PSN Outage: An Opportunity
by Gideon, HSM team writer and filmmaker
My experience with the PSN outage is likely the same as hundreds of thousands of others; a community of disjointed PlayStation users collectively scratching our heads. Some of us were likely pulling out our hair in the process as well. When I booted up my PS3 and my auto-login procedure wasn’t initiated, I found it odd but not unusual. I am, unfortunately, one of the unlucky PSN users that have had the pleasure of regular run-ins with PSN errors. Usually the errors stem from my ISP going dark, DNS errors, router issues, and the always amusing user generated ID10T error. I have been lucky enough to have never been the subject of a ban, but I knew this wasn’t out of the question.
So I did what I usually do to make sure that it’s not my internal network that was having issues. I grabbed my trusty laptop and hit the web.
Flipping up the screen and clicking my browser was all it took for me to know that the problem was on Sony’s end. That was both a relief and a frustration. I was relieved that my ISP was still functional, that my router was alive and that my connection was as strong as ever. I still had internet access and I wasn’t going to have to spend the next hour or so on the phone, or diagnosing my home network. The relief then became soured with a pang of frustration because it also meant PSN connectivity was completely reliant on Sony.
I assumed that the outage had something to do with the impending 1.5 Home version because I hadn’t been on since the normal Home update, but then I realized Home updates didn’t usually affect the PSN itself. I quickly filled in the normal search parameters for PSN errors and within moment’s discovered that the outage was system wide, wasn’t planned, and no one had any idea of how long the system would be out. It would likely be days.
I navigated to the official PlayStation website to see if there was any news there. I didn’t think it would work, but I tried to log into my account. I knew if that if we were able to access the PSN though our browsers, then many people would be holed up on the forums complaining and waiting out the storm with the disgruntled community. If nothing else, that would provide some amusement while the PSN was out. No luck, the entirety of the PSN was inaccessible.
Until the PSN is back up: No Entry
I ran through the list of things I would not be able to do until the PSN came back up. I couldn’t go on Home, so I couldn’t check out the update, check in with my friends, or finish filming my most recent Machinima. FreeRealms was out of the question, but I wasn’t playing that too often anyway. I was shocked to find out the InFamous 2 Beta is reliant on PSN access to create missions. I could run around the city just fine, but only as a tourist since there was nothing to fight. I own a slew of games that I could no longer play online, and I was immediately thankful that I had recently purchased a certain first person game involving creating wormhole entrances and exits for another system.
I was surprised at the emotions I was feeling toward the PSN outage. I was a little annoyed because I was hoping to finish filming, but I had editing to do so that wasn’t too much of an issue. I was a bit irritated because I couldn’t connect with my online friends, but many of those I had on MSN or Skype, so that wasn’t too inconvenient. The games I wanted to play online would be there at a later date, so I wasn’t worried there.
The emotion that hit me then was a surprise.
It was relief.
As with many other users of the PSN, my social life is more robust because of Home. I have more friends that I interact with on a regular basis online then I do in the real world. It’s significantly easier to hop online and chat with someone than it is to drive across town and visit them. Not to mention that a gathering of friends in real life usually means expenditures in the way of meals, gas and movies.
We shouldn't feel chained to the PSN
I would also feel the need to be connected to the PSN so that my heartier social life would be within thumbs’ reach any time I needed it. I have taken up many activities in Home that would normally be considered real life pursuits. Attending club meetings, going to see friends, filming videos, and attending parties are the norm for me while on Home, and I think we have all been guilty of real life scheduling around Home activities. The difference between these sorts of pursuits in real life and in Home is that Home is dependent on the one thing that was down for maintenance. The PSN.
Without the connectivity of the PSN I felt freed of these self-imposed obligations of virtual-social interaction. I no longer had to be connected the PSN because, at that moment, there was no PSN to connect to. The feeling was not unlike being told by your significant other that they needed a break, only to realize that you needed one too. The PSN had become too influential in my life and my schedule revolved around its activities too often.
I turned off my PS3, grabbed my keys, and headed out the door.
As I jetted off to a local comic shop to pick up my weekly order, I came to the realization that I should take this outage as an opportunity to realign my priorities and re-center myself.
Most people seek to develop an enriching multifaceted life in which they find mental, emotional and social stimulus through a variety of sources. As an avid PSN user, I have found myself obtaining much of that stimuli through the services offered through the PSN, but that is a stricture I have put upon myself. I have a myriad of pursuits that I put on hold because of my online interactions, and I experience the real world much less because of this.
