Steam rant

[KingIsaacLinksr]

Well you have 3 activations unless you ask.. i don't think support would deny you more and while a hassle, asking support is free

If Ubisoft were ever to go bankrupt it'd be the same situation as if Valve would go dark, they always said they will make sure games run without steam then but thats nonsense, without the ability to install the steam version from a non-steam source you can never, EVER, get that games updates (if they were steam only)

So i don't really see what makes people accept Steam but hate activation limits. At least with Origin you get the FULLY PATCHED offline installer. Steam is just a promise of availability, much worse than a 3 activation auth process imo ^^

Fair point.  Fair point.  But I have more faith in Valve than I do in Ubisoft in actually living longer.  Maybe I shouldn't but they seem to care about their customers (or at least make it seem that way).  When you consider how easy it is for game developers to suddenly die and then your screwed, well, its not something I like to think about.  Even in Steam's case.  Which is why I go for as little DRM as possible.  Its my way of encouraging less DRM, even if I'm in the minority.  Should I have Steam with that mentality?  No.  But I accept Steam as the lesser of evils...for now. 

And I definitely jump on games like Ai War because no matter what I'll be able to play this game even if the world comes to an end.  Granted, I'll probably have worse problems to deal with at that time

King

[BobTheJanitor]

I know the topic has shifted a bit, but TotalBiscuit's mailbox segment from today reminded me of the discussion a page or so ago about why there aren't more unique games being created. The first email is about that exact topic, so it might be worthwhile viewing. The second question is about alpha-funding projects, which is an interesting one as well.

[eRe4s3r]

Well i have a lot less faith in Valve ever since they dropped the ball on Half-Life 2 - Episode 3 - or basically - the series END. There is only so much time they have before Halflife 2 becomes outdated and nobody cares about it anymore. Maybe they sensed that in EP2 already and thats why EP3 never came after that.

and thanks for the link BobTheJanitor That was an Interesting watch

[Cyborg]

I have an interesting DRM story. I own some Hoyle products. I was doing some casino study before a trip (I wanted to check my math), and I do like some of the card games when I'm in a casual mood.

Anyway, the DRM on my activated product blocked me from using it exactly one year after purchase. It told me that I needed some special file to get permission. So I called the company, and I asked them how to get that file if the DRM blocks me from accessing the site that has this magic file!

His reply? What address would you like me to send the 2012 versions to? 

[eRe4s3r]

Heh, thats actually pretty nice of them

My bet is they simply didn't have that file anymore ;P

[Echo35]

Actually, Steam doesn't need to be online to activate offline mode.

It used to but Valve have long since held that it was a bug with the client. (Specifically, your local client tries to ensure that it and all of your games are the most up-to-date version on load. Previously if you had never played the game whilst connected to the internet - or had not done so recently enough - it was considered in need of a check with the server.)

But it was fixed donkey's years ago and personally I've had no trouble switching in and out of offline mode whilst not connected to the net ever since.

I distinctly remember, in fact, because it was my only significant gripe with the service.

I leave Steam running on my laptop constantly (It starts with windows and is my general game browser for all my games, Steam or not) and I carry my laptop around everywhere. I also never shut it down (Rarely anyway) so I'll put it to sleep, drive an hour away, fire it back up on campus, may or may not have internet depending on where I am, and it never screws up ever. It always just pops online and offline whenever I do/don't have internet access and it never fails. The only games that won't work are ones that you need internet access to play/activate (Obviously) but Steam itself has never failed me.

[keith.lamothe]

but Steam itself has never failed me.

And it's failed me, with enthusiasm and elan.  But I still really like it overall

[keith.lamothe]

Hm. True enough.

Well, I feel your pain!

Haha.  It's not really an inconvenience for me, since we don't actually switch around which machine uses which account much anymore   But "there's something wonky with Offline Mode and that kind of worries me" is probably the one complaint I've seen in every single remotely-in-depth written evaluation of steam that I remember, and there's a reason for that

This thread probably doesn't want me to drag it back up again, but I'm doing it anyway.

In their latest version steam appears to have fixed the bug that was preventing me from getting into offline mode when I was offline   I had to have had validly logged in since my last logout, but I don't have to have started it in offline mode while still having a connection anymore.

[Echo35]

In their latest version steam appears to have fixed the bug that was preventing me from getting into offline mode when I was offline   I had to have had validly logged in since my last logout, but I don't have to have started it in offline mode while still having a connection anymore.

I think I'm the only person on the planet who has never had a problem with offline mode.

[madcow]

I never had issues with offline steam mode.

Incidentally the latest update has prompted me (and actually HAS) restarted steam to update about 5 times now. Patchnotes were unchanged, it just really wants to make sure that yes the patch did install.

[keith.lamothe]

Yea, they were having issues with antivirus stuff.

[madcow]

Oh so they actually were updating that often? I just kind of assumed the patch was being finicky.

[keith.lamothe]

No, you're right that it was being finicky.  The finickyness they were getting (for most people, at least) was antivirus-related.  Basically the AV was preventing the update from really "taking".

[LaughingThesaurus]

I never had issues with steam or offline mode or even with making games run on busy days at home. If I go on a friend's computer, it just crashes left and right for no discernable reason. I mean if I'm on his computer, even with my magical touch of Steam (apparently) it still will crash.