XBox 360 Vs Play Station (PS) 3

Isn't this great?
I heard the voice from right side of my shoulder. A man in his early 50's was standing and watching me playing on a brand new PS-3 in a Sony World showroom. I'm not into gaming too much. I normally use gaming as a stress buster, I just drive away to glory with needing to speed my virtual cars all over the places. That day, I was there with my friend who was having some problem with his new wide-screen LCD TV. The engineer was taking some time and I couldn't resist my self to put my hands on the demo PS-3 machine connected with a 42" LCD screen. They had put some car race game which I think was named "Ridge Valley or Rally Race".

I said, yes sir, this is nice.
How are the control likes? I've heard, they're not as great as XBox.

They are more or less same, Sir. It's just how you adjust yourself to the controls. More you play, more you feel friendly to those controls, be it XBox or PS.

Can I try?

I said sure and I handed over the remote. He started playing.

Na... It's not as good as XBox. Too slow. Not even close.

He said this while still playing and crashing his car all over the places. I was little surprised. I said, May Be, but I couldn't feel much difference. How did you make out?

See the car is so slow, it's not even accelerating.

I was like "Whattt..????"
Inside me, I was in all laughs and tried my best not to show it but couldn't help a ridiculing smile to escape out. I know many people have many misconceptions about computers, how they work etc... Mostly they are elderly people who although are very good in their own respective fields but dwell some strange misconceptions about computers. Being a computer engineer, it becomes my responsibility to educate them and clear them from any such misconceptions. It's like making a difference in the world around you in a your own way, be it a small way.

I said. No sir. The speed of car has nothing to do with the hardware(CPU) speed. It is just that the game is designed in such a way that it's simulation lets you feel that the car is not going as fast as it is, actually. And in other games the simulation gives user a different perception, a faster moving surroundings for example.

Nope, I can make out, it's the CPU. It's simple, if you don't have solid engine, a solid heart, how will your car run? It's too slow. He immediately ruled out whatever I said.

So I tried again. Yes sir, you are right, but the heart here is not CPU but the game, the CD inside. That's the heart here. Another game or another car with better performance will act differently.

And then he looked at me... with that look... and he started...
What are you talking son, let me explain to you, there are different components of a computer like Monitor, CD, UPS, Keyboard, Mouse, CPU and some black and grey wires. And out of all, UPS is the heart.

You mean CPU, Sir. I interrupted.

Yea yea, CPU, whatever.
So slower the UPS slower is the car. I said CPU again.

He sure did had his computer lessons well. Or may be his son or a beautiful daughter (this is what I was imagining) explained him that.

I said, okay Sir! you are right, CPU is the heart. But if you want to put it that way(I tried explaining him in same line, so that he can appreciate the difference), then the game in there is the soul. If the game is not good the CPU can't do much. Just like if one has a weak soul, good heart can't do much.

He gave me a stunned look... Man.. what am I saying? Why am I saying? And am I making any sense at all? I was sounding like a fool, a cave-man to myself, leave alone others.

He was still looking at me, even when I've stopped talking. I think that the whole heart-n-soul thing became the low point.

CD drive a soul?? Ha ha ha.

That, I must say, was a ridiculing laugh. Full-fledge laugh. I was looking like an idiot. He continued to laugh for another 10 seconds. He kept the remote back on the table there...

And while trying himself to stop laughing but not actually fully stopping, he asked:

What do you do son?

Never in my working life, I ever felt of hiding, what I do. Normally I answer this question with lot of pride and style. You are here talking about a guy, who is passionate about coding... algorithms, graphics, animations and he even dreams to be, someday, a game programmer. I couldn't just say it.

I said, I'm a car mechanic, Sir.

I almost heard his eyes saying... "That explains!"

I'm sure tomorrow if he calls up Microsoft tech-support to know whether he was right with his theory. Surely they'll confirm that XBox run cars faster because it has a faster UPS.

~~