Hi Josh and all, Snip The vast, vast, vast majority of Windows users never upgrade their existing machine. They go buy a cheap new computer which happens to have the latest OS on it. When this occurs, rather than going through channels to keep using obsolete software, hang on to the old machine to play such games, and keep that machine in as good repair as possible, much as I have had to do with vinyl record players over the years. End Snip
Exactly. I've done that very thing myself many times and I think it is the most practical solution to the problem of upgrading from one technology to another. For example, when DVDs came out I did not immediately throw out all my VHS tapes. Instead what I did was buy a DVD player and slowly collect my favorite movies and shows on DVD. Once I had replaced all my VHS tapes with DVDs I got rid of the VHS tapes. I used both a VCR and DVD player for many years and I didn't consider it an all or nothing situation. This situation with XP is just as easy to resolve. If Dark or someone had a laptop running XP they could easily put it in a carrying case and store it in a closet when not using XP, but get it out when they want to play older games and run older applications while at the same time own a brand spanking new laptop with Windows 8 on it. Why not have the best of both worlds? Snip And, as far as Draconis goes, we are working to move our games forward to modern operating systems. End Snip Same here with USA Games. One of our goals right now is finding out what we have to do to make our games more compatible with Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8. Things like making our games work with User Account Control and XAudio2 are more valuable to us over the long term than maintaining backwards compatibility with XP. Snip At some point, you will be forced to upgrade. You can do it on your own terms and find solutions to these challenges yourself, or you can wait until circumstance makes it necessary, and have squandered the time you had to make the upgrade smoother. I suppose it comes down to where the tipping point for each individual will be. When does the future hold more promise than retreading the ground of the past. End Snip I am in full agreement. The people who dig there heals in and go kicking and screaming into the future would be better off trying to resolve problems now rather than waiting until circumstances forces the decision on a person. Progress stops for no man, and if someone stops to fight it progress will eventually run them over. Snip I agree that upgrading just to be able to say you have the latest and greatest is not a sound mindset. An upgrade should offer tangible benefits. If it doesn't, you're clearly using the wrong OS for you, and perhaps should consider alternatives. End Snip Agreed. I certainly don't believe in the idea that people should upgrade just for the sake of upgrading. There always should be some benefit to upgrading, and usually there are benefits that a person may or may not know about in advance. As long as someone has the mindset that there is absolutely nothing good about Windows 7, Windows 8, etc then they won't be able to see those benefits because they have already made their mind up to dislike it benefits or no benefits. Snip The above points you raise are less reasons than justifications, in my opinion. There are solutions, some of them reasonably simple, to both of them. End snip Yes, agreed. There are reasonably simple solutions to the problems Dark raised such as maintaining two computers instead of one, but I haven't heard anything that justifies his points. All I see is a bunch of reasons why he dislikes the new versions of Windows so much, and weather I agree with him or not that won't change the fact that no matter how much he likes or dislikes Windows 8 it is the present and XP is the past. Neither Microsoft or any other developer will continue to support it forever. Sooner or later all good things must come to an end. Cheers! --- Gamers mailing list __ Gamers@audyssey.org If you want to leave the list, send E-mail to gamers-unsubscr...@audyssey.org. You can make changes or update your subscription via the web, at http://audyssey.org/mailman/listinfo/gamers_audyssey.org. All messages are archived and can be searched and read at http://www.mail-archive.com/gamers@audyssey.org. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the management of the list, please send E-mail to gamers-ow...@audyssey.org.
