Interesting Stuff !!

‘Online games do more good than harm’


PETALING JAYA: Gamers and cybercafe operators feel it is wrong for the media to report negatively on online games.

According to them, online games are actually doing youths more good than harm, in that the games even keep them away from getting involved in drugs or crime activities.

If parents think playing online games is bad, they should honestly ask themselves what they did as youths to entertain themselves when there were no computergames,said Jeffery Wong, 31, a cybercafe owner.

I bet they were involved in activities that were not that much more productive either, and probably a lot more dangerous, he said, recalling his adventurous days of swimming in ex-mining pools when he was a teenager.

It also provides job opportunities. I know many people who did not get to complete school, but because of online games, they’re able to survive and earn a decent living doing something they like, Wong said.

And what is so bad about making money from playing games? It is not like it is illegal, said Leon Jalleh, 27, a cybercafe operator.

“If kids are learning how to earn money by pursuing their interest, their parents should be proud of them instead!”

“It is better than having them waste money loitering in shopping malls, or worse, get involved in drugs or criminal gangs,” he added.

Jalleh said cybercafes were also comparatively healthier than other entertainment avenues, such as nightclubs.

“You won’t find drugs or alcohol in cybercafes, and most do not even allow smoking nowadays,” he said.

Jalleh told The Star that it was possible to earn several thousand ringgit a month by trading virtual items or helping other gamers improve their avatars.

“People think it is silly to spend hundreds of ringgit buying virtual items that seemingly have no value,” said Angela Leong, 24, a computer programmer.

“But these items have value because of the time and effort it takes to obtain them.”

Unlike students who fall behind in school because of games, Leong used the money earned from games to pay her college fees.

“Some gamers want to enjoy a game by owning a powerful avatar but might not have enough free time to hunt for powerful items,” Leong explained.

“So, they simply pay another gamer to do their playing – the business is no different than hiring someone to run errands.”

“For someone who is working and likes to play games, it definitely provides a good side income,” another gamer, who only wanted to be known as Mark, said.

Mark said many of his friends preferred to play games at cybercafes for entertainment because of the cheap hourly rates. Cybercafes typically charge an average of RM2-RM3 per hour.

“It is a good way to bond with friends and meet new people who share the same interest, plus it’s the cheapest form of entertainment around – definitely much cheaper than clubbing,” said Chris Chong, 26, who meets his friends for game sessions on weekends.

Andrew Cheah, who works as a floor manager for one of the cybercafes in SS2 here, said it was unfair that cybercafes are blamed whenever a student skips school to play games.

“If a student wants to play truant, he’ll play truant regardless of whether there are online games or cybercafes.”

Cheah said most cybercafes have strict rules that forbid anyone wearing a school uniform from entering their premises.

“We also make sure young children are accompanied by a guardian before allowing them access,” he said.

“But as cybercafe operators, this is as much as we can do. In the end, it is up to parents to discipline and curb their children from going overboard with any activity,” Cheah said.

Ivan Seah, the marketing and communications manager of AsiaSoft Online, the publisher of online games Maple Story, Audition, Pangya and Kong Kong, said his company would ensure that its games were focused on providing wholesome entertainment for families.

“Our games have features that block the use of profanity, and we have patrols in the game itself to promote positive behaviour,” he said.

“Some online games like World of Warcraft even have parental control features to monitor and schedule children’s playtime,” Seah added.

**My Owns words** - yaya, the above reports was certainly true,i agreed with it.so, to all parents sometimes online games will be benefical too,if your daughter or sons didn over play it. Besides that, some online games like warcraft,which is a stradegy game and it makes us use our brain to think how to mange the game.

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Short notes - ok,last weekend was the PMR examination which had just ended on friday(6/10/2006).This examination is a goverment exam.I guess so that the form 3 boys and gals will enjoy their precious time hanging out with frd in shopping complex or do watever they like, but then comes to results day.Gosh.......some students celebrate after getting a good results but, some will felt sad or disappointed towards their results.This senario will happend every year which i have observed few years.

wow,this week the haze was really bad.It was
so smelly.This condition was terrible.

i stil can remember that time i was in school.it was so smelly and i was forced to used my clothes to cover my nose.This smoke contain a lot of toxic and if we breathe in lots and lots we will easily get lung cancer OMG ...hehe.This smoke haze was came from the forests of Indonesia,Sumatra. Even when i was in my room i still can smell the smoke smell.so i think open the air-conditional is the best way and also can cover the smell.


yeah ,it was a truth that the smoke haze came from Indonesia.

Today ,is a sunday.so,after my english tuition,i with my parents went to Pizza hut to have our lunch.I think quite a long time i didn eat pizza.The last time i ate pizza was in standard 6.HAHA!!so, i called a sate combo pizza set.After i had finish all the food.if u ask me how was the pizza i would give a 5/10.nothing special about the pizza.