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Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

OK - here goes

Before HL2 was launched I said I supported STEAM - I have BB and its
updates etc have never been an issue for me (I even ordered and had
HL2 game delivered via STEAM), however, I did add some important
caveats. I said ....

*********************
Where it MAY be an issue is the following scenario.

- Game sits on retail shelf far a while
- Steam keeps being developed - needing updates
- User buys game 6 months in (for instance) - goes to activate - and -
steam insists on updating with BIG update before it allows.
***************************

In addition to this I hear (but dont know if true) that

"You cant play offline forever - it insists on periodic connection to
re-authenticate."

If this is true - and when it does that it insists on updating HL2 etc
at the same time before it will allow you to play then I would have a
LOT of sympathy for dial up user.

If a user wants to play HL2, does not want to play on-line, just wants
to play single player - does not want patches (it works fine for
him/her) then they should not be forced to connect for anything more
that authenticate. i.e. Steam should say - you need to connect to
authenticate - dont mind if it does a quick check to ensure STEAM has
not been tampered with, but it should give you option to install
patches.

So - whats the truth of it? Happy to listen to
DiFool/STEAMMadman/Anyone - but please dont rant - calm and rational
debate will be fine - if you go off on one, I (and probably many
others) will just switch off and brand you fanatical and biased (like
I do politicians - and who listens/believes them?).

Cheers.



Yojimbo
aka Justin Thompson

Very proud owner of:
3 'Hapless AGHL lurker' points
4 'I corrected Daemon points'
5 AGHL 'de-cloaking' points
6 'I summed it up in a sentence' points
10 AGHL "I sure slapped those fools down points"
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

Justin Thompson wrote:
> On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 13:01:58 +0000, Andrew <spamtrap@localhost.>
> wrote:
>
> >On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 12:46:07 GMT, Justin Thompson
> ><Justin.Thompson@removethisntlworld.com> wrote:
> >
> >>"You cant play offline forever - it insists on periodic connection
to
> >>re-authenticate."
> >
> >That was a bug/oversight/feature that was corrected ages ago.
> >
> >>If a user wants to play HL2, does not want to play on-line, just
wants
> >>to play single player - does not want patches (it works fine for
> >>him/her) then they should not be forced to connect for anything
more
> >>that authenticate. i.e. Steam should say - you need to connect to
> >>authenticate - dont mind if it does a quick check to ensure STEAM
has
> >>not been tampered with, but it should give you option to install
> >>patches.
> >
> >The game states it requires an Internet connection. If they don't
have
> >a net connection, HL2 isn't the game for them.
>
> If this is the quality of response I am going to get I have wasted my
> time. Pathetic.

I have much the same question marks about Steam as you.

What happens if Steam is no longer supported and there is no
alternative? Do we use illegal hacks to play the game?

Yes, updates should be optional. For online play I would expect to need
be fully patched because the patches contain bug fixes, code
improvements and anti-cheat measures that should improve online play,
but also you want a level playing field, so all players should be using
the same version. But for the single-player game, you should be free to
choose whether or not to download them, if only because it's a pain
having to wait for them whenh you were hoping to be playing the game
instead.

Offline mode should mean offline. Andrew seems to think this is sorted
now. I don't know - I haven't tested it, but if you select off-line
mode, it should not try to connect to the internet. Obviously you can
only play single-player (or possibly over a LAN?) this way.

There should be a telephone activation line, or a postal one maybe.

The install process is not exactly intuitive - a single sheet of paper
in the box explaining what steps you go through (and pointing out where
the "register a game I own" link is) would be enough. Most people
expect a game to just install and be ready - there is a bit more to it
with HL2.

The internet requirement on the box needs to be clearer. "This game
must be authenticated over the internet before it can be played in any
mode, including single-player". Or something to that effect but
shorter. Doesn't need to be in 6 foot letters of fire, but it should be
there in the same way that add-on packs state that you must own the
original game. Discrete but unambiguous.

