If there’s one thing that really yanks my chain – and coming from an era of almost exclusively handle-flush toilets, that phrase is oddly compelling – it’s the attitude game developers have towards the humble PC.

Now let’s get a few things straight from the off. I’m aware that the PC, loose and random as its makeup has become, is not a preferable format for big money developers to build triple A titles on. I realise that the PC’s audience is, by and large, a lot more nerdy than the generalist console community, so they expect a different kind of game. They're happy with World of Warcraft, 70 long-winded levels of smashing the same monster sprites in areas that differ only in the amount of purple tinting the landscape. I get that. What I don’t get is just how inefficient PC gaming is. ...

...is the article I was planning to write here. Instead, I hit the same problem as ever - Vista means nothing to me. Nothing. Nada. Zip. Zero. Zilch. I can't remember the last operating system I've felt so completely and utterly cold about. Not in a particularly negative way, because negativity implies a level of caring that really doesn't exist. Just... apathy. Apathy and occasional annoyance.

The improved features? No real sign. I don't feel any safer with it running than I do with my Windows XP machine. DirectX 10 remains an irrelevance, and looks set to continue being one for a good while yet. As for the Ultimate Extras... well... remember when they were going to happen? The only real difference I've found is its tendency to do hard-resets without so much as a by-your-leave when downloading patches. Oh, and the ability to alter the volume on different programs individually remains as useful an option as any I've found in the system. I like that option.

But that's about it. Has it changed the way I work? No. Helped me organise anything? Again, not really. The Start menu's a bit better, I suppose. But if I had to pick one feature in a full copy of Windows Vista, the only one that stands out right now, right this second, is that you could buy a whole table of cakes for the cost of an upgrade. And everyone likes cake, don't they?

I wouldn't go as far to say that Vista is an all new Windows ME. I don't think it's particularly bad. It does its job, it's... it's okay. But that's it. It's the operating system equivalent of biting your toenails; effective enough, but not something worth getting worked up over. There's no reason to buy it, and throughout 2007, I've yet to see a compelling reason to upgrade unless you get it free with a new computer. Certainly, Acer never bothered sending me the upgrade disc for my laptop. And I haven't chased them about it.

What's really needed is for Microsoft to pull an Apple - not Leopard necessarily, but something that actively re-energises the platform. That's what's missing from Vista, more than anything else. With Windows 95, with OS X, with Linux, with all these other platforms, they make a stand for what computing can be, and where it's going. Vista didn't do that. It was a release aimed at boosting Microsoft's bottom line and trying to secure its empire. It's there to shift boxes, not change the status quo.

Microsoft has no excuse for that. By 2010, it'll have been almost a decade since the last big jump, and that's an eternity in technology. At the very least, it's long enough to come up with at least one genuinely essential reason to upgrade. The WOW sure as hell hasn't started in my study...

Apparently, it's not selling very well. Some people blame the Christmas season. Others wag their fingers at the general sense of ennui many shooter fans are feeling in the wake of Bioshock, The Orange Box, Call of Duty 4, and all the other great shooters released of late. Me, I blame the slogan.

Anyone who has been a geek for long enough will remember the pioneering hippy spirit during the Internet explosion in the 1990s. Sorry, I mean The Information Superhighway. It was going to change world politics. War would become a thing of the past. The boundary between the real and virtual would become blurred. Borders between nations and ideologies would crumble in the 21st century. But while the 'net has definitely changed the world, the predictions have turned out to be naive.

The web was once unconstrained by national laws, with content that did not discruminate on users depending on their location. But the modern web, after a userbase increase of more than 100-fold is no longer controlled by technical people but by those motivated by cash, profit and a return on their investment.

I am writing this because it became all too obvious this last weekend. I was doing my Sunday morning thing of reading the news online. I saw an interesting looking story on Yahoo.com (an American site). It was a video report about some genetically modified cats that glow in the dark. I clicked the link. First, it forces me to watch a tediously long advert, about some toothpaste. I hate this style of web advertising, it simply isn't a good way to sell things online. But once the advert had finished, all I see is a box saying:

"This content cannot be viewed in your region."

