2019年经济学人 云计算:电子行业的新趋势(2)

 

It all sounds promising¹ in theory. Whether cloud gaming will catch on, though, remains² uncertain, for it is technically³ much more demanding than existing streaming services. Unlike films or music, games are interactive⁴, which means they must respond instantly to a player’s input⁵. The laws of physics impose limits on how quickly a player’s commands can traverse the internet to reach a data-centre to be processed, and then how quickly the resulting video can be sent back. For the twitchy action games that dominate bestseller lists, even delays of a fraction of a second are an irritation⁶ for players. Such technical glitches⁷ are one reason that previous attempts at cloud gaming, by firms such as OnLive (which launched its service in 2010 but shut down in 2015), failed to catch on.

从理论上讲，这一切听起来都很有希望。不过，仍不确定云游戏是否会流行，因为它在技术上比现有的流媒体服务要求高得多。与电影或音乐不同，游戏是互动的，这意味着它们必须对玩家的输入做出即时反应。物理定律限制了玩家的命令通过互联网到达要处理的数据中心的速度，以及由此产生的视频返回的速度。对于那些在畅销书排行榜上占据主导地位的动作类游戏来说，哪怕是一眨眼的延迟都会让玩家感到恼怒。此类技术故障是OnLive(该公司于2010年推出了云游戏服务，但在2015年关闭)等公司此前尝试的云游戏未能流行起来的原因之一。

The cloud giants insist that times have changed. Microsoft, Amazon and Google have data-centres dotted around the world, which should help keep response times low. Consumer internet connections are faster than ever and data allowances more generous. And although dedicated⁸ gamers may turn up their noses at even short timelags, cloud gaming could prove attractive to the less hard-core.

云计算巨头坚称时代已经改变。微软、亚马逊和谷歌在全球各地都设有数据中心，这应该有助于降低响应时间。消费者上网速度比以往任何时候都快，数据补贴也更慷慨。尽管资深玩家可能会对短时间段里的内容不屑一顾，但事实可能证明，云游戏对不那么铁杆的玩家具有吸引力。

Cloud computing⁹ can be used in other ways, too. Rather than running the whole game remotely, one intermediate option is to use it for tricky¹⁰ calculations that are also relatively¹¹ insensitive to small delays. ”Crackdown 3”, an action game released for the xbox and PC in February, uses cloud computing for complex physics calculations, allowing players to blow up their environment in a realistic way without overtaxing their computers. An updated version of Microsoft’s “Flight Simulator”, shown at e3, was also, according to its trailer, “powered by Azure”. Cloud computing has already disrupted everything from films to corporate¹² IT departments. Gaming, it seems, is now also in play.

云计算也可以以其他方式使用。与其远程运行整个游戏，一个中间选择是使用它进行复杂的计算，这些计算对较小的延迟也相对不敏感。二月份为xbox和个人电脑发行的动作游戏《除暴战警3》使用云计算进行复杂的物理计算，玩家可以在不增加电脑负担的情况下以一种现实的方式破坏环境。微软在e3展上展示的“飞行模拟器”的升级版，根据预告片，也是“由Azure提供动力”的。云计算已经颠覆了从电影到企业信息技术部门的一切。游戏似乎也在发挥作用。

1 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

2 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

3 technically   

adv.专门地，技术上地

参考例句：

• Technically it is the most advanced equipment ever.从技术上说，这是最先进的设备。
• The tomato is technically a fruit,although it is eaten as a vegetable.严格地说，西红柿是一种水果，尽管它是当作蔬菜吃的。

4 interactive   

adj.相互作用的，互相影响的，（电脑）交互的

参考例句：

• The psychotherapy is carried out in small interactive groups.这种心理治疗是在互动的小组之间进行的。
• This will make videogames more interactive than ever.这将使电子游戏的互动性更胜以往。

5 input   

n.输入(物)；投入；vt.把(数据等)输入计算机

参考例句：

• I will forever be grateful for his considerable input.我将永远感激他的大量投入。
• All this information had to be input onto the computer.所有这些信息都必须输入计算机。

6 irritation   

n.激怒，恼怒，生气

参考例句：

• He could not hide his irritation that he had not been invited.他无法掩饰因未被邀请而生的气恼。
• Barbicane said nothing,but his silence covered serious irritation.巴比康什么也不说，但是他的沉默里潜伏着阴郁的怒火。

7 glitches   

n.小过失，差错( glitch的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Manufacturing glitches have limited the factory's output. 生产中的故障影响了该厂的产量。 来自辞典例句
• Another kind of period variation,\"Glitches,\" are seen in several pulsars. 在几个脉冲星中还看到了周期的另一种变化，即“自转突快”现象。 来自辞典例句

8 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

9 computing   

n.计算

参考例句：

• to work in computing 从事信息处理
• Back in the dark ages of computing, in about 1980, they started a software company. 早在计算机尚未普及的时代（约1980年），他们就创办了软件公司。

10 tricky   

adj.狡猾的，奸诈的；(工作等)棘手的，微妙的

参考例句：

• I'm in a rather tricky position.Can you help me out?我的处境很棘手，你能帮我吗？
• He avoided this tricky question and talked in generalities.他回避了这个非常微妙的问题，只做了个笼统的表述。

11 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

12 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。