PCG Article May 2023 PC Gamer Article Links and Discussion

[Zed Clampet]

That brings up another thing.... a PIN is a 4 character password that only allows digits. If that's all you need to get in, what's the point of all the fancy stuff? Are they just for user convenience?

But in this case it only unlocks your passcode and would probably be most people's last option, but it's more convenient than a password and much, much more secure.

 

[Pifanjr]

That brings up another thing.... a PIN is a 4 character password that only allows digits. If that's all you need to get in, what's the point of all the fancy stuff? Are they just for user convenience?

Most of my pins are now 5 numbers. I wonder how much extra secure that is.

 

[Zed Clampet]

Most of my pins are now 5 numbers. I wonder how much extra secure that is.

Theoretically, it isn't really much extra secure if it's used in passcode. If someone is on your system using brute force, 5 numbers isn't going to stop them. There seems to be some confusion in this thread regarding this system, but I'm not an expert on it either, partly because I didn't envision it going anywhere.

 

[Pifanjr]

Not a PC Gamer article (yet), but the Dead Space remake on Steam now lets you play 90 minutes for free. It would be nice if this would become the standard for new games, it's a lot more user friendly than having to pay first and get a refund if the game doesn't work (well).

Steam :: Dead Space :: Play 90 minutes of Dead Space™ for free*

From May 15 (10 AM PST) to May 29, 2023 (10 AM PST), you can play 90 minutes of Dead Space on Steam for free.

steamcommunity.com

EDIT:

Steam just quietly added a new free trial system

Starting with the Dead Space remake.

www.pcgamer.com

 

[mainer]

Google released a .zip web domain and people can't decide if it's the phishing apocalypse or just as bad as any other dodgy link

Nowadays .zip can denote a file or web page. That's confusing, at the very least, but also potentially downright dangerous.

www.pcgamer.com

I personally think this is a bad move by Google, creating a zip web domain, as I think it will create a lot of confusion and a breeding ground for malware.

 

[Pifanjr]

Google released a .zip web domain and people can't decide if it's the phishing apocalypse or just as bad as any other dodgy link

Nowadays .zip can denote a file or web page. That's confusing, at the very least, but also potentially downright dangerous.

www.pcgamer.com

I personally think this is a bad move by Google, creating a zip web domain, as I think it will create a lot of confusion and a breeding ground for malware.

I saw something about that yesterday and saved it so I can ask my work's IT department about it. From what I understand, it could happen that browsers start treating file names as URLs now on pages that used to just mention the name of a zip file. Now that name might suddenly link to an external website, possibly a malicious one.

I'm not sure if this is already happening, but it doesn't hurt to be extra careful when you see a link with a .zip extension somewhere from now on.

 

[Brian Boru]

bad move by Google

Ouch, yeah, confusing at best—and I'll be amazed if the badstars don't find ways to exploit it. Will we all need to become 4X-savvy when looking at URLs?
eXamine
eXplain
eXplode
eXhale

Oh well, that's what happens when an advertising company gets into software and such 😀

 

[Zloth]

Why the frak are slash-looking characters allowed as parts of names!? That's just begging for death. Jumping past an @ and going on to the other characters is weird, too. If a URL is wrong, throw an error saying the URL is invalid.

As for the extension... .com is the extension for a DOS command that's been around for decades. Double clicking on a file called "PCGAMER.com" will try to run the file. Zip is *far* more common, of course, but it would still be an issue for most users, which have extensions hidden.

(Maybe I would be more worried if there was a .7z domain. 😉)

 

[Brian Boru]

Why the frak are slash-looking characters allowed as parts of names!?

Very likely that's since the internet went international, and characters beyond Western scripts have to be accommodated. There are currentlu ~150K characters in the Unicode standard, most probably non-Western. It's recognized as a significant security issue—more info.

 

[Zloth]

Eeeeesh. Brian, can you just phone me up once a day, tell me what people posted, and I'll tell you what I want to post back? (Looks over at AI voice emulation) - umm, actually, I'll call you. 😉

 

[mainer]

Mass Effect: Andromeda's creative director still wishes it had got a sequel

Mac Walters says Andromeda was developed during "a weird phase in the industry where a lot of people were saying quantity was quality".

www.pcgamer.com

I thought this was a good article highlighting some of the issues of Andromeda from the viewpoint of Marc Walters, with a link to an interview by Eurogamer. I have to agree with him, that Andromeda did deserve a sequel, or at the very least, a DLC with the Quarians. The game had it's issues, and some parts felt rushed, or duct taped together, but I really enjoyed this game. I still think the combat system was the best of all 4 Mass Effect games.

 

[Brian Boru]

This could be great in a few years!

This AR laptop gives you infinite screens while having none

I have no panel, and I must screen.

www.pcgamer.com

I doubt it'll be much use for gaming, but for productivity it looks to have huge potential. I've been waiting for MS to include a decent virtual desktop system in Windows since I used 3rd party solutions in the 90s!

