Video Games and Violence - The Faulty Connection

As gamers we're used to the idea of things respawning, enemies, weapons, ammo... good and bad they come around again and again.

As sure as death and taxes, every now and again a report will roll around that connects video games and violence, pointing out how anyone who picks up a joystick or mouse are ticking timebombs, ready to pop off and go postal at the merest opportunity.

Instead of simply pointing out this is stupid, prejudiced and illogical, I thought I'd suggest something slightly different instead.

Yes, violent people play violent video games. People might play video games and go on to do violent things. But they're not a cause, and it's ridiculous to suggest it is.

I have played video games since I was 3 years old on a rubber keyed Spectrum 48k and that has included a lot of violence (although I've played almost every kind of game around).

I've died in a million ways and killed millions, maybe even billions of characters in just as many. Just in the last week I've shot, stabbed, blown up, beaten and defenestrated more people than I can count and less than 24 hours ago I blew someone's head off with a sawn off double barrelled shotgun from close range... in slow motion.

That's not even counting the rest of my video gaming life, where I've jumped on people to squash them, run them over, cut their heads off and even, on two separate occasions, electrocuted urinating men via their penis (thank you for that one, Hitman Absolution)...

With a controller or a mouse in my hand I have been on a decades long crusade to rain death, destruction and pain on collections of pixels, polygons and textures that come under the heading of video game characters.

Now balance that against my real life where I have, in those same decades, had a grand total of one fight.

One.

I've had dustups, I've been bullied and hurt, I've had my share of threats. In all that time I have had one single fists flying, both sides giving it their best, honest to goodness fight and that was when I was 8 years old.

So what's the magic formula, why have I killed so many people in video games but would hesitate to even throw a punch in reality? Because it's reality and I understand that.

Video games are fiction, those people on the screen can be killed because they're not real people. I have a solid and concrete understanding of the difference between fantasy and reality, and it's never wavered, even after playing a LOT of video games a LOT of the time.

Video games are a story, a fiction and I'm just a player in that. To suggest I'll become a murderer because I play video games you might as well suggest Alan Rickman will become homicidal because he played Hans Gruber or Snape.

I personally know gamers young and old, and every one is the same way, what happens on the screen is fiction and once the console or PC goes off, that's life. I've even seen a young kid grow up from early teens into a young man, in that time he's played violent video games (among others), and there's not a chance in Hell he'd hurt someone.

The first time I met him he was playing a first person action (I think Fallout 3) and then over the years came Call of Duty, Hitman, Assassins Creed, GTA, all the usual suspects. Through all that he's stayed kind-hearted, caring and entirely unlikely to pick up a gun and go on a shooting spree. Because he's sensible and plays video games for fun, for entertainment.

So here we reach the misplaced point in the various reports about video games and violence. They're not a cause, they're at worst a trigger for people who already have a problem, and at 'best' a symptom.

Speak to any gamer and I can almost guarantee that they'll have a story about "that guy" or "that girl". It could be on a forum, at a convention or online in a multiplayer game but you will come across people who give you... well, the creeps.

Someone who takes things too seriously, someone sounds like they're enjoying things a little too much in a deathmatch or someone who simply says or does something that makes you want to back away slowly.

They exist, and to say otherwise is being almost as silly as the people who love to suggest we're all Hannibal Lecter in a headset.

This is because gamers, as a group, are not immune to the simple and inarguable fact that plagues every set of people in the world. Bad people exist.

Religion has them, politics has them, business has them and so do video games. none of those things are a cause though. If the potential criminals were suddenly bereft of them they'd find their outlet elsewhere, violent TV, movies, books, magazines or sport. 

I'm of an age that means I remember the case of James Bulger here in the UK. For those who don't know the case he was an almost-three-year-old who was abducted, tortured and murdered by two 10 year olds.

At the time there was a lot of press about violent movies being behind the act, especially 'Child's Play 3". It turned out that there was no way for the police to know the killer had watched it but it didn't stop the connection being made as people desperately tried to work out why it had happened, tried to find something to blame for why two children had killed another.

The problem is this deflects from the real issues at hand. There are people out there with mental illness and they need help or at least control. By knee jerking a response accusing whatever's close to hand to try and find a reason for their violence is just trying to take an easy way out.

It absolves science institutions from researching mental illness, it stops governments from feeling guilty over mistreatment or lack of care for people who have a problem, it sweeps the story away from gun control, parenting, schooling or religion and solely into the laps of those who create entertainment.

Violent people exist and some play video games. but they also drive a Prius, or eat marmalade, or wear odd socks. Violent people do everything...but normal people do too, and there's a LOT more of the latter.

