Introducing Arclayn's Tech Bench

Cross posted to Arclayn's Live Journal.

I have a college degree in computer science. I sought the degree because of my interest in video games. All video games are run on computers and the games themselves are built by engineers as well as artists.

I really don't know how interested LTTP readers are in actual technology, but I do know that most video game periodicals, both in print and online, are full of misinformation about technology. Many publishers enjoy kicking up speculation to get their audiences excited. That helps get readership numbers up. However, no matter how "authentic" an article within such periodicals seems "true" one must remember that most of these periodicals are written by English majors, not computer experts. Often times, the information is half-correct which only makes matters even more confusing.

It doesn't help that some video game manufacturers love to play what I call the "tech spec" game. It's a marketing strategy where PR reps will talk meaningless statistics to the press in an (usually successful) attempt to excite the crowd to buy a game system. Every game system manufacturer does this to some extent. Sometimes, a marketing team will invent a cool sounding, but ultimately meaningless technology "buzz phrase" to promote their product (*cough* "Blast Processing!" *cough*).

If there is something that anyone has read about video game technology, and would like expert clarification on, let me know. I can write an article here on LTTP or make a post on my Livejournal. As I do not see direct feedback messages (that's Joshie's domain), I guess the best way for anyone to leave me a request is to leave a comment on my latest LTTP article, or leave a comment on my Livejournal.

I'm not going to make some ridiculous claim of being "truly unbiased". The irony is that kind of talk is all matter of opinion, anyway. What I will do is try to give as fair an assessment as I can. Despite my best intentions, I expect that these topics will eventually hit some fanboy/fangirl's nerve. I am not doing this to "get at" anybody. I'm simply tired of the rumor-mill driving gamers' senses for years upon years. For that, I remind everyone that ultimately it's the games that are truly important! It is why we are gamers! But for the record, I do play games on nearly every major platform, except for those that are financially out of my reach... No thanks to this global recession and my shrinking income! Also, I am a rare breed of gamer who willingly (and enjoyingly!) crosses cultural boundries to play games on both consoles and PCs! (GASP!)

In summary, I do have a professional computer technology background, so what I will do is try to have my information straight, instead of regurgitating popular opinion.

Arclayn MoonSword

P.S. Just a little fun trivia... Can anyone name from what video game devices that the two pictures are from? I admit the 2nd pic is really vague and certainly the more difficult of the two.

Comments

Tania (30th Oct 2009 14:38:13) Umm...the first thing I thought of when I saw the top pic was that it was the bottom of a DS, but then I figured that the shape wasn't right, so...I don't know :p I do have a tech-related question, although I don't know if that's the kind of question you're looking for. I've been thinking about upgrading my laptop to Windows 7, as I've heard people saying good things about it, but I want to know if it's got better compatibility with old PC games than Vista. Because I've had lots of trouble to get Myst and Riven to work under Vista, for example. I had to ask someone to install Virtual PC with Windows XP for me, and I know I wouldn't be able to reinstall it myself if it's needed under Windows 7 as well. So basically, my question is: is the compatibility better, and, if not, would Windows 7 still be worth upgrading to anyway?

Arclayn (30th Oct 2009 19:52:48) Nope, it's not part of a Nintendo DS. I can see where you might think that, though. It's a good guess. :D The answer to your question is not as simple as Yes/No. The short and simple is that from everything I am told and I have read, Windows 7 is what Windows Vista should have been. Furthermore, Microsoft is making a "Windows XP mode" available for Windows 7 as a separate download, but it runs via "virtualization" (similar to Virtual PC) and requires 2GB of RAM and hardware-level virtualization support. That 2nd note is gonna be the million dollar question for you and everybody else. Fortunately, Microsoft publishes a "HAV Detection Tool" to easily determine if you can use Windows XP mode or not. http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=0ee2a17f-8538-4619-8d1c-05d27e11adb2&displaylang=en Without "Windows XP Mode", I do not expect compatibility to be any better as Windows 7 has the same software core as Windows Vista.

Arclayn (30th Oct 09 21:14:36) I decided to give the "HAV Detection Tool" a try. My desktop runs Windows XP SP2, so it isn't necessary to have Windows 7, first. My desktop *FAILS*! Big red "X". Big bold letters: "This computer does not have hardware-assisted virtualization" No Windows XP mode for me. Guess I'll stick to *real* Windows XP for now. :D

Tania (1st Nov 09 10:02:19) Hmm...I'd probably have to install Windows 7 first to run that Detection Tool, since I already have Vista, so I'm not sure what to think. Realistically though, I guess I'll just take the plunge and sort out my Myst problems afterwards. If push comes to shove, I can always try to hunt down someone who knows how to install Virtual PC afterwards, lol.

Arclayn (1st Nov 09 20:13:21) No no. You don't need Windows 7 to run the "HAV Detection Tool". I ran it on my desktop which has Windows XP SP 2. Microsoft's website says the tool will run on under Windows Vista, Windows XP, as well as Windows 7. You don't have to wait to find out if you can use Windows XP mode in Windows 7, or not. As I already found out, I can't. But I custom built my desktop, so it is likely to be very different than your laptop.

