Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
When I was an undergrad I wrote an ncurses version of Freecell after I saw it on a Windows 95 machine.
PC Gaming = World of Suck
- Thread starter Mercutio
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Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
It gave me something to do when I wasn't playing Nethack.
ddrueding
Fixture
I'm getting close to perfecting my OCC technique in Civ5. 1200+ hours of gameplay will do that...
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
Has anyone messed around with Crossfire setups recently? I'm trying to decide if it's worth tracking down another Radeon 5870 vs. getting a newer card.
I don't know if I need my game system to draw an extra 200W just to play City of Heroes, but I can buy a lot of electricity for the $250 price difference between a used 5870 and a high end, modern card.
I don't know if I need my game system to draw an extra 200W just to play City of Heroes, but I can buy a lot of electricity for the $250 price difference between a used 5870 and a high end, modern card.
ddrueding
Fixture
Not in quite a while. Even when I got it dialed in the system would crash about twice as often. I don't consider it worth the hassle.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
I've been told it's basically down to "check a box" in CCC these days. I figure it's not worth it if there's any more work than powering the card and maybe a one-time config.
Last time I screwed around with SLI, I was having to configure individual game profiles where sometimes both cards would be used and sometimes only one and so on. Even that is probably more work than I want to do, and that soured me on dual video cards. I guess I'm just wondering if things have gotten any better.
Last time I screwed around with SLI, I was having to configure individual game profiles where sometimes both cards would be used and sometimes only one and so on. Even that is probably more work than I want to do, and that soured me on dual video cards. I guess I'm just wondering if things have gotten any better.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
Yes, because the only thing I like better than using a graphics card is waiting two or three weeks for some fuckstick to process my RMA and send me a new one.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
I've had to RMA one graphics card with an AMD GPU in the last 12 years (not counting the misbegotten Jetway card I got with none of the surface mount ICs soldered on). I can't even count the number of nvidia cards I've tossed.
ddrueding
Fixture
Just because I like being the third wheel, I recently ditched all my nVidia cards for ATI due to BSOD issues. Problem solved.
Of course, I did switch from ATI to nVidia a couple years ago for F@H.
Honestly, the only reason I care most of the time is because their driver packages are so darned big, I only want to keep up with one set.
Of course, I did switch from ATI to nVidia a couple years ago for F@H.
Honestly, the only reason I care most of the time is because their driver packages are so darned big, I only want to keep up with one set.
sechs
Storage? I am Storage!
I will note that neither AMD nor nVidia makes cards these days. If you have a problem, there's a reasonable chance that it has nothing to do with whose GPU is stuck on your card.
CougTek
Hairy Aussie
Chewy509
Wotty wot wot.
I don't know if Sechs was talking about consumer gaming cards or was including workstation cards in there as well? He is correct that neither make consumer orientated gaming cards, but they certainly both do make workstation cards. (Myself with an nVidia Quadro FX580 card in my box).
However, IIRC, all nVidia Quadros (that are badged as nVidia) are actually made by PNY. Don't know who the original OEM/ODM for AMD is though. (Could be Foxconn)?
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
I did say "with an AMD GPU", not "AMD card."
To the best of my knowledge, there have never been straight-up nVidia consumer-class video cards. Which is fine. Because they would probably catch fire and molest puppies. Which would make the puppies catch fire and die. Which is actually a blessing, because at least that way the puppies would not have to live with the shame of being molested by an nVidia consumer-class graphics card.
To the best of my knowledge, there have never been straight-up nVidia consumer-class video cards. Which is fine. Because they would probably catch fire and molest puppies. Which would make the puppies catch fire and die. Which is actually a blessing, because at least that way the puppies would not have to live with the shame of being molested by an nVidia consumer-class graphics card.
I just picked up Diablo III this evening. I had a gift card at worsbuy to burn and got the game cheaper. Inside the box are several guest passes to give out to people. If you're interested in trying the game it will require you to sign up for an account with blizzard for their battle.net. Send me a PM if interested and I'll send you the guest pass key code. It allows you to play up until the skeleton king boss in Act I. After that you would need to pay for the game (either online or in the store). There are other restrictions also in place, but I don't know what they are. Let me know if you're interested.
sechs
Storage? I am Storage!
