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Steam on Linux Use Skyrocketed Above 5% in March

phoronix.com

271–280 of 373 posts

Re: Steam on Linux Use Skyrocketed Above 5% in March

#271

It’s great. Moving on from Windows has been like leaving an abusive relationship.

They are even playing the "come back, i've changed" card recently :D

"Recently"? Did people forget the whole "Microsoft <3 Open Source" flop already? Feels like it was just some years ago.

Re: Steam on Linux Use Skyrocketed Above 5% in March

#272
post #222

I am a long time windows pc gamer, but lately I was having to re-pair my DS4 controller every week or so. But the windows Bluetooth device manager will just refuse to remove that device. So I was periodically having to open the old school device manager, click show hidden and remove the controller there. By the fifth time I got fed up, replaced windows with Bazzite and am happy now. Good riddance.

YMMV, I've not had good luck with Bluetooth on any OS

Fun how those things go, I've only ever had troubles with Bluetooth on Apple hardware (both phones and laptops), meanwhile I never had problems with Bluetooth on either Windows or Linux, both desktops and laptops, with controllers, headphones and keyboards. YMMV indeed :)

Re: Steam on Linux Use Skyrocketed Above 5% in March

#273
post #129

A few weeks ago, I installed linux (Nobara, if you're curious) on my PC and hooked it up to the living room TV to use as a gaming console. I have absolutely no regret. I did it initially because apparently playing games on a shared screen is better for my kid. But I was pleasantly surprised by how smoothly Windows only games run on Linux. The whole experience has been great, and I don't think I'll ever go back. I hav…

The "Nvidia on Linux compatibility" issues are something I wonder if I have side-stepped somehow either by lucky choice of GPUs, or lucky choice of Linux distros. Was/is this a distro thing, or an actual issue? Every Nvidia I've used [1] has worked perfectly, from the change for Xfree86 to Xorg, through the Compiz desktop wobbly window craze, to the introduction of GPGPU APIs like CUDA/OpenCL and recently Vulkan. I d…

Same, no issues with any nVidia card going back two decades, several PC's and laptops, Linux and Windows.

Re: Steam on Linux Use Skyrocketed Above 5% in March

#274
post #4

When Windows 11 was force-installed on my main game development desktop, I was skeptical, but kept using it. I was annoyed at having to turn off all the tracking and noise (like news articles) When it updated and started shoving AI down my throat, with no easy way to turn it off and suddenly lots of data I don't consent to sharing getting used, 11 became the last Windows OS I'll ever use. Whenever the next version co…

I have had an excellent experience with KDE on Fedora. Has been stable despite being on the forefront of updates, familiar UI approach for Windows refugees while still offering plenty of customisation options for those who seek it.

Re: Steam on Linux Use Skyrocketed Above 5% in March

#275
post #264

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Unfortunately I have to use some government websites which refuse to work when my user agent contains "Linux x86_64". So I just always spoof it.

This is the reality - most people won't spoof until they figure out it's the way to make a specific site work; and then they'll likely spoof for everything .

I'd also like to add that we forget that we're doing it, or at least I do. Once you set something up like that, there's never any reason to get rid of it; nobody is positively discriminating towards Linux.

Re: Steam on Linux Use Skyrocketed Above 5% in March

#276
post #178

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Privacy minded Linux users probably also know, spoofing your user agent is likely to increase fingerprint entropy and actually decreases privacy. It may have been true in the past, but I don't think anyone even recommends it anymore.

There's still plenty of web sites that check the OS and if it's not Mac OS, Windows, or Andoid it's no service for you. Faking your UA is not always about privacy, it's about defeating stupidity.

The only websites that really do this anymore are ones that are delivering native code for those platforms or those that require DRM that only work on those platforms.

Re: Steam on Linux Use Skyrocketed Above 5% in March

#277
I’ve had a good experience running Arch Linux on my “gaming” PC in the living room. It helps that I’m very comfortable with Linux internals, but I’d say I have no issues or issues that can be fixed with 2-3 clicks about 95% of the time.

My setup is basically Arch Linux, ProtonUp-Qt (to easily install specific versions of Proton, the compatibility layer), Steam, and the proprietary Nvidia drivers/Vulkan. I generally have no issues with Easy Anti-Cheat games like Arc Raiders, but obviously anything that requires secure boot attestation like Arena Breakout Infinite won’t play. I’ve not bothered to try setting up full secure boot as the games that require it aren’t typically in my wheelhouse.

I hope Linux adoption continues for my own, very self-serving, interests. I get the sense that those who primarily use their computer for gaming are the frogs slowly being boiled by Microsoft who continues to back their these customers into uncomfortable, unnecessary corners.

Re: Steam on Linux Use Skyrocketed Above 5% in March

#278

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They are even playing the "come back, i've changed" card recently :D

"Recently"? Did people forget the whole "Microsoft <3 Open Source" flop already? Feels like it was just some years ago.

They’re still in step 2 of their general game plan: embrace, extend, extinguish.

Re: Steam on Linux Use Skyrocketed Above 5% in March

#279
post #129

A few weeks ago, I installed linux (Nobara, if you're curious) on my PC and hooked it up to the living room TV to use as a gaming console. I have absolutely no regret. I did it initially because apparently playing games on a shared screen is better for my kid. But I was pleasantly surprised by how smoothly Windows only games run on Linux. The whole experience has been great, and I don't think I'll ever go back. I hav…

The "Nvidia on Linux compatibility" issues are something I wonder if I have side-stepped somehow either by lucky choice of GPUs, or lucky choice of Linux distros. Was/is this a distro thing, or an actual issue? Every Nvidia I've used [1] has worked perfectly, from the change for Xfree86 to Xorg, through the Compiz desktop wobbly window craze, to the introduction of GPGPU APIs like CUDA/OpenCL and recently Vulkan. I d…

It has more to do with how you're using the cards. I don't see you mention gaming at all, that's where the biggest performance penalty and lack of support is apparent.

Re: Steam on Linux Use Skyrocketed Above 5% in March

#280
post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

to give you a single data point, I've finally committed to linux on my desktop machine at home (I posted in another comment on this thread regarding my sim setup, thats another issue), but on the desktop machine, I installed steam, proton, downloaded a few games from my library, and they just worked on install, no stuffing around at all, no searching the web for fixes to get it going. It's probably been 6 years since…

There is value in the gaming specific distros since they already include all the stuff like controller drivers. I installed Bazzite on my desktop which I have plugged in to the TV and it's been every bit as seamless as the steamdeck. It boots up direct in to steam big picture mode and I can do everything with my xbox controller. Bazzite is an immutible os which is absolutely the future of linux. Your install will nev…

I've been using an immutable Linux for the last year or so, and it's gone quite well, but not without pain points.

There's a lot of stuff that I do which does not have a flatpak or package baked in. To get around this, I've been using distrobox to run these things in Ubuntu containers. So I will do "distrobox enter sdr" to have a terminal open up in that environment. You can export applications so that they show up in the applications list. It really takes some experience to shift your mindset, but it was worth it for me.

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