Well, it sounds like this thing isn't just a piece of vaporware...
I'm all for having patches delivered to me but I also prefer to keep 'hardcopies' to get games up to speed as fast as possible after an OS reinstall. Otherwise it becomes very time-intensive to install and update all your games... broadband or no. As long as Steam doesn't become yet another piece of ad-filled bloatware I have no problem with it. I've always used Sierra's autopatcher for Tribes2 and it was never a problem (though some of the patches turned out to be).
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Supporter of the "a happy fredster is a fredster in a bathtub full of gasoline smoking a cigar" fanclub.