Linux gaming just got a lot easier

Linux gaming just got a lot easier (Linux)

As cool as Linux may be, it proves to be a continuing challenge for enthusiastic gamers. The folks at Transgaming believe that using their Cedega software will help to even the playing field. I realize that this may not be a new thing to many of you. Still, this is the first that I remember hearing about it and thought that it might be worth sharing with you.

I personally have been relying the usability of a dual-boot system. It may not be as clever as using the Transgaming software, but it meets my needs just fine. My question to you, would you use software like Cedega to Windows based games run on your Linux box? Just a question I am dieing to hear about.

Cedega allows Windows-based games to run on Linux, out-of-the-box, seamlessly and transparently. With Cedega, TransGaming does not require any access to a game’s source code but, rather, runs the Windows executable on Linux. In simplified terms, Cedega loads a game’s binary into memory on a Linux system and then dynamically links to code that provides an implementation of the Win32 APIs that the program is using. The APIs that Windows games are mostly built on top of are primarily based on Microsoft’s DirectX system. These APIs include facilities for handling 3D graphics (Direct3D), mouse and keyboard input (DirectInput), audio (DirectSound), and so on. TransGaming works to create Linux compatible versions of these APIs that work on top of the Linux equivalents such as OpenGL, X11, and the OSS and ALSA sound APIs. An important attribute of Cedega is the complete support for third party engines and SDKs such as Bink, Lithtech, Miles, Havok, Renderware, etc. Cedega is the culmination of several years of effort on these API and our engineering team’s knowledge of DirectX is probably second only to Microsoft’s own.

According to the Transgaming Cedega site:

Cedega support hundreds of the top Windows games on Linux, including such blockbuster hits as Max Payne 2, GTA Vice City, Battlefield 1942, Battlefield: Vietnam, WarCraft III, Diablo II, Half-Life, just to name a few; MMPORG games such as City of Heroes, Star Wars Galaxies, EverQuest and many many more are also supported. Cedega’s success to-date has been based on TransGaming’s ability to keep pace with the tremendous number of new games being released regularly and in delivering equivalent game-play experience and performance. For more information on our progress with specific games, you can browse our games database.

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Alarming trend in spyware could undermine IT industry

Alarming trend in spyware could undermine IT industry

Many Americans have started doing just that. George, said that since January, more customers have called for help with spyware than for any other technical support issue. Spyware-related phone calls now make up as much as 20 percent of all help calls, compared with just 1 percent to 2 percent in August, 2003, he said.

“I’ve never seen that type of explosion,” he said.

In July, Dell began offering tech-support services for customers willing to pay $39 per incident for diagnostic help in fighting spyware. George declined to say how many people have paid the fee, but said “demand has outstripped capacity.”

Addressing spyware attacks is both expensive and time consuming because each caller could have as many as 200 spyware programs downloaded onto his computer, he said.

Dell, the world’s largest computer maker, usually does not become deeply involved in software issues. But in recent months, it has accelerated efforts to root out software viruses, worms and spyware because they are turning off potential computers users.

One word (the one I say to Drew everyday)… Linux.

And sheesh, $39 for an incident report with Dell over spyware?! SPYBOT SEARCH & DESTROY and ADAWARE! Come on people, use google, save $39! Man, I hate Dell. I am ashamed to even be typing this on my Dell laptop which remains a huge financial burden to me. “Pay $40 a month with our credit card!” Only $8 of that goes towards the computer, the rest to their damn interest fees! I will be paying off this Dell laptop for the next 5 years. (This is now the time when you click that donate button over on the right there- hint hint)

OpenOffice Looking Better All the Time

OpenOffice Looking Better All the Time

The news that Microsoft is planning to milk even more from its Office brand with “server” versions of its office productivity applications can be interpreted in many ways- particularly since it was leaked on the fourth birthday of OpenOffice.org.

The open-source desktop productivity suite has increasingly been a thorn in Microsoft’s side. Born as a result of the acquisition of StarOffice by Sun Microsystems, OpenOffice.org has won a fair number of fans- particularly overseas. The European Union and French governments have adopted OpenOffice for internal use.

And when taken in hand with the OpenGroupware.org project, Mozilla’s Firefox and Thunderbird and the rest of the open-source efforts in core business computing functions, OpenOffice is starting to become a contender for the status that Office has attained that of a solutions platform. With the upcoming release of OpenOffice 2.0 scheduled for this winter the project will become an even bigger threat to the flow of Office revenues to Redmond.
……..
The architecture of the next release of OpenOffice will make it even better suited to deployment in whole or in part to Linux and Unix terminals, thin clients and other devices where Office can’t roam now—and significantly ahead of the planned Office server platforms.

Then, the open alternative may very well take the initiative away from Microsoft. Now that’s something to keep Steve Ballmer awake at night.

I’ve had spyware but never a virus, Bill Gates says

I’ve had spyware but never a virus, Bill Gates says

Bill Gates has astounded IT hacks by telling them that he has never had a computer virus.

We assume that he doesn’t open his own emails, or is not actually connected to the Internet, but Bill told eWeek that he had been hit by adware and malware from time to time.

Linux on laptops (Tip)

Linux on laptops (Tip)

Linux on the desktop can be a real challenge for some people. Then there are the truly masochistic who insist on trying to load Linux on their laptops.

Links to an article that has tweaks and settings for ways to optimize your laptops performance, manage and conserve power, etc.