What is the reason for this exactly? Is it because bandwidth costs will be higher if they open it up to the whole world? Are they legally covering their ass to prevent any content that is illegal in some countries being shown there?

There is an easy way around this. Proxy servers. The same way some Chinese users get around their government's draconian web censorship. If I use a proxy server located in the USA to feed me the video, it should play fine.

But this is what the entire Internet could look like in ten years. Or there may not be one. Instead, we will have the UK-net, the USA-net, the Japan-net, and they may not even be on speaking terms.

Courtesy of our colleagues over at SFX, you can get the full, unabridged recording, just by signing up to online audiobook store Audible before the 23rd. Click here to collect your copy. That's eighteen hours of unabridged vampire story, which means that - amongst other things - you can be one of the proud people who actually know the story, and can rightfully recoil at garbage like Van Helsing, Dracula 3000, and Jesus Christ, Vampire Hunter.

I like Audible, and I'm not just saying that. I've had one of the PremiumListener accounts for a couple of years now - paid for, not some kind of journalistic freebie - which gets you any two audiobooks a month for £15. I walk a lot, and having a constant stream of new content certainly gets rid of the boredom. Currently working my way through Spider Robinson's Callahan books, although I'm saving the last couple for the Christmas break. Which of course, can't come soon enough. Brr. Last week of the year...

That said, I do wish they'd get rid of the stern voice at the start of each book, the one intoning "THIS IS AUDIBLE". Wouldn't be much of good if it wasn't, would it, folks? But hey, just for clarification purposes: THIS IS READABLE.

REALVIZ develops a suite of image-based content creation solutions for the film, broadcast, gaming, digital imaging, architecture and Internet communities. REALVIZ's award-winning products are used by thousands of professional photographers, as well as leading production and effects houses, web design, game development and architectural companies worldwide, including Boeing, Daimler Chrysler, The Orphanage Inc, Cinesite, Framestore CFC, Sony Pictures Imageworks, Warner Brothers Animation, Electronic Arts, Duran Duboi and many others.

REALVIZ Stitcher is photo stitching and image assembling software for the creation of professional-level panoramas and 360° virtual tours.
Starting from digital images, the software's powerful central automatic stitching engine allows a diverse range of users to create extremely high-quality panoramas and virtual tours.

REALVIZ Stitcher has many potential uses, including the production of large-format prints, matte paintings, reflection maps and textures for film/television, as well as dynamic virtual tours for the real estate and tourism industries. For further information on Stitcher, visit: http://stitcher.realviz.com.

REALVIZ Stitcher is available in three distinct versions:

a. Stitcher Express: this software package is a good starting point for first-time panorama creators

b. Stitcher Pro: for those wishing to progress to the next level

c. Stitcher Unlimited: for professionals and panorama creation specialists

This competition is now closed

The new Ballistix DDR3 memory from Crucial is a cutting-edge option for high-performance CPU systems. This technology delivers higher speeds, larger densities and lower power consumption, making it the best memory to run gaming programs and high-end multimedia applications.

Crucial Ballistix DDR3 modules are the perfect blend of form and function. They feature a newly redesigned heat spreader with a clipless design, along with the Micron company logo on the heat spreader. Plus, the modules feature Micron’s highly sought-after DDR3 components, running at speeds of 1,600MHz.

Be forewarned: for everything Crucial DDR3 memory offers, it’s not backward compatible, so it won’t work for all systems. Need an easy way to find out? Just go to the www.crucial.com/uk website and try out their new DDR3-specific System Scanner. In just one click, you’ll find out if DDR3 is compatible with your system and what upgrades are available.

The Crucial Ballistix line of DDR2 memory is also built for enthusiasts who want to push the performance envelope without data loss or errors. It’s ideal for gamers who want an edge over the competition. These high-performance memory modules feature advanced speed grades, low latencies, and top-of-the-line components. And with integrated aluminium heat spreaders, they look great too!

This competition is now closed