BlackListedB

Ha, wait, Not so Fast in that assessment; http://hexus.net/business/news/system-builders/75425-laptop-sales-unlikely-boosted-windows-10-launch/ Another thing you can look up causing consternation and frustration is the Builder License premise that MS hopes to put that to bed, for good?!?!? It's unclear with versions of Windows 7 and 8 alternating between licensing specifics for those building their own gaming platform, or other, OR computers to sell, second hand, etc. To also allow for dual boot platforms and Virtual Machine applications. This would be fundemental for Apple owners looking to use their Intel CPU power with Windows (Wintel) BTW, There are a few, though dated, articles detailing the proof in consumer sales and online markets for the various Windows that don't bare out strict licensing guidelines, though this might not even bother some people, it was pointed out Enterprise (business licensed OSes) version would have periodical auditing, and I noted with Windows 8 a seemingly short span online update audit, but this also seemed to lesson over time, though I don't strictly use Win8 either, it hasn't stopped working or updating. I'd point out that InfoWorld claims nearly a year before they advised Microsoft of all these changes being implemented and should receive some credit in a joking manner, but there's reality that most test driving Windows 8 found the same to be true, or missing from Windows 8 since it's Developer's Preview genesis, which was as bare-bones as you could get, since Apps used then are non existent now! hahaha

A recent TV news story just touched on the evolution of car engine and exhaust sound, dispelling the perception that they were actually generated by the car's engine and exhaust system, NO, in fact, the electronics in the car and speakers create or RECREATE a sound of the Musclecar era. What puzzled me is the suggestion this is the car's inboard speaker system producing engine and exhaust note for an enthusiast effect. I'd like to hear what you guys think about this faux evolution in motoring, though it's neat for a video game, for an actual car, I think not! hahaha

As you MAY know, I built up an Asus Republic of Gamers notebook after my sister's husband bought one new, I thought I'd prove to him it could be done, and I could do it, using only eBay sourcing. Well, I'm kinda happy to report I am doing it again! Since in my initial foray I wound up with a nVidia graphics card and heatsink, of which there are plenty... on eBay Don't know why, but the original G73 ROG Asus that came with ATI Radeon HD5870 was very short lived so there appears to be evidently, few good cards available in the used market. Sadly, a lot of motherboards supporting them, outnumbering the video cards, in fact. There may have been trouble ASUS had with quality in the initial phases, however, I still feel determined to get the AWOL graphics card. In my constant eBay searches, I unearthed deals on Asus G74, G75 series and G73 Sandy Bridge revision parts. It's worth pointing out that well under $1000, you can get your own bid on one of these parts, and familiarize yourself with unit assembly and repair. Some parts have been worked on by owners unsuccessfully, it's true, but there are also those offering their services in repair of 'surface mount components' that incorporates board based soldering. Re-heating or 'reballing' things like ICs (Integrated Circuits) My interest in electronics stems from actual courses I took in the early 1980s, out-dated by the advancement in electronics, the basics are much the same, and digital circuits were already well in use in the early 1980s, however, typically astronomically expensive and over-sized on component boards. Now thanks to eBay's typical auction setting, some sellers just opt to let the high bidder get the item, so you have a great chance to get just the components you lack I have found studying a crash course in the G73ROG, that even the integrated-discrete GPU for G74 models is available as a MXM (Express mobile Graphics) card for the G73SW and G73JW models, as the nVidia GTX560, with 2GB of video memory, that means though it falls short of the 660GTX recommended for GTA V PC release, it should be up to the task of running the latest games at lower settings! A nice find, however, I'd recommend you get the top end 180 watt adapter for Asus laptops, it's a match in power output to the Toshiba SLI 8600 nVidia capable X205!

It's worth mentioning the MAJOR MAJOR fallout of the PC find, Hot Coffee in all versions of GTA San Andreas, the PC version was always delayed It's worth mentioning because Hot Coffee did have MAJOR implications for changing what Rockstar Games North was and is forever more. Despite them going from strength to strength amidst orchestrated public mayhem, the way reality panned out is that the changes for a Houser helmed Rockstar North meant people who would be key in development would jump ship and go elsewhere, Rockstar would have to deal with ratings boards primarily in the USA and distribution channels recalling San Andreas. The fall out I think is tangible in how Rockstar were previewing games and showing their software in a more open community fan base. In other words the secrecy level was increased beyond that of 'Fort Knox'. I think Rockstar were both worried and gun-shy, yet they would push on and try things never done before. The real idea I mentioned seemed to come from previous ideas Sam Houser had expressed and detailed again in the book Jacked, unauthorized as it was, the author's intent was to use as many sources of direct contact with Rockstar to lay a foundation for the companies' charted path. And how I feel it falls short is telling Rockstar's story after the ill-fated mis-steps of Hot Coffee. Now, it wasn't the only game to go into a sexual area with video games, but it was a huge selling hit which added to how many eyes were observing it. People trying to legislate games and movies, and records. 2005 was a watershed moment for better or worse.

