[BadVista Advocate] A few thoughts on games

[Don Hensley]

Most of us here understand that the reason a lot of games are only available 
on Microsoft platforms has to do with 3 things:

1. Closed source code

2. Dependencies on proprietary ancillary code (.net, Direct X, etc.)

3. (Microsoft FUD): Fear that all us GNU/Linux bad guys will steal the game... 
Pirates all.

Well think about this for a minute.

All Windows games that can be played on just a single computer --not Internet 
dependent on some outside server, have already been cracked --and not by 
GNU/Linux guys --we don't use Windows so what would we do with a Windows 
game, even if it was cracked? So it's Windows bad guys that are cracking 
(pirating) Windows games, not all of us.

So #3 simply has no bearing on GNU/Linux users at all, for any Windows game 
that is ... lets call it 'self contained'.

Now as to games that are not 'self contained'. Well, all of those have tons of 
cheats... the list of cheat sheet sites for any Windows game or games is 
simply endless. So 'Windows only' games come down to he who cheats best wins.

Now ask your self if that really makes any sense to play a game that only by 
cheating can you really get somewhere at the game?

Free Software games, on the other hand, are not likely to have 'cheats' as a 
practical part of the game --at least not for long, because either some one 
will patch it so that is no longer possible, or they may simply incorporate 
it into the game for the use of everyone (it becomes a feature that really is 
a new feature).

Makes Free Software games a lot more fun because you can play it with a lot of 
faith that how you do will be based on your ability to play --not the other 
guy's ability to cheat.

This relies on having the source available to all, which is why #1 is a 
stopper for us GNU/Linux types. Honesty is only insured by transparency.

That only leaves problem #2... Well after a little thought about problems #1 
and #3, it becomes sort of obvious that #2 only exists to insure vendor lock 
in --not for the game, for the real vendor that wants everyone locked in 
--Microsoft.

So if you want to play Microsoft's games (they are too, if you can only play 
them on Microsoft's OS, no matter who they nominally 'belong' to), then by 
all means do so.

Just don't complain that GNU/Linux is bad because you can't play Microsoft's 
games on it... We like it that way, for all the above reasons --and a few 
more that have more of a philosophical nature (like understanding what losing 
Freedom means).

So that's my two cents on Microsoft's games.

Don.
-- 
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