It doesn't connect.
Actually, screw it, it's not worth arguing about. Steam isn't going to stop me buying Civ 5, and if it stops anyone else that's not my problem.
Jesus, some people are really paranoid...
When you start Steam it will check for active internet connection (its default behavior and there is no reason why it shouldnt do it - it doesnt harm anything), after that:
- if its active and Steam is set for online mode it will connect to Steam servers
- if connection isnt active or if Steam is set for offline mode it wont connect to Steam servers
Its software and I am sure that its creators dont want to make its behavior any more complicated than is necessary to minimize likelyhood of bugs.
Btw.: I dont understand whining about Steam offline mode when you have internet available. I also dont see any reason to keep it in offline mode when you are connected to internet.
There is nothing terribly paranoid about wanting to control what data a company collects about one's computer usage. If a company advertises this data collection one way and does another I am quite miffed. This doesn't mean I won't buy the game, since I personally accept that data collection, but I do expect companies to be upfront about this aspect of the contract I enter with them and it will weigh into my final decision about whether its worth buying the game.
Generally I do find false advertising of the data collection features troubling. There is no reason whatsoever for a software that is being advertised as a one time online activation to go call home every time it finds an internet connection. I simply expect the companies involved to actually be truthful about what they do: they collect a host of mostly anonymous information and they do transmit it to their servers if there is an active internet connection even if someone uses offline mode. Them not being upfront about this is not a good way to build trust with their customers. If they are not even truthful about when they transmit/collect the data how can one believe their statement about what data is collected? You don't need to be paranoid to expect a company to keep the claims it advertises with truthful.
Stating its the default behavior by the way doesn't make this less troublesome since I am not complaining about the default behavior but about what it does when you explicitly put it into "offline mode". This is a feature done to collect data and has nothing at all to do with keeping it bug free. That is not in itself a problem at all - I have a problem with them telling their customers one thing and doing another.
There are good reasons to run it in offline mode even with a potentially active internet connection:
1) control the flow of information for simple privacy reasons
2) control the number of programs having access to the internet for safety reasons - no program is perfectly safe and programs with lots of users are inherently more risky as they tend to become targets much faster
3) having unstable internet connection - pretty much default behavior when running on a laptop, since you might want to play while traveling and not have to remember to put it in offline mode just prior to starting your travels
4) having expensive internet connection
of the top of my head.
Bottom line though is: I noticed that the program acts in a way contrary to how it is advertised and I am not happy about it. Since there is an active discussion about this going on I am hoping that Take2 will clarify their advertisement of it. I do not have a problem with them stating how it actually works - if the game is worth it on its own merits I'll buy it. I already stated that I am using Steam to play Portal. So I already allow its data collection. I do have a problem with advertising features that turn out to work in a much different way than advertised.