October 30, 2002
Game DVD replacement policy at Xbox
mnemesis recently discovered that his precious Halo game CD (do we call it CD or DVD? I'm not sure what the norm is for Xbox discs) developed a nasty scratch that won't let him play the AotCR level. It brought up what seems to be a very stupid policy on MS's part: they don't offer disc replacement. Maybe they offer something under the standard 30 or 90 day warranty period, but beyond that you're on your own.
Some folks might think that after a year of playing a $50 game, what's so tough about asking someone to shell out another $50 for the same disc, it's certainly worth it, right? I might agree, but I know that other CD/DVD companies out there will at least bend a little and offer a replacement disc for a small fee. Think of the revenue MS is missing out on. I plan on keeping my Halo CD for a long time. If MS charged me $12 for a disc replacement every couple of years, that's not so bad for what should be, based on volume, a $1 or so disc dupe. And I don't think I'd have a problem forking over that kind of money either.
It's this kind of short-sighted thinking on a company's part that forces you, the consumer, to look elsewhere for satisfaction. If someone were to offer me the ability to dupe my existing Halo game disc (CD or DVD? Argh!) I'd take them up on it in a heartbeat. After all, why shouldn't I protect my investment?
My own disc has been showing signs of wear... and the nifty little graphical 'progress bar' that Halo uses is now a slow crawl instead of the fast slide that it once was. Sometimes it even does a little dance and goes forward a bit and then retreats a few steps... like it's retrying a particular scuffed up part of the disc.
Tomeone reminded me that there are some pretty neat little plastic contraptions that you can buy that promise to restore damaged CD/DVDs back to normal. I actually have one of them and it did salvage a CD of mine once. I'll probably be trying it out with my Halo disc soon enough:
Digital Innovations DVD Doctor
Checking out similar products at Amazon, this one was rated quite highly and is cheaper to boot, yet it doesn't have the nifty 'transmission assembly' doohickey that you place the disc in, it's just some liquid and pads:
DiscRestore 3680 DiscRx Pro Series II
Obviously, in the 'old days' Bungie's games came out on standard computer CD and floppy, and I don't think there was ever a problem with duping either media for backup purposes.
October 25, 2002
[b.net] Team Tournament Strategy Guide
Team Tournament Strategy Guide
10/25/02
Colony Tau Ceti Destroyed
As a public service announcement we would like to warn all interest parties that 792 years from this day Tau Ceti will not be a good place to be. According to the Bungie Future Calendar (BFC) Tau Ceti will be attacked by the Pfhor on October 25, 2794.
So unless living on a glassed planet is your idea of fun, we suggest finding another place to live. Regardless of the circumstances, the Chokis Landlords Association (CLA) is unlikely to refund the deposit on your enviro-cube. Sorry.
October 23, 2002
Fiddlin' Around
I've been messin' around with the style sheet. Whaddya think? (We could make it a black page, and piss off Claude... ;-) j/k)
Is this mike on?
Bungie Sightings, the most malleable sub-site in the entire B.ORG universe is changing... again! :)
Let's see what mnemesis and I think of this system. If it's a beaut, it will compute!
October 22, 2002
[b.net] iGames Winter Team Tournament
iGames Winter Team Tournament
10/22/02
October 20, 2002
[b.net] So You Want To Be A Programmer
So You Want To Be A Programmer
10/20/02