 

[Zloth]

Well, for $15....

Virtual Desktop on Steam

Virtual Desktop is an application developed for the Oculus Rift / Rift S, HTC Vive, Valve Index and WMR headsets that lets you use your computer in VR. This app is NOT for the Oculus Quest or Pico headsets. You can browse the web, watch movies, Netflix or even play games on a giant virtual screen.

store.steampowered.com

 

[Brian Boru]

Well, for $15....

Thanks, but VR is not for me—but even if it was, that app doesn't list any of the basics required in a useful productivity solution.

 

[Zloth]

VR is just AR with the lens caps left on, though this one lists off specific hardware. I don't know if there is a common VR/AR API similar to DirectX yet.

I'm not sure what productivity solutions there would be. It's a virtual monitor system.

The big worry for me is resolution. Even a 1024x768 monitor at arm's length translates to a heck of a resolution an inch from your eyeball.

 

[Zed Clampet]

Thanks, but VR is not for me—but even if it was, that app doesn't list any of the basics required in a useful productivity solution.

It just puts your screen into VR. Whatever productivity solutions you have on screen will still be there. I'm not sure you would want AR for this, honestly. Better to block out your real monitor.

 

[Zed Clampet]

I'm getting some tasty Skyrim and Dark Messiah vibes from this first-person action RPG

Well, they are good at making trailers. Guess we'll see about the game

 

[Zloth]

It just puts your screen into VR. Whatever productivity solutions you have on screen will still be there. I'm not sure you would want AR for this, honestly. Better to block out your real monitor.

You wouldn't have a real monitor. You would just have a blank wall.

Come to think of it, you could set the desktop color to be "transparent" and your desktop's wallpaper would be your room's wallpaper!

 

[Brian Boru]

productivity solutions

My bad, phrasing 😳

I meant functions of the virtual desktop, eg…
♣ Persist across reboots
♦ Different icon/shortcut sets on diff desktops
♥ 'Quick flick' apps from one desktop to another via title bar button
♠ Apps launch in specified desktop
♣ Same app in diff states on diff desktop
♦ Separate Taskbar for diff desktops
♥ Rapid access, eg Ctrl+numpad 0147
…plus a few tech details around prioritizing, waking-sleeping, resource hogging, etc.

My need has decreased last few years, I mostly do fine nowadays with 2 monitors and Stardock's Fences. If pushed, I'd try this $50 solution.

 

[Zed Clampet]

My bad, phrasing 😳

I meant functions of the virtual desktop, eg…
♣ Persist across reboots
♦ Different icon/shortcut sets on diff desktops
♥ 'Quick flick' apps from one desktop to another via title bar button
♠ Apps launch in specified desktop
♣ Same app in diff states on diff desktop
♦ Separate Taskbar for diff desktops
♥ Rapid access, eg Ctrl+numpad 0147
…plus a few tech details around prioritizing, waking-sleeping, resource hogging, etc.

My need has decreased last few years, I mostly do fine nowadays with 2 monitors and Stardock's Fences. If pushed, I'd try this $50 solution.

One of us doesn't understand what's going on here. I'm willing to admit it's me, but, for instance, it's not going to be persistent across reboots. It's just your monitor showing up in your VR headset. It's like a remote workstation that doesn't actually do anything on its own.

But this points out what you originally said, which is that it's not for you. You're looking for a remote workstation that manages multiple PCs. This is definitely not that. This is for people who want to be able to work their PC without taking their VR headset off because neither Oculus nor Valve make that possible natively.

 

[Brian Boru]

One of us doesn't understand what's going on here

You're right, my fault, sorry about that 🙂

I was talking about a general virtual desktop system solution outside of VR, and obviously didn't make that clear.

 

[Zed Clampet]

You're right, my fault, sorry about that 🙂

I was talking about a general virtual desktop system solution outside of VR, and obviously didn't make that clear.

I think you can be excused for wanting more than what this is. I think the reason it isn't more is because reading in VR is challenging. Most people would not want to do actual work with either a VR or an AR headset. Just not enough pixels yet.

 

[Colif]

Gollum looks bad

So bad I couldn't watch for more than 9 minutes

 

[Zloth]

Sam was right, this one's a stinker. But that's not a PC Gamer article?

 

[Colif]

I may have got topic wrong but its almost end of month, I don't think anyone will notice

Here is the PC Gamer article. I will assume they received game as well as everyone else

The Lord of the Rings: Gollum review

This stealth adventure has its charms, despite a fractured identity.

www.pcgamer.com

Ahh, a modern review... managed to avoid talking about gameplay for most of its length. If games were movies this one would still look bad. It was what it looks like that repelled me. I don't know anyone would play it.

Its so not a rip off that if you want Gollum to say "My precious" you have to pay extra for an emote pack DLC ... really shows confidence they had in the game if they charge you more for the one thing most players will want.