I-Cafe's pre-load CS:S?

[SupraRZ95]

Well, did they?

 

[nw909]

Been wondering this myself.

I heard something, I think it was a comment about HLDS:S from a guy who owned a I-Cafe, but I'm too lazy to go check.

It was on the Steampowered forums in the I-Cafe forums.

 

[Pauly]

Been wondering this myself.

I heard something, I think it was a comment about HLDS:S from a guy who owned a I-Cafe, but I'm too lazy to go check.

It was on the Steampowered forums in the I-Cafe forums.

Ill go take a gander. Im getting excited for this beta.
Nope, negative.

 

[evil^milk]

just to be sure, august the 5th was the day cs:s was going to start preloading, right?

 

[Bicka]

August the 5th for cz owners and god knows when for hl2 coupon holders...

Fair to say that between this time and the 5th the lan guys will get their pre-load

 

[dugly]

im starting up a lan center right now...it will consist of the 6 computers in my house, 3 of which MIGHT be able to play, 2 that can definitely play it, and 1 that can just run the game or something because it has a awful vid card....it's gonna be so good....cs:s beta wil be mine

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

Not wishing to rain on your parade or anything, but unless you're a fully paid-up member of Valve's Cybercafe Program, you're not getting anything

 

[disruptioN_]

All of the cybercafes near me have some really shitty computers so I'll have to wait until it's out for CZ owners.

 

[SaL]

So no cafes got CS:source yesterday,and it's not happening today.So the Aug 5th preload and Aug 10th beta for CZ owners,must be considered pushed back as well.

What a soap opera I give up!!!

I like your products but say what you mean,and mean what you say VALVe!!!

 

[Shuzer]

So no cafes got CS:source yesterday,and it's not happening today.So the Aug 5th preload and Aug 10th beta for CZ owners,must be considered pushed back as well.

What a soap opera I give up!!!

I like your products but say what you mean,and mean what you say VALVe!!!

VALVe never said the 28th was the date for the preload. Gabe said it would be around the 28th

 

[soxx]

Not wishing to rain on your parade or anything...

Don't lie. It sets a bad example as a moderator.

 

[dscowboy]

Cyber cafes will preload the same date everyone else will, duh. When RC1 is ready (hopefully Aug 5), cybercafes and CS:CZ and ATI coupon onwers will all start preloading. CS:S will be unlocked earlier for cyber cafes, Valve has said they will give the cafes at least one exclusive weekend, which if everything goes according to schedule will be the weekend of the 7th, 8th. CS:CZ and ATI coupon owners will get it unlocked on the 10th.

 

[Dynasty]

these are all just rumors, any kind of rumor means nothing tbh. lol thats what a rumor is ffs. Pi Mu Rho is right tho...

 

[SaL]

VALVe never said the 28th was the date for the preload. Gabe said it would be around the 28th

It isn't tonight. It will be closer to the 28th. We'll give people
plenty of warning.

Gabe


Hi Shuzer,Ok your right about around the 28th,where is the official plenty of warning news that Gabe spoke of? I can only believe that since theres been no "plenty of warning" from valve that the beta has been pushed back.

If the cyber cafe's "at least one exclusive weekend" is still true,the preload should come out definitely by this weekend.No plenty of warning announcement as yet from VALVe.

 

[dscowboy]

Have you guys been living under a rock? The date for the preload is
5 August
The 28th was their first estimate, the current estimate is 5 Aug, same as the RC1 date. Maybe this isn't clear... RC1 and CS:S preload start at the same time, that's the whole point of the "beta", to test the RCs

CS:S preload is not pushed back, it's the same date for both cybercafes and everyone else, IT CANT HAPPEN BEFORE RC1!!!

sheesh

again, cybercafes will get their CS:S unlocked before everyone else, but all preloading will start at the same time.

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

Have you guys been living under a rock? The date for the preload is
5 August
The 28th was their first estimate, the current estimate is 5 Aug, same as the RC1 date. Maybe this isn't clear... RC1 and CS:S preload start at the same time, that's the whole point of the "beta", to test the RCs

CS:S preload is not pushed back, it's the same date for both cybercafes and everyone else, IT CANT HAPPEN BEFORE RC1!!!

sheesh

again, cybercafes will get their CS:S unlocked before everyone else, but all preloading will start at the same time.

That's kind of missing the point of a Release Candidate. You don't test RCs, because as far as you're concerned, they're done.

The CS:S beta is to stress-test the netcode. Anything found in the test that needs to be fixed will be in a patch...

 

[Liam]

That's kind of missing the point of a Release Candidate. You don't test RCs, because as far as you're concerned, they're done.

The CS:S beta is to stress-test the netcode. Anything found in the test that needs to be fixed will be in a patch...

No, RCs are Release Candidates, i.e. if they find another bug it will be fixed. An RC is not a final product, it just possibly might be.

How else do you think some programs/games reach RC2?

