Mapping notebook Created 16 years ago2008-01-24 05:11:18 UTC by Captain Terror

Hi I want to buy a notebook to map for Source, something you can get off the shelf like an hp or whatever. I realize I'm stuck with vista now, so I just have a couple questions, and maybe you can help! = )

1. Are there issues to work with vista and source?

2. Would I be better off finding a used xp notebook?

3. I know slightly older notebooks were able to be rolled back to xp because they were built when xp was still ok, and you could download the previous drivers. Is there a way to "rollback" current machines ( i think i know the answer)

4. If i have to buy a vista notebook, should i forget about mapping with goldsource completely? besides the issues with Hammer I've heard about, do they exist with Nems and Wally and all the other HL1 mapping utilities?

Thanks for listening! = )

1. i dont think so?
2. no, used = bad, and old and slow and probably won't run source.
3. no.
4. i don't think theres any problems with other programs, but since hammer is the most important, i''ll just say that you cannot map for HL1 on vista.

Wow, those are my worst fears! = (

I should mention I found that AlienWare will allow you to build an XP machine, but their prices are very high. If I'm not mistaken you could get Dell and some others to ship with XP a short time ago, but no more afaik....

Buy a MacBook Pro.

I agree. Then you could join our club!

Only get that if you need everything it comes with though. Because it comes with everything. They ain't cheap.

LOL Macs can run XP but microsoft machines can't anymore?? ( i don't know about Macs, but I'm guessing you can emulate XP on ur Macs? If so how is it?)

Best-case scenario I'd like to be able to edit HL1 and 2, but Maybe it's time to leave HL! alone!

edit: lol is there a object viewer for source, lol <cries>

macs run XP better than PCs.

Macs are expensive, ugly and unusable.

Says the person who's never used one.

Yes, they're expensive, but they're sure as hell ain't ugly, nor are they unusuable. XP running on a Mac isn't emulated at all. The only part of a normal PC based machine that's emulated on a Mac is the BIOS, as Mac's don't use BIOS (they use EFI). Apart from that, XP runs natively on a Mac (provided it's an Intel Mac). All new Macs come with OSX Leopard, which includes software for partitioning your HDD for XP. It also gives you a bunch of drivers, which allows you to use pretty much all the Mac hardware functions on XP.

XP on a Mac is essentially the same as XP on a normal laptop. You get equal performance on a Mac than on a normal laptop with similar specs. Problem is, as Elof kindly pointed out, they are expensive, particular if you're going for a MacBook Pro (which you'd want to). Buy one if you need OSX and XP (like I do), otherwise you may want to think about it.

Indeed. Ignore PC fanboys, and listen to those of us that actually have and use both regularly.

I have the same setup as Ant. I run XP on my Macbook Pro simply for those games, mostly just Steam, that aren't yet available on OSX. I have my hard drive split, and I gave XP about 30GB of space. Just enough for games, and I can still format it as FAT32 because it is under 32GB. This means I can transfer files from OSX to XP and back just by dragging and dropping them in the drives. Like ant said, all the hardware built in to my Macbook like the camera, backlights, microphones, bluetooth, motion sensor, ect all work natively with XP.

The alternative to installing XP alongside OSX is emulation through one of several programs, but if you intend to use Steam and game I suggest not doing this. Not all games will even run under different emulations, and the emulator presents other problems like not taking advantage of your duel-core processor. The only reason for this is if you didn't want XP enough to buy (lol) a copy, which you obviously need to install.

Yes, they are very expensive, so this is really only an option if you need what you are paying for. You are paying for everything.

If you are planning on attending college, or some other situation where you would want or need OSX then saving up and buying a Macbook Pro should be considered seriously.

Or, if all you want is a computer to run Source, then you should just consider building your own desktop PC, which will be much cheaper.

Macs dont have right click.

Yes they do.

That argument became completely false years ago, yet for some reason people keep bringing it up!

Macs have a right click assuming you buy a mouse that has two buttons.. heh

Most just have 1.

Also, control+click does the same thing if for some reason you only have a one button mouse.

Also while running XP on your Macbook Pro, which only has one click pad, right clicking is done by simply having two fingers on your trackpad when you click. It's pretty neat.

Just get the cheapest, most usable laptop.

• Longest battery life
• Most portable or biggest screen
• Dell still sells systems with XP, at least on their US online store
• The Intel X3100 GPUs are more than enough for Half-Life 1

Macbook Pros are nice (6 hour battery life), but the cheapest model with the 256MB GeForce 8600GT is $2500. If you add on AppleCare and a copy of Vista, it's $3000(!). Way too much for a computer. Right now i'm saving up for either: an Asus G1S, or $1000 of parts for a desktop and an Asus EEE PC.

Provided you actually pay for Vista.

Also, why Vista? There's no compelling reason to switch, unless spending money gets you off or something. In that case, be my guest.

"Dell still sells systems with XP"

Which machine and are you sure it was a notebook? Every notebook I've looked at comes with only Vista Home Premium and Ultimate editions, that's all. ( I hope you're right but I don't think you are)

Oh and Dave, about the Macbook's battery life, six hours is the maximum you'll get. Average is between four and five for me.

While in XP, i find it drops to around two hours, around one hour of source engine gaming. That's with a decent brightness on the monitor though. Funny, that.

Dells with Windows XP: http://www.dell.com/content/topics/segtopic.aspx/winxp_inspnnb?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs

What? You can't just uninstall Vista from a new laptop and install XP?

Well, you'd have to buy a XP license and then you'd have no driver support.

And that's a pain in the ass.
And i never knew macs support right clicking mice.
I did know about the 2 finger tap. As my girlfriend has a macbook.
It's cool that you can scroll down pages by moving 2 fingers down the pad at once.
But i think the price of macs are just damn steep if you're going for gaming.
I'd get an asus, but get an NVIDIA card in it. The ati cards' drivers have hardware glitches with the older models. My bud is flipping a shit over it now.

Dave932932: Thanks! I couldn't find that though you have limited options on what you can get. the first 2 machine builds are too weak, and there xps gaming machine is nice but like the alienware, is pricey.

I'm leaning toward the alienware because you seem to get some extra stuff for a little less money (triple-size raid HDD for $250 less the total expense of the Dell).

Opinions between the Alienware and Dell?