staying on Windows.
What happens in the times that Windows becomes more of a black box and the windows compatibility is out of date?
. . .
People would be like "Well, if I get NT 4.0, I can run Windows and OS/2 Apps, so I don't need OS/2".
Kinda like what's happening with Wine.
. . .
Windows having the ability to run new windows apps and new OS/2 Apps, (if any) but OS/2 was only compatible with legacy Windows ruined the viability of OS/2 just like the ability to only run legacy Windows on Linux is ruining the viability of Linux.
This isn't a problem with having Wine at all, it's a problem with Wine not being completely up to date and perfect in its not-emulation. Nothing you're saying suggests the situation would be better if you couldn't run Windows stuff on Linux at all. Well, sure, all of us including the Wine developers would prefer if Wine executed all Windows programs flawlessly without exception up to and including everything using DX12. But the current state is certainly far better than not having Wine.
And again, you're talking as if Windows itself runs everything perfectly--the situation as of Windows 10 and even to some extent the Windows 8's is that increasingly, modern Windows won't run old Windows software. On top of that, the situation where Wine runs only obsolete software--that's a very gamer-centric view. Games are much more vulnerable to that situation than other apps, most of which don't do big time bleeding edge graphics stuff. So for instance, the latest Wine runs the latest MS Office. I use LibreOffice myself, use MS Office at work and I tell you, I wouldn't switch if you paid me (um, depending how much), 'cause I dislike the Ribbon. But even so, it's clear the ability to run MS Office is huge.
But when it comes to switching for home users (or even offices), it's the old stuff that's most important. The Windows 7 base is still huge; those people can't run the latest games anyway. Going forward, getting new stuff, there are applications on Linux. Even for gamers, there's only a subset who care that much if New Game X is on Linux, as long as there are plenty of decent games they can get. The issue is the old stuff that you're attached to; for instance my dad is getting quite frustrated with Windows' attempts to force-upgrade him, and I think might totally switch to Linux--but only if I can get his genealogy program running on it, because he has tons of files in its format and he's used to its workflow. Gotta remember to experiment with that. Anyway, if Wine can successfully run all those old programs people are attached to--specifically, more successfully than modern Windows--it could be a serious aid to switching.
Wine 2.2 released with even more Shader Model 5 instructions and work towards Direct3D command stream
18 February 2017 at 10:43 pm UTC
Point. I get the impression Microsoft, as it finds its main competition for new versions of Windows is actually older versions of Windows resisting their planned obsolescence, is shifting away from its traditional emphasis on compatibility between versions--not so much wanting old software to fail to run on the new versions, as wanting new software to fail to run on the old versions so that people are forced to upgrade in order to use it.
For games, this tends to take care of itself because games keep requiring more and more powerful hardware--but for office software there's generally no need for a new box (which would ship with the new Windows) to use the latest version. If compatibility were maintained, there'd be nothing to stop someone from putting the latest office software and various other software on older computers running older versions of Windows for quite a long time. So if they want to keep pushing people onto the latest versions of Windows (which they do, both for the base sales and for other reasons relating to things like information access and control), not maintaining compatibility so well is an important tactic.
But this creates a potential opening for Linux. We could reach a point where Windows software older than a certain age can normally be expected to run better on Wine than on recent versions of Windows, giving holdouts on older Windows versions a powerful reason to switch rather than updating. This is starting to happen, both in the sense that there are such people switching and in the sense that some old software already does run better on Wine. But if it becomes a reliable situation and well known, it could help that trickle turn into a flood.
Go Wine!
18 February 2017 at 10:43 pm UTC
Quoting: BladeforceIt's not just a case of wine being important for games that will never appear on Linux but also its important for these to be played on any system as windows is getting harder and harder to play these old games
Point. I get the impression Microsoft, as it finds its main competition for new versions of Windows is actually older versions of Windows resisting their planned obsolescence, is shifting away from its traditional emphasis on compatibility between versions--not so much wanting old software to fail to run on the new versions, as wanting new software to fail to run on the old versions so that people are forced to upgrade in order to use it.
For games, this tends to take care of itself because games keep requiring more and more powerful hardware--but for office software there's generally no need for a new box (which would ship with the new Windows) to use the latest version. If compatibility were maintained, there'd be nothing to stop someone from putting the latest office software and various other software on older computers running older versions of Windows for quite a long time. So if they want to keep pushing people onto the latest versions of Windows (which they do, both for the base sales and for other reasons relating to things like information access and control), not maintaining compatibility so well is an important tactic.
But this creates a potential opening for Linux. We could reach a point where Windows software older than a certain age can normally be expected to run better on Wine than on recent versions of Windows, giving holdouts on older Windows versions a powerful reason to switch rather than updating. This is starting to happen, both in the sense that there are such people switching and in the sense that some old software already does run better on Wine. But if it becomes a reliable situation and well known, it could help that trickle turn into a flood.
Go Wine!
Concealed Intent, a turn-based strategy with a rather interesting mechanic for online play
17 February 2017 at 9:04 pm UTC
17 February 2017 at 9:04 pm UTC
You sank my battleship!
Eco Alpha 5.4 release, featuring performance improvements and a few big features
17 February 2017 at 9:02 pm UTC
17 February 2017 at 9:02 pm UTC
Quote- Trees on the minimap are now batched, which should result in improved performanceWhen someone says something like this in this kind of context, I'm never sure whether they mean trees as in some kind of abstract branching logical structures in the code, or trees as in green leafy things which they have to render a lot of in the graphics.