Here's another happy accident thread link, talking about the modern age of GPUs, Techspot, a premier geeksite for peeps like me, did this article back in 2013, but I don't recall seeing it then. This jumps to the page I was looking for, really, more code names and key innovations for nVidia in particular, and to keep track of all the evolutionary stages, something akin to Intel's CPU roadmap is always helpful, in which differences of features and spec can be compared. Just as there is a CPU-World, you can also find a companion GPU-World for referencing online, even compare different core chips against each other before opting for your choice (as a purchasing guide) You can also submit your own findings if you have experience worth noting, and ability to square off processors using identical machines and tests. http://www.techspot.com/article/650-history-of-the-gpu/

I mentioned my hunt of various hardware I was building for a gaming capable machine, only to find the proposed specs for GTA V on PC do demand a bit more currency, that being CASH and a two year or newer life span in terms of how old the technology is and dated itself in the market. I was also looking at the latest Republic of Gamer and previous models to get some idea of the price differences, also including the CPU market and memory markets on eBay, where not only used or repair items come up, but also NOS and new items. I did find this on an earlier linking website, nVidia reporting their latest model intended to reach more gamers with a friendly $199USD price tag http://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/2015/01/22/maxwell-sweetspot-gtx-960/ I commented earlier today that an eBay priced GTX660 nVidia would cost you $100 USD in desktop variety, it's worth noting that perhaps an additional $100 USD investment would be worth it for a new gen card that should have some staying power..... God Willing!

I'm not sure about where to post a new topic relating to GTA V, based on Rockstar's news newswire updates... but I think it's fair to ask here as well, Who's pre-ordering GTA V PC and how will you be playing it? Will you take up the offer to converge console and PC accounts for GTAO for example? Will you be trying to make a gaming go of it on laptop or desktop? Will you be getting more then ones version, or is this your first time with GTA V, awaiting PC release only?? What hardware will you be attempting to play the game on? I looked up the GTX660 on eBay used, recommended nVidia based card option, and the desktop cards are only $100 [uSD] on average. Not too bad really! The laptop option I mentioned is much harder to obtain for budget minded gamers, I priced those specs around $800 used. The main thing posting here at this time is that Rockstar's Pre-Order deals END FEB 01, 2015!!

...Do Tell! I bought a number of laptops not to mention the desktops I took in or built in the last six or so years, the main goal was dual and quad core, graphics support key being the Express port and it's advancement. I wound up backtracking a bit, and the funny thing is the first set of laptops I got were Toshiba's MMX Pentium 90Mhz ones, still two batteries for them that work perfect. Toshiba transferred to Pentium 3 in that time, using the same batteries oddly (I assume a series of Pentium IIs also used them) My earliest IBM PS/Note was a 486 processor Intel. The speed and HDD along with memory capacity were astoundingly low, so you might be wary of even using Windows 95's impressive GUI on it, I can't recall exactly, but I think the HDD was only 800MB!!! CS410 model maybe? Toshiba Satellite with lacking touchpad, one of the earliest touchpad laptops I ever came across was actually Acer's first foray into manufacture, having taken over the line for Texas Instruments in Europe and Asia, eventually TI opted not to fight a legal battle and Acer took over full products from Texas Instruments, I mentioned this before I'm sure, but Acer still uses Extensa and Travelmate names for different series notebooks, but they didn't come up with those names! TI did! haha Here's an interesting sidebar about the firm known formerly as Silicon Graphics, Their Workstations have powered forward the current CGI revolution started around the time of Lucas and Star Wars, where his vision was to provide a technical workshop for movie makers, advancing all the arts of movie making. Worth your time reading up on this stuff.. http://www.hpcwire.com/2008/10/30/sgi_returns_to_visual_roots/

