Latest Comments by Shmerl
Pillars of Eternity II will be getting three post-launch content packs
25 April 2018 at 8:54 pm UTC Likes: 7

Quotedownloadable-content pack

They should stop using this term already. Just call it expansion pack. Kerbal Space Program developers got it.

Reminder: Update your PC info for the next round of statistics updates
25 April 2018 at 12:42 pm UTC Likes: 3

It would be useful to add VRAM in addition to regular RAM.

Campo Santo, developer of Firewatch has joined Valve
24 April 2018 at 10:05 pm UTC

Quoting: DuncNothing. You copied some files. There are no “measures”.

Accessing the files outside the client can be viewed as circumventing in this case. You don't buy files through Steam, so it can be viewed that you aren't supposed to access them. But again, I'm not really interested in debating this topic since it changes nothing. You still can't legally back things up in DRM-free fashion. Ergo, Steam is not DRM-free.

Campo Santo, developer of Firewatch has joined Valve
24 April 2018 at 10:00 pm UTC

Quoting: DuncBut we're not arguing about rights; we're arguing about the management of rights.

Those are tied together. Same as anti-circumvention garbage is tied to it. If that wasn't clear enough, DRM-free above obviously meant legal DRM-free when referring to stores, not simply ability to remove DRM and get DRM-free result, or get it through violating the TOS.

Campo Santo, developer of Firewatch has joined Valve
24 April 2018 at 6:01 pm UTC Likes: 1

Quoting: Purple Library GuyNo, it leaves lots of clear options for DRM-free backup. Just no options which don't arguably violate Steam's TOS.

That's out of scope. You can also go ahead and break various DRM, producing DRM-free backup. Personally I don't have a problem with people breaking DRM for their personal use (DRM in fact is aimed to forbid otherwise completely legal fair use), but we aren't talking about that.

Quoting: Purple Library GuyThus, it is not factually DRM and doing the backups does not trigger legal penalties for circumventing DRM so it is not legalistically DRM either.

I wouldn't be so sure. The client itself can be viewed as an installation "measure", and skirting its use can be viewed as "circumventing" it. DMCA-1201 abusers come up with even weirder ways to mess things up for those unfortunate who happen to be subjects to some DRM schemes.

I call it DRM, because they don't provide legal ways to make DRM-free backups. That's about it.

The new GOG profile system is out, looks quite slick
24 April 2018 at 2:06 pm UTC

Quoting: x_wingI found this:

https://github.com/yancharkin/games_nebula

I may be trying this during the weekend (if ever get enough time :/)

As far as I know, it's not using Galaxy API. If you want a well working downloader, try this: https://github.com/Sude-/lgogdownloader

The final Dungeons 3 DLC is out named Lord of the Kings
24 April 2018 at 1:57 pm UTC

Those who have Dungeons 2 on GOG now get 50% off on Dungeons 3 and expansions (until April 30), but not on this last one. Still quite a good deal.

The new GOG profile system is out, looks quite slick
24 April 2018 at 12:36 pm UTC

Quoting: RafiLinuxThat is not what Galaxy is, though. That is exactly what itch.io itch app is.

Galaxy is meant to connect GOG games with their online games which is a different monsters then just download apps.

Galaxy is an overloaded term, so it can get confusing. There are two distinct things here:

1. Galaxy Web API that GOG have, which allows Galaxy client(s) to authenticate and access account data. Such client can download games, incremental updates and so on and so forth. This API works over HTTP. GOG provide their own client to pair with that API, and hopefully community will be able to make an open source alternative to that.

2. GOG have various services like multiplayer features (similar to Steamworks), that they provide access to through UDP based API. For that they give developers a C++ library through which they can access it. It's a completely different beast from #1, but both are confusingly called Galaxy.

Campo Santo, developer of Firewatch has joined Valve
24 April 2018 at 3:08 am UTC

Quoting: Purple Library GuyAs to Steam backups requiring the Steam client to un-backup . . . that's really not unusual for backup software. Backup tools work like that--you use the tool to back the stuff up, then you use the same tool to push the stuff forward again. Nobody calls Linux Mint's backup tool "DRM" (I've been known to call it "crap" though). It is bad if Steam's terms of use imply making your own backups is a violation, but again if there's no technical barrier to doing so, that's not DRM, just a bad policy. Maybe an intentionally bad policy, maybe just an accidentally bad policy.

For me, if legal backup is DRMed, and manual one is outlawed, the service is surely not DRM-free.