(6) Advantages of Computer Games

Computers brought new capabilities to electronic games. Because computers could store data, they were a good platform for lengthy adventure and role-playing games. Players could store their progress and continue the games later. With consoles such as the Atari 2600, players could only start games from the beginning. This situation changed slightly in the mid-1980s, when Nintendo built a battery-backed chip into The Legend of Zelda that allowed players to record their progress.

Computer systems such as the Commodore Amiga and Apple Macintosh brought other advantages to gaming. These machines used mouse controllers, devices that gave players fast and highly precise control. As technology progressed, computer monitors offered higher resolution than television screens, giving computer games a crisper image¹. This improved resolution made computers ideal for running strategy games such as SimCity and Civilization, which featured highly detailed graphics.

Although some computer-game publishers dropped out of the business, others – such as Broderbund and Sierra On-Line – gained reputation. Electronic Arts, which was founded in 1982, became one of the biggest names in the computer industry. The company’s success was fueled by aggressively recruiting² top game designers away from competitors and by packaging its games in attractive boxes.

In 1984, Electronic Arts paid professional basketball stars Julius Erving and Larry Bird $25,000 each to use their names and likenesses in a game called Dr. J and Larry Bird Go One-on-One. The game was an instant success, leading Electronic Arts to conclude a similar contract with National Football League announcer and former coach John Madden to create a football simulation game for the Apple II computer in 1989.

For many years, the progress of electronic games was hampered by computer compatibility problems. IBM, Compaq, Packard Bell, and several other companies all manufactured different PC machines, seldom using standardized components. As a result, games that ran on one type of PC might not run on PCs made by other manufacturers.

Singaporean entrepreneur Sim Wong Hoo began to solve this problem in 1989 when he introduced a PC sound card called the Sound Blaster³. This device became the standard for PC sound. Future sound cards needed to be “Sound Blaster-compatible”, meaning they needed to use the same software (often called drivers). A standardized sound device enabled PCs to run games with music and voice files that sounded as good or better than the audio in console games.

Notes: ¹crisp image – чёткое изображение;

²The company's success was fueled by aggressively recruiting… – Успеху компании в немалой степени способствовало активное переманивание…;

³sound blaster – звукогенератор, проф. саунд-бластер.

(7) Popular Computer Games

In 1993, Id Software created Doom, one of the most significant computer games of all time. Doom allowed players to see the game through the eyes of the character¹ they controlled. The game popularized online multiplayer gaming (playing with or against other people through LANs or the Internet).

In the early 1990s, a drop in the price of CD-ROM technology led to a wave of multimedia games (games that combine audio, video, animation, photographs, or other media). Compact discs (CDs) can store from 650 to 700 megabytes of data, more than 400 times than standard floppy disks can. With this storage capacity, designers could add voice files, digitized video of live actors, and other assets² to their games. Companies such as Digital Pictures, Access Software, and Viacom published interactive movies, or games that combined digitized footage³ of real actors and virtual characters.

In 1993, Broderbund published a game called Myst for Macintosh computers, and Virgin Interactive Entertainment published a game called The 7th Guest for the IBM PC. In both games, the player explores a rich virtual world, trying to solve puzzles. Millions of copies of these games were sold, popularizing multimedia technology and attracting large new audiences to computer gaming.

In 1995, Microsoft launched Windows 95. This operating system (with built-in driver software for sound cards, graphics cards, joysticks, and other controllers) greatly simplified the use of PCs as a gaming platform.

Notes: ¹character – зд: герой, действующее лицо;

²asset – ресурс, цифровой объект (изображение, текст, аудио- или видеоклип);

³footage – отснятый [фото/видео] материал.

UNIT SIX HISTORY OF COMPUTERS

Ex. 1. Practice the reading of the following words and phrases:

idea, conception, mathematician, special, photograph, original, automatically, programmable, conception, navigation, to automate, energy, project, grandiose, analogous, to invest, potentiality;

business machine, Industrial Revolution, mechanical technology, mathematical table, logarithm table, locomotive-sized machine.

Ex. 2. Revise the following words from your school active vocabulary:

to repeat, to return, to believe; answer, government, difficulty, century; important, easy, famous, possible, during, actually, however, among, since.

