Originally posted by: Gstanfor
Originally posted by: CaiNaM
i've been around computers since the ti99, and used windows since the first release. this is the very FIRST time I haven't been running the latest version of windows by release... not sure if/when i'll take the plunge. not likely until dx10 games make it mandatory.
another first for me today - i tend to agree with Gstanfor that vista may actually hurt microsoft's OS monopoly (at least current version). it will likely be the slowest widespread adoption for an MS operating system in history - there will be many still running w2k/xp for some time.
the only reprieve for MS is that linux isn't viable as an entertainment platform (this from me who has over a dozen servers running some flavor of 'nix), and outside the coporate world there aren't many pc's which aren't used for gaming.
well, it's nice to see that, for the most part, i still don't agree with you
The way I see it, you can always dual boot into you existing copy of XP when you want to game (and we gaming enthusuiasts need to make it abundantly clear to the industry that we don't think abandoning Xp "just because" is an acceptable move, just as we need to impress upon Micro$oft that no DX10 for XP is unacceptable).
"rebooting" simply to game is not what i would consider "user friendly". not only is that cumbersome, but i actually do many tasks in the background
while i'm gaming.
Having said that, there is a very significant proportion of home-pc's that do not get used for gaming (the owners tend to be older or have young families with consoles) and mainly use their computer for internet/photography/music/video.
based on what? your wish? from "hello kitty" to "world of warcraft", you'll find some type of game on the majority of pc's.
the latest data i know of from 2001 showed almost 70% of ppl used the pc's to play games. some more recent facts:
1. US computer and video game software sales grew six percent in 2006 to $7.4 billion ? almost tripling industry software sales since 1996.
2. Sixty-nine percent of American heads of households play computer and video games.
3. The average game player is 33 years old and has been playing games for 12 years.
4. The average age of the most frequent game buyer is 40 years old. In 2006, 93 percent of computer game buyers and 83 percent of console game buyers were over the age of 18.
5. Eighty-five percent of all games sold in 2005 were rated "E" for Everyone, "T" for Teen, or "E10+" for Everyone 10+. For more information on ratings, please see
www.esrb.org.
6. Eighty-seven percent of game players under the age of 18 report that they get their parents? permission when renting or buying games, and 89 percent say their parents are present when they buy games.
7. Thirty-five percent of American parents say they play computer and video games. Further, 80 percent of gamer parents say they play video games with their kids. Sixty-six percent feel that playing games has brought their families closer together.
8. Thirty-eight percent of all game players are women. In fact, women over the age of 18 represent a significantly greater portion of the game-playing population (30%) than boys age 17 or younger (23%).
9. In 2005, 25 percent of Americans over the age of 50 played video games, an increase from nine percent in 1999.
10. Forty-four percent of game players say they play games online one or more hours per week. In addition, 32 percent of heads of households play games on a wireless device, such as a cell phone or PDA, up from 20 percent in 2002.
Linux, especially flavours such as PCLinuxOS will do everything they require and more, all without costing a cent or ripping up your rights.
i love linux, and am a big advocate of it. it helps support my family. it's more efficient, uses less overhead, and is, in general more secure (especially if you know what you're doing; most however do not).
the truth, however is that (while installation has become much better), most people are curious, but intimidated by it. when they buy their computer at bestbuy, it has windows installed, not linux. linux is a niche, and is nowhere near mainstream. that's why 90% of the world runs windows.
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