Magister Lajciak

King's Bounty: The Legend has been released. The game looks great and is garnering positive reviews: http://pc.gamespy.com/pc/battle-lord/912879p1.html I can't wait to play it! Here is a free demo: http://www.worthplaying.com/article.php?sid=55729

A good article: Click Here

So, going to the movies or the arcade is unacceptable to you? In my mind, going to the movies is different than renting a movie, but although I did not think of that, it is true that I don't go to arcades or cinemas. If they adopt the movie model (movies are eventually released on DVDs to buy) for games, I would be fine with that, as I could still buy them, though perhaps not at their initial release. Somehow I doubt that's what they have in mind though...

Yes and no. If you change something on your computer, such as add or replace hardware, or if you reformat your hard drive and reinstall the OS (and a lot of people do that rather often), Securom might or might not count it as a new computer - there is no way to tell ahead of time and even the EA does not know what will trigger Securom to decide that it's a new computer. If you do any of those things, your game might simply stop working, since Securom might decide that it is a new system.

I was looking forward to Red Alert 3, as I indicated in one of my previous posts. I want to correct that now, as I no longer intend to buy it due to the draconian DRM that EA will be imposing on the game.

sloth? greed? those were sins, last time i checked. OK, this was a funny retort, I will grant you that! I am interested in a new epic-scale D&D CRPG (so long as it remains with 3.5E) regardless of what name it carries. If the BG 3 name is going to enable such a game to be made by attracting sufficient interest/customers than I will gladly take that. And although a new storyline, I am sure they would throw references to the Bhaalspawn saga for those of us veterans who cherish it so dearly - it was a great story after all, so no reason not to have links to it. Side note: I am still not convinced that BG3 is actually in production. Even if it is, we certainly cannot be sure that it will be 3.5E.

Any thoughts about my expirable DRM idea?

With my current nearly 3-year old laptop living on borrowed time, I will have to buy a new notebook sometime in the relatively near future. I need the machine to be pretty powerful, as it must be able to do pretty much everything, yet remain portable, since I move countries regularly: work, multimedia and games. I am willing to spend up to $2000 on the laptop (if there are exceptionally good deals over $2000 I might even go over budget, but such deals would have to be truly exceptional). I have been in the U.S. for less than 10 days so far (just moved in), so before going further, I would like to ask whether now is a good time to get a new computer or if it is better to wait. I am not familiar with market conditions in the U.S. - perhaps notebook manufacturers offer better prices in October/November than in September to attract Christmas shoppers, or perhaps they jack them up to milk them at this time - I am just not familiar with how prices change over the course of the year. It would be great if somebody could tell me when is generally the best time to buy laptops in the U.S.. I have searched a bit on the internet and have come across two machines that seem to be a good value for money and offer good performance. I would like to ask the forumers, which one they think is a better deal. Machine 1: $1839.99 Intel

I want to be able to play a game 10-15 years from now for nostalgia's sake and thus want to be independent of the need for EA's authentication (which EA might not be there to provide at that point) to do so and regardless of the number of systems I go through during this time (including system upgrades, OS changes, etcetera). When they reverse their DRM decisions to the point that this will be the case, I will definitely get off the negative train and even praise them for learning from their mistakes. I recognize the need for some form of DRM in order to prevent casual piracy (it won't stop the 'profesional' pirates [no DRM will], but it might hamper casual piracy). As a result, I have no problem with CD-checks (never had a problem with that). An additional idea has, in fact, occurred to me for reconciling my desire for game longevity and for EA's desire for controlling casual piracy through DRM. I would accept something akin to a time-limited DRM. Take, for example, the requirement for online authentication. In case of time-limited DRM, this means that the game needs to be authenticated online after every install for say 5 years after its official release. After the 5 years expires, online authentication is no longer needed to install and/or play the game. The same could apply to limited installs. The installs would be limited to X (probably 3, 4 or 5 with the possibility of getting additional installs authorized by EA customer service), but just like for online authentication, this limitation would only apply for Y years (for example for 5 years) after which point installs would become unlimited. I think this would be a reasonable compromise - most companies don't derive much more benefit from games after 5-years (or whatever time-period would be set), but a some of us gamers, want to play our old games even after decades, to refresh the spirit they evoked for us many years back. If EA would switch to something like my idea above, I would be placated, as for me rental/longevity is the main issue at stake in the DRM debate. Of course, this depends on the existence of some tamper-proof (or relatively so) internal computer clock to function, which could be checked by the installation program to see whether the DRM in question should expire or not. I don't know whether such a clock is present in computers today - somebody better versed in computing could perhaps enlighten us. I would not accept this being dependent on some EA clock over the internet or something along those lines, because this would bring us back to square one (what if EA goes bankrupt and thus the clock disappears, etcetera, etcetera).

it's great that you keep trying to push that utterly semantic distinction, but have you noticed that nobody is buying it? But "BG3" is also only semantically different from saying a "new D&D computer game", as it will surely be unconnected. I have no problem whatsoever with them using the BG name for marketing if it gets us a new D&D CRPG (as long as it is still 3.5E).