Yes, we lost are key financier, so GTAChronicles went down and is now a wasteland of ad links, I have no control over. I was an instigator in the formation of the site, and it was an answer and oasis from the heavy handed, and rock-headed moderation of GTAForums, I'm still happy to see this site is adverse and absent from, Though not nearly as active as GTAForums, the newer forums haven't got that same history, and it was likely much easier for everyone to cope back in the day, as I recall it. Well, I know I for one hope GTAChronicles could survive as long as any other site, but we are all tightening our fiscal budget, the good news is I heard back from Webmaster Mike, who is making an effort to save the domain. As a Dot Com it might prove too difficult, remains to be seen, but an update on our good friend Mike, he's alive and doing well, and his online trips became less and less frequent so he was actually unaware of GTAChronicle's present state. He'd also sadly forgotten how to log in, happens to the best of us! hahahaha

If your computer is shutting down to protect the OS, as it states mostly in BSOD, relate your experience in this thread! More then just shared horror story experience, I want to relate what just happened to me the past few days, I got repeated BSOD from Windows 7 after I tried an optional official update for Windows .Net Framework version 4.5.2 I tried a repair which failed, I then opted to remove the latest update, and as it rolled back, observed notifier that 4.5.1 was also being uninstalled. I can tell you since rebooting after that, the system appears stable once again, and as such, I advise NOT updating to that revision of the .Net Framework, and as I stated some time ago here IIRC, NET Framework's real use is in helping software written for Web 2.0 and beyond to work better among different interconnected machines, as I understand it, so in a manner, Cloud based online software might largely be effected by NOT having components to .Net from Microsoft, but as they are always expanding their own software, I'm sure they'll get this fixed or revised, your system won't die on you unexpectedly which is the MOST important thing, even if you lose some program functionality!

Windows incorporated Internet Exporer as it's web-browser default, defacto, most know this caused an Anti-Trust lawsuit to break up Microsoft's monopoly, which was somewhat successful, however, it's chief competition, Netscape still fell to the wayside. Firefox, Opera, and Google Chrome proved you could compete against Bill Gates' empire and actually keep a healthy competition going. AMD sadly could not compete with the original 1960s Intel, but because they were more brash as upstarts, they won awards for their innovation and are still leaders in the Technology Hall of Fame. They competed with Intel in much the same way others competed with Apple and Microsoft. It always felt like someone could lay claim to the PC end, but not really. The earliest companies to try and make headway would include Compaq before being eaten up by Hewlett Packard. The old Packard Bell some might remember, not to be confused by! hahaha Mine was an eMachine, Trigem, founded in the late 90s, they actually broke historical ground with brand new PCs priced at $600USD! This with a track record of few complaints and repairs. Ones I did observe related to the low end PSUs or power supplies, which are rather universal on the low end. As well, DVD and CD ROM failures, though included with a PC are not specifically made by that company, but they get the reputation for the shoddy product inclusion just the same. I think had products been tested when they were made, before going out in the market, things like failure rates could have been managed better, a PC makers' reputation often hinged on how low complaints about service were and how well that service was executed. Speaking of the START menu, overwhelming PC user displeasure did result in the evolution of Windows 10 we're seeing, More robust MS OS desktop in the conventional, non-touchscreen area, while retaining Windows 8 multi platform and appending new changes there as well, if they meet user experience concerns, will bode well for Microsoft Post-Bill Gates I'll add that Apple really pioneered virtually all the concepts for the home computer, Windows included, so I had a bit of disdain over the rather obvious theft of ideas, but Apple and Bill Gates were paying attention to what was going on in computer R and D and put those ideas into their respective products, The 'mouse' technology dates back even further then 1970 for example!

August 24th will be 20 years since Microsoft Windows 95 first entered the World's sub-conscious. It maybe a bit early to title the thread before the event and then it passes with much fan-fare as expected, and will appear titled incorrectly then!? haha Anyway, I was just stumbling on this factoid as I explored various computer retro articles online and pondering the new Windows 10. 20 years in the making of the modern desktop GUI! "pronounced Goo-ey" ...Well, I noticed too, it's January 24th, so it's the right day to post this! haha ;:~lp

Sorry to addendum if too soon, but the announcement kinda excites me, New Windows is a chance to revise all previous wrongs! HAHAHA Check out Wikipedia's evolving notes on the subject; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_10 Also take note in the middle section, reference that Windows was skipping the naming to Windows 9 for unclear reasons, yet the MS spokesperson refuses to acknowledge that MS's OWN naming sequence groups Windows 95, 98 and ME under Win 9x. Windows 9 isn't a direct match to previous naming, but if you read the Wiki, it does discount, jokingly, naming it Windows One, which would CLEARLY be a bad move, even if not to present a technical association. Xbox One is STILL a bad device name no matter how you look at it, you can't reinvent the wheel by calling it a different name! hahaha

