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"Walter Mitty" <mitticus@yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message
news:cud8pf$7a3$01$2@news.t-online.com...
> StreetMedic wrote:
>> "Walter Mitty" <mitticus@yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message
>> news:cu629k$35c$05$1@news.t-online.com...
>>
>>>StreetMedic wrote:
>>> I simply don't care how well Steam works for "most people". Even *one*
>>>
>>>>individual out $50-$70 under such dubious circumstances is one too many.
>>>>Sure, it's not my cash p!ssed away *this* time, but it may very be when
>>>>HL3 rolls around.
>>>>
>>>
>>>Snigger. So, Mr Medic, what your opinion, say, of an electronic device
>>>such as a DVD player which doesnt work out of the box? Sony are evil &
>>>retarded?
>>
>>
>> "Sniggers" back to you... Yah, that's exactly what I said. Sony "are
>> evil & retarded" when a DVD player doesn't work. Sure. That's exactly
>> what I said. Verbatim. Whatever makes you happy. But using loaded
>> language like that neither makes your point stronger, nor weakens mine.
>>
>
> Its called a parallel - look it up. Your inane waffling about "potential
> issues" is sorry reading indeed.
Huh? So much for that level-headed discussion I asked for. Dude,
what's with you? Are you simply *incapable* of posting anything without
needling? Jeezuss, talk about "sorry reading"...
I know what a "parallel" is, thank you. And your specious, exaggerated
analogy, to which you're referring, doesn't qualify. But you knew that
already... If all you can offer by way of "friendly discussion" is the
Usenet equivalent of sticking your tongue out at me, don't bother.
And who's "waffling"? Some people getting stuck with software that
doesn't work, and which can't be returned, is a lousy situation. I'm sorry
if you don't agree that people being out their hard-earned cash is a bummer,
but it seems you don't. I do.
You "parallel" that with the initial-failure of a DVD player, which any
chain store will refund or even-exchange in a minute. You darn well know
that's not a valid comparison.
I daresay if it was *you* that had a refractory, unusable combination of
Steam, HL2, and online registration with which *you* were unsuccessfully
wrestling, you'd be much less blase on the matter.
As it so happens, *my* Steam account's working. My installation went
smoothly. HL2 and HL Source run flawlessly. But if this business model
*is* going to be the wave of the future, yeah, I'm a wee bit concerned.
Maybe the next Steam app *won't* install, decrypt, register, all as
intended. Maybe my next gaming platform *won't* play nice-nice with all of
these contrivances and I won't be able to run them anymore. In a strange
catch-22, because there is no plan for redistributable updates, you can't
even *patch* it until you get it *working*. What?
Don't misunderstand: I jumped into this thread, in the first place,
saying that I think some people are being a bit too melodramatic regarding
Steam. Some people *are* being a bit hypercritical methinks. I, for one,
*don't* believe the virtual sky is falling. But when I do float some
legitimate concerns and you rudely dismiss them out-of-hand as "waffling
about 'potential issues'", well, forgive me for saying so, but it sounds
Pollyannaish.
PC gamers have gotten pretty cynical about getting things to run well on
their machines (what was all that business about "plug-and pray" a few years
back?) but the fact is, a lot of people optimistic enough to make a future
purchase of a Steam-powered game are going to be doing it with their fingers
crossed. That needs to be remedied.
Sorry if we don't see eye-to-eye there.
S-M
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