Thanks LostStraw - I have downloaded the tool you suggested and it did not find Sasser. It did find some malware and needed a restart to remove it - the notebook, however, failed to restart and did the same thing I described above. So I took out the hard drive, pluged it to somebody else's computer and cleared yet more space from the hard drive in order to make it start up again, which worked eventually. At that point, I installed Avast, but in order for the install to complete, it wants me to do a restart, which I am afraid to do, because I fear it will not start up again. So the notebook has been running for a few days now without the restart demanded by Avast. In any case, thanks for the suggestions!

I couldn't buy Mass Effect due to minimum system requirements and thus did not know about the DRM in place. Spore is a game that I was considering buying, but it was definitely not an autobuy for me. Then I found out about the draconian DRM and I definitely decided not to buy it. The next EA game, I was actually really interested in and that was Red Alert. The DRM that EA has stated will be in place, however, makes a purchase of this game out of the question. The game I really, really want from Bioware (and thus EA), however, is Dragon Age (and I will probably have a new computer that will be able to run it by the time it comes out). It would be an enormous pity for me if EA slapped the same type of DRM on Dragon Age. I hope EA comes to its senses by then. Why do I dislike DRM as implemented by the EA? I cannot accept any DRM that prevents me from coming back 10-15 years later, installing the game and playing the game again to refresh my experience. Both install limits and online activation prevent this, or rather make it dependent on EA's goodwill and future existence. What if EA goes bankrupt in the future? Yes, it is a big company, but this happens in the gaming industry - once unassailable giants go bankrupt or renege on their promises of support for a game... It happens. Any promise to issue a patch in such a situation that would make the game playable without activation and install limits is laughable (and in any case hasn't been made). I would love to see a gaming company in trouble, rush back to their previous titles and release patches for them just so that players can play them effectively after their bankrupcy, when they are in trouble with difficulties paying their employees and honoring their business commitments, so if anybody was about to suggest that, please don't insult my intelligence. In summation, I can accept some forms of DRM (even Securom), when they do not affect the longevity of the game and my ability to play it many years after the game's release without the need to depend on the company (in this case EA) to do so.

This is actually incorrect. The d20 License does indeed have such a provision, but the d20 License is now expired. The Pathfinder RPG is not based on the d20 License - it is based on the Open Gaming License (the two are very different animals), which does not contain any such restrictions. Legally speaking, the Pathfinder RPG can be turned into a CRPG product without any problems. Here, I fear, you are very likely correct. The only way I could see them allowing it would be if the CRPG was in development for so long already that it would be too late to change the edition to 4E.

I love the analogy with the gothic cathedrals. As to NWN2 still looking pretty good - I agree, though it would be sad if they stopped at Storm of Zehir with the expansions. I guess they have to stop somewhere though... Regarding the MoW fiasco - I am not aware of it at all, so I cannot comment. I lost any and all interest in MoW after it was revealed that it would use DRM that requires a connection to the internet each time you play and have stopped checking the relevant forum since then, so I don't know what fiasco has developed around it. Care to enlighten me?

Come on now people, we all know that reviving old engines, such as the Infinity Engine is completely unrealistic. It is, however, feasible that new engines might reach the same excellence, but with newer graphics. I have high hopes for Dragon Age in that regard.

You may be right, though I hope you are wrong. Perhaps they could make one more expansion before moving on to something different. If that is the case, though, BG3 with a new engine and using the 3.5E ruleset due to being in development long before 4E release would be exactly what doctror ordered, though it is doubtful whether another 3.5E game will be allowed to come out or that BG3 has been under development for long enough to make its conversion to 4E impractical.

Exactly my thought. The NWN2 engine is still viable... I kind of agree too, but there is a way to make a new D&D game that would still use the 3.5E ruleset. The game would have to have been in production long enough before the announcement of 4E, so that it would be too late to change the mechanics now. If BG3 (and I know it would be Baldur's Gate in name only - otherwise it would be a new D&D FR game with perhaps some tie ins to the Bhaalspawn saga) has been in development for a while, it could be another hurrah (the last one) for electronic 3.5E D&D. I would welcome that and with an expansion (or more than one), it could extend the shelf-life of 3.5E D&D CRPGs considerably, though I fear that WotC/Hasbro would require it convert to 4E prior to its release for that reason even at the cost of delaying the game significantly. As to NWN 2 expansion, I would say, "Keep them coming and I will keep buying!" As long as they are of good quality, and with Obsidian that is pretty likely, I will almost certainly keep buying as many NWN 2 expansions and for as long as they keep making them. I hope they do not stop with the Storm of Zehir. NWN 2 is a nice refuge for those of us who dislike the 4E ruleset. After it becomes unviable to make any more D&D 3.5E games/expansions, I hope somebody makes a Pathfinder CRPG, which is sort of a living successor to 3.5E rules and certainly maintains the D&D atmosphere much better than 4E.

