906 karma · joined November 22, 2013
You think those servers are free and those subcultures aren't going to get commercialized by companies that need $$$ to live?
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/monopoly
> exclusive ownership through legal privilege, command of supply, or concerted action > exclusive possession or control
You seem to be under the impression that only one type of monopoly exists (IE: Android exists so Apple doesn't have a monopoly).
But do you realize that that's no the only thing that can be monopolized?
So again... on the iPhone platform? who has "exclusive possession or control" over apps on the iPhone?
Everyone hates Facebook but everyone uses it. Why? That's where the people are. Same for Instagram, Reddit, etc.
Everyone hates JavaScript. Buggy and counter intuitive. Mess in all the different browsers - historically. But everyone uses it because everyone uses it so it gets the community.
Maybe Delaware is the best... or a victim of circumstance. Or being good enough and one of the early states to get that foot hold.
Ad Blockers stop the secondary stuff (ad campaigns that YouTube serves sending you to unsafe places) as well as primary stuff (actual "malicious" JavaScript served directly from YouTube). (they also do stuff like block trackers and the like but those aren't the topic of conversation here precisely other than saying that Ad Blockers are a security measure on many levels - not just on YouTube proper)
While the odds are low that YouTube itself will serve malicious JavaScript... the chance isn't 0. They have better security practices than other smaller companies but stupid or malicious employees exist and - as I think I said - things have been known to happen. Even with best practices stuff like supply chain attacks exist as do stuff like stuff injected into dependencies.
So while there hasn't been an "actual" breach at YouTube (if you exclude their malicious ad campaigns which "only" direct you to unsafe places but aren't DIRECTLY served by YouTube)... the fact remains that interacting with YouTube (or anything on the internet) WILL lead to eventually to unsafe places.
I have no problem admitting that YouTube is going to be better at not directly serving adware/malware/etc... but can you admit that that's not what I personally am focused on? My original statement that Ad Blockers are security is 100% justified based on the decades of experience at this point.
But the issue goes beyond just getting stuff from youtube directly. They are absolutely a source of links to unsafe places - their advertisement platform serves ads that send you to places with unsafe javascript.
So even if you was correct about "can not" (which is obviously untrue)... they can and regularly do cause issue none the less.
And "but youtube" sidesteps the issue that ad blockers aren't just security from youtube. Youtube is one of millions of websites. Full of shitty websites with horrible security practices and awful practices around annoying advertisements.
https://www.trendmicro.com/vinfo/pl/security/news/cybercrime...
I have no problem leaching... it's also about a better browsing experience and security.
my 2020 civic seems to do okay but I get those issues only on occasion. Newer tech would be more stable I think. Only been driving it ~3 months.
I wonder how much of the aggravation is compounded by having a "busy" car (read: kids. I drive alone) that takes the annoyance and knocks it up more?
Some things haven't happened to me (system updates) but other things are normal now (lane assist being finiky).
And saying it's illegal is a bit too strong as well. Maybe in the EU but even then? The EU just made a decade of things obsolete when forcing Apple to switch to USB-C so saying "companies can't do that because illegal" obviously isn't true.
And what is illegal in EU is legal in America or vice versa... or brazil... or China... so saying "society doesn't allow" is too simplistic on that level as well.
In America it's illegal to break DRM. Companies like Apple and Nintendo do stuff so that you can't run custom code or use unauthorized attachments/parts/etc. if you break the DRM you can get sued as a company that provides that service.
And you haven't address the fact that MS, Sony, Nintendo, Apple, etc all have to have stable trustworthy platforms for gaming - that goes beyond "they only want money"- sure, they want money but part of getting that is having platforms people want to use. That they trust. That makes cheating harder and provides a level playing field.
Take a step back and realize that "greedy" companies aren't as simplistic as you want to make them out to be and even if they are "greedy"? They do have valid reasons to do shit like this.
I'll agree that if it was ONLY trophies? Sure you might have an argument... but this obviously isn't only about that one thing.
Let me ask this... if trophies are low key "no one cares" (and that's not the case... plenty of people go out of their way to "100%" games and care about those stupid trophies) then what's the solution to allow "bootleg" controllers for only those people? how many people fall into that category? 25%? 15%? 5? 1? That's a low % of people to support a fragmented market - which is what MS would have to do - support a more fragmented market.
I think it's just too simplistic to say "M$ Evil and only wants money and I play online so I'm the only one that matters".
Supporting "grey market" means a more complicated product to support and that complication isn't going to be worth it for such a small subset of players.
If you want to add that to an article about how "100 pounds of sugar a year with half the activity because people people are playing xbox too much" that's fine - this could be a part of that conversation.
Nothing wrong with the bigger conversations... but also nothing wrong with data points like this for the sake of data points.
And even if "eventually controls will be circumvented" is true... making the barrier to entry harder gives them time to make back their investment (yes, the company deserves that). IE: DRM that eventually gets broken but not for a year can be the difference in the copies of a game sold being enough to make it a success or not.
The DRM also gives companies a path to suing companies that break the DRM. IE: Nintendo or Apple suing companies that jailbreak their stuff. Or you can be someone like Sony who has a PS5 that hasn't been jailbroken yet - making their platforms more resistant to cheating and thus more attractive to players who want a level playing field.
"won't solve anything anyways" Depends on your definition of "solve". If it takes 5+ years to fully jailbreak a PS5? Then that's successful. So even "broken" jailbreaks can be seen as successful in the long term.
There are negatives to these moves... but it's plain ignorance at best and dishonesty at worse to say there aren't justifiable reasons for companies like MS to take these steps.