Apart from that, once it's installed, it works fine. I haven't got an
"always on" connection, so I always played offline and wasn't affected
by authentication (which prevented people playing when the Steam
servers went down). I downloaded updates when I was on the internet for
another reason (eg. whilst downloading email). So I avoided some of the
problems others have faced.
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

Chadwick wrote:
> Justin Thompson wrote:
> > On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 13:01:58 +0000, Andrew <spamtrap@localhost.>
> > wrote:
> >
> > >On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 12:46:07 GMT, Justin Thompson
> > ><Justin.Thompson@removethisntlworld.com> wrote:
> > >
> > >>"You cant play offline forever - it insists on periodic
connection
> to
> > >>re-authenticate."
> > >
> > >That was a bug/oversight/feature that was corrected ages ago.
> > >
> > >>If a user wants to play HL2, does not want to play on-line, just
> wants
> > >>to play single player - does not want patches (it works fine for
> > >>him/her) then they should not be forced to connect for anything
> more
> > >>that authenticate. i.e. Steam should say - you need to connect to
> > >>authenticate - dont mind if it does a quick check to ensure STEAM
> has
> > >>not been tampered with, but it should give you option to install
> > >>patches.
> > >
> > >The game states it requires an Internet connection. If they don't
> have
> > >a net connection, HL2 isn't the game for them.
> >
> > If this is the quality of response I am going to get I have wasted
my
> > time. Pathetic.
>
> I have much the same question marks about Steam as you.
>
> What happens if Steam is no longer supported and there is no
> alternative? Do we use illegal hacks to play the game?
>
> Yes, updates should be optional. For online play I would expect to
need
> be fully patched because the patches contain bug fixes, code
> improvements and anti-cheat measures that should improve online play,
> but also you want a level playing field, so all players should be
using
> the same version. But for the single-player game, you should be free
to
> choose whether or not to download them, if only because it's a pain
> having to wait for them whenh you were hoping to be playing the game
> instead.
>
> Offline mode should mean offline. Andrew seems to think this is
sorted
> now. I don't know - I haven't tested it, but if you select off-line
> mode, it should not try to connect to the internet. Obviously you can
> only play single-player (or possibly over a LAN?) this way.
>
> There should be a telephone activation line, or a postal one maybe.
>
> The install process is not exactly intuitive - a single sheet of
paper
> in the box explaining what steps you go through (and pointing out
where
> the "register a game I own" link is) would be enough. Most people
> expect a game to just install and be ready - there is a bit more to
it
> with HL2.
>
> The internet requirement on the box needs to be clearer. "This game
> must be authenticated over the internet before it can be played in
any
> mode, including single-player". Or something to that effect but
> shorter. Doesn't need to be in 6 foot letters of fire, but it should
be
> there in the same way that add-on packs state that you must own the
> original game. Discrete but unambiguous.
>
> Apart from that, once it's installed, it works fine. I haven't got an
> "always on" connection, so I always played offline and wasn't
affected
> by authentication (which prevented people playing when the Steam
> servers went down). I downloaded updates when I was on the internet
for
> another reason (eg. whilst downloading email). So I avoided some of
the
> problems others have faced.

Forgot one:
You should be able to unregister your game from your account. For free.
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 12:46:07 GMT, Justin Thompson
<Justin.Thompson@removethisntlworld.com> wrote:

>"You cant play offline forever - it insists on periodic connection to
>re-authenticate."

That was a bug/oversight/feature that was corrected ages ago.

>If a user wants to play HL2, does not want to play on-line, just wants
>to play single player - does not want patches (it works fine for
>him/her) then they should not be forced to connect for anything more
>that authenticate. i.e. Steam should say - you need to connect to
>authenticate - dont mind if it does a quick check to ensure STEAM has
>not been tampered with, but it should give you option to install
>patches.

The game states it requires an Internet connection. If they don't have
a net connection, HL2 isn't the game for them.
--
Andrew, contact via interpleb.blogspot.com
Help make Usenet a better place: English is read downwards,
please don't top post. Trim replies to quote only relevant text.
Check groups.google.com before asking an obvious question.
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 13:01:58 +0000, Andrew <spamtrap@localhost.>
wrote:

>On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 12:46:07 GMT, Justin Thompson
><Justin.Thompson@removethisntlworld.com> wrote:
>
>>"You cant play offline forever - it insists on periodic connection to
>>re-authenticate."
>
>That was a bug/oversight/feature that was corrected ages ago.
>
>>If a user wants to play HL2, does not want to play on-line, just wants
>>to play single player - does not want patches (it works fine for
>>him/her) then they should not be forced to connect for anything more
>>that authenticate. i.e. Steam should say - you need to connect to
>>authenticate - dont mind if it does a quick check to ensure STEAM has
>>not been tampered with, but it should give you option to install
>>patches.
>
>The game states it requires an Internet connection. If they don't have
>a net connection, HL2 isn't the game for them.