My next laptop/notebook computer should be able to serve as a multipurpose machine not only for my work, but also for multimedia (thus my desire for Bluray and Full HD monitor) and gaming. As to gaming, I would want to be able to run all current CRPGs and any CRPGs that are going to be coming out during the next 3 years. All current CRPGs should run well on the system, whereas CRPGs of the future, particularly those close to the 3 year limit I have set, should merely run - as in actually load and work. Do you think the Dell system below for $2050 (including taxes, shipping and handling) that I am thinking of can accomplish all of the goals I have outlined above? Regardless of the answer to that question, do you think the system is good value for money? Thanks! Here are the system specs: SYSTEM COLOR Jet Black edit PROCESSOR Intel

Here are the basic specifications of my current laptop computer: Pentium M 760 (2GHz) 2GB DDR2 ATI MOBILITY RADEON X700 with 128MB VRAM 100 GB HDD split into two partitions of 50GB each 15.4" WXGA CD/DVD Writer/Player

My laptop has a strange problem. I can use it normally, but when I shut it down, it refuses to start up. The booting process begins normally, but at a certain point a warning window from lsass.exe appears to tell me "Insufficient resources to complete API" and the computer immediately shuts down. If I try it again, the same thing happens and booting up in Safe Mode does not help either. I cannot reinstall Windows XP nor can I boot from the original XP CD for the simple reason that I no longer have the CD (or rather, I might have it, but in another country somewhere on the attic of my family members - they certainly have no hope of finding it there). Somewhere on the web, while scouring for a solution to the problem, I discovered that something like this can caused by low hard disk space. So, I took out my laptop's hard disc and copied some stuff to another hard disc (using another computer). When I put it back in, the computer did manage to start up normally. After some more usage and a few more boot cycles, the same problem appeared and I solved it the same way and the process repeated itself several times, but the problem is that each time I seem to require more and more free hard disc space. The first time I needed to have only a 1 gig free on each partition (the HDD is 100GB and divided into two partitions of 50GB each) to solve the problem, whereas the latest time the problem recurred (today), I had 10.5GB free on one partition and 6GB free on the other partition. Something is clearly amiss. I have heard that the Sasser worm mimics Lsass.exe by using a file Isass.exe, but I can never tell from the warning message whether it is genuine lsass.exe or the Sasser lsass.exe, as leter "l" and "l" look the same when "i" is capitalized and "L" is in lower case. Just to make sure, I did run the "Trend Micro" free check over the internet (my Norton subscription is long expired) and it did not find the Sasser worm, though I do feel that something went wrong with the scan as there were a number of unidentified problems in the report after it finished. In any case, though, the symptoms are somewhat different with the Sasser supposedly restarting your computer when you are already booted up and doing something and giving you a countdown, whereas my problem is that the computer refuses to start up and shuts down immediately after the warning screen with no countdown. I am at a loss regarding how to solve this problem once and for all. If anybody has any ideas that work without requiring me to purchase/pay for something (some kind of clean-up program, a new XP DVD, etc.) I would welcome to hear that. Barring that, I will probably get a new notebook computer, which is something I have been thinking about anyway, since the current one is almost three years old, but I might hold out a little longer if this problem can be solved.

I agree completely and am equally concerned about the DRM. A draconian rent-a-game DRM would force me not to buy the game regardless of its other qualities, which now appear obvious.

The king is fine - it's the idealism of youth that speaks form him. Since we are all guessing anyway, I will predict that one of the following three things will happen with the king: 1) He will die 2) He will survive, but the harsh experience will leave him a completely different man 3) He will become corrupted

Vostros are not bad, but depending on the build you desire, they can actually end up more expensive than other Dell systems with the same specs. At least that was my experience when trying a few builds experimentally, as I will also soon need a new laptop and it also must be a universal machine for work, gaming and multimedia, since I also cannot lug around a desktop when I move between countries, which is a fairly regular occurrence.

BG2 was a great game. I would welcome BG3, which I know would be a D&D game set in FR with a completely new story with new characters that would have references to the Bhaalspawn saga. This would be great, except for the fact that it would most likely be based on the terrible 4E ruleset, unless of course it has already been in development for some time before $4E's announcement. All in all, though, it is likely that BG3 would use 4E, so I would prefer more XP packs from Obsidian for my NWN2 D&D 3.5E CRPG fix.