Thanks for the reminder. I watched the development of that, and downloaded it when it was released, so I have it somewhere, but never installed it.

Right on, brother! I know I'm doing a "me, too" post, but my experience with the game led me to the Stalker film (only part of it isn't in color - the beginning is sepia, but the zone is color) and Roadside Picnic as well, and I've played the vanilla game and every mod I could get my hands on multiple times. I bought the game when it was an entity unknown on a lark at a goodwill. I recently bought it again on steam though I still own the original - just in case the original devs get some of that money. Faction Wars, which I think was rolled into the Supermod pack, was one of the coolest. I played OL 1.4, 2.0, 2.2, AMK, ABC Inferno, Proboi's Story, Rebalanced, and probably others I can't recall. It was the first game I'd ever played so many times through with so many mods. Probably still is.

That said, I definitely get that "been there" feeling whenever I see images or video of Pripyat and the areas around the power station. I'd still love to visit, too.

"This 1981 BYTE Magazine Cover Explains Why We're So Bad At Tech Predictions"

No it doesn't. Even if the image was a depiction of a serious prediction (which it was/is not); it "explains" nothing. There is no "why" inherent in the image.

Loved the mod for Arma 2, got the alpha right away, have over 100 hours in. Features are still coming, but for me it's already fun. Been snowed in a lot lately, so lots of time for gaming.

Also:
Deus Ex: Human Revolution: The original game is one of my all time favorites. I like this one, too.
Borderlands
Banished: Cool, indie strategy/building game.

Also love FTL, and Dwarf Fortress is always on rotation.
Others have mentioned Alpha Centauri, one of my all time favorites, and it reminded me that a spiritual successor is around. Haven't tried it yet:

http://www.matrixgames.com/pro...

I don't think the question as posed is particularly valid. It's not about "classic" vs "newer." It's not even about games. It's about the philosophy of parenting and how it might involve various aspects of our culture (wherever we are, and however we define it). We each need to make our own decisions, as parents, in terms of the types of games that we might want our progeny to sample, and they are going to be derived from who we are as parents and as people. Do we wish to enforce our ideas of what games/movies/sports/music are and should be? Or do we want our children to discover themselves and the things that will excite, stimulate, and invigorate them?

Obviously these are big questions and there are many right answers. For me, as a father, I want my son to engage in games that stimulate his creativity, regardless of era. So far, that's been easy, because that is where he generally wants to be.

In terms of operating systems, I watch where his interests go, and lead him towards things that might further develop those interests. While I might explain to him, or show him, the CLI of linux/unix systems, it will always be in the context of "here is why this is cool and powerful," with a concrete example that was arrived at naturally. It won't be forced. I'm also a musician, and the house is full of instruments, and yet I never force him to play. I want him to arrive at the joy of music naturally, or not at all. Same thing with art ( and all other things). I think that there is a larger question inherent in the question posed, as I said, and it needs to be understood.

I agree with you entirely. The environment was a big draw - and by that I include the sounds and the music, but the puzzles themselves were, at the time, all encompassing. Why didn't it have a bigger impact? Perhaps because creating something so original and unique is rare. The mechanisms of the game were the framework around which the story was wrought. The story, and the puzzles and the way they were integrated, was the thing (IMO).

they're (sic) sales people are legendary, and that's all that matters. IBM doesn't even bother giving IT a thought nowadays. It's all about the sales people. Oracle realized that ages ago.

Nonsense. I work for a fairly large university in the NE. We were an virtually exclusive Sun hardware/Solaris shop. Due to Oracle's behavior, we've moved wholly away on both hardware and software since they acquired Sun. Good riddance. I also know of an enormous urban school district (where I used to work and still know many people) that has done the same. While this is only an N of 2, I doubt we're all that rare.

While it is certainly true in some cases that sleazy snake oil salesmen snow decision makers, there are also organizations that will make informed decisions.

Do you have any idea of the notoriety of this incident? It was caught on video, I suggest you watch it. The officer was out of line, and he did walk up to people, who were sitting, immobile, and pepper sprayed them in their faces. They weren't "surrounded."

Here is an image:
http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/09/26/14112860-university-of-california-to-pay-nearly-1-million-in-deal-with-21-pepper-sprayed-uc-davis-occupy-protesters?lite

Video: http://youtu.be/WmJmmnMkuEM

As in smart sandwich ... that's what my brain told the rest of me that word meant in the first few fractions of a second. And frankly, I couldn't care less about a smart watch ... but am now obsessing over the idea of a smart sandwich. "What you want, when you don't even know you want it! SMARTWICH!"

Useful != necessary.

I contribute to wikipedia and archive.org.

There isn't a website that has yet existed that is necessary. That could also apply to every movie and television show that has even been produced, and most books. If your content is valuable, it will generate value. You just have to find out how.

If I visit a site where ads ruin the experience, I'm gone. There is no content that can justify that reality for me, so I act accordingly.

I find advertising to be reprehensible in its mass form. It conveys the very worst of us, and exists upon, and strengthens, a platform of dishonesty. There are exceptions, yes, but that is the general rule IMO.

I block ads in every way that I can - if I find a site with great content that interests me, I pay for it. That's exceedingly rare.

Point being: if you want to exist, find a different revenue model. If your users are blocking ads, that should be communicating something to you - and very strongly at 50%! Change your behavior, don't try to change theirs.

Many times, I've considered creating a project that is an Open Source, Apple product related, DIY bullshit thing and just taking the money. Heck, I still might.

Congratulations. You're a dick.

Kickstarter is set up in a way that there's no incentive, at all, for anybody to do anything once they get the money.

Except integrity.

Worse, you can't leave windows box without antivirus, so you're screwed

Yes, you can. I've been using windows since the mid-90s, in addition to MacOS, linux, and unix. I've never used AV, and I've never contracted a virus. The performance degradation is unacceptable, and thus far wholly unnecessary. I used to manage an enterprise level AV vendor's product (on a Solaris server, amusingly) and saw firsthand how utterly useless it tended to be. Unless an old virus variant was making the rounds, it was effete. In that environment zero day viruses were far more common than viruses for which the software contained definitions, so what was the point? Maybe things are different now, but I fail to see how. Are the black hats sending definitions to the AV companies before releasing them into the wild?

Watergategate?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vB9JgxhXW5w

Athletic prowess and superior intelligence are not mutually exclusive.