Ex. 3. Memorize the following words.

to devise–придумывать, изобретать, разрабатывать to contribute – 1) содействовать, способствовать (to – чему-л.); 2) вносить вклад contribution – вклад [в науку, литературу и т. п.] frame – рама, рамка to separate – отделять, разделять separate – отдельный visible – видимый Ant: invisible capable – способный (of – на что-л.) gear – зубчатое колесо,привод to rotate – вращать, поворачивать Syn: to turn rotation – вращение, поворот reliability–надежность, достоверность reliable – надёжный,достоверный [об информации] precision – точность Syn: accuracy to relate – иметь отношение (to – к чему-л.); связывать (to – с чем-л.) relationship – отношение, взаимоотношение, взаимосвязь related – связанный, имеющий отношение exception–исключение except – кроме, за исключением to punch – пepфopировaть, пробивать punch(ed) card – пepфoкарта pattern – 1) узор, рисунок; 2) схема, структура; 3) образец, шаблон, комбинация apparent –видимый, очевидный, явный to prepare–подготавливать, готовить, составлять [отчёт, доклад и т.п.] to ensure – гарантировать, обеспечивать steam – пар to explore – исследовать, изучать explorer – исследователь, первооткрыватель unexplored–неизведанный, неисследованный equation – уравнение forerunner – предшественник to abandon – оставить, прекратить [работу, проект и т.п.] essential –очень важный, необходимый to take part – принимать участие (in – в чём-л.) to approach – подходить, приближаться approach – подход, метод to refuse – отказывать(ся); отвергать, отклонять

Ex. 4. Translate the following sentences, paying attention to the italicized words.

1. With a few minor exceptions, the new edition of the electronic dictionary is very similar to the previous one.

2. Because of intense competition on the world's market, the big computer companies have to devise more and more ways to stay on top.

3. He was sitting at a desk, separating a pile of mail into "urgent' and "non-urgent'.

4. The space probe [зонд] can photograph parts of the electronic spectrum that are invisible to the naked eye.

5. The title of the essay has little relation to its contents.

6. In Africa, cellular phones are often the only reliable way of communicating.

7. Applying computer geographical simulations, students can explore a territory of an imaginary country or navigate some seas.

8. To do this experiment, we need high-precision instruments that can measure the diameter to a fraction of a millimeter.

9. If you make a copy of a file, the copy is identical in every way, except in name.

10. Using a computer, an experienced secretary doesn't spend much time for preparing documents.

11. The cinema owners have the right to refuse admission to anyone under 18 years of age.

12. Some computer engineers are concerned that the silicon-based memory chips are approaching a limit in the amount of data they can hold.

13. The monitor is controlled by a separate circuit board, which plugs into the motherboard of the computer.

14. Computer engineers consider it possible to make multigigabyte memory chips and disks capable of storing a terabyte (one trillion bytes) of information.

15. Howard Aiken designed a number of automatic machines to solve differential equations.

Ex. 5. Translate the words on the right. Fill in the gaps with the required words. Mind your grammar!

Using graphics software, you can ___ the image on the screen. All students without ___ must take the English examination. Although ___ are not being used now, they were of vital importance in the development of the computer. I’ll give you ten minutes to ___ your answer. Einstein was awarded the Nobel Prize for his ___ to Quantum Theory. A teacher ___ the game as a way of making math fun. All the necessary measures had been taken ___ their safety. ___ condenses into water when it cools. Some economists have questioned the ___ of the statistical data. An abacus is a ___ with small balls, which slide along wires. It is used as a tool or toy for counting. Let us ___ the subject from a different direction. At the beginning of the 20th century, academician A. Krylov constructed a mechanical integrator for solving differential ___. A computer understands only one language: ___ of 0s and 1s. The digital computer is any of a class of devices ___ of solving problems by processing information in discrete form. The most important performance characteristics (эксплуатационные характеристики) of a storage unit are speed, capacity and___.

вклад подготовиться достоверность исключение комбинация надёжность обеспечивать пар перфокарта поворачивать подходить придумывать рамка способный уравнение

Ex. 6. Choose the required word(s) to complete each sentence.

1. Some of the book pages had got stuck together and I could not [relate, separate, except, prepare] them.

2. They removed the picture from its wooden [approach, gear, pattern, frame] to restore it.

3. The Americans are [rotating, preparing, separating, taking part] to launch two new communication satellites.

4. The secretary [devised, punched, ensured, explored] holes in the papers and filed them away in a folder.

5. [Unexplored, precision, reliable, apparent] instruments are used to help pilots in controling their aircraft.

6. Most electronics companies have not done well this year, but ours is the [exception, forerunner, rotation, contribution] that proves the rule.

7. The system is [unexplored, capable, visible, separate] of running more than one program at the same time.

8. All attempts to find a peaceful solution to the conflict have now been [abandoned, turned, ensured, devised].

9. The [exception, equation, forerunner, pattern] of the modern word processor was developed in 1936. This automatic typewriter (called an autotypist) was [reliable, capable, invisible, except] of storing and reprinting simple form letters and paragraphs of longer documents.

