Regarding Steam (POLL)

I vote number 3 because I would rather get updates more frequently but i can understand why people want a DRM free copy.

 

The difference is they're using it to aim things at your interests, rather than selling it to other agencies so that those agencies can then come in and advertise to you. At least, not as far as we know... so if they're doing it, they're good at covering it up.

 

You can disable automatic updating.

 

Yes, I forgot about that, but regardless, I spent a year with Steam and auto-updating on.

 

There's also the idea of turning off Steam when it's not in use, as it suspends updates automatically when another Steam game is in use.

 

This, it doesn't suck up bandwidth when playing games and if you need to, you can pause downloads or just turn them off altogether for awhile. But in beta, Starbound is going to updated "sometimes as often as multiple updates a day". So having steam keep you up-to-date automatically between play sessions is just downright essential.

 

Edit: Sorry misread the can as can't, disregard this message, leaving it here crossed out for integrity's sake though.

It is a personal preference thing, Some people for one reason or another can not or will not use steam no matter how "Awesome" it is. Then a few of those people would like to help with the beta (or just play it, you know there is no way everyone who redeems a steam key is going to be actively submitting reports and just playing the game to play the game). However their desire to play the beta does not outweigh their distaste for Steam so they want a way to get in. If you mean why people want DRM-free copies in general, it's to have the game if Steam ever went down and not to have to authenticate to a server so they don't have to crack it when they decide to play it 12 years from now when the auth servers would have moved on to hosting other things.

 

I support a Steam only version to start. I'm all for DRM-free, however if it means slower updates and/or segregation of client compatibility I cannot support it. Option 3 has my vote, I understand a lot of people will be mad if this route is chosen, but it's in Starbound's best interest to take this route as far as development and patching is concerned

 

Unnecessary post?

RL Hyotl sighted!

 

Hehe, I think it was late when I made that post and I misread the "can" as "can't" (seen a few people say they can not fathom people not using Steam before after all). I will edit that post though.

 

Either #2 or #3. Whichever makes beta go faster. Heck, I'll even do #1 if beta goes faster.

 

Steam has finally added the ability to throttle downloads, so it won't consume all of your bandwidth at any time, although I'm still waiting for the promised land of scheduling. And, at least in theory, soon they'll be completely revamping the patch system. It should, after the conversion, be able to just update small portions of files rather than entire files, meaning that a patch that is a gig now could easily be less than a few hundred megs at some point in the near future. Alas, the article that promised throttling, scheduling, and patches that could address only the changes to files rather than entire files came out ages ago. But given that they've just added throttling recently, I imagine they're still working on it.

 

Yeah, I'm not really sure what's wrong with having games advertised to me that I might like based on other games I play. I want that, I've found plenty of great games just from Steam advertisements (and sales, delicious, delicious Steam sales).

Think of it this way: plenty of people use Pandora. Pandora plays music based on what you have entered as the station and liked/disliked on that station. It's, in effect, advertising that music to you. And yet, you don't particularly mind, do you? I know I don't (though I find Pandora's library pretty limited most of the time, especially for metal).

 

wow... using a Pandora reference to starbound. when did it come to this!!!

 

What does this comment even mean? Pandora is an internet radio service.

 

exactly my point

 

No, I don't understand your disbelief(?) at this situation. The poster was making a good point.

 

well then, it was joke about starbound being related to Pandora... completely a joke

 

Fredmay, have you ever heard of something called an analogy? That's what I was using. A rhetorical technique.

Consider taking a college English class. You might learn something.

 

dude, I agree with you.. all I was saying was a joke.