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SteamOS

store.steampowered.com

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Re: SteamOS

#441

Post by jimmcslim »

frio wrote: post #413
jimmcslim wrote: post #300

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or SteamOS inside a Docker container! ;-)

This actually isn't a terrible idea. It's been a _long_ time since I've gamed on Linux, but I remember playing Tribes 2 in aeons past, and had to patch a decent chunk of the libraries in my distro to get it working. Using something like Docker/LXC to define the runtime environment of a game would probably help to make life a lot easier.

As long as the use of containers didn't impact on performance too much, which ideally they don't compared to virtualisation. (I say having not personally had any significant experience of the different performance characteristics).

Re: SteamOS

#442

Post by swetland »

ekianjo wrote: post #423
dkbk wrote: post #411

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The closeness of the SteamOS experience to that of a typical desktop Linux distro is irrelevant. If it runs on the Steam Box, it will run on a Linux desktop of compatible architecture. Considering there is already Steam for Linux, its probable that Valve will ensure Linux games run on both platforms equally well. In any case, if there is no need for "all the trimmings", if Valve just wants to make an entertainment pi…

> on both platforms equally well But if they are optimizing a number of things in their own distribution, it's not far-fetched to think that games would run marginally better on the SteamOS.

I expect optimizations will come in the form of:

- GPU driver improvements (they've already been working with nvidia, amd, and intel) which everyone benefits from

- kernel patches (maybe they fiddle with the scheduler or something) which anyone could pick up

- new/improved subsystems (perhaps they do some low latency input or audio layer), which (assuming they open source it) distros could choose to adopt or not

- improving porting techniques for bringing games or game middleware to Linux based platforms (everyone benefits)

It's possible that some stuff could be foreign enough to the way it has always been done on linux that it may take some time to make it upstream (see wakelocks from Android finally turning up in the kernel under a different name and a different implementation but providing the same functionality), but if it actually improves things, eventually I suspect the mainline kernel or distros or whomever will come around.

e: fix formatting

Re: SteamOS

#443

Post by estel »

epsylon wrote: post #268
estel wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The streaming works if you have a beefy Windows machine in your house already, it's not a solution for people wanting a dedicated "Steam" console.

If you don't have a beefy machine, then you're probably not using Steam much anyway, which means you're not in their target demographic. (And if you were playing old games or small indies, you won't need a beefy machine to stream them).

It doesn't seem crazy that their target demographic might be people who'd otherwise buy a PS4 or Xbox; and they don't necessarily have a beefy gaming machine.

Re: SteamOS

#444

Post by 1qaz2wsx3edc »

nemo1618 wrote: post #434
josh2600 wrote: post #362

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Please... No more HL3 fake launch announcements. Please. If HL3 comes out as a SteamOS exclusive; well that would be quite the coup.

Kind of crazy to think that Valve has the power to make 2014 the fabled "Year of the Linux Desktop" simply by making HL3 a Linux exclusive.

In Gaben we trust.

Re: SteamOS

#445

Post by [deleted] »

deletes wrote: post #241
skriticos2 wrote: post #225

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From the iconography on the main page I'd guess the second announcement will be Steam hardware and the third one will be Half Life 3 (second circle indicates software product again?). Pure speculation on my side here. http://store.steampowered.com/livingroom/

We know that the circle represents the SteamOS. The brackets int the second announcement must represent SteamBox. The third announcement has two circles with a plus sign in between which has to do something with connectivity to other players. Probably an equivalent of Xbox Live. ( My bet for the name is SteamPipe :) ) If Half-Life 3 was represented it would have to be a sign inside the circle as it is mainly a single…

[deleted]

Re: SteamOS

#447

Post by ekianjo »

bryanlarsen wrote: post #230
trycatch wrote: post #193

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Total production costs of the famous Atari's E.T. (1982) were $125M according to Wikipedia. It's more than $300M in 2013 dollars.

Which works out to $25 million to get the E.T. license, $100 million to make millions of cartridges to bury in the desert, and $200,000 on actual development.

I think I have read somewhere that the cartridges being buried in the desert is just a hoax.

Re: SteamOS

#448

Post by ekianjo »

baldfat wrote: post #235
snotrockets wrote: post #180

Earlier quoted context omitted.

PS3 runs FreeBSD likes Android runs Linux. That is, they may share a kernel and some tools, but the user spaces are mostly alien.

PS3 ran on Cell CPU Architecture. Now PS4 run FreeBSD 9.0 modified BUT x86 architecture! Android = Linux Ubuntu = Linux they both run the same exact kernel! BSD != Linux because they are 2 different kernels. Why do people always try to say Android is not Linux?????

Because you don't run just a kernel. It's fairly obvious a lot more things go into an operating system. Calling Android and Ubuntu under the same "Linux" umbrella is like calling bread and pasta as "Wheat" since they use the same raw material.

Re: SteamOS

#449

Post by ekianjo »

daviding wrote: post #392
ekianjo wrote: post #391

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A 99 dollars havfdware? That would stink bad in terms of performance.

I was just thinking a dedicated OnLive / ChromeCast like wee box for the LAN, perhaps with a Valve designed controller (i.e. an analog something). All real processing would be on the host SteamOS PC really, with dedicated hardware to help reduce lag on the stream.

I think you didn't read the announcement correctly. Sure the box can do streaming but it is also expected to run "native games". So, for streaming maybe a cheap box is OK, but for actual gaming on the box, you'll need something way more powerful than what you can get for 99 dollars.

Re: SteamOS

#450

Post by sold »

evanmoran wrote: post #395

As someone mentioned this is just the first announcement of three: http://store.steampowered.com/livingroom/ Announcement 1, SteamOS: is just a fancy way to say you can create custom Steam consoles by just installing some software. Make the box as good or a cheap as you want and everything will just workPretty awesome, but definitely this will be dwarfed by... Announcement 2, people are guessing is a Valve distribute…

> A launch title like Half-life 3 (seems unlikely with the circle + circle logo implying you need multiple SteamOS instances).

I think Left 4 Dead 3 (long rumored) is more likely.

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