10. Under the law, doctors cannot [refuse, ensure, prepare, abandon] patients access to their own medical records.

Ex. 7. Replace the statements given in brackets by one word from your active vocabulary.

1. In the past, [cards on which information was recorded as a pattern of holes] were used for putting information into a computer.

2. [A liquid changed into a gas] as the tractive power was introduced on the railways in the 18^th century.

3. It's [extremely important and necessary] that you wear protective clothing in this area.

4. The 45 year-old [person who travels to unknown places in order to find out more about them] is preparing for his new expedition to the Arctic.

5. We had to [stop doing something, especially before it is finished] this long-term research project because there were problems with financing.

6. A computer is a machine, which is [having the ability or qualities necessary for doing something] of storing and manipulating numbers, letters and characters.

7. Babbage's computing machine was the [earlier thing that had a role or function similar to somebody or something coming later] of the modern computer.

Ex. 8. Give English equivalents to the italicized words. Mind your grammar!

1. Используя a telescope, Galileo открыл stars that были невидимы to the naked eye.

2. The Earth вращается on its axis once every 24 hours.

3. We usually не принимаем checks, but for you we'll make an исключение.

4. He made a значительный вклад to the success of the project.

5. Уравнение is a statement показывающее that two значения are equal, e.g. 2x+y = 54.

6. The перфокарты were used для того чтобы вводить данные into the first computers.

7. If a word is entered incorrectly, the machine отказывается выполнять the command.

8. He only had a few hours чтобы подготовиться for the interview.

9. Make a list of points and раздели them into two parts: desirable and необходимый.

10. We hadn't seen each other in thirty years, but I узнал her right away.

11. Semiconductor интегральные схемы helped to повысить надёжность of electronic устройств.

12. We need to разработать a coordinated подход to the problem.

Ex. 9. Memorize the following adverbs.

especially–особенно far – намного exactly–точно, ровно nearly – почти, приблизительно

actually – фактически, на самом деле directly – непосредственно, прямо nevertheless–тем не менее, однако quite – довольно, достаточно; совершенно, абсолютно

(A) Translate the sentences, paying attention to the italicized adverbs.

1. If you add all these amounts together, you'll get exactly 100.

2. This business software can be ordered directly from the manufacturer.

3. My laptop is quite old, nevertheless it's still reliable.

4. Every time you access your e-mail, you find that you have a lot of unwanted messages, especially e-mails that advertise something.

5. The written record of the conversation doesn’t correspond to what has been actually said.

6. It’s exactly a year since I started working here.

7. Statistics show that far more people are capable of riding a bicycle than can drive a car.

8. The quality of the recording is quite exceptional.

9. The interview will be telecast simultaneously to nearly 150 cities.

10. Art books are expensive to produce, especially if they contain color illustrations.

(B) Give English equivalents to the italicized words and translate the sentences.

1. There are a lot of spelling mistakes; тем не менее, it’s достаточно a good essay.

2. I don’t want to boast, but I can на самом деле speak six languages.

3. I could see smoke coming from the windows of the house прямо opposite.

4. I am capable of typing довольно fast.

5. No one knows точно how many people use the Internet.

6. We have почти run out of paper. Do you think there is enough for today?

7. There are a намного greater number of women working as programmers than twenty years ago.

8. I'm особенно interested in hearing about your trip to China.

9. Assemble the device точно as shown in the diagram on the left.

10. There are на самом деле lots of people there who can help you.

(C) Fill in the gaps with the required adverbs.

1. To look at him you’d never think he was ___ fifty.

2. The teacher said that her writing skills were ___ below average.

3. Everything went ___ as planned.

4. Historians can't say with precision what ___ happened eight thousand to ten thousand years ago in human history.

5. He found the test difficult, ___ attempted to do it.

6. I love Rome, ___ in the spring.

7. He thought the bag was heavy, but it was ___ light.

8. You should place the picture ___ in the middle of the front page.

Ex. 10. Pay attention to the word proof. It is used as a component of compound words meaning гарантированно защищающий или защищённый от воздействия чего-л.

Model: waterproof raincoat – непромокаемый плащ;

bulletproof vest – пуленепробиваемый жилет, бронежилет.

Try to translate the following phrases without using a dictionary.

1) a waterproof camera; 2) the sound-and dustproof room; 3) the air-and lightproof container; 4) a shockproof watch; 5) fireproof materials; 6) a fireproof door; 7) a childproof lock; 8) windproof clothing; 9) the rustproof metal; 10) containers for medicines fitted with childproof caps; 11) software that makes computer hacker-proof; 12) foolproof device.