The PSN should be a tool that we use to enrich our lives, not a chain that tethers us to our PS3s. We should take this outage as an opportunity to reconnect with our friends, our loved ones, and ourselves. Rekindle our passions with our hobbies, or maybe pickup that pastime that has always intrigued us, but we just haven’t found the time to try. Reassess how we spend our time, and when the PSN comes up reinsert it back into our newly adjusted perspective.
The PSN has been a part of all of our lives, and it should be just that – a part.
April 24th, 2011 by Gideon | 24 comments
Gideon is a team writer for HomeStation Magazine and likes cheese in all its forms. Whether it be block, slice, cream, wheel, log, string or aerosol, Gideon cant resist the pungent bitter taste of good cheese. Heck, he'll even take mediocre cheese, as long as its slapped between two pieces of whole wheat bread with a little bit of mustard.
I can still remember my life before PSN and namely Home. 3 real life year seem like 12 Home years to me. It very hard for me to predict what my life would be like now if I never was on Home. These real life priorities you mention are valid and worthy. But for me it was almost the opposite. My real life had become lacking. Friends were few and far between. Burned out on my hobbies. No female interaction… I know that may sound strange coming from a female. real life had become stale for me. I ventured onto home a month or so after it opened the beta. I floated around like and empty plastic WalMart bag in the wind. Kind of shy because I was out of my comfort zone. Overcome by the learning curve. I kind of felt like the small town country girl getting off the bus in L.A. With a few big exceptions. I had never even seen such a place, and even though I understood most of the language, I could not communicate very well because of no keyboard and not understanding the abbreviation that were being used. But as time past and I made friends and I found places I enjoyed and I learned the ways of the natives, Home became my home. And I am finding way everyday to make my home a better fit for me and others. I have not given up on real life by a long shot. I have fought to hard to make it this far. But Home has become a big part of me. I may joke and act like I am losing my mind because I can’t be on Home right now. But if it never came back I would survive. Home doesn’t own me, but the freedoms, friends and pleasures it aloud me could never be replaced. Please know that I agree with everything you said and enjoyed it very much, and I am in no way arguing with you. But the lust for life I had already lost was re found in my Home life. I am couping with this time off but if you can’t tell, one the the ways I am dealing with it is by writing overly long comments here on HSM. I beg the indulgence of all who write and those who read here.
Oh heck, back to drinking again and chasing wild women.
Seriously, there are other parts of the internet that will occupy my time and mind and give me my fix.
What I am wondering is is what will it feel like when Home comes back on line. Will I care?
I am more interested in seeing how people react when Home returns.
Then again, perhaps this offline snafu is merely SONY working hard to fix the Waterfall Terrace problem.
OMG, Kid is drinking again! (searches closet for her track shoes).
i can understand exactly where the two of you are coming from, but i tend to agree more with olivia. i myself have had a lifetime of ‘out there’. bad relationships, a bad marriage, heartbreak, lost love, loss of life, etc. yes theres been good, a lifetime of experiences. and yes it may sounds sad, especially at 47, but ‘out there’ really doesn’t interest me much these days. every time i venture out for new experiences, they tend to turn into disappointments.for the record, i DON’T just sit at home all the time. a full time job, five days a week, nine hours a day. i tend to want to just get home and put my feet up and relax. no, i haven’t given up on life outside of home, just not concerning myself as much.life in home has offered a much more rewarding experience than what i’ve had around me. in one year alone, i’ve met so many wonderful, dynamic, crazy, delicious, exciting, beautiful personalities that i wish i had been here long before. as i sit plowing threw my single player games (finished all the tomb raiders, now slipping back into the ever excellent saints row 2), i wait patiently for the return of my beloved home. zoinks, i love you all so much!! WOO HOO!! lil mouse
The PSN is only a part of me, right now it’s the part of me that’s wrenching and convulsing! I’ve had my wednesday evening fixes as I wait for my tuesday goodie purchasing, and my sunday’s filled with games and socialization. the past three days I’ve been checking my phone for news every 30 minutes, over 800 articles on google on the outage which are all essentially the same. I was going to see my new hatchlings today and take them out for a walk, damn you baron! all those eggs i caught for naught. I was also putting my new cucumber furniture in a few spaces and turning my japanese apartment into a bordello. as it stands now I’m probably getting a fix tomorrow sometime on the japanese servers and if lucky enough tuesday here in the US. maybe an early content publish due to the outage? I dunno. but I’m hoping that the next time we are all back on that there’s a WOW! of some sort wether it be a new/updated space or new goodies in the store. or maybe seeing that gaggle of goslings will do me just fine!