If this is the quality of response I am going to get I have wasted my
time. Pathetic.



Yojimbo
aka Justin Thompson

Very proud owner of:
3 'Hapless AGHL lurker' points
4 'I corrected Daemon points'
5 AGHL 'de-cloaking' points
6 'I summed it up in a sentence' points
10 AGHL "I sure slapped those fools down points"
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 13:05:11 GMT, Justin Thompson
<Justin.Thompson@removethisntlworld.com> wrote:

>If this is the quality of response I am going to get I have wasted my
>time. Pathetic.

I see you wanted replies from DiF***wit, I apologise that I jumped in
with facts.
--
Andrew, contact via interpleb.blogspot.com
Help make Usenet a better place: English is read downwards,
please don't top post. Trim replies to quote only relevant text.
Check groups.google.com before asking an obvious question.
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 13:17:02 +0000, Andrew <spamtrap@localhost.>
wrote:

>On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 13:05:11 GMT, Justin Thompson
><Justin.Thompson@removethisntlworld.com> wrote:
>
>>If this is the quality of response I am going to get I have wasted my
>>time. Pathetic.
>
>I see you wanted replies from DiF***wit, I apologise that I jumped in
>with facts.

Facts are fine- but it helps if they move the discussion forward - and
in your case you have thrown in a couple of facts but completely
missed the point.



Yojimbo
aka Justin Thompson

Very proud owner of:
3 'Hapless AGHL lurker' points
4 'I corrected Daemon points'
5 AGHL 'de-cloaking' points
6 'I summed it up in a sentence' points
10 AGHL "I sure slapped those fools down points"
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 13:24:36 GMT, Justin Thompson
<Justin.Thompson@removethisntlworld.com> wrote:

>Facts are fine- but it helps if they move the discussion forward - and
>in your case you have thrown in a couple of facts but completely
>missed the point.

You said:
"In addition to this I hear (but dont know if true) that

"You cant play offline forever - it insists on periodic connection to
re-authenticate."

That was incorrect, so I was able to dispel that for you.

My other comment was my opinion, which is what you solicited. Other
people including DiF***wit will be along with their opinion. This
isn't an issue that has a right or wrong answer, but the system
requirements for the game swing things towards my view IMO.
--
Andrew, contact via interpleb.blogspot.com
Help make Usenet a better place: English is read downwards,
please don't top post. Trim replies to quote only relevant text.
Check groups.google.com before asking an obvious question.
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

"Justin Thompson" <Justin.Thompson@removethisntlworld.com> wrote
> If this is the quality of response I am going to get I have wasted my
> time. Pathetic.

You said:
"So - whats the truth of it? Happy to listen to
DiFool/STEAMMadman/Anyone - but please dont rant - calm and rational
debate will be fine"

Andrew is Anyone, he didn't rant and was calm and rational... What point are
you trying to make, Jimbo? I'm missing it myself.
--
David
davidfirewater(a)hotmail.com
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

On Fri, 4 Mar 2005 14:18:16 -0000, "David Firewater"
<davidfirewater.nospam@hotmail.com> wrote:

>
>"Justin Thompson" <Justin.Thompson@removethisntlworld.com> wrote
>> If this is the quality of response I am going to get I have wasted my
>> time. Pathetic.
>
>You said:
>"So - whats the truth of it? Happy to listen to
>DiFool/STEAMMadman/Anyone - but please dont rant - calm and rational
>debate will be fine"
>
>Andrew is Anyone, he didn't rant and was calm and rational... What point are
>you trying to make, Jimbo? I'm missing it myself.

Im trying to understand if Steam is a reasonable solution for all
users who comply with what it says on the box as requirement.

I have tried not to be too wordy in my question, but give a holistic
view of the issues that have been voiced by various people, without
going into too much detail, and invited people to input.

