• fishy@lemmy.todayEnglish
      1·
      19 hours ago

      I generally don’t keep mine installed all the time, but I keep one on hand just in case.

    • scops@reddthat.comEnglish
      15·
      2 days ago

      Those things are clearly meant for laptops. It’s always awkward to hook them up to tower PCs. Either you’re bending the short cable to stick them in the top chassis ports and the cable tension pushes it halfway off the case, or your are letting the drive dangle from the back panel ports.

      I kinda miss the beefy boys that came with detachable USB cables and their own power supplies.

      • db2@lemmy.worldEnglish
        7·
        2 days ago

        I just looked up an external 5.25" enclosure for sata disc drives. Nearly $50 and doesn’t even include a drive. That’s crazy.

        I’ve got this idea of putting a slim bluray burner in my machine. I got the bay adapter that houses that and 2 2.5" drives but haven’t finished the thought by actually getting the burner. 🤷 It’s probably pointless though.

      • thejml@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
        4·
        2 days ago

        The portable BR RW I found last year has a USB-C connection on the drive so you can use whatever cable you want.

        Though they do make USB extension cables so you don’t have to bend it weird.

        I do still miss the chonky boys though, but the nice thing with USB-C is that it doesn’t needs a separate power cable and plug.

      • HugeNerd@lemmy.caEnglish
        2·
        2 days ago

        I kinda miss the beefy boys that came with detachable USB cables and their own power supplies.

        I had an external SCSI CD-ROM drive that used caddies and had physical buttons on it, I used it for a long time as a CD player. It ran off 120.

  • nibbs@lemmy.zipEnglish
    3·
    1 day ago

    /me: Glances at the two ODD currently in use and three more in my shelf. Oh.

  • AceFuzzLord@lemmy.zipEnglish
    12·
    2 days ago

    Even if your PC doesn’t have a disc drive by default, you can still enjoy the games by getting a USB disc drive. I literally got one originally for my laptop and have been using it with my current desktop. It’s been a good purchase when audacious is allowed to read the disc.

    • MonkderVierte@lemmy.zipEnglish
      6·
      2 days ago

      Actually, the few that still get produced are vastly inferior to the 2000s ones via a SATA plug. We are losing the facilities and knowledge, tolerances are far worse now.

      Btw, i’ve discovered redumper (from the Redump disc-preservation initiative) if makemkv doesn’t suffice anymore. The old SATA ones chugged along like nothing, while the new-ish ones errored here and there, requiring long correcting runs. All in all, better get some old notebooks than a new USB drive, if you want to go get ripping.

    • MIDItheKID@lemmy.worldEnglish
      4·
      1 day ago

      I was basically forced to buy one many many years ago when cases with no optical drive bays first came on the market. The motherboard I got with that build had the drivers on a CD, and that included network drivers. I had no secondary PC to download them with. I suppose I could have used my phone, but back then the internet wasn’t built for phones very well, and I remember it being a pain in the ass. Since then I have used it quite a few times. It’s always been a great thing to have just in case I need it.

  • grahamja@reddthat.comEnglish
    11·
    2 days ago

    I miss the large boxes that video games came in the early 2000s and earlier. The physical media, like manuals, maps, and tech trees were incredible. You couldn’t just alt+tab or check the internet, you had to pin a map to your computer room wall, and keep real notes. Its easier now, but it takes some magic out of the experience.

    • A_Random_Idiot@lemmy.worldEnglish
      5·
      1 day ago

      I really wish we could go back to being a magazine culture.

      You had patience, because of the limited media things were prioritized so you didnt get a lot of bullshit

      and it was exciting for the time of the month to come around waiting to get it and find out all the new information.

      Thanks to the infinite scrolling 24/7 always on internet, thats gone now and replaced by an infinite conveyor belt of fresh hells and misery.

        • A_Random_Idiot@lemmy.worldEnglish
          1·
          23 hours ago

          I never saw a gaming mag cost more than 6 bucks on the magazine racks. Which isnt bad, even back then when 6 bucks was a lot more valuable, for something you only paid once a month for (and wound up being cheaper once you subscribed)

          • glitch1985@lemmy.worldEnglish
            1·
            22 hours ago

            I think those days are long past us. PC gamer is currently $9 for one digital issue. Game informer (print) is $12. Both of those are obviously much cheaper if you get a subscription but for those who just casually wanted to grab one while getting groceries it’s either that or a few gallons of milk.

            • A_Random_Idiot@lemmy.worldEnglish
              2·
              21 hours ago

              Oh, now… yes the prices are dumb now. cause of dwindling demand due to just being able to get info everywhere, so they up prices to cover costs.

              I thought we were talking about how things were in the good times of the long long ago. my mistake