(and single player games have Trophies which is online so... depending on how much you value pixelated trophies? those would be affected by "cheating in single player")
Remember... this is Microsoft. The same company that had YEARS of bad press because bad third party drivers was one of the largest causes of windows crashes.
So even if you never play online (I don't either) and only play single player games (FF and similar games here)? There's nothing worse than a shitty controller to ruin an experience.
It's possible some otherwise perfect controllers might lose their spot if they get "banned" because they aren't "upgraded" with "security chips" (or whatever) and you might be affected but in aggregate its something a company the size of MS has to take into account.
We'll see how it plays out but I'm not surprised (after reading comments about cheating stuff used by others in stuff like controllers).
you want to cut the Law and Order angle then you need to also cut the "cartel" angle.
Fact is that if XBox doesn't take steps then their platform becomes less valuable meaning less people want to play there.
"it's only about money" is a short sighted and overly simplistic answer just like "M$ is a cartel".
You spin it as "cartel" but why can't it be spun as Law & Order?
Or do you think that cheaters should have unrestricted control and the ability to destroy the economy of any given game? You think people will play on platforms that aren't working to keep things even?
This is the same argument for P2W games where you can just pay to be the best. A few people will argue for that as they drop thousands to get those "rare" loot boxes and the rest will say "it's no fun to play a game against someone who's paying to be better than they really are".
they obviously care about money and selling periphials is money... but so is selling consoles.
If they can't control the cheaters in some fashion (losing battle and all that) then they will sell less consoles because why would people pay for that? (unless you're a cheater paying for it but that's besides the point).
The problem you have is that you think there's only one answer to this and the answers is the want to stop the cheaters AND they want money because cheaters affect both.
I think free speech is like all our other rights - absolute but your rights end where the rights of others begin. Which is a wonderful paradox in which to live.
You have the right to self defense but don't have the right to own a nuke. You have a right to speak freely but not to defame/slander/incite violence. The question isn't are those rights yours but where your right ends and the line between your rights and mine.
It's still probably my favorite quote - especially as a veteran - even if, like a lot of things, its not exactly 100% accurate lol.
I should put it as "Voltaire, misquoted by Hall"
My other favorite quote is:
“When you tear out a man's tongue, you are not proving him a liar, you're only telling the world that you fear what he might say.” ― George R.R. Martin, A Clash of Kings
Ahh... the thing that makes up stuff and is increasingly... censored?
Hard pass.
I'll take my own thoughts and not AI limited by fear.
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2023/07/chatgpts-user-ba...
"OpenAI also started responding to user backlash and regulatory pressure by censoring harmful ChatGPT responses, which may have led some users to abandon the tool, possibly viewing it as less useful, less trustworthy, or simply less fun."
Let me know when I can talk to a human again. I'm not here to talk to NPCs hiding behind Censored AI.
pre-post edit: noticed your edit.
"To believe his claim that he's a good dictator."
I trust Elon as a "good dictator" when compared to alternatives. (IE: Media working with the FBI to censor stories and influence elections by hiding truth)
Don't talk about the "robust mechanism to protect free speech" without being willing to talk about all the alternative to "Elon"... the US government? Other tech companies? Media? Who have all been proven to be willing to lie to keep a narrative?
Even if he has his flaws? (hint: he has many) The fact that he's not beholden to the US Government or other entities is in itself a step that we needed to break the silence about all the "conspiracy theories" that keep ended up being true.
Elon is faaaaaaar from perfect. He sure as shit isn't the one walking on water.... but he's waaaaaaay more trustworthy than most of the alternatives out there.
The more testing that's been done and the more stable it should be.
The argument for new can be flipped because new doesn't mean better and old doesn't mean hell.
One of the biggest scandals of our time is "disinformation" that the government doesn't approve of being silenced by Government working with Private Industry to get around bans on government censorship of speech. Used for dissent around COVID "misinformation" or "election integrity".
I didn't claim X is perfect but it's a lot better than twitter that banned, say, the post for putting up The Laptop Story - that's long since been proven 100% true and was suppressed by... drum roll! the FBI literally lying about "russia".
The only thing that's changed is there's a top place for information that isn't controlled by the government - right or wrong.
I understand that's scary but scary freedom is better than the safety of slavery.
The largest problem with businesses these days is the "we must make profit next quarter" mindset and the "I hope he fails" is either that - or a pocket dislike of free speech. Each option is questionable in it's own right.
I hope Elon succeeds. Not because I agree with everything he says or does but because I value free speech.
“I disapprove of what you say, but will defend to the death your right to say it” -Voltaire
What we had when this country had great healthcare options.
You know... the stuff that was replaced with "Keep your Doctor", "keep your plan", "save $2500 a year" and other lies used to pass the unaffordable care act (and similar).
There's a reason "Free Healthcare" can only pass with lies - and it's because government options/UHC/etc are lies for those who don't look at... well... history.
you have a right to be free. Right to self defense. Right to free speech.
You don't have a right to the services of others.
No thank you.
The answer to government created problems isn't a government created department.
All you have to do is look at all of history to see the results of increased government power. Look at the lies of the unaffordable care act. look at the fact that things the government promises as "free" become unaffordable and worse.
The best things in programming are the things that are the least exciting. Stability and simplicity are huge selling points unless all you want is the new shiny.
https://www.caranddriver.com/features/g44830210/cheapest-new...
There may not be a LOT of cars in that price range but they definitely exist.
We don't get it because we expect it. We get it because history repeats.
Which is why we setup ours to be limited in power and why, as time goes on and that power expands, it gets worse and worse and why stuff like POTUS elections are now life and death when they used to be largely figure heads.
Programmers with experience do make a good living but FAANG style jobs vastly skew what people think the average programmer makes. Just like unicorn companies make people forget that the vast majority of companies fail.