So although I just said "You cant play offline forever - it insists on
periodic connection to re-authenticate"? I have specifically not
elaborated on if I mean the reported issue of "I cant play-offline" or
"I can only play for a month before it insists" or "it detects if you
have connection and and uses anyway" or any of the combinations which
have been put forward as complaints about STEAM. I had hoped to get
input which demonstrated a better understanding of the issues.

On the second part of the reply - where he just restates that it says
an Internet connection is required- again it really demonstrates no
appreciation of the issues.

My penultimate paragraph elaborates on what I think is a reasonable
expectation from STEAM and I asked for rational debate. The answer I
got gave no rationale - it was just statements (factual or otherwise -
Chad has questioned Andrews assertion already).

Hope that clarifies.
Cheers

Yojimbo
aka Justin Thompson

Very proud owner of:
3 'Hapless AGHL lurker' points
4 'I corrected Daemon points'
5 AGHL 'de-cloaking' points
6 'I summed it up in a sentence' points
10 AGHL "I sure slapped those fools down points"
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

Andrew <spamtrap@localhost.> typed as if devouring a plate of spoo:
> On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 12:46:07 GMT, Justin Thompson
> <Justin.Thompson@removethisntlworld.com> wrote:
>
>> "You cant play offline forever - it insists on periodic connection
>> to re-authenticate."
>
> That was a bug/oversight/feature that was corrected ages ago.
>
>> If a user wants to play HL2, does not want to play on-line, just
>> wants to play single player - does not want patches (it works fine
>> for him/her) then they should not be forced to connect for anything
>> more that authenticate. i.e. Steam should say - you need to connect
>> to authenticate - dont mind if it does a quick check to ensure STEAM
>> has not been tampered with, but it should give you option to install
>> patches.
>
> The game states it requires an Internet connection. If they don't have
> a net connection, HL2 isn't the game for them.

Dial-up is a Net connection. It may be a shitty one, but it's still a Net
connection.
(One I had to put up with for six long, frustrating years...)

--
--
There is no spoon.

EvilBill - http://evilbill.50megs.com/index.html
My Quake2 FTP site: ftp://65.30.181.223/quake2/EvilBill/
Jack of Hearts of the Eeeevil Trek Cabal (TINC)
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 18:58:51 GMT, "EvilBill"
<quake2livesGETLOSTSPAMMERS@gmail.com> won today's award for stating
the bleedin' obvious:

>Dial-up is a Net connection. It may be a shitty one, but it's still a Net
>connection.
>(One I had to put up with for six long, frustrating years...)

And you can use it to activate and update Steam. What is your point?
--
Andrew, contact via interpleb.blogspot.com
Help make Usenet a better place: English is read downwards,
please don't top post. Trim replies to quote only relevant text.
Check groups.google.com before asking an obvious question.
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

Andrew <spamtrap@localhost.> typed as if devouring a plate of spoo:
> On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 18:58:51 GMT, "EvilBill"
> <quake2livesGETLOSTSPAMMERS@gmail.com> won today's award for stating
> the bleedin' obvious:
>
>> Dial-up is a Net connection. It may be a shitty one, but it's still
>> a Net connection.
>> (One I had to put up with for six long, frustrating years...)
>
> And you can use it to activate and update Steam. What is your point?

You can't use it to download big patches (via Steam or otherwise...). I've
seen game 'patches' of over 100 megs in size.

--
--
There is no spoon.

EvilBill - http://evilbill.50megs.com/index.html
My Quake2 FTP site: ftp://65.30.181.223/quake2/EvilBill/
Jack of Hearts of the Eeeevil Trek Cabal (TINC)
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 19:16:50 GMT, "EvilBill"
<quake2livesGETLOSTSPAMMERS@gmail.com> wrote even more bizarrely (I
think the sayno virus is spreading):

>You can't use it to download big patches (via Steam or otherwise...). I've
>seen game 'patches' of over 100 megs in size.