24 Hours with Windows 10 - Part II

As anyone who follows my social media will know, yesterday I took the plunge and installed Windows 10. I did this because I'm a geek, I love new shiny things and also because many of my family and friends have been watching me like a scientist watches a lab rat he's just injected with something green and glowing.

I am, if you'll excuse my mixed rodent metaphors, a guinea pig, so with that in mind and with numerous questions ringing in my ears from all around I'm going to give my early impressions of Windows 10, answer some questions and give some opinions.

I'm doing this in two parts, the first wass simple facts about the actual updating and rolling back and can be read HERE. This, Part 2, covers my general impressions of Windows 10.

OK, on to the specifics and my experiences.

I guess I'd better start with some full disclosure stuff. I'm a geek, I have OCD and I like to have some control, so this will be tinged with that, I'll try to keep it in balance.

Pros

I'm going to get the positives out of the way first, because there's a lot of them and in the other section of this post I'm going to be less than complimentary.

From the minute I loaded it Windows 10 felt different but familiar. It took next to no time to feel natural in Windows 10 and find myself zipping around in it like I'd been using it for months.

If you're upgrading from 8 you might need to re-remember a few things but if you're coming from 7 it won't be long before it's second nature.

The simple fact is as an operating system, for day-in day-out use Windows 10 isn't just good, it's great. It's fast (booting and shutting down times are measure in seconds), it's smooth and what it needs to do, it does well.

Possibly the most surprising feature for me has been how they've taken the worst part of Windows 8, the tiles, and actually turned it into a well designed and useful aspect of Windows 10.

It's all part of the new Start Menu which is different from 7, but not enough to be bad.

The left hand side of the new Start Menu is no longer pinned stuff but most used apps and a list of the sort of thing that used to be on the right, documents, pictures etc.

Then the pinned stuff that used to be on the left are now in the new minimised Windows 8 tiles type section on the right.

As you can see I've done a fairly basic set of shortcuts right now but am actually interested to see what kind of active tiles and options I might have for over there. In Windows 8, as the dominant method of picking and opening apps it felt terrible, but now working as a compliment to a more traditional style of start menu I feel like this is what it should have been from day 1. It's useable as a basic option for people who want tradition or a flashy option for people who want more, but without compromising either.

The new menu stylings tend to be intuitive, the new strip options at the top of all windows (you'll know the style if you use Office) actually make it easier to do the more common tasks, and new options appear and disappear as you do it so to me it never felt cluttered.

Standard navigating around your computer's files is almost identical to before just with a few bits of visual tweaking.

Even some aspects that feel like they were designed more with mobile devices in mind like the new Action Centre/Notifications are works for this and doesn't feel overbearing or out of place. Sadly that can't be said for all the aspects, as you'll see later.

So that, by far and away is what I can say is the good side of Windows. As an operating system, it works very, very well which I guess is the most important thing. What it's meant to do and what most folks will want it to do, those are where it shines and I can see why so many people were going gaga over it.

Lots of what's changed feels like it's not change for changes sake but really makes the whole experience better, easier, more intuitive... If the negatives I'm about to get to weren't there I would probably class 10 as a better operating system than even Windows 7 and simply move on, delighted I'd be using it and totally sure it was the best for me.

But that's a big if, so with no further ado...

Cons

We can't really skip over this much longer, there is, especially for an OCD geek like me, a MASSIVE problem with Windows 10. It feels... locked.

I guess it's understandable as we're getting what amounts to a free trial, but it has to be said that in general Windows 10 feels constrictive.

Unlike previous versions where we had fairly hefty control over the programs and features in it, Windows 10 comes full of what they call apps, but many people will call bloatware.

There's an app for photos, an app for music, an app for videos... and they're all stuck there unless you do some sneaky jiggery pokery with some command line fiddling behind the scenes (only be careful as I borked the PC once doing one).

There's also some of Microsoft's own software they've connected into Windows 10 in a fairly concrete manner, OneNote, OneDrive and Edge (the fancy new name for Internet Explorer).

They might be useful and many folks may use them, but I won't, and in principle wanted them gone, especially OneDrive which spreads itself into your PC with folders here and there, shortcuts all over the place and the potential for it to automatically go off and find stuff to stick in the cloud.

Oh, and if you're wondering about Edge... It's Internet Explorer. It just is. They've changed the name to avoid the toxic branding that's always been their browser shackle but sadly, it is what it is.

As I mentioned before, it is possible to get rid of them via the geeky route, but on at least one occasion they returned, and as they're not "officially" removed, just disabled, then they'll always potentially be there, waiting to get themselves back in when I get one of the updates from Windows that are now forced on anyone getting the free Home version of Windows 10.

Gone are the days of checking for updates and choosing whether to install or not, even gone are the days you could skip an update that you didn't want or was broken, now you get it all, all the time. This can lead to some situations where stuff you've cleared comes back and stuff that broken keeps breaking your PC however many times you do a system restore.

