World of Warcraft runs well in Ubuntu.
(Credit: Screenshot by Dong Ngo/CNET)
If you are looking for an operating system that offers the best values, none can compare to Linux.
First of all, it's free. Most Linux distributions can be downloaded gratis from the developers' Web site and you can install it on however many computers you want. Secondly, it comes with a lot of things, such as office tools (word processing, spreadsheet, presentation), audio and video playback, Internet and e-mail, instant messaging, and so on. Basically everything a general user would want to use with a computer is there when the installation is done. For those applications that are not there, chances are you can download them for free.
Wine is more than just an emulator; it makes Windows applications run in Linux much like they do in Wndows.
(Credit: Screenshot by Dong Ngo/CNET)There's also a Linux application called Wine that allows you to run Windows software within Linux. What is special about Wine, however, is the fact that it's not a traditional virtual environment and therefore runs Windows applications very much the way Windows does, without much overhead. Unfortunately, not all Windows applications work with Wine and even if they do, you might not be able to install or run them the way you do in Windows.
Wine, which was developed in 1993, is a recursive acronym for "Wine Is Not an Emulator," though this doesn't make it true that it is not an emulator. Rather than acting as a full emulator, it implements a compatibility layer, providing alternative implementations of the DLLs that Windows programs call, and processes to substitute for the Windows NT kernel. The Wine project has run into a lot of difficulties, mostly because of the incomplete and incorrect documentation of the Windows API. For this reason, after 15 years of development, the first version of Wine (1.0) was release in mid-2008.
Over my Christmas break, I decided to try out the latest version of Wine with my most frequently used Windows application, which is called World of Warcraft (or WoW). Just so that it's clear that I am not antisocial, this didn't take away much time spending with friends and family, as it actually took me less than an hour to do the whole thing.
I started out with getting an ISO image of the ever-popular Linux distro Ubuntu version 91.0. After that, I burned the image onto a CD and started the installation from it.
If you have ever installed an operating system, such as Windows, the installation of Ubuntu is very similar to that. You just need to insert the CD into the optical drive, boot the computer from it, and follow the instructions. The installer will do everything for you, including configuring the hard drive and setting up dual-boot if you want to use it on the same computer that also has Windows installed. In this case, make sure you pick the amount of hard-drive space you want to use for Linux carefully, as this can't be changed once the new OS is installed.
You need to launch the Windows executable file using Wine Windows Program Loader to run a Windows-based application within Linux.
(Credit: Screenshot by Dong Ngo/CNET)Note that in case there's no free space on the hard drive, the Linux installer will automatically shrink the partition used by Windows and free some space for Linux. This process, apart from making the Windows partition smaller, doesn't change anything else and your Windows should work like normal. However, a good rule of thumb is to make sure you back up important files prior to installing Linux.
In my case, I installed Ubuntu 9.10 on the same Core 2 Dual machine with 4GB of RAM and a 500GB hard drive that runs Windows 7 into a dual-boot setup and the whole process took less than 30 minutes. After that, at boot up, I have the option of booting in either Windows 7 or Ubuntu.
Once the installation is done, though Ubuntu runs fine, chances are not all the hardware components, such as video or sound, have their optimized drivers installed. You need to manually do this by running the Hardware Driver utility (System -> Administration -> Hardware Drivers); this utility will list the hardware components that require proprietary drivers and you just need to install (or activate) them. In my case, I needed to do that for my video card, which is a budget Geforce 8300GS with 510MB of RAM.
Wine can be installed for free and the process takes just less than a minute via a broadband connection.
(Credit: Screenshot by Dong Ngo/CNET)The next step is to install Wine. You can do that via Ubuntu Software Center (Applications -> Ubuntu Software Center). Here, you select "Get Free Software" then search for "Wine." In my case, I found two versions of Wine: Wine Microsoft Windows Compatibility Layers and Wine Microsoft Windows Compatibility Layers (Beta Release). I picked the beta release. (Obviously newer is better, right?) The installation of Wine literally took a few seconds with the Internet connection I used, which was really fast. If you use a regular DSL, this might take around a minute.
Now it's time to install WoW. I did it the way I've always done in Windows in the last couple of years: copying the whole "World of Warcraft" folder over from another computer. This is because installing the game from scratch would take hours, considering all the updates and the almost 20GB of storage space that the game requires. With Linux, however, you might not be able to install WoW from scratch anyway. The WoW installer that I tried refused to continue, citing that the computer doesn't meet the game's requirement. This is probably because it could read the computer's hardware via Wine.
