This whole thread is proof that some people just HATE NVIDIA to the exclusion of all reason AND in defiance of any claims the Fanboys make about wanting "competition". When Nvidia ruled the roost, people swore that 3dfx, then ATI, had to be kept alive to prevent Nvidia's "monopoly" (fess up, that's what it was called) from keeping prices high and quality low.
But, now that ATI is King, these same people are now shoveling dirt on Nvidia and cackling about how they're the smartest people in the world for contributing to their "downfall". How many posts have declared that there is NO WAY Nvidia will ever come back with anything good? Do these delusional Fanboys remember that ATI was the b*tch until the 9700 came out or are they just not admitting it?
Nvidia owned ATI from 1998-2002 - that's five years. ATI's been comparable for a year and you'd think they invented the transistor for all of the giggling from the Fanboys.
ATI and Nvidia are the Ferrari and Lamborghini of the video world - while one may be faster than the other, it's not like the 2nd place car is a hooptie, that is, unless you're a rabid fan of whichever card ISN'T an Nvidia. ATI fans used to brag about the 2D quality - "Who cares if my card is 40% slower and has broken drivers that bork all the games I play? My Excel looks SHARP!" - when they couldn't compete on speed. Now that ATI can fuel their d*ck-measuring egos, they're just that much more obnoxious.
Finally, does anyone think it's odd that in most benchmarks, the top cards from both finish within 10 percent of each other, but suddenly the Nvidia part is HALF as fast? Combined with the reach-around that ATI and Valve are giving each other AND the event was put on by ATI:Q, the lack of critical questions being asked as to whether Nvidia is getting smeared shows just how disinterested in FACTS the Fanboys are. Who cares if it's untrue if it supports their beloved ATI?
1. ATI staged the event.
2. ATI and Valve are seriously in bed with each other.
3. Valve has been leaking comments that ATI was better. (Remember when Carmack used to trash ATI drivers as not following specs? At least he's independant.)
4. Nvidia has a new driver revision pending and tried to get betas used for comparison, but Valve refuses, making vague accusations of "out-of-hand optomizations", but doesn't specify what those optimizations do.
The last point is key: While the Fanboys wank themselves furiously and yelp that Nvidia has been busted for cheating, what's to say that the major crime the new drivers commit is BEING AS FAST AS THE ATI DRIVERS? God forbid Valve has to back down from all their smacktalk about Nvidia in support of their cash masters at ATI.
What's been missing from all of this is SPECIFIC DETAILS about what the heck is going on. All we get is vague murmurs about how crappy Nvidia's parts and drivers are and how ATI r00lz cuz they follow the DX9 spec, but HOW DO WE KNOW THAT? Just because a video company and a game maker who are in bed together say so?
INDEPENDENT investigation is needed and, so far, all I've seen are the Valve supplied benchmarks that were tailored to show ATI in the best light. Aren't you Fanboys just the slightest bit interested in the truth or is your Nvidia hatred so all-consuming that you can't help yourselves?