Why? Has MS crippled DUN in some way since I last used it 3 years ago?
No wonder everyone is getting so worked up! I am amazed nobody is
complaining to MS.
--
Andrew, contact via interpleb.blogspot.com
Help make Usenet a better place: English is read downwards,
please don't top post. Trim replies to quote only relevant text.
Check groups.google.com before asking an obvious question.
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

Andrew <spamtrap@localhost.> typed as if devouring a plate of spoo:
> On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 19:16:50 GMT, "EvilBill"
> <quake2livesGETLOSTSPAMMERS@gmail.com> wrote even more bizarrely (I
> think the sayno virus is spreading):
>
>> You can't use it to download big patches (via Steam or
>> otherwise...). I've seen game 'patches' of over 100 megs in size.
>
> Why? Has MS crippled DUN in some way since I last used it 3 years ago?
> No wonder everyone is getting so worked up! I am amazed nobody is
> complaining to MS.

Well, I don't know about you, but I could never get better than a 44K
connection on my dial-up, and because I can't unplug the phone during
'office hours', it'd take me something like three weeks to download that
much on dial-up.
Not to mention the people whose connection is pay-per-minute or
pay-per-megabyte...

--
--
There is no spoon.

EvilBill - http://evilbill.50megs.com/index.html
My Quake2 FTP site: ftp://65.30.181.223/quake2/EvilBill/
Jack of Hearts of the Eeeevil Trek Cabal (TINC)
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 19:32:27 GMT, "EvilBill"
<quake2livesGETLOSTSPAMMERS@gmail.com> wrote:

>Well, I don't know about you, but I could never get better than a 44K
>connection on my dial-up, and because I can't unplug the phone during
>'office hours', it'd take me something like three weeks to download that
>much on dial-up.

At 44K you can download 100MB in about 7 hours. If it takes you 3
weeks you have a major problem with either your PC or your clock.

I remember downloading the Kingpin demo (105MB) overnight back in the
good ol' days.
--
Andrew, contact via interpleb.blogspot.com
Help make Usenet a better place: English is read downwards,
please don't top post. Trim replies to quote only relevant text.
Check groups.google.com before asking an obvious question.
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

Andrew <spamtrap@localhost.> typed as if devouring a plate of spoo:
> On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 19:32:27 GMT, "EvilBill"
> <quake2livesGETLOSTSPAMMERS@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Well, I don't know about you, but I could never get better than a 44K
>> connection on my dial-up, and because I can't unplug the phone during
>> 'office hours', it'd take me something like three weeks to download
>> that much on dial-up.
>
> At 44K you can download 100MB in about 7 hours. If it takes you 3
> weeks you have a major problem with either your PC or your clock.
>
> I remember downloading the Kingpin demo (105MB) overnight back in the
> good ol' days.

Sadly, in the UK, non-pay-per-minute connections have an automatic cut-off
every two hours, so even using something like GetRight, you have to be at
the computer to resume it every two hours. Means you can't just leave it
downloading overnight 🙁 So it does take a while if your online time's
limited.

--
--
There is no spoon.

EvilBill - http://evilbill.50megs.com/index.html
My Quake2 FTP site: ftp://65.30.181.223/quake2/EvilBill/
Jack of Hearts of the Eeeevil Trek Cabal (TINC)
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 20:43:03 GMT, "EvilBill"
<quake2livesGETLOSTSPAMMERS@gmail.com> wrote:

>Sadly, in the UK, non-pay-per-minute connections have an automatic cut-off
>every two hours, so even using something like GetRight, you have to be at
>the computer to resume it every two hours. Means you can't just leave it
>downloading overnight 🙁 So it does take a while if your online time's
>limited.

You don't need to explain UK net connection methods to me, I have been
using them for a decade starting with a 2400baud modem. You can set
DUN to auto dial when needed. That way Getright (or whatever) can
reconnect and download large files without a problem.
--
Andrew, contact via interpleb.blogspot.com
Help make Usenet a better place: English is read downwards,
please don't top post. Trim replies to quote only relevant text.
Check groups.google.com before asking an obvious question.
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

Andrew <spamtrap@localhost.> typed as if devouring a plate of spoo:
> On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 20:43:03 GMT, "EvilBill"
> <quake2livesGETLOSTSPAMMERS@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Sadly, in the UK, non-pay-per-minute connections have an automatic
>> cut-off every two hours, so even using something like GetRight, you
>> have to be at the computer to resume it every two hours. Means you
>> can't just leave it downloading overnight 🙁 So it does take a while
>> if your online time's limited.
>
> You don't need to explain UK net connection methods to me, I have been
> using them for a decade starting with a 2400baud modem. You can set
> DUN to auto dial when needed. That way Getright (or whatever) can
> reconnect and download large files without a problem.

