Re: Future of gamers with lower connections

**Bold** · 04-26-2007, 09:32 PM

Originally Posted by nick.spacek

Well, isn't 20 kilobytes a 128kilobit connection, which is in fact DSL? 20KB/s is a lot faster than my dialup ever went ;D

I think I know what you are referring to. There is a provider here offering that kind of service. Its basically a DSL modem that is capped at 128kb/s. They are selling it to people who would stick to dial up. Its about the same price but it keeps the phone line free.

But the problem you are stating is very real. In urban area its easy to get a relatively good broadband connection. But many rural areas don't have access to the networks necessary to support higher speeds.

So in a sense many people will be prevented from playing next generation games. At least online.

But its actually the same issue with machines speeds. The average computer out there is not a quad core machines with 4 gigs of ram. Sure you can upgrade. But most people are not ready to invests large amounts of money for what they see as an occasional entertainment. Of course you can most games at lower settings. But Looks at the minimum requirements of games and you will notice that most machines that are 4 or 5 years old will have trouble.

That is one of the reason why the gaming market is not in full explosion even if there level of penetration of computer technologies is rising.

**Ferris Bueller** · 04-27-2007, 05:03 PM

I hate to rain on the parade, but this isnt a problem that is ever going to have a solution.

Technology is entirely a consumer driven market. The number of people that want "bigger and better" FAR outweighs the cry of the people who are stuck with lesser technology. The number of gamers in major cities alone, much less smaller towns that have the capability, dwarfs the number of gamers who live out in the sticks and are having connection speed issues. As with anything else, this means that the companies that produce the technology (in this case, the broadband ISPs) just dont care if you are in a bad spot or cant afford a better connection. It's cold and harsh, but its the unwavering truth. If you cant upgrade for whatever reason, you're simply up the creek without a paddle and theres nothing ANYONE can do about it. Business is money and advancement means more of it coming in from the massive populations of people in urban areas who can afford to pay the price.

I'm rarely a negative person, but facts are facts folks, and complaining that technology is moving too fast for you to afford or your area to keep up with wont help you and just comes off as whiny. Try something active, like finding a way to afford it (if its that important to you) or petitioning a local broadband ISP to extend services to your area. Otherwise, all you're doing is blowing hot air.

**ednos** · 04-27-2007, 06:09 PM

I don't know about you, but I'll be playing Battlefield 1942 twenty years from now if I'm playing any action games at all. It might be just me and Sir-Nerd, but we'll be the best players out there.

**Bc2ID** · 04-27-2007, 10:08 PM

Originally Posted by Dirtboy

Kunsan AB...its about 2 hours south of Seoul.

Yep I know it well, spent one year in Camp Hovey...stone's throw from the DMZ. You all had the best mess hall in country and of course we went there for the food and not to look at the scenery.... ;-)

**E-Male** · 05-02-2007, 12:02 AM

Originally Posted by Bold

But many rural areas don't have access to the networks necessary to support higher speeds.

Yes, it is the same in Canada, even though we have much higher high-bandwidth penetration levels than in the US. On both sides of the border, politicians promised highspeed for all, digital superhighways everywhere, and threw a pile of tax dollars at telecoms. 17 years later -- your screwed if you live outside the urban core. Yes, there are exceptions, but the whole net-bubble of the 1990s was a wonderful porkfest for telecos and the hightech sector.

same old same old 'free market'...

**7ShadesOSin** · 05-02-2007, 01:15 PM

But many rural areas don't have access to the networks necessary to support higher speeds.

I can only talk about what I know here in the UK (and I'll happily be corrected), but any house which has a phone, also has the potential for broadband, it just requires the telecom company to upgrade the equipment at the local exchange.

Obviously, they'll want a good reason for doing this - but since money makes the world go round, if you can get enough people to get together and sign a petition, they'll do the work.

Clearly, if you live by yourself in a shack on the swamp, you won't bet getting broadband, since there won't be much reason for them to do so - but then, you probably have more to worry about than broadband.

I've seen as few as 3 people make the comm's company change their mind about upgrading the exchange. If you are very far from the exchange though, the signal may be so weak as to make it completely worthless...

There's always other forms of connection though, which will be viable or not, depending on your economic capabilities. And since we're talking about the "future of gamers...", then we also have to assume future technology is going to bring alternatives (or make current solutions more widely available, and less expensive).

**Sir-Nerd** · 05-04-2007, 04:13 PM

Originally Posted by ednos

I don't know about you, but I'll be playing Battlefield 1942 twenty years from now if I'm playing any action games at all. It might be just me and Sir-Nerd, but we'll be the best players out there.

Yeah u and i will fight eachother to the death

**Sir-Nerd** · 05-04-2007, 04:20 PM

Hopefully, when broadband completly replaces dial up, the price will drop a large amount and ill be able to afford a better connection. I'll have to wait or get a better job. Though I have heard opf people try a new type of connection that travels thru power lines instead on phone or cable. This would be supplied by companies that run power line power. They can send info on the power lines on a different frequincy much like DSL but its faster since it's on a wider cable. I'm not sure on hardware for the computers to make this work but it's sound like a good deal.

**Apophis** · 05-04-2007, 04:31 PM

Originally Posted by Sir-Nerd

Hopefully, when broadband completly replaces dial up, the price will drop a large amount and ill be able to afford a better connection. I'll have to wait or get a better job. Though I have heard opf people try a new type of connection that travels thru power lines instead on phone or cable. This would be supplied by companies that run power line power. They can send info on the power lines on a different frequincy much like DSL but its faster since it's on a wider cable. I'm not sure on hardware for the computers to make this work but it's sound like a good deal.

EoPL technology has been around for quite some time. I've used it in some commercial applications but it has considerable drawbacks and isn't as fast in production environments as it is in the lab. As for hardware, you just need a simple ATA like device that plugs into a power outlet and has an ethernet port on it. Plug that into your router or network and you're done.

http://www.linksys.com/servlet/Satel...=7472522279B75
http://www.linksys.com/servlet/Satel...=6653922279B74

**Sir-Nerd** · 05-04-2007, 10:51 PM

What kind of speed comes with this set up?

Thread Tools

Display