HardwareComparisons

This is a long-term idea - the raw numbers can be stored in a cargo table, so in theory most of these pages will look like this:

'''Mega Drive vs. SNES''' and then descriptions about marketing and whatever

...

==Technical comparison==
===Graphics===
SNES looks pretty, Mega Drive not so much
{{compare|Mega Drive|SNES|graphics}}

===Audio===
SNES has that horrible string-like sound that every bloody game uses, Mega Drive not so much
{{compare|Mega Drive|SNES|audio}}
...

basically you'd only have to maintain one set of numbers per console, and a "compare" template would pull out those numbers on demand. How that's all done, I haven't decided, but it's totally possible.

This could be extended to pricing and numbers of units sold and territories sold in. Maybe go nuts and explain the compositions of plastics used in the shells and where microchips were sourced from - make it ridiculously definitive, because why not.

this might sit around for awhile though

-Black Squirrel (talk) 16:12, 19 December 2017 (CST)

I'd probably just have a single "Mega Drive vs. comparable consoles". Storing specs as a cargo table is a good idea, but how would we deal with consoles that have multiple CPUs (which is most of them)? My first thought was to have a separate table with component specs, and then have the console table store "cpu1=680000" and "cpu2=z80". - Hivebrain (talk) 15:53, 20 December 2017 (CST)

If you go down that route, I'd suggest a generic Zilog Z80 (which might say "8-bit processor"), and then a Mega Drive-specific Z80 (which might say "clocked at xxxHz"). Basically build a database of components (which in this case could be referenced on the Zilog Z80 page), and at some point have a Mega Drive row that says "this console has x, y and z for AUDIO".

The query would then be, "give me everything related to AUDIO for the Mega Drive and SNES" and it would build a comparison table. Somehow. Or it might just be a lump of text if there are bits that aren't directly comparable. Similar to how Wikipedia displays its comparison but more detailed.

The reason I thought about having a page for each comparison, is so we can always have one system on the "left", and another on the "right", rather than trying to squeeze in half a dozen. Also because it might get unmanagable - consoles evolve as time goes on and we'll want to note that.

The reason I want to try and split by AUDIO and VIDEO and WHATEVER is so, when the time comes, we can compare against individual PC graphics cards. Because a generic "vs. PC" will never work. -Black Squirrel (talk) 16:19, 20 December 2017 (CST)