System76 have refreshed their most powerful Linux laptops now with 7th Gen Intel CPUs
17 February 2017 at 8:53 pm UTC Likes: 4
Depends who you are, really. If you're a committed Linux user but either not particularly techie or short on time, having a computer which someone else has already made sure works from top to bottom, all drivers in place and functional, can be pretty valuable.
Secondarily, there is a political and sort-of-economic advantage if you're the kind of person who cares about that kind of thing: By a tiny increment, you strengthen Linux and weaken Microsoft by buying your computer that way. One Windows license does not get sold, statistics of operating system sales show one more Linux sale and one less Windows sale. It's somewhat like trying to avoid buying games you will have to play on Wine, except a bit more basic.
Finally, every time someone buys from a dedicated Linux-box-seller, it strengthens them a little bit; they will be able to order larger batches, meaning their boxes may be cheaper in future; they will be able to advertise more and so on. This will strengthen their ability to sell more in future. And the thing is, computer sales outfits dedicated specifically to selling Linux boxes are among the few commercial entities with anything to gain by increasing the market share of desktop Linux, so if we want desktop Linux to grow in market share (and by corollary presence in the gaming world), we want these folks to succeed.
Of course these factors don't apply only to System76, but to any dedicated seller of (non-server) Linux computers. I, for instance, have never bought from System76 although I may in future, but I have from ZaReason, who are a somewhat similar outfit, a bit smaller maybe, but who offer a few alternatives in terms of distro installed rather than just Ubuntu. Specifically pleasing to me, I can buy a computer preloaded with Mint from them.
(I won't pretend to perfect virtue--despite all I've said, sometimes I just buy something from a store and wipe Windows off it. One doesn't always have the extra cash or time, or maybe you see something that's exactly what you need and System76 or ZaReason or whoever aren't offering something equivalent. My latest laptop is not from any of these people because I wanted something as thin and durable as I could easily get, and saw something as thin as a Macbook Air with a metal shell and an SSD. I couldn't get anything really like it from a Linux vendor and I was sick of my clumsiness breaking my laptops, so . . .)
17 February 2017 at 8:53 pm UTC Likes: 4
Quoting: ArehandoroQuoting: hardpenguinQuoting: ArehandoroIs it just me or are they pretty overpriced?The competition (mostly Lenovo) has better prices, but again, System76 is a company dedicated to Ubuntu hardware...
If it wasn't for the cost of shipping to Europe + the custom tax, I would consider getting a laptop from them.
Speaking from an ignorant point of view, what are the advantages of getting a System76 Ubuntu dedicated desktop to a desktop choosing the components myself and installing Ubuntu (or any other distro)?
Depends who you are, really. If you're a committed Linux user but either not particularly techie or short on time, having a computer which someone else has already made sure works from top to bottom, all drivers in place and functional, can be pretty valuable.
Secondarily, there is a political and sort-of-economic advantage if you're the kind of person who cares about that kind of thing: By a tiny increment, you strengthen Linux and weaken Microsoft by buying your computer that way. One Windows license does not get sold, statistics of operating system sales show one more Linux sale and one less Windows sale. It's somewhat like trying to avoid buying games you will have to play on Wine, except a bit more basic.
Finally, every time someone buys from a dedicated Linux-box-seller, it strengthens them a little bit; they will be able to order larger batches, meaning their boxes may be cheaper in future; they will be able to advertise more and so on. This will strengthen their ability to sell more in future. And the thing is, computer sales outfits dedicated specifically to selling Linux boxes are among the few commercial entities with anything to gain by increasing the market share of desktop Linux, so if we want desktop Linux to grow in market share (and by corollary presence in the gaming world), we want these folks to succeed.
Of course these factors don't apply only to System76, but to any dedicated seller of (non-server) Linux computers. I, for instance, have never bought from System76 although I may in future, but I have from ZaReason, who are a somewhat similar outfit, a bit smaller maybe, but who offer a few alternatives in terms of distro installed rather than just Ubuntu. Specifically pleasing to me, I can buy a computer preloaded with Mint from them.
(I won't pretend to perfect virtue--despite all I've said, sometimes I just buy something from a store and wipe Windows off it. One doesn't always have the extra cash or time, or maybe you see something that's exactly what you need and System76 or ZaReason or whoever aren't offering something equivalent. My latest laptop is not from any of these people because I wanted something as thin and durable as I could easily get, and saw something as thin as a Macbook Air with a metal shell and an SSD. I couldn't get anything really like it from a Linux vendor and I was sick of my clumsiness breaking my laptops, so . . .)
The Talos Principle has a new stable build with more Vulkan optimizations
15 February 2017 at 5:26 pm UTC Likes: 1
But surely it isn't? I mean, baby elephants are the cutest dang things, and elephants are quite intelligent animals and do interesting things with their trunks and whatnot. I think I heard about one that paints . . . raising elephants is probably quite fascinating.
15 February 2017 at 5:26 pm UTC Likes: 1
Quoting: M@yeulCIsn't it Ctrl+Alt+SysRq?
I personally used to remember it with "Raising Elephants Is Simply, Utterly, Boring"
But surely it isn't? I mean, baby elephants are the cutest dang things, and elephants are quite intelligent animals and do interesting things with their trunks and whatnot. I think I heard about one that paints . . . raising elephants is probably quite fascinating.
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