Sorry for addendum without additional user posts, but as pointed out on the Forum updates, There is a plan by Microsoft to offer Windows 10 free of charge upgrade, but it also includes WINDOWS 7 according to a new article from ABC News http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/microsoft-show-off-windows-10-features-28364884 Now my thinking is again, MS maybe taking the easy OS evolving route, like Apple perhaps, after it's VISIONARY founders have stepped down and the company's path forward is hazy at best. You're free to contradict my opinion below, however, it just looks like SPIT and POLISH on Windows 8, no longer RT of course, but hoping to cater to PC users who were very vocal in the roll out of Windows 8. So it also leaves one wondering what up with Win9?! Did they avoid that name because of Windows 9x forever relating to Windows 95, 98 and ME?

By He you mean lead artist Aaron Garbut? He would be the one who designs the main map for the game, however, they do real location site scouting and they mentioned piles of video tapes that take into account building styles and traffic flow in various areas. They don't always translate to effective virtual environments if they were to exactly mimic the findings. As you said, each time the technology evolves, thus allowing more ideas to come to fruition, but this thread is to point out the sore points of GTA 3 in particular, and I think the fact that enemies you betray have so much firepower it slows progress to a crawl. I was prompted to quit GTA 3 missions at a point where I had to backtrack to enemy territory. Reason being is I was having my car or truck shot into flames with no more then 4 enemy gunshot hits!! That's just too tough to deal with, and adding to frustration was the wonky control characteristics. It's evolved into a lot more forgiving interactive control, but when you played the retroGTAs for portable devices, again there was sloppy handling, however, it did feel time was spent ironing things out, and adding bikes and other vehicles, improving it overall

I would like to hear from the active or interested members, what gear will you be trying the game on? Will you post your results with us??

Well guys, the stats are out, For GTA V PC edition, your closest test for hardware demands maybe the PC version of Episodes. I found in comparison runs of this PC game release and the original GTA IV, EfLC is the more demanding PC version, it requires more horsepower to run effectively, and I hear few cases where it runs at full maximum settings too! Mine did load and attempt to run at a snail-pace, other times it crashed, and since I finished a build on my Republic of Gamer Asus notebook PC, the idea is to try it again, however my own report will be delayed because the requirement for a massive graphics card in a desktop or notebook is a powerful AC adapter, which I don't have. 120 watts, 125 watts, 130 watts, 150 watts and in Toshiba's X205 SLI version case, a four pin 180 watt adapter is required!! The X205 is another machine I bought incomplete, that's another project to see what will work well in SLI versus single GPU machines, especially portable ones! Of which there are few to compare to. Alienware (now Dell) were one of the first computers with SLI nVidia for dual mobile graphics cards, There have been plenty of dual GPU for PC attempts over the years, but in most cases, you just buy identical spec cards to tether together. Slots permitting. The SLI approach I believe demands some soft-switch (software settings) game compatibility to work smoothly, if at all. ATI's Crossfire is designed to work outside of game settings I believe, again, someone correct me if I'm off about this. SLI and Crossfire don't double a card's spec capacity, however, memory might be the closest to improving overall. What they do is share the load of any rendering task the computer is working on at a given time, to maximize the effectiveness of data crunching. and what you hope to see on your screen, FAST gaming response to input and graphic animation. There's no doubt that 3D anything is one of the toughest demands you can place on any computer system, so, with the release of specs for GTA V that place it in the $800 dollar and up catagory, I don't think I'll be able to see smooth response without a hitch, but for the moment, even though I have low speed RAM modules in DDR3, at this time I have a number of them available so my Asus and desktop machines can all run GTA V in regard to that requirement. It certainly will be interesting to see how the new GTA and old GTAs compare in computer performance. For your desktop say, running the 660 GTX level nVidia, I bought both 600 and 700 watt power supplies for my desktop builds, however, I'd been in the process of putting both my Core i machine and Core 2 Quad capable Intel i45 desktops up for sale, but I had a medical issue halt that this past summer. The upgrades from my first ever Nehalem with original brand new, in 2010, Core i3 costing me $135 or so at the time, then moved to a rather cheap eBay auction ($50) Core i5, the goal has been to move away from the 1st gen Core i3, i5, i7 Nehalem Intel CPUs to Ivy Bridge 3rd gen preferably. It's suspected for the record, MOST people STILL don't have Intel's Haswell in their main computers, so Ivy Bridge may afford you the most recent upgrade compatible with previous Sandy Bridge mobos (motherboards/sockets) I also did upgrades for RAM from 1, to 2, to 4GB sticks, however, the 4 or 8GB sticks in both DDR2 and DDR3 are spendy propositions, you're likely to do some tough decision purchasing there, The 600-700 watt PSU range is good for SLI starting out, so it certainly should work for just one GPU card