Because WoW wasn't installed from scratch, I couldn't launch it from Wine's Start Menu (which resembles that of Windows'). Instead, I need to call the game's executable directly. The trick is that you need to call it via Wine Windows Program Loader by right clicking on the Wow.exe file and choose "Open with Wine Windows Program Loader." It won't work if you just double-click on it.
(Credit:
Screenshot by Dong Ngo/CNET)
And that's it, the game loaded and worked just like in Windows. I could run it in full-screen mode, Windows mode, using the add-ons, etc. The performance was decent. At the recommenced settings, I had consistently 20 frames per second in Daralan, the notoriously slow and laggy area of the game. In other areas, such as dungeons, I was able to get up to 45fps, which was really impressive considering the budget video card.
Overall, it was a really interesting and exciting experience. However, WoW crashed during start-up a couple times; this could be solved by simply restarting the computer or reinstalling Wine. This is probably where the "beta" notion of Wine is to blame.
Other than WoW, I tried a few other Windows applications, such as iTunes and QuickTime, and they worked, too. however they didn't always work the way you expect in Windows.
All in all, Wine will not make an alternative to Windows, but the fact that now I can run my favorite game in Linux makes me believe that Linux is really an ideal operating system for savvy users. So if you think you are one, make a backup of your Windows computer and try it out. It's a lot of fun and doesn't cost anything.
Time is money, friend.
(Credit: Blizzard Entertainment)Well, BlizzCon 2009 came and went quicker than a Death Knight murders a "clothie"--especially when said "clothie" is me. While I'm a fan of all of Blizzard's games, I was most excited about the World of Warcraft announcements from the event.
Yes, of course the new expansion was "revealed" at the event, but thanks to leaks days before, many of the overall details were already known.
Luckily, Blizzard took some time this weekend to dive into more detailed changes and additions to WoW. Remember that all of these details are subject to change. Here are my favorites. Enjoy.
... Read more
I don't mind admitting that I cringe every time I look at this picture.
(Credit: CCTV)When I first heard about this story, it was the picture on the right that caused my disappointment. But we'll get to that later.
CCTV is reporting that a man in Beijing has opened a World of Warcraft-themed restaurant. From the video, it seems as if he's gone through some painstaking effort to make it as WoW-themed as possible.
The double-door entrance looks to have the Dark Portal mapped onto it. There's various artwork from the game all along the walls and large screens show off the game in real time.
All of it's very appropriate to the theme so far, but then there's the aforementioned picture above. I'm such a friggin' WoW geek, that I could not help but be disappointed in that suit of armor in the pictures. Anyone who has played this game will know that there is no armor that looks anything remotely like what's in those pictures. It's so different from the style of the art in the actual game that I wonder just how much of a fan this guy really is.
I know, many of you probably read that last paragraph in the Comic Book Guy's voice or least in the voice of CNET's No. 1-ranked nerd Jeff Sparkman, but if you know the game and appreciate the art in it, this will stand out to you.
According to the video, there are a few dishes named after denizens of WoW lore. Hmmm, even though it's China, I would hope there is at least some approximation of Redridge Goulash in there. Hopefully, without the spider meat.
Even though we don't actually talk about Nas, Dong does get all Illmatic as always.
Another short, but incredibly worldchangingly (look it up people) awesome episode in the can. First off, we have a very strange deja vu-ish intro that, if you've been listening closely to previous episodes, will sound strange and deja vu-ish to you as well.
After that, we briefly touch on the pseudo-fakery that is Bike Hero and Dong gets illmatic with NAS. LOL, not that Nas all you hip hop fans out there. No, I mean networked attached storage. I can understand why you'd get the two confused--what with the picture used for this episode and all--but seriously, try to pay attention.
It's straight downhill from there into audio debauchery as the we discuss incredibly interesting topics like our personal computer problems, haunted hard drives and the EMF.
Things take a weird turn toward the end as Dong discusses his many World of Warcraft boyfriends. No seriously. If you haven't noticed already...yeah Dong is insane and this story is just further proof of his insanity and why he must be stopped.
To subscribe to this podcast, visit us at our main page and click the link on the right. Don't forget to leave us a voice mail at 1-800-947-6399 or e-mail us at insidecnetlabs@cnet.com.