At last check, it's Sapphire.
Neither company actually makes its own chips. So, why bother making the cards, as well?
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
My definition of fun has been vindicated. Suckass WWII FPSes and console ports don't get ORA books written about them.
Diablo turns out to be a decent popcorn game when multiplayer with friends. That is you can have one hand in the popcorn, talking to friends over teamspeak and doing almost everything in game with the mouse. It's a tourist game basically and the training wheels are stuck on.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
I can't decide if I should buy in to Mechwarrior Online. I want to play a Battletech game. I don't know anyone else who would.
I would play a mechwarrior game.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
I've been slowly reading the developer stuff and it sounds like they've got a good idea on how to combine typical MMO progression (Skill and technology trees) with traditional Battletech. They make a big deal out of player skill being a factor, but most MMOs are all about gear, gear, gear. Even in a Mechwarrior game, having access to Star League-era or Clan tech would be all but an "I win" versus classic 3025-era mechs.
MWO is being built from what's left of the Smith and Tinker project from back in 2009. Visually it looks a lot less detailed than the trailer did, maybe because it's an MMO.
It's also a free to play thing, where the idea is that you spend real money to get stuff in game. Most MMOs have gone that route, but I kind of wonder what kinds of money people will need to spend in order to be competitive.
So I'm divided on the concept.
MWO is being built from what's left of the Smith and Tinker project from back in 2009. Visually it looks a lot less detailed than the trailer did, maybe because it's an MMO.
It's also a free to play thing, where the idea is that you spend real money to get stuff in game. Most MMOs have gone that route, but I kind of wonder what kinds of money people will need to spend in order to be competitive.
So I'm divided on the concept.
ddrueding
Fixture
I would love to play a MechWarrior game. I refuse to play an MMOG. Conflicted, but I certainly don't have enough time to "keep up with the Joneses" or commit to a time to group raid.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
The forums say an average match is 10 - 15 minutes. That seems about right to me.
The other interesting thing is that the nature of play lends itself to individual instances rather than a huge shared world. The way it appears to work is that you're dropped on some random world-in-conflict (based on your faction or mercenary company's need. You fight pretty much just like you did in Mechwarrior 2 - 4, only all the other people are also human beings and not AI. You get points for loyalty to your affiliated group if you win the fight. At the end of the day, calculations are made and based on what happened, the in-game reality advances by a day as well.
So if you're a Lyran Alliance member and you absolutely maul defenders in a raid on a Free Worlds League outpost, your faction takes outpost when the game-day advances.
And game time is on a one to one basis with Earth-time, so your actions do in theory have a real-world impact. More like EVE Online than, say, WoW.
The other interesting thing is that the nature of play lends itself to individual instances rather than a huge shared world. The way it appears to work is that you're dropped on some random world-in-conflict (based on your faction or mercenary company's need. You fight pretty much just like you did in Mechwarrior 2 - 4, only all the other people are also human beings and not AI. You get points for loyalty to your affiliated group if you win the fight. At the end of the day, calculations are made and based on what happened, the in-game reality advances by a day as well.
So if you're a Lyran Alliance member and you absolutely maul defenders in a raid on a Free Worlds League outpost, your faction takes outpost when the game-day advances.
And game time is on a one to one basis with Earth-time, so your actions do in theory have a real-world impact. More like EVE Online than, say, WoW.
ddrueding
Fixture
Hmm....Thinking about it. Wouldn't be able to even start until the weekend probably.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
The game doesn't launch until the second week in August so you've got some time.
ddrueding
Fixture
Sold. Looks interesting. Registered already, same handle as here.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
I don't know how much people know about the game universe or setting so...
The current game reality is 3048 or 3049. That's after the the fourth succession war of classic Battletech, after the recovery of the Star League memory core by the Grey Death Legion but substantially before the Clan invasion of 3055. So it's before all the stuff that happens in Mechwarrior 2 - 4 or Mech Commander but after the old DOS Mechwarrior games.
