I have had, total, zero problems with steam that I didn't cause. No popups that you're talking about (probably something else on your computer at the time then) and no access attempts to the internet other than to update the games it has. People without internet, HOW THE HELL ARE YOU POSTING IN THE MESSAGE BOARDS? Paying for a internet cafe? It'd be cheaper getting dialup at your house. It's obvious that most people, do infact have internet access, one way or another.
As for "steam sucks, I don't want it" posts, you gotta understand, they're NOT doing this to piss people off. They're NOT doing it to give themselves money. They're doing it because they're freaking tired of pirated games, and they'll do all they can to stop it, or at the very least, slow it a little. The only part of steam you technically need installed is the frontend, and you don't need anything else installed, from the original Half-Life, Half-Life: Source, CS: Source or any other part you don't want. You can uninstall all that if HDD space is the problem.
If you don't like steam that bad for some reason, you can let Sierra/Valve know, and then, don't install it, and let the game that got a freaking 98% review in the US edition of PC Gamer get played by all but a few, stuborn headed people. Steam is there, it's not going away for now, and you can't do anything about it other than not play the game, and show them that you don't like Steam. Play it or don't, it's your choice. Me? I'm going to go through hl2 once it gets released on the 16th, and I have no doubt that it'll be the best FPS I have ever played.
Last, I'm not looking for a war with you guys, I'm just going with the flow of how this perticular company is handling the issue of piracy. They're not charging anyone for steam, they're just making it a part of their games now. You install, regester your game, and never *have* to do it again.
Cheers
arty:
- Modem