This article was linked to the earlier one I posted, two on the subject of real life character archetypes ...if that's the right word. I prefer games that represent REAL world places and things, transport methods are more important to me then how many or what type guns, but variety is ALWAYS the spice of life, virtual or otherwise! hahaha http://www.polygon.com/2014/10/30/7130525/watch-colbert-on-gamergate-including-anita-sarkeesian-interview Anyway, express your thoughts on Gamergate...2014 a worse year then previous ones? Is online gaming becoming worse too? Are the creative arts of Interactive video games stifled and dated in their stance in terms of developers mindset as the technology and game design improves all the time? I do recall with the advent of GTA IV that Sam Houser said a few things also worth mentioning to add to the ongoing and future discussion. We're doubtful to hear from Rockstar Games especially, but it would be helpful and nice to hear how their opinions and feelings have changed from a creative aspect, As we do hear from a contingent on Newswire report about fan mail, that being artistic treatments and game produced tributes. This is nice acknowledgement but it still lacks the creative staff feelings on current game design, and we've no idea who's actually looking and picking user items to feature. Those who craft the games do engage in Developer Online competition events with select users, but this also doesn't offer a more serious interaction with gaming fans and community. That's why I hope GTA forum discussions can center on the gaming life - aspect, away from the console, PC and controller. How is your gaming life, outside of GTA and away from Xbox, Playstation, or PC? In other words, how do you approach entertainment gaming in your personal life. How does the product compare with prospects for current and future games, are your let-downs or gripes minor ones or not? In the above threats on women or female gamers, I find that immensely more detestable then killing prostitutes in GTA and getting your money back, this example is SO DATED, it originated with the success of Vice City on PS2 hardware!! It also came after a strongly established presence on PC and console with the first 3D GTA, GTA3 Point here is, I'm sure you can't feel accepting of all you've seen relating to GTA controversy or actual personal gaming activity. Well, not to get too far away from the subject in one thread, I feel to mention again that Sam Houser stated about GTA's advances and controversies, that for the record, he said no children in GTA was something they agreed upon in-house, feeling a need to draw the line in the sand, however, depicting, then, in GTA V, torture tactics that were all too blatant, I feel that steps backward from such a stance. As said earlier. Sam Houser also mentioned that there was a need for reality with a game based on it's subject matter, and many observed this keenly when it's chief competition, Volition's Saints Row began a move in direct opposition to GTA style gameplay, while offering a theme consistent with it's origin to maintain what it was, it's identity, however, it's lost fans like me who don't like Everything AND the Kitchen Sink thrown into one game to offer fans a bit of anything and everything. To me, GTA as environment and a fairly linear and true to reality storyline is what ingratiates itself with me as a gamer. However, I want the morals as represented in the game and in gaming to also have the same weight they do in reality, and by that I mean not to just put them 'under the gun'. Offer them as fodder for mere jokes or as something to attack. The REAL WORLD themes should have direct relation to what they represent, and this added something meaningful to GTA IV as articles at the time also discussed, I remember it well, because the writer of one such article stated the obvious contradiction of a game based on crime to have a moral choice for players, but how can it do this effectively? It's still a learning process I feel, but I also think GTA IV handled it fairly well considering it was trying new things not done in gaming that I know of.

I mention Windows 10 because I didn't see succession talk about Windows 9 other then user speculation, there WAS talk of making Windows OS an online product only, forsaking actual media release, on optical install discs, rather a software download and install OS method of delivery. I don't know the time table for that either, but your post suggests both a Windows 9 and 10, or that Windows 9 was evolved into a named 'Windows 10' instead, however, as I stated above, I see a need to have a NON-TOUCH centric Windows, a Microsoft OS that's not METRO desktop reliant or makes START menu and standard ICON desktop users happy with a long term solution