You can choose to join up with one of the four and a half successor houses (The Federated Commonwealth - By FAR the largest and richest, culturally British and German; The Draconis Combine - Basically a huge Japanese Shogunate and second-largest; the Free Rasalhauge Republic - a tiny, Eastern European enclave that exists as a buffer state between the Combine and Commonwealth; The Free Worlds League - a United States-like Libertarian collective; or the Capellan Confederation, which is culturally Chinese and usually serves as the in-lore whipping boy for everything).
You can also belong to a Mercenary group or do solo-only play. Apparently the developers won't allow players to join Mercenary groups that are well-known in the lore such as Eridani Light Horse or Wolf's Dragoons.
The sides are basically fighting to see who will control the sphere of settled planets that exists with Earth at its core. Earth itself is controlled by a neutral party, the quasi-religious order called Comstar, pending an outcome of the conflict. At one time, the inner sphere was ruled by a single noble family that forged the other territories into a single government called the Star League. Since that noble family was exterminated, everyone is fighting to take its place and force the others to honor its claim.
The lore in this game is ridiculously well detailed since there's 25 years of fiction and back-story out there.
The current game reality is 3048 or 3049. That's after the the fourth succession war of classic Battletech, after the recovery of the Star League memory core by the Grey Death Legion but substantially before the Clan invasion of 3055. So it's before all the stuff that happens in Mechwarrior 2 - 4 or Mech Commander but after the old DOS Mechwarrior games.
You can choose to join up with one of the four and a half successor houses (The Federated Commonwealth - By FAR the largest and richest, culturally British and German; The Draconis Combine - Basically a huge Japanese Shogunate and second-largest; the Free Rasalhauge Republic - a tiny, Eastern European enclave that exists as a buffer state between the Combine and Commonwealth; The Free Worlds League - a United States-like Libertarian collective; or the Capellan Confederation, which is culturally Chinese and usually serves as the in-lore whipping boy for everything).
You can also belong to a Mercenary group or do solo-only play. Apparently the developers won't allow players to join Mercenary groups that are well-known in the lore such as Eridani Light Horse or Wolf's Dragoons.
The sides are basically fighting to see who will control the sphere of settled planets that exists with Earth at its core. Earth itself is controlled by a neutral party, the quasi-religious order called Comstar, pending an outcome of the conflict. At one time, the inner sphere was ruled by a single noble family that forged the other territories into a single government called the Star League. Since that noble family was exterminated, everyone is fighting to take its place and force the others to honor its claim.
The lore in this game is ridiculously well detailed since there's 25 years of fiction and back-story out there.
sechs
Storage? I am Storage!
If the back story on a game is more than few sentences, my eyes glaze over.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
Looks like I'm going to need a gaming microphone. Do they make those without headsets?
What about something like this.
I use a logitec gaming headset & microphone, but I wear it around my neck and only use the microphone part and not the ear piece. I think it cost $12 years ago.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
Isn't the deal with gaming setups "push to talk?" vs. having an open channel all the time? Is that configured by the game or by the hardware?
ddrueding
Fixture
I plan to use my actual aviation headset. I have an adapter that will allow me to jack that into the computer. The mic is sound activated with an adjustable cutoff.
Depends on the person but with the friends I play games with, we use ventrilo. I have mine configured to enable the chat channel when I talk. I have shortcut keys that mute the mic if I don't want it to auto activate based on the loudness of the sound. Otherwise the push to talk can be configured in-game through software mappings on the keyboard. My headset mic does have a physical switch to disable the mic if needed but it's not as convenient.
Teamspeak is far superior to ventrilo, much more configurable and just as free. Similar server/client software model too. The big plus is you can individually adjusts people's volumes so you don't end up telling them to adjust their microphone level. I use push to talk, I generally don't like people that use voice activated because that's never perfect.
Vent allows you to adjust other people's volumes individually along with a ton of other options I never mess with. My friend pays to host a vent server so that's why I/we use it. It just works and isn't a hassle, so I've never looked into anything else. I'll give a look at teamspeak to see what's better about it. Vent defaults to push to talk, but I just like the convenience of not having to push a button. The people I play games with are easy going, so it has never been an issue. Like I said, I mapped keys to disable the mic or I can also disable the other people talking if I want some peace and quiet.