Great read Gideon. I too am finding out what to do without Home. If you really think about it in many ways this weekend was the perfect time for this to happen. It is a holiday, therefore many of us have had family obligations and other things we needed to be doing anyway, at least I have. I have been spending my PS3 time playing games again instead of just going into Home and enjoying it a great deal, after all we are all gamers at heart, that’s where this all got started. I think you make many valid points here, at least for those of us who can have a social life outside of Home. But for those who don’t because of illness or physical issues, this is a very different situation. I feel bad for them and I hope once this gets fixed it is something that doesn’t come back again for a long time.
good god, what a weekend to (try to) give up smoking. ARGH!!! im going to vomit if i eat anymore celery or carrot sticks. think i know what my deposits are going to…………oh, never mind.
Great article! I’m 50 an avid gamer 1st person shooter, Of corse that means COD. Zombie addict! i’ve played since 1985 or so, starting w/ asteroids! being seasoned in a married setting her being a game widow & my obsession as a soccer referee in so cal, 7 recently compressed vertabre disabled soon 2 recover hopfully, i’ve put alot of time on-line. Great point on getting outside! good of u 2 share intimate feelings about shyness. me 2! I have alot of freinds on-line always having 2 delite old ones i don’t takk 2, over 100 rotating at times. Can’t wait 2 have on-line again! thought i’d write u & relate. Please don’t reply (if u do!) on this e-mail. my on-line log on ps3 is OMC-REBAR which is obviously my profession & why i’m hurt! Neat stuff don’ stop
!!
I’m a Zombie addict myself,this downtime has made me practice on solo where i’m at level 58 on kino der toten.Of course solo doesn’t count towards my leaderboard scores so that will still be at level 50 but as soon as the network is back up and running i’m hitting zombies.I’m a Home addict 1st but my zombie addiction is seeing me through this tough time.
How fun!! I have a few friends that have assention as a vice. U c my psn name friend me. I find that 2 people stand a better chance, but 3 with mikes would have a great time! lvl 34 took about 5 hrs! hope 2 play with u soon!
Yeah i’ll add you,i got a few high level friends that i play “seriously”,lol,with but not all are on at the same time usually so between us we should be able to field a”serious” zombie killing unit at any time.I’m locked,loaded,and just waiting on sony.
sounds good ! i’m pst usually on 7or8ish pm but during day also, being temp. disabled (rebar 30yrs=disabled) Tring 4 a workers comp. Looks good. i don’t no bout’ u, but gting 2 rnd 30 or more requires 3-5hrs min!!!
cool !! i don’t no bout’ u, but gting 2 rnd 30 or more requires 3-5hrs minimum!! On 7or8ish pm but during day also, being temp disabled (rebar 30yrs=disabled) hoping workers comp helps. compressed vertabre sucks !!!
I’m on quite alot as i’m in the same boat as you as far as my back except i’ve already gone thru years of paperwork and am all done with that mess,good luck with that.As far as time goes on blk-ops it took us around 12 hours to hit 50,i’m pretty sure i hit 58 on solo in less time but then on solo there are less zombies and only need bathroom breaks for 1,lol.But seriously if we’re gonna do this have a good chunk of the day clear,see ya around.
P.S. A friend of mine messaged one of the pair of guys that were on top of the leaderboard with a lvl 87 2 players,been surpassed since this,and asked the guy how long it took them to get that far.The guy wasn’t exactly positive but said it was at least 22 hours so if any1 is thinking about a run at #1 have a day or 2 cleared for play.
probably go 4 40 or so . just pre -- ordered escalation map pack ZOMBIES!!! Can’t wait!!
I’m at level 40 on Ascension so we can hit that 1 as well if you wish.
yea, i’ll see when 5 hrs or so is available. my bud & me would definitively b in!
Please read the notice from Sony. I posted it in the HSM Forum a few minutes ago. They are notifying everyone that the PSN accounts have been hacked including our personal information and credit card accounts. Please help spread the word.
Ever since the PSN went down I’ve been able to get so much work done on my costumes that I make and I’ve gone out with my friends more!
I miss PlaystationHome and my online gaming but being without it has really made me remember all the other things that I enjoy….so I’ve had a positive outcome. ^^
I think that’s what’s important, that we make the most of our time, with or without Home.
Agreed!
just letting aetermites33 no how i appreciate the level head in comments on the chat rm. thanks !!
went out outside,1st time in ages & played football yesterday,broke my FOOT,,stay inside ,its safer..PSN i miss U