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              <p><font color="#0000FF"><b><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" color="#0000CC">volume 
                1, issue 4</font></b></font></p>
              <p><font color="#0000FF"><b><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" color="#0000CC"> 
                </font></b></font></p>
              <p>  <p><font face="Courier New, Courier, mono"><b><font color="#339900" face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Today 
                in loonygames:</font></b></font></p>

<P><font color="#000000" face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1">New!!</font><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2"> The Archives have been cleaned up, fead links fixed, and printable versions restored! Also, don't miss the new comments <a href="../../../index.html">on the front page</a>!</font></p>
              
<P><font color="#000000" face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><a href="../../2.15/feat/index.html" target="">Livin' 
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  theAntiELVIS explores the wild and wacky world that is Will Wright's <b>The Sims</b>, 
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  life where everyone is Swedish?&quot;</font></p>
<P><font color="#000000" face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-1"><a href="../../2.15/pixel/index.html" target="">Pixel 
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        <p align="LEFT"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="+3" color="#0022A8"> 
          Play Where You Like!</font></p>
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          <font color="#804000"><b><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">By 
          Jeff &quot;<a target="" href="mailto:jeff@solomania.com">nonick</a>&quot; 
          Solomon</font></b></font></p>
        <p align="LEFT"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">A snapshot of 
          the gaming industry taken now looks very different from a similar snapshot 
          taken last year. PCs are faster and more nimble, and games like<b> Unreal 
          </b>have made new strides in realism and gameplay. The success of DirectX 
          and Windows' support for gaming has allowed the platform to mature into 
          a widespread industry standard, and that same standard will be a driving 
          force behind the Dreamcast, the industry's most anticipated new console 
          system.</font></p>
        <p align="LEFT"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Five years ago, 
          it would have been ludicrous to think that Microsoft would have a hand 
          in a popular console system. Now, that's exactly what's happening. Even 
          more amazing is the fact that a version of Windows will be driving a 
          gaming system that is leaps and bounds beyond the Nintendo 64 and Playstation 
          in terms of functionality!</font></p>
        <p align="LEFT"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The future of 
          gaming is inexorably tied to the PC industry and the Internet. This 
          translates into continued advances of gaming hardware and software technology 

          for PC-based systems - running a variety of competing operating systems- 
          and also a heavy influence on console systems, which are adopting PC-like 
          features to remain competitive with some of the more flexible qualities 
          of PCs.</font></p>
        <p align="LEFT"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The best thing 
          to come out of this wildly confusing, exciting time is that there is 
          more variety and interoperability than ever before. Mac OS X, Linux, 
          and Be will continue to exert tremendous pressure on Microsoft, and 
          force Windows to evolve as rapidly as possible as a gaming platform. 
          Faster hardware will enable developers to take games into uncharted 
          territory in terms of realism and excitement.</font></p>
        <p align="LEFT"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">There are more 
          opportunities for new ideas to emerge and attract attention- just look 
          at the Dreamcast's VMS and the amazing potential of the Be OS - but 
          there is also a consistent backbone to it all that will continue to 
          ensure the industry's success no matter what happens. Gaming is now 
          ubiquitous. Where once it was a niche market dominated by a few large 
          companies that offered proprietary systems, the gaming industry is now 
          a driving force at the forefront of the wildly successful PC revolution.</font></p>
        <p align="LEFT"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">As the computer 
          industry moves forward, the relevance of the actual "PC" as we know 
          it will probably decline. PC-like services will become streamlined, 
          and will find their way into telephones and television sets. Most devices 
          will communicate with each other using standardized protocols that link 
          to the Internet.</font></p>
        <p align="LEFT"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The Dreamcast 
          is an early example of how the future of computing will most likely 
          be <i>anti</i>-computer. Computers will vanish- specialized devices 
          using services pioneered by PCs will become common everywhere. At such 
          a point, it is very possible that gaming systems will once again resemble 
          consoles, in the sense that the Dreamcast is a console that benefits 
          from having PC technology packaged inside.</font></p>
        <p align="LEFT"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> The very best 
          elements of PC technology will be combined with efficient architectures 
          that capitalize on open standards and communication protocols. Technology 
          will be able to evolve without forcing the industry to make wholesale 
          changeovers of fundamental technology, as has been the case in the past. 
          Devices will be flexible, open, and very, very powerful.</font></p>
        <p align="LEFT"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">We are in a 
          transitional pioneering stage right now. The gaming industry, no longer 
          limited by perception, audience, or technological boundaries, is moving 
          forward at the speed of the computer industry. Programming is becoming 
          easier. End-user devices are cheaper and far more capable. Excitement 
          and communication within the industry are at an unprecedented level 
          and will only continue to grow.</font></p>
        <p align="LEFT"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The future is 
          here in the form of units that combine the best elements of PCs and 
          consoles, ease of programmability and raw functionality, and breathing 
          room for improvements down the line. There are no limits whatsoever.</font></p>
        <p>&nbsp;</p>
        <p align="RIGHT"><i><font size="-1" face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">- 
          Jeff Solomon is a regular contributor to<font color="#FF0000"><b><font color="#804000"> 
          loonygames</font></b></font>.</font></i></p>
        <p align="RIGHT">&nbsp;</p>
        <p align="right">&nbsp;</p>
        
        <p align="RIGHT"><i><font size="-1" face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">.</font></i></p>
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    <td><i><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="-2"><b>Credits:</b> 
      Illustration &copy; 1998 Mike Sanzone. Play Where You Like! is &copy; 1998 
      Jeff Solomon. All other content is &copy; 1998 <a target="_self" href="http://www.loonyboi.com">loonyboi 
      productions</a>. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited, so don't 
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