3 ms·
This is a pedantic comment, but the terminology is confusing. Games have "players" so their sync systems are called "multiplayer," but regular software has "use
by hgs3 3y ago
This is a pedantic comment, but the terminology is confusing. Games have "players" so their sync systems are called "multiplayer," but regular software has "users" so their sync systems should be called "multiuser." The page reads strangely mixing the terms "user" with "multiplayer."
- itjustisthough 3y agoThat’s just the terminology these days. Multiplayer == “live” multi-user including visualizing what other users are doing at every moment.
- nwenzel 3y agoMaybe. But user is like a consumer. So HN is multiuser, but seems weird to call HN multi-player. Live concurrent interactions feels like something more than multiuser. Just my 2-cents, but multiplayer as in multiple users acting and interacting is a good use of the term multiplayer.
- Slartie 3y agoLet me guess: you are not regularly playing multiplayer computer games? I totally feel hgs3's confusion when reading the discussion here or that website. I always confuse the use cases - "are they now talking about computer games, or are they talking about the broader scope of any kind of software in which multiple users can act concurrently within a shared environment?". I think this confusion would be much less severe if I hadn't been an avid gamer for decades and thus had a very specific idea of the meaning of the term "multiplayer".
- mrkeen 3y agoIts logic is based on the logic that's been in "multiplayer games" for decades. On the other hand all web software is "multiuser", which doesn't tell you anything.