 

[PainLord]

Well im going into my LAN cafe today so ill find otu whats going on for definate from them.

 

[Crusader]

Exactly, which is why he said "as far as you're concerned."

To the developer, a release candidate is "done" in their opinion. Quite clearly, they think it is a candidate for release

It's then up to the publisher to see if they agree.

 

[Liam]

Candidate still being the important word.

 

[Crusader]

Umm... kay? I just told you exactly what Release Candidate means.

 

[Liam]

Yeah but you didn't get it quite right.

 

[ValveBULGE]

MAN! how many estimates can you have? if valve was building my house the way they estimate their products I would be living in a dumpster! LIKE I SAID BEFORE " DON'T SAY ANYTHING" is far better policy then SAYING BULL****!

 

[dscowboy]

That's kind of missing the point of a Release Candidate. You don't test RCs, because as far as you're concerned, they're done.

The CS:S beta is to stress-test the netcode. Anything found in the test that needs to be fixed will be in a patch...

No, sorry. The emails Gabe keeps sending about "0 bugs" means 0 bugs found in Valve's internal testing. Once they reach "0 bugs" (August 5th supposedly) the build will be RC1 and it will be sent to Vivendi and CS:S "beta" will start preloading. Public testing and Vivendi QA testing on RC1 will happen for a week or so, at which point Valve and Vivendi will have to decide if any showstopper bugs were found in RC1. If so, another RC is built, lather rinse repeat. If not, RTM occurs, Valve goes on vacation to mexico, and RTM + 3 or 4 weeks = GA.

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

I'm well aware of how the process works, having been involved in it before.

It still doesn't make what I said any less accurate. A Release Candidate is a candidate for release. Valve are declaring the game as being bug-free. It's entirely possible (although unlikely) that that particular RC could be approved. The CS:S beta is not a part of this process.

 

[dscowboy]

A Release Candidate is a candidate for release. Valve are declaring the game as being bug-free. It's entirely possible (although unlikely) that that particular RC could be approved. The CS:S beta is not a part of this process.

Here, look at this from Gabe regarding the CS:S "beta":

The reason we are doing this is primarily to find out what problems
there are with the Source engine when we give it to a couple of hundred
thousand people.

We also get information back from the engine when it crashes, which is
also very useful in evaluating how close we are to being done (one crash
per play year - good! One crash per play hour - bad!).

They will use the CS:S beta to determine how close they are to being done, not to determine what they'll have to patch later. Showstopper bugs found in the CS:S beta will be fixed before RTM. CS:S beta is pre-RTM testing.

They're not going to tell Vivendi "Well, we're done with our internal testing, everything looks great... but we're going to wait five days, release the CS:S beta, let the public test it for awhile... THEN we'll send you a copy and sit around while you test it for awhile." No, they're going to send Vivendi a copy the minute their internal testing is complete, ~ Aug 5. Vivendi will be testing the same engine that the public will be testing. No other schedule would make sense.

Maybe there's some terminology confusion, I'm calling whatever builds Vivendi gets for testing release candidates. Since Vivendi will be testing the same builds that the public will test, the CS:S beta builds will be the same release candidates.

 

[Crusader]

Why can't you guys comprehend?

When they send off an RC, Valve don't say "well" this is only an RC so it doesn't have to be perfect. To them an RC is something they would be happy releasing. Valve do not test it any further, it goes to Vivendi and they test the gameplay mechanics and check for show stopping bugs, if they find any it gets sent back to Valve. There is no need for Valve to delay this process because of the CS:S beta.

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

the CS:S beta builds are not RCs.

If they're waiting to see what the beta test shows up before RTM, then there's no point in giving Vivendi an RC, as testing hasn't finished. You can't say "it's done, but the netcode might break horribly after release".

Therefore, if they're sending an RC to Vivendi, it has to be seperate to the CS:S beta.

 

[Chris D]

Also, CS:S is actually a completely different project from HL2. They're mutually exclusive games.

 

[dscowboy]

Chris:

The reason we are doing this is primarily to find out what problems
there are with the Source engine when we give it to a couple of hundred
thousand people.

The point of the CS:S beta is to test the source engine, thus relating it to HL2.


PMR:

If they're waiting to see what the beta test shows up before RTM, then there's no point in giving Vivendi an RC, as testing hasn't finished.

Of course testing hasn't finished, the only purpose of a release candidate is to test it for a set period of time, that's its only reason for existing. Testing is finished at RTM, not at RC1. If there wasn't a need for testing there would be no release candidate, it would RTM immediately. A release candidate is made to be tested, and the CS:S beta is a big public test.

A release candidate marks the transition from the typical development cycle (frequent/daily builds, new features, limited testing) to a purely stabilization-focused development cycle (Builds are only produced every X days/weeks until RTM, no new features, expanded testing).

When Valve's internal testing is complete, they will expand testing to the public and to Vivendi. There's no point expanding the testing until they've found all the bugs they can find on their own. But there's also no point in seperating the public tests from Vivendi's QA.

