SteamOS

jomni · September 28, 2013, 06:40:53 PM

A little background on what it is.

http://www.tomsguide.com/us/steamos-faq-machines,news-17614.html

LongBlade · September 28, 2013, 06:45:47 PM

Thanks. Saw some headlines. Haven't dug into it yet.

Nefaro · September 28, 2013, 06:47:09 PM

With their currently stellar customer service quality, I wonder how their expansion into new realms will turn out. :-\

eyebiter · September 28, 2013, 07:20:44 PM

.

Staggerwing · September 28, 2013, 08:05:55 PM

You should.

If you set up a linux box now with Ubuntu (or something similar) and then install the Linux Steam client all your platform-agnostic games are there to download and play. I had Red Orchestra installed on mine and I only purchased it once, back when it was released a long time ago. Portal was also there along with a few others but I didn't ry them since the Linux box was pretty old and barely handled RO.

phredd1 · September 29, 2013, 01:08:06 AM

It seems invasive Steam DRM isn't irritating enough, now we're getting a Steam OS as well. I don't trust them enough to even consider it for a moment. In fact, I hope it is a total failure when launched. What bad news.

Huw the Poo · September 29, 2013, 02:25:19 AM

Quote from: phredd1 on September 29, 2013, 01:08:06 AM
It seems invasive Steam DRM isn't irritating enough, now we're getting a Steam OS as well. I don't trust them enough to even consider it for a moment. In fact, I hope it is a total failure when launched. What bad news.

Wow. Not even I feel like that, and I'm far from Valve's number 1 fan. Why all the hate? And why, specifically, do you hope this will fail?

From a personal perspective I couldn't care less about SteamOS; I already run Chakra Linux and Steam works perfectly on it, and I certainly don't want to play PC games in my living room. I have consoles for sofa gaming. However, anything which makes Linux more attractive to games developers is a very good thing because ultimately, a long way down the line, it could lead to the majority of the games market to become platform-agnostic, and I can say goodbye to Windows forever! \o/

republic · September 29, 2013, 10:54:58 AM

I first installed Debian Linux in the 90's and I've dabbled with it from time to time but never really stuck with it. The idea of a well supported consumer grade Linux distro is very appealing to me.

Huw the Poo · September 29, 2013, 05:12:18 PM

Republic, when was the last time you tried Linux? Modern distros are as easy to use as Windows, if not easier, and if anything they're much better supported - patches are much more frequent, for example. I'd recommend Linux Mint for the inexperienced.

Debian never was particularly user-friendly. ;) (Although it's probably better now that it uses the insultingly simple Gnome 3 by default)

republic · September 29, 2013, 06:41:32 PM

I haven't tried it seriously at home in a long time but I do use Ubuntu for surfing the net at work regularly but that doesn't really count. Maybe I should give it another whirl.

Arctic Blast · September 29, 2013, 10:17:26 PM

Definitely interested to see how these new endeavors go. The new controller they're putting out is different, but the people who have had a chance to play with it seem to have liked it a lot.

helm123 · September 30, 2013, 07:38:32 AM

I'm hoping this finally gives Linux that kick it needs to become more main stream. Never thought I'd get EU4 and CKII natively on Linux but Steam helped that happen.

Father Ted · September 30, 2013, 12:26:05 PM

The new controller will be the key to the whole thing. The mouse/keyboard combo is just so much better than any current game controller for FPSs. Also try to imagine playing a RTS or even a pukka wargame which requires a lot of mousing with a gamepad...The PC retains its share of the games market with those sorts of games because it is the best platform for them.

If the new controller isn't at least as comfortable/quick as mouse/keyboard, then why would any gamer want to move from their PC to the console and telly in the living room?

Nefaro · September 30, 2013, 05:02:35 PM

Looks like Steam is just trying to get it's foot in the Console door, to me.

They already have a Linux option in their client, from my understanding, so that's a moot point unless they (or someone) really polishes up an easy-to-use Linux version for the masses that doesn't cost them anything. Some people may love to dick around with troubleshooting Linux compatibilities, but most of us do not.

Either way, it's a Valve/Steam endeavor and the biggest concern anyone should have is in regards to their customer support. Or support in general. They absolutely suck at this and I haven't seen any indication that they're attempting to improve it.

republic · October 04, 2013, 05:56:49 PM

I thought I'd give Linux another chance at home...downloaded Ubuntu 13 got it installed on a separate partition...go to install Steam and I get "Dependency is not satisfiable: jockey-common".

I can't get no, satisfaction...I try, I try, I try and I try, but I can't get no....no I can't get no...

SteamOS

helm123