That's true. Although in my experience, download managers tended to pause
when I got booted off and not resume till I clicked the Resume button 🙁

--
--
There is no spoon.

EvilBill - http://evilbill.50megs.com/index.html
My Quake2 FTP site: ftp://65.30.181.223/quake2/EvilBill/
Jack of Hearts of the Eeeevil Trek Cabal (TINC)
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

Andrew wrote:
> On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 13:24:36 GMT, Justin Thompson
> <Justin.Thompson@removethisntlworld.com> wrote:
>
>
>>Facts are fine- but it helps if they move the discussion forward - and
>>in your case you have thrown in a couple of facts but completely
>>missed the point.
>
>
> You said:
> "In addition to this I hear (but dont know if true) that
>
> "You cant play offline forever - it insists on periodic connection to
> re-authenticate."
>
> That was incorrect, so I was able to dispel that for you.
>
> My other comment was my opinion, which is what you solicited. Other
> people including DiF***wit will be along with their opinion. This
> isn't an issue that has a right or wrong answer, but the system
> requirements for the game swing things towards my view IMO.

Justin Thompson asks a crowd containing both men and women:"To the
ladies in the audience, how do you feel about men making lewd comments
about your body?"

Before anyone else can answer, Andrew responds: "I like chicks with big
titties!"
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

On Sat, 05 Mar 2005 01:43:29 -0600, Killah Gorillah <th@t.bitch>
wrote:

>Justin Thompson asks a crowd containing both men and women:"To the
>ladies in the audience, how do you feel about men making lewd comments
>about your body?"

Who the hell is Justin Thompson? From a search he seems to be a
baseball player. I guess you have to be American to understand this
joke.

>Before anyone else can answer, Andrew responds: "I like chicks with big
>titties!"

Thanks for putting words in my mouth, but for the record, I don't.
--
Andrew, contact via interpleb.blogspot.com
Help make Usenet a better place: English is read downwards,
please don't top post. Trim replies to quote only relevant text.
Check groups.google.com before asking an obvious question.
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

EvilBill wrote:
>
> Sadly, in the UK, non-pay-per-minute connections have an automatic
> cut-off every two hours, so even using something like GetRight, you
> have to be at the computer to resume it every two hours. Means you
> can't just leave it downloading overnight 🙁 So it does take a while
> if your online time's limited.

Factual correction: *some* UK non-pay-per-minute ISPs have an automatic cut-off
every 2 hours. Mine doesn't (I think it's 5 hours).

--
Paul
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

EvilBill wrote:
>>
>> You don't need to explain UK net connection methods to me, I have
>> been using them for a decade starting with a 2400baud modem. You can
>> set DUN to auto dial when needed. That way Getright (or whatever) can
>> reconnect and download large files without a problem.
>
> That's true.

It's true, but I thought the debate was about downloading huge patches via
Steam, which doesn't have an auto-redial facility.

--
Paul
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

Cookie McCrumble <cookiemccrumble@hotmail.com> typed as if devouring a
plate of spoo:
>
> Not quite. I was on broadband a few months ago but moved, and now
> suffering 56k again.
>
> I tell you there's nothing worse than going back to this speed once
> you've had the privelege of bb.
>
> Sux.

Amen to that, I had to do that last year.

--
--
There is no spoon.

EvilBill - http://evilbill.50megs.com/index.html
My Quake2 FTP site: ftp://65.30.181.223/quake2/EvilBill/
Jack of Hearts of the Eeeevil Trek Cabal (TINC)
 
Archived from groups: alt.games.half-life (More info?)