Tania (1st Nov 09 23:01:44) Ok, now I'm confused. I ran the Detection Tool, and it tells me that I don't have hardware-assisted virtualization...But I have Virtual PC installed, and it runs just fine. So what's the deal? Is it not the same kind of virtualization? Or is there something I'm not getting?

Arclayn (3rd Nov 09 00:23:58) This means the short-and-simple answer to your question is that Windows XP mode in Windows 7 is not an option for you to play Myst. You'll have to use a different virtualization product (like your current Virtual PC software). To explain in more detail... Virtualization is not a hardware dependent technology, in and of itself. It simply allows additional "computing environments" to exist on top of and separate from your operating system. It's like running multiple computers within a computer, sort of (but not exactly) like an emulator. On the software level, it is very demanding and without hardware assistance, can be a huge burden on computing resources. Hardware assistance relieves some of that burden. Windows XP mode for Windows 7 is engineered to require hardware assistance, even though the general technology does not. To help you out further, think: Virtual PC and Windows XP Mode for Windows 7 are two different products (cousins of each other, for sure), although they are the same kind of technology. But that technology was born of software, not hardware.

Tania (4th Nov 09 09:49:51) Ok, yeah, that makes sense. But it's also kind of annoying, as it means that I'll definitely need to find someone to reinstall Virtual PC for me. However, I googled "Myst Windows 7" to get a feel for what I may be up against, and it seems that there aren't actually any compatibility problems. The real problem is that Myst and Riven, the two oldest ones, will most likely create a conflict with iTunes, since they run on a much older version of Quicktime. Which is partly the reason why I needed Virtual PC under Vista in the first place. ...I hate technology sometimes ; ;

Arclayn (4th Nov 09 22:21:19) Now that you mention it, I do recall some early Windows 95/98-era PC games used Quicktime to embed video in order to play "more realistic" animations. Quicktime certainly was a really bad choice as Apple doesn't give two-hoots about Windows game development. Bink/Smacker (created by RAD Game Tools) are a much better choice for embedding video into a game, although the tools may not have existed back when Myst and Riven were first made.

Arclayn (6th Nov 2009 01:50:00) It's been a week now so I'll explain what the pics are. My significant other actually got it right on my Livejournal, and without any inside help. The first pic is the inside of a Nintendo 64 cartridge. The giveaway would be the edge connector on the circuit board (indicating it is a cartridge) and the shape of the housing (indicating what type). The second pic is the systemboard to a Sega Saturn game console. This one would be very difficult to identify, but there are two marks to help. The "Sega" logo is barely distinguishable in the upper-left on the circuit board. On the upper-right corner is a coin-cell battery slot. The Sega Saturn is the only Sega console (and likely the only console of any brand) to have such a thing. The coin cell battery would power an internal RAM for saving games and also would power the clock. It had to be changed every year or so. The system works fine without it, but then you would need the RAM cartridge to save games and the clock is always wrong.

Tania (6th Nov 09 09:24:01) Ah, well, that would explain why I didn't recognize the pics: I've never owned either of these consoles, and I don't even know what they look like :p As for Quicktime, the compatibility problems with the later versions are, indeed, very annoying. I believe the more recent Myst games use Bink...pretty sure it's either IV or V, at least. But yeah, no such luck for the older ones ><

Arclayn (6th Nov 2009 21:40:54) It's OK, Tania. I was hoping there would be more talk about the pics, but it has been just you and me for a week. I expected that the Sega Saturn would be very obscure and difficult to identify. It was a business disaster, and heavily contributed towards Sega's decline as a console manufacturer. I must point out, though, there are some very good games on it. My favorite being Panzer Dragoon Saga -- both a very rare and very unique RPG that qualifies as one of the best games almost nobody has ever played.

Tania (9th Nov 09 09:18:04) "One of the best games almost nobody has ever played" XD That's a good quote.

Arclayn (9th Nov 09 22:42:14) Sad but true. Panzer Dragoon Saga is a fantastic game and only 30,000 copies were published in the United States. I have no idea how it fared in Europe. Sega originally wasn't gonna publish that many, but the original shipment didn't meet the pre-order demand. So yeah, considering how great the game is and how few copies were printed, it qualifies as "one of the best games almost nobody has ever played." It would be great if Sega would re-release the game on another console, like they did with Skies of Arcadia, but its been so long now that I wouldn't expect it to happen, ever. :(

Tania (10th Nov 09 10:30:47) I've never even heard of Panzer Dragoon Saga, so it's entirely possible that it wasn't even released in Europe. Ahh, Skies of Arcadia. I've heard good things about that game, but again, never having owned any Sega consoles, it's just another one that I'll never get to try ; ;

Arclayn (11th Nov 09 08:24:47) But Tania! Skies of Arcadia was republished on the Gamecube! And yes, it is an excellent game. It is one of the more unique RPGs ever made -- and simply an all around beautiful game.

Tania (11th Nov 09 11:59:19) :O I somehow figured it was a different game because it's called Skies of Arcadia Legends on the GC...But if it's the same thing: must. get. now!

Arclayn (11th Nov 09 17:05:23) Skies of Arcadia Legends is more like a "re-mix" of the original Skies of Arcadia on the Dreamcast. There are some minor tweaks and changes in the Gamecube version, but they both are mostly the same game. I highly recommend it to anyone who missed the Dreamcast version, but has Gamecube or Wii console handy. :)