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Minor note that installation via the launcher (Why a launcher!?!) seems a bit broken. Both the direct mac download, and installing from Cargo, installs Airshipp

Minor note that installation via the launcher (Why a launcher!?!) seems a bit broken. Both the direct mac download, and installing from Cargo, installs Airshipper v0.15.0. This says that it's outdated and to install a new version. Clicking the button to do this takes you to the Github releases page, where the latest version is 0.14. There's a december release for v0.16 but it's a tag only and has no artifacts. Quit in frustration. Edit: Despite having an issues page, the GitHub page of the launcher is apparently only a mirror of the GitLab repository. GitLab has artifacts for the latest version. I am mystified why they send people to the GitHub page on their officially linked and `cargo install` downloads.

suavesito 2y ago
The launcher was there to make it easier to pull the latest build without needing to check if a new version was available. A couple of years back the updates were irregular (sometimes a few days, other more than a week). We regularized the new builds once a week, but, still, the launcher now serves as a way to explore different unofficial or experimental servers that are being available (via registering in the GitLab project).
- baal80spam 2y ago
  [flagged]
  - khimaros 2y ago
    this is a confusing take to me. could you explain your aversion to launchers?
    - doublerabbit 2y ago
      To me launchers are / can be another pattern of dark-ui. Why is a launcher required? Is the launcher spying on my system, sending information back to HQ? Can't you tell me the game needs updating when I play the game and then update the game in-game? Are you going to throw me advertisement banners when you're not making or being greedy? What if the update fails? It's one thing I have to wait upon to play the game but launchers come bloated. A carousel of graphics taking a gig of space then requiring an additional 10GB download for the actual game.
      - resonious 2y ago
        It's not clear to me how these are dark. You aren't being tricked, and all of these traits might be in the game client itself as well (game could phone home, auto update, fail to auto update, be slow, etc)
        doublerabbit 2y ago
        Maybe not this game but it always ends that way. Example: EA Origins. Atrocious launcher. No one can seem to answer why does the game need a launcher?
      - trelbutate 2y ago
        You're afraid of the launcher spying on you, but not the actual game?
        doublerabbit 2y ago
        I accept that anything windows is spying on me. But I expect to play the game, when clicking the game icon. Not being thrown in to a launcher waiting for me while I then thrown advertisements for their next game. Take a look at EA Origin, it's horrific. It updates then the whole launcher implodes with some alien error code like as one of a printer.
      - extrememacaroni 2y ago
        chill bro all mmos and such have used launchers since the dawn of time
        doublerabbit 2y ago
        Yeah? Sure. Quake 3 never needed required a launcher.
        viraptor 2y ago
        Q3 was from times without trivially available persistent internet connections. You had to hunt down the patches and mods yourself manually, hoping not to get malware instead. It was a different time. The updates also were much more spread out - last 3 were from 2001, 2002, 2006. It's just not comparable to how things work today.
    - hansvm 2y ago
      Most launchers I see aren't necessary for any technical reason. Most don't even bother to enable any functionality at all to the end user's benefit. They're instead used to exert some form of control in a way that's usually palatable enough to not cause a huge PR backlash. As a default stance, being anti-launcher as an end user seems reasonable.
  - potsandpans 2y ago
    Cool story
  - dang 2y ago
    "Please don't post shallow dismissals, especially of other people's work. A good critical comment teaches us something." https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

suavesito 2y ago

The launcher was there to make it easier to pull the latest build without needing to check if a new version was available. A couple of years back the updates were irregular (sometimes a few days, other more than a week). We regularized the new builds once a week, but, still, the launcher now serves as a way to explore different unofficial or experimental servers that are being available (via registering in the GitLab project).

baal80spam 2y ago
[flagged]
- khimaros 2y ago
  this is a confusing take to me. could you explain your aversion to launchers?
  - doublerabbit 2y ago
    To me launchers are / can be another pattern of dark-ui. Why is a launcher required? Is the launcher spying on my system, sending information back to HQ? Can't you tell me the game needs updating when I play the game and then update the game in-game? Are you going to throw me advertisement banners when you're not making or being greedy? What if the update fails? It's one thing I have to wait upon to play the game but launchers come bloated. A carousel of graphics taking a gig of space then requiring an additional 10GB download for the actual game.
    - resonious 2y ago
      It's not clear to me how these are dark. You aren't being tricked, and all of these traits might be in the game client itself as well (game could phone home, auto update, fail to auto update, be slow, etc)
      - doublerabbit 2y ago
        Maybe not this game but it always ends that way. Example: EA Origins. Atrocious launcher. No one can seem to answer why does the game need a launcher?
    - trelbutate 2y ago
      You're afraid of the launcher spying on you, but not the actual game?
      - doublerabbit 2y ago
        I accept that anything windows is spying on me. But I expect to play the game, when clicking the game icon. Not being thrown in to a launcher waiting for me while I then thrown advertisements for their next game. Take a look at EA Origin, it's horrific. It updates then the whole launcher implodes with some alien error code like as one of a printer.
    - extrememacaroni 2y ago
      chill bro all mmos and such have used launchers since the dawn of time
      - doublerabbit 2y ago
        Yeah? Sure. Quake 3 never needed required a launcher.
        viraptor 2y ago
        Q3 was from times without trivially available persistent internet connections. You had to hunt down the patches and mods yourself manually, hoping not to get malware instead. It was a different time. The updates also were much more spread out - last 3 were from 2001, 2002, 2006. It's just not comparable to how things work today.
  - hansvm 2y ago
    Most launchers I see aren't necessary for any technical reason. Most don't even bother to enable any functionality at all to the end user's benefit. They're instead used to exert some form of control in a way that's usually palatable enough to not cause a huge PR backlash. As a default stance, being anti-launcher as an end user seems reasonable.
- potsandpans 2y ago
  Cool story
- dang 2y ago
  "Please don't post shallow dismissals, especially of other people's work. A good critical comment teaches us something." https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html