On 4 Mar 2005 05:28:14 -0800, "Chadwick" <chadwick110@hotmail.com>
wrote:

>
>Justin Thompson wrote:
>> On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 13:01:58 +0000, Andrew <spamtrap@localhost.>
>> wrote:
>>
>> >On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 12:46:07 GMT, Justin Thompson
>> ><Justin.Thompson@removethisntlworld.com> wrote:
>> >
>> >>"You cant play offline forever - it insists on periodic connection
>to
>> >>re-authenticate."
>> >
>> >That was a bug/oversight/feature that was corrected ages ago.
>> >
>> >>If a user wants to play HL2, does not want to play on-line, just
>wants
>> >>to play single player - does not want patches (it works fine for
>> >>him/her) then they should not be forced to connect for anything
>more
>> >>that authenticate. i.e. Steam should say - you need to connect to
>> >>authenticate - dont mind if it does a quick check to ensure STEAM
>has
>> >>not been tampered with, but it should give you option to install
>> >>patches.
You don't.
I installed and then was offline for 2 months - no problem whatsoever.

>> >
>> >The game states it requires an Internet connection. If they don't
>have
>> >a net connection, HL2 isn't the game for them.
>>
>> If this is the quality of response I am going to get I have wasted my
>> time. Pathetic.
>
>I have much the same question marks about Steam as you.
>
>What happens if Steam is no longer supported and there is no
>alternative? Do we use illegal hacks to play the game?
I would assume that if Steam ever was taken off-line (which I doubt
very much) then a patch would be released to allow Steam games to be
player without authentication.

Don't forget Q3 key authentication servers are still going years after
its release.......

>
>Yes, updates should be optional. For online play I would expect to need
>be fully patched because the patches contain bug fixes, code
>improvements and anti-cheat measures that should improve online play,
>but also you want a level playing field, so all players should be using
>the same version. But for the single-player game, you should be free to
>choose whether or not to download them, if only because it's a pain
>having to wait for them whenh you were hoping to be playing the game
>instead.
After the one-time update to the latest patch state (worse case
scenario leave it overnight) I find the patching almost invisible,
automatically done and rarely lasting more than a few seconds, a
situation I love, a big difference from the old HL1 idiocy of you
would not play online for a week or two, go online then have to go and
find a patch, wait in line at fileplanet.com for hours just to
download a 1 meg file, wait for it to download and by the time it was
I would have gone on to another game, I very rarely if ever played HL1
online for that very reason.

>
>Offline mode should mean offline. Andrew seems to think this is sorted
>now. I don't know - I haven't tested it, but if you select off-line
>mode, it should not try to connect to the internet. Obviously you can
>only play single-player (or possibly over a LAN?) this way.
It is.

>
>There should be a telephone activation line, or a postal one maybe.
makes it far less secure, keygens would appear in seconds which makes
the whole process pointless - do a search for "Call of Duty keygen" -
5500 results.....

>
>The install process is not exactly intuitive - a single sheet of paper
>in the box explaining what steps you go through (and pointing out where
>the "register a game I own" link is) would be enough. Most people
>expect a game to just install and be ready - there is a bit more to it
>with HL2.
I can't really talk on this - I dealt with the whole Steam process
when I installed Half Life 1 a couple of months before HL2 was
released which went painlessly as did the HL2 installation but I
didn't do it all at once.

If it was only a 4 or 8 page manual it would have been better.

OTOH since you must be online to install the game then you can go to
steampowered.com for any problems.

>
>The internet requirement on the box needs to be clearer. "This game
>must be authenticated over the internet before it can be played in any
>mode, including single-player". Or something to that effect but
>shorter. Doesn't need to be in 6 foot letters of fire, but it should be
>there in the same way that add-on packs state that you must own the
>original game. Discrete but unambiguous.
I think "An Internet Connection is required" when it was initially a
single player only game is sufficient but the longer warning would not
have done any harm.


>
>Apart from that, once it's installed, it works fine. I haven't got an
>"always on" connection, so I always played offline and wasn't affected
>by authentication (which prevented people playing when the Steam
>servers went down). I downloaded updates when I was on the internet for
>another reason (eg. whilst downloading email). So I avoided some of the
>problems others have faced.
I have played it both ways and neither has caused me any problems.


--
ButIstillneedtoknowwhat'sinthere!Thekeytoanysecurity
systemishowit'sdesigned!Thatdependsonwhyitwasdesigned!
Ihavetoknowwhatwhoeverdesigneditwastryingtoprotect!
(Blakes 7, City on the Edge of the World - Vila in typical panic mode)
 
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