It's not a deal breaker but it frustrates me, I feel like I should have control over my own PC and whether I want things of little consequence on it.

I'm most annoyed by the amount of apps that are for mobile devices, phones and tablets. The problem is Windows has been designed as a universal OS for a multitude of devices and what you might gain on a tablet or mobile simply feels like useless faff on a PC.

There's a camera app, a contacts app, a maps app, and an entire app store full of stuff that's there for a mobile phone and has no place on a PC.

Why have a Netflix app when it's not as good as the Netflix website, obtainable from Chrome just a click away? It's also full of potentially iffy stuff, when I loked at Netflix the TOP two suggested apps were pirate streaming apps for Homeland and Blacklist... not something I imagine would endear this store to anyone in the film or tv industry.

In online shopping terms the Play store for Google and the App Store on iDevices are the big flash department stores, they're Harrods, Macy's or Fortnum and Masons.

The Amazon Store is catching up but it's still liek your base brand high street store or supermarket, it's Tesco's or WalMart.

The Microsoft Store feels like a Poundstore/Dollar Store

All in all when you dig deeper you find beneath a good operating system is an underlying bed of almost un-removeable apps that make it feel like it's been designed to be a jack of all trades and as such master of none. It might leave you feeling fulfilled on a tablet or mobile because you'll feel like it's what you're used to but better, but on a PC they feel a bit like a step back.

The same can be said about the new Search function, they now try to squeeze in Bing web search results, although that option can, thankfully, be turned off. It's also, in America, the base for Cortana, and might be soon in the UK too, a digital assistant I have no desire to use and no interest in.

That seems to limit the search's ability to, well, search. I tried a few times to find files I knew were there with no luck. It might be an option I need to fiddle but still.... not a great start and another way I feel like they've ignored the Search function because it's meant to be Cortana, with little hope for anyone who doesn't want to use it.

So that leaves me an almost wholly undecided conclusion. Speaking of which...

Conclusion

I am still, 24 hours in, feeling somewhat split about Windows 10. No, UTTERLY split.

I still feel that if you have Windows 8 and want something more traditional, then you should go for Windows 10 and you'll love it.

The Start menu is back in a way I personally think trumps the old one. The tiles have gone in hiding (though still findable via "tablet mode" and it's fast and smooth.

The problem is if you're updating from Windows 7 and can't let go of some control. This is where I'm struggling, it really can annoy you but in the smallest of ways, like a paper cut. Having an app I don't want in my list, even if it's not used, just vexes me.

Unlike an 8 updater who's getting something much better than the mess they already have, updating from Windows 7 is a strange feeling.

On the one hand it's shinier, some stuff is different but good different, I've already found myself using the new design of start menu and other aspects of 10 like I've been using them all my life.

On the other hand any update from 7 feels like a trade... you get the shiny, but you're distanced from your own computer, what might have felt personal and controllable, suddenly feels restrictive and closed minded.

I'm torn because I truly like Windows 10, I like the mixture of new and old, I like the fact it won't become obsolete with it's incremental updates, I like what it does and mostly how it does it and I feel like the more I use it, the more I learn on it, I'll find ways in which it's even better.

But can I stop myself from demanding control over my own computer destiny? If the apps I've removed suddenly return when I unblock the Store from my firewall, will it feel like an ulcer that just won't go away, an unwelcome houseguest who's taking over my living room and making me buy new furniture?

So that's my dilemma. Can I take an OS that tries to tell me what I have to have, however great it works day in, day out?

Right now, yes. As it stands I'm going to stick with 10. It's good enough that it deserves a chance to impress and a chance to make me forget it's faults and work at it.

But what's going to happen in 29 days time, when my ability to roll back goes away? I'll tell you in 29 days.

24 Hours with Windows 10 - Part I

As anyone who follows my social media will know, yesterday I took the plunge and installed Windows 10. I did this because I'm a geek, I love new shiny things and also because many of my family and friends have been watching me like a scientist watches a lab rat he's just injected with something green and glowing.

I am, if you'll excuse my mixed rodent metaphors, a guinea pig, so with that in mind and with numerous questions ringing in my ears from all around I'm going to give my early impressions of Windows 10, answer some questions and give some opinions.

I'm doing this in two parts, the first is simple facts about the actual updating and rolling back. Part 2 is HERE and covers my general impressions of Windows 10.

TL;DR

OK, the quick first impressions for anyone who doesn't want to read too much of my waffle.

If you're using Windows 8, hate it and gaze with jealousy on anyone who has an older OS, you'll fall upon Windows 10 like a long lost pet Targ, clutch it warmly to your bosom and weep tears of joy.

