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Latest Comments by kaiman
Microsoft Teams is now available on Linux
10 December 2019 at 9:28 pm UTC Likes: 1

Quoting: Sir_DiealotTeams is pretty bad though
It's not bad, it's an atrocity! At work we're phasing out Skype for Business (aka Lync) in favor of Teams, and I thought that was pretty bad. But compared to Teams it's high quality software. Teams bears no semblance to any sort of desktop application and adheres to no desktop UI/UX convention whatsoever. And on top of that it's a memory hog. I mean, neither Eclipse nor Visual Studio require that much RAM!

Roadwarden, an upcoming illustrated text-based exploration fantasy RPG with a Linux demo
6 December 2019 at 5:48 pm UTC

Looks like something to keep an eye on. But with a release slated for end of 2020, there's no rush :-).

The Linux and gaming Sunday round-up paper is here
1 December 2019 at 8:56 pm UTC

Quoting: subNot sure about the legal situation in the US but here (Germany) I'm pretty sure,
that would be a contract that can't be single-sided cancelled in that way.
Not sure about the content of Valve's terms and conditions, but I would assume they say something like "the contract will be concluded by us shipping your order". At least I've seen verbiage to that point in plenty of German online stores. In which case you're not only out of luck, but also out of any possible recourse.

That said, I'm always baffled when companies don't manage to keep tabs on their inventory and either sell more than they have in stock, or keep selling stuff they've actually ran out of. Had that happen to me a couple of times, with shops both small and large. But life goes on ...

Google Stadia is out now for early adopters, well a few anyway
20 November 2019 at 5:55 pm UTC Likes: 2

Quoting: Liam DawePeople got both the hardware and code yesterday, who ordered months after the first lot did after they went up. Google messed up badly.
So someone confused a FIFO with a LIFO queue? Come on, that could have happened to the best of us! And it's not like Google has a strong standing in software development :‑D.

Google Stadia is out now for early adopters, well a few anyway
19 November 2019 at 9:05 pm UTC Likes: 6

That trailer must be the best thing about Stadia I've seen so far.

NVIDIA have released the stable 440.31 driver update for Linux, plus a new Vulkan beta driver
4 November 2019 at 7:35 pm UTC Likes: 2

Quoting: h54Is graphics driver PPA still the way to go to install drivers for Ubuntu?
Yeah, that's the one: https://launchpad.net/~graphics-drivers/+archive/ubuntu/ppa

It already lists the 440 driver. *Updating right now ...*

Tavern building and management Crossroads Inn is out now and it sounds like a mess
30 October 2019 at 6:02 pm UTC

Quoting: vector
Quoting: kaiman...I guess that might be due to GOGs Linux-shenanigans as much as due to the developer's fault...
If this were the case, I would expect the Linux versions of fellow October releases Xeno Crisis (released yesterday), AI War 2, Pine, Indivisible, and Pilgrims to be missing from GOG.com as well, yet they are not.
What I was mostly referring to was the fact that there are more hoops to jump through to get the Linux release on GOG compared to other platforms (at the very least it requires actual GOG staff to wrap the installer around the package, as far as I recall). So while a Linux release for Crossroads Inn went live Friday evening on Steam, likely directly after being uploaded by the developers, there was no way for it to appear on GOG until at least Monday. Given that it is still not around makes me think it's perhaps not GOGs fault after all.

On the bright side, the bundles available on Steam have finally made their way to GOG. So a couple more patches and a Linux build and I might actually go ahead and show my support.

Also, please note that I do very much like GOG, for their stance on DRM, and their effort of preserving classic games. But that doesn't mean I won't criticize them in areas where they could do better.

Odds and ends, the Linux and gaming Sunday Section
28 October 2019 at 7:18 pm UTC Likes: 2

Quoting: Shmerl
Quoting: kaimanBeen playing Disco Elysium [...]
Can you describe the game? Looking at the trailers, it's hard really to figure out what it is.
I've done this on purpose, because I doubt I could do it justice. But oh well, I can at least try ...

At its core it's basically an RPG in the tradition of Planescape: Torment, set in an alternate reality with a hardboiled detective story. It's not like a traditional cRPG, however, but more like a tabletop session with a good GM. It involves a lot of reading, dice rolls, but there aren't hordes of enemies. So it's mostly exploring, talking to NPCs (and your inner senses) and overcoming skill checks by leveling the appropriate attributes, wearing proper items, thinking the right thoughts or doing drugs for a temporary bonus.

So far, so boring. What makes this the experience it is is the quirkiness of the setting, the memorable main character, and, above all, the truly excellent and exceptional writing. It's gross and sad and hilarious. It is unlike anything I've seen in a video game, especially since everything became fully voiced and requires dialogue to be concise and to the point (Disco Elysium has no VO save for some key lines). There's more than the writing, though. The case is interesting, the past of our detective is mysterious, and the world is filled with enigmas waiting to be solved as well.

Despite the difference in gameplay mechanics, I think it is not unlike Heaven's Vault. There's a world to explore, and secrets to uncover, and it's up to the player to dive in deep or keep close to the surface. But where Heaven's Vault has a rather cheerful and lighthearted mood, Disco Elysium is full of drama and bitterness. You'll be hurting when your character gets humiliated, but if you manage to get on top of things victory will be all that much sweeter.

Not sure if that is helpful at all, though. I guess if you want to know more, check out the dev blog which has plenty of details on the different aspects of the game. Start on page 13 or so and work your way towards current articles. There's interviews, descriptions of the skills and more ...

Tavern building and management Crossroads Inn is out now and it sounds like a mess
28 October 2019 at 6:04 pm UTC

I'm normally not into this type of games, but the campaign mode looked like it would be a somewhat unconventional narrative experience. For some reason, it also totally reminded me of The Kingkiller Chronicle (though I guess it has little in common, except that an Inn is involved). So I really was looking forward to that.

The first thing that made me cautious was a post on Steam a day before release, where the developers basically announced that it would be pretty buggy initially, and people should be lenient, because they really did their best and would try to patch it up ASAP (which they seem to be doing, though not sure to what success).

Around the same time, they'd also released a DLC roadmap, with some free stuff even, and had the offer to buy the whole bundle on Steam, but unfortunately not on GOG.

And then, come release day, they fail to put out the Linux version. And when it became available (only on Steam, though I guess that might be due to GOGs Linux-shenanigans as much as due to the developer's fault), it turned out to be riddled with issues, too (as per the Steam community).

All those things combined, I will not buy this right now. I'd have paid full price if I'd gotten a full, working package. As it stands, I will keep an eye on it and check it out at some later point, likely at a discount. But I do wish the developers all the best, because I think it is a game with potential. I'm really hoping this can be salvaged and turned into something nice!

Odds and ends, the Linux and gaming Sunday Section
27 October 2019 at 8:15 pm UTC Likes: 2

Been playing Disco Elysium, with Wine + DXVK, though there's the slim chance that it gets a native release somewhere down the road). However, it's by far too good to delay playing. All I can say is: why aren't you playing it right now?! Heck, why am I not playing it right now?!