Listen now: Download today's podcast
My name is Eric Franklin and I am a World of Warcraft slacker. You wouldn't know it, however, judging by the weekend I had. From Thursday morning until Sunday night I collectively played more than 40 hours of the new WoW expansion, Wrath of the Lich King.
I played whenever I could, but with household responsibilities, a guest in town, and annoying necessities like eating, bio breaks, and sleep, I am unsatisfied with my progress after four days.
I decided to level one character straight from 70 to 80 and forgo creating a Death Knight for now. I thought maybe I could get to 77 by the end of the weekend and earn the use of my flying mount. Especially since by Saturday afternoon Death Knights--which start at level 55--were running around at a higher level than my Warlock, who started at 70!
See that lil guy in the middle? That's me, about to die. Again.
(Credit: Eric Franklin/CNET Networks)Did I mention that I'm on a PVP server and that I mostly only quest by myself? That may have something to do with my slow progression. As much as I wanted to level quickly it was not always up to me. No, guys with names like Foodfoodz would kill me constantly and then offer food to my still warm body. Seriously.
... Read more
Nerds! Nerds! Nerds! Nerds!
(Credit: Fox)Neeeerrrdddsss!!! We got black nerds, brown nerds, and yellow nerds represented here. It's a nerd fest as I prep for the Wrath of the Lich King launch.
Then Dong and I give out some helpful World of Warcraft add-on security hints and general Internet shopping security tips. This includes Dong's password-protection techniques. Can you believe people still fall for phishing?
Finally, a user has a problem with one of my extremely biased monitor videos.
BTW, we'll be announcing the winner of our tagline contest in the next episode.
To subscribe to this podcast, visit us at our main page and click the link on the right. Don't forget to leave us a voice mail at 1-800-947-6399 or e-mail us at insidecnetlabs@cnet.com.
Listen now: Download today's podcast
The BlackBerry Storm makes landfall on November 21.
(Credit: RIM)Yeah, we know: You've got grown-up concerns like checking your 401(k) value, and getting advanced tickets to see Quantum of Solace this weekend.
So we understand you probably didn't keep up with Crave as religiously as usual this week. But no worries--we've got a quick roundup of what you missed.
• A $300 laptop before Black Friday?
• A Storm is a-brewin' starting November 21.
• WoW, those are some intricate, well-thought-out costumes.
• American Airlines says it's OK to use your phone as a boarding pass.
• Survey says: the BlackBerry has twice as many issues as the iPhone.
Have a great weekend! And if you see anything awesome we missed, be sure to write to us at crave dot cnet dot com.
(Credit:
Harcos)
Just when we thought that we'd probably seen the worst game novelty item for awhile, along comes one from a category even more repulsive: magic elixirs.
The "Mana Energy Potion" has been created for World of Warcraft aficionados, not unlike the mystical potable distilled by Suntory to commemorate the 10th anniversary of Final Fantasy VII. The Mana drink promises to provide "5 to 8 hours of non-stop energy," according to TechFresh, "to experience repeated ecstacies without being exhausted."
It almost sounds illegal. Call us yeller, but we'd be reluctant to ingest anything made specifically for a game. Unless, of course, it came in a flask.
Were I in San Francisco, I would proudly share a roof with these deranged nerds. In what is possibly the greatest listing Craigslist has ever seen, three roommates are looking for one more to share their rent by inviting gamers to join "World of Housecraft." $738 per month in SOMA is a pretty good price, and the apartment description makes it even harder to pass up:
"Descend into the World of Housecraft and join three mighty heroes in a world of myth, magic, and limitless adventure. Four rooms of wireless cable Internet, Xbox 360, and an epic supply of fresh beverages and condiments await."
The extreme, colorful nerding of this ad isn't too surprising once you realize exactly who put it up. The three roommates run a small SF-based design company called Hyperprism. Well, when you get three graphic-design geeks under one roof, this is what you get. Good show!
World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
(Credit: Blizzard Entertainment)Just a reminder that Blizzard Entertainment will be releasing "World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade" on January 16 in North America and Europe. The expansion pack for WoW will be available for about $40, with a special collector's edition for $70. Auctions of the collector's editions on eBay have already began to solicit bids of up to $200 at last look.
Blizzard will be extending its technical support hours and staying open for two consecutive Saturdays in order to accommodate possible issues or questions that may arise from installation of "The Burning Crusade," the company announced Tuesday. From its January 16 release day through January 26 WoW technical support will be open 9:00 AM to 7:30 PM PST Monday through Saturday.
- prev
- 1
- next