If you're using Windows 7, don't want to fiddle and want something shiny and new, you'll probably like it.

If you're techy and like to fiddle and have control over what's on your PC, there will be a hefty debate.

Updating

So, twas a misty morn as the ravens flew overhead and I starting installing Windows 10. To give credit to the developers I've rarely, if ever to be honest, had an OS install go this smoothly.

I feel I'm uniquely qualified to judge the merits of the install as I ended up installing Windows 10 not once, but three times yesterday. All on the same computer and largely down to my own stupidity... so with that admitted, lets get on.

You simply download a 3gb or so set of files through Windows Update, click a few buttons and away you go. It's fast, it's smooth, there's minimal moments of blank screen put in just to terrify you that it's crashed and all is lost... everything it should be.

It then got to the stage of the install where it's setting up Windows for you... and it's here the installer and I had our first little disagreement.

You get a page called "Get going fast!" which promises you some lovely express settings which will enrich your life with a big button that says "click me, I'm lovely, we're impatient!"

Don't. Let me just emphasise that in ever way I can.

** Don't click "Use Express Settings". **

Instead, find the tiny text, coloured to blend in with the background that says to customise your install and click that instead.

You'll soon find what you've just avoided is a range of privacy and app options that sway from the sensible ones like telling MS when you have a crash so they can bug report it to the downright bizarre.

My "favourite" of the latter would be the one asking to help your "typing, inking and handwriting" by having full access to all your contacts and calendar... Um, no.

Personally I removed everything other than reporting crashes to Microsoft. Also be aware if you've installed 10 already, you can change these in Privacy.

There's then a quick section where they try to make the new Metro apps for photos, music, videos and the internet take over (four more nos). While some of this may work ok the harshest of these is when it tries to overwrite your internet settings and defaults to using Edge, otherwise known as Internet Explorer 12.

No, no, no and most definitely NO.

Then, finally you get to actually launch Windows.

This seems a good moment to have a question...

Q: I'm not sure I want to update, I have important battle plans on here, my rare collection of Cantina Music for Lovers and a desktop wallpaper of Alderaan which is obviously special to me.
- Concerned Princess

A: Princess, we all understand. There's nobody who's not concerned when updating about losing those pictures of their husband with his hairy wookie out. Barring any unlikely critical accidents everything you have will come across.

I was actually pleasantly surprised with how much stuff carried over, it had my desktop image, almost all my software (only my Firewall was incompatible), all my favourites, settings and even default apps were there, it felt seamless.

Going Back

Of course, after going through all this, you might find you hate Windows 10 (Especially if you're on 7) and want to go back, so lets quickly cover that.

You might be surprised to learn that as hard as Microsoft are pushing Windows 10, they've actually made it really easy to go back (something I ended up doing twice, because I'm an idiot).

When you installed Windows 10 it adds a folder called Windows.old, which is your old version. To get it back just go to Settings, Update and then the Backup tab to see this option...

Just click to go back and after some quick techy fiddling your old OS will be back, just as you left it. You'll have everything there from the moment you updated, so no new software or settings will carry over.

One quick important note on this though... you only have THIRTY days after installing Windows 10 to roll back, after that period the only way you'll get a previous OS again is if you have a copy of it and do a totally clean install on your PC which is tedious at best. (Creating a clone of your old OS or a disk image is a possibility but not one I'll go into here.)

Privacy

Before I leave, just a quick note of something you may well want to do quickly when first using 10. Go to settings and go to the Privacy section for a LOT of options.

While I can't tell you what to accept and what not to accept, I just turned everything off, AND I didn't sign into Windows 10 with my Microsoft account, which keeps my computer activity much more secure.

Again, privacy is very much your own concern and choice, some may feel less pressured by it or accept more than I do and that's not wrong in any way, it all comes down to opinion.

My Idiocy

To finish off, I thought I'd point out just why I ended up installing, rolling back, installing, rolling back and finally installing again.

The first time was a known issue clash between NVIDIA drivers for my graphics. the official NVIDIA driver updater thinks the pre-Windows 10 version is newer than the Windows 10 compatible one, so tries to overwrite it, that can then cause the system to break giving you a black screen with just a mouse pointer.

There's already a patch in though, so if you have an NVIDIA card you have a few options.

My personal suggestion would be to disable the NVIDIA driver updater and just let Windows handle it. You can do that (if you're of a tech bent) by using msconfig and stopping the service. If you're not techy, just remember to search for Windows Updates BEFORE rebooting your PC after doing the install.

The second time I had to roll back and re-install was because I tried to be too clever by half in removing some of the apps that MS forces on you, and I ended up removing too much and having to repair the problem with an install...

There's more on that however in Part 2 of this, so if you're interested in my quick knee-jerk review and thoughts of the operating system you can read those HERE.