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

I think this is one of those "agree to disagree" things

 

[dscowboy]

Fair enough I guess the original point of this was to determine the timeline for the CS:S beta for the Cafes. Based on Valve's projected Aug 5 preload date, and based on posts Valve has made in the CyberCafe section on Steampowered.com (that Cafes will get an exclusive weekend), Cafes should have CS:S unlocked on the 6th or 7th.

 

[acme420]

so you guys are arguing what a relase candidate is? well its what it says it is. if youve done any developing at all. you write a program and you test it internally working out all the bugs you can find. then you give whoever it is you are developing it for a copy and its called a release candidate or a beta, theyre the same thing. they take it and give it a nice throrough workout and give you feedback well blah blah blah is good but can you make this like that and also we dont like this thing and when we do this that happens. you go back to the labs and fix whatever they whine about and you give it back to em. RC2/beta 1.2 they take it play with it some more and if everything is to their liking then bam you deploy the app / send it to be published. and then you go on vacation.

 

[SaL]

From what I can find with my limited access to official VALVe information(they haven't answered any of my e-mails :frown: ), It looks like the beta is pushed back.

If someone could get an e-mail from Gabe or another VALVe source to give us an update for CS:S beta release that'd be best.

From Halflife2.net's Info you've received from valve ONLY

From: Trineas [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Tuesday, July 20, 2004 5:53 PM
To: Gabe Newell
Subject: two quick question


Hi!

1) I wonder how big (megabyte) the CS:S Beta will be? If you dont know it exactly, is it more or less than 500 mb?
2) Do you think it is possible that I (CZ Owner) can play the CS:S Beta within the next two weeks?


-Thanks, Andy
Newsposter for www.HLPortal.de

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

300 MB the last time I checked.

August 10th is the day for CZ owners (it will start pre-loading on the 5th).


______________________________________________________________

From the STEAM Forums

Chris Bokitch
Valve

The beta will first be open to subscribers of the Valve Cyber Café Program, and then extended to owners of Counter-Strike: Condition Zero and owners of ATI Half-Life 2 vouchers.

________________________________________________________________
Mike Dunkle
Valve

Registered: Sep 2003
Official Valve cybercafés will get the beta before it is released to the CZ/ATI owners. We are in the process of finalizing the café release date. Licensed cafes will enjoy at least one weekend of exclusive play.

Mike


__________________
Business Development and Cafe Operations

________________________________________________________________

Mike Dunkle
Valve

Registered: Sep 2003
OK...I will put in place a plan to send out a cafe message at least every other week.

CS:Source cafe beta plans are moving forward. As predicted above it will not happen this weekend. Our plan for cafes is 1) pre-load CS:Source a few days before the cafe release date and 2) give the cafes one full exclusive weekend + a few days. We will announce the release date for cafes when we are 100% confident it will happen. We are factoring in that cafes need 2-4 days planning for weekend parties.

Mike


__________________
Business Development and Cafe Operations


_________________________________________________________________
Mike Dunkle
Valve

Registered: Sep 2003

Schedule release is August 13th.

If it turns out there is a couple key features the cafes really need in the first release we may delay a day or two.

Mike


__________________
Business Development and Cafe Operations

 

[Anima86]

omg, of course this was to be expected, we could have known,, the ignorance...

 

[acme420]

12345678910

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

so you guys are arguing what a relase candidate is? well its what it says it is. if youve done any developing at all.

I have, thanks. I'm well aware of the process, having been involved in it.

you write a program and you test it internally working out all the bugs you can find. then you give whoever it is you are developing it for a copy and its called a release candidate or a beta,

Bzzt! Nice try.

Release Candidate is most definitely not a beta.

theyre the same thing. they take it and give it a nice throrough workout and give you feedback well blah blah blah is good but can you make this like that and also we dont like this thing and when we do this that happens. you go back to the labs and fix whatever they whine about and you give it back to em. RC2/beta 1.2 they take it play with it some more and if everything is to their liking then bam you deploy the app / send it to be published. and then you go on vacation.

You should probably check your facts before you attempt to correct people.

 

[TheUnkillableDot]

Damnit! I had my whole august planned around the 5 (preload) - 10 (release) beta date.....oh well, that will teach me not to get my panties in a bunch from an "iffy" release date

 

[acme420]

I have, thanks. I'm well aware of the process, having been involved in it.



Bzzt! Nice try.

Release Candidate is most definitely not a beta.




You should probably check your facts before you attempt to correct people.

my facts are correct moron im a developer.

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

What a coincidence, so am I.

Alpha is usually the stage of development where the core functionality is implemented.

Beta is usually the stage of development where all features are complete.

Release Candidate is usually the stage of development where the developers deem the game as being complete and bug-free.

See the difference?

If you can't remain civil, then I suggest you stop posting. Otherwise you'll find yourself unable to do so for a long time. Resorting to insults is the act of a person with a weak argument.