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But only if ‘you’ happen to be a pretty experience Linux user. Well, you don’t have to be an experienced user, but that’s what Valve would prefer!
Valve has been discussing the need to develop Steam for Linux, partly in response to the new Windows 8 OS. Gabe Newell has been pretty forthwith in his criticism of Windows 8 and Steam for Linux is, in part, a response to this.
You can head here for more direct information on how to register if you happen to be a Linux user.
Thanks VG247
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Does anyone even proof read their articles before publishing anymore? I mean honestly, if you can’t even ensure that your title is correct then what kind of journalist are you?
No one who does not consider themselves an expert at least, would be using linux. Whenever you state valve is being critical of windows 8, make sure you explain it’s because the new windows store would be competitive with steam, not because of any actual reason about the experience of games, or it being slower etc, it’s just about their own pockets.
I don’t think that’s the case. Anyone can download and install the newest version of Ubuntu. It sure as hell doesn’t make them an expert. I’ve been a big Linux user in the past, but I don’t consider myself an experienced. I was capable, but not in the same league as people who use Arch, Gentoo, etc.
It isn’t quite as simple as that. While the software technically does still run, reading about MS and windows 8, you have to take a step back and take a look at the direction they are heading towards now.
Much like the arguments google puts forward towards a fully open internet [which allowed them the freedom and creativity to create what they are now], a similar situation has existed in the PC market with windows [and linux]. PC’s have always been completely open to the user. You purchase the hardware, and you can do with that hardware what you wish. You can run whatever software and hardware peripherals you wanted to do what you needed. Windows, despite what people feel about it, has always embraced this and allowed you to do what you want with it. This is in stark contrast to Apple, which are now moving OSX towards an iOS model which is totally closed and restricted.
It seems that Microsoft are trying to go down this road now too, and are now starting to tighten up the strings in regards to what it will let it’s users do. They are putting their own game and software store in there, and it only makes sense that they would want to make their service much more attractive than a competitors. Windows don’t get anything for allowing steam to run and sell games on their OS.
Then you get into much more blatantly nefarious areas, such as Microsoft enforcing with an iron fist that secure-boot not be disabled on ARM devices shipping with WindowsRT [the ARM version of windows 8]. How long before you are required to purchase a developer license to compile code for commercial windows applications?
Gabe is one hugely successful businessman. Yes, he has a great product, and yes he is no doubt shrewd in his operations, but one thing which has been imperative for his success is keen foresight and an ability to see trend and direction in the industry. Additionally, he is a former employee of Microsoft, for what it’s worth.
If he doesn’t like the direction in which Microsoft is taking Windows, for what ever reason that may be, and is investing in contingencies on other operating systems, that is reason enough for us to pay attention [and for Microsoft to as well].
Pretty obvious they’re worried about a closed system, but windows 8 isn’t one. I didn’t realise you or gabe could tell the future? The time to kick up a fuss is when they actually do it, putting up their own store to make buying content/applications more easy and acessible to average people is far from not letting others make programs/sell on your OS. The fact that Gabe originally just had a big bitch with undefined complaints about windows 8 without actually getting specific about his worries originally shows he’s more of an angry kid who is going to lose out on some money more than someone intemedly worried about the system. He should be too, if developers move to the windows store because it’s realistically a first point of sale, steam will become completely unnessecary.
No, windows 8 isn’t a closed system, as I stated.
The worry, as I stated, is that windows 8 makes a very big statement about the direction in which they are heading.
Gabe can’t tell the future, but he has made himself a multi-freaking-billionaire from being able to make predictions and take actions to capitalise off that.
While our motivations may be different, the reason Gabe is concerned that the direction of windows will impact the future of his company is the same reason I [and I think the vast majority of the PC gaming community] are concerned that it is going to infringe on the liberties that we as PC gamers adore. Ever tried to mod a game on your iPhone?
Still, all just hocus pocus future telling. It’s just imaginary worries.
Partly due to the way crapware and faulty device drivers is installed on new pcs and Microsoft being blamed for the poor user experience.
Apple control the whole ecosystem by designing the OS and hardware.
MS is going down the same path with Surface.
I’m keen to look at the pro version which I think is a similar concept to OS X where you can still install most software.
Right now MS needs to clarify to non technical people what WinRT is so tney don’t have the wrong expectation.
@riavan
quote: No one who does not consider themselves an expert at least, would be using linux
come on!, that is not true, desktop-linux has all the buttons you have on windows, a store, and even more prebuilt applications (such as spreatsheet/document software built in)
for basic usage, saying linux is hard is utterly obscene to say, i cant stress this enough.
where people get this idea from, is probably from people who try to do undocumented changes to their system, you can do it, unlike windows, and as such a poor sap every once in a while screws with the system and then complains linux is bad afterwords because they tried to do something WINDOWS WOULD NOT EVEN ALLOW.
Because the problems arise when you try to get something to work on it that doesn’t run on linux, which I would qualify as “basic use”. Say a normal person downloads some executable or something, like the tax program and it won’t work.
Wouldn’t mac users have this same issue then? I would hardly call the average mac user a computer “expert”.
Yeah, but a lot of downloads have an option for mac as well, not many for linux 😛
My father uses Ubuntu. He browses the internet with it, and also starts up some card games and Mahjong. I guess that makes him an expert in those specific fields.
Ohhh god your dumb, The issue is that Windows 8 is Microsofts attempt to create a closed platform which have already been discussed by people much smarter than you.
They have a history of anti competitive practices and trying to create monopolies and you still think they wouldn’t want to do that? Do you know anything about their history as a company at all?
What percentage of developers will bother if noone proves that it’s a viable market? This is the same problem every new platform-specific service has – noone buys the platform until it has useful stuff on it, and noone develops for it because there aren’t enough users for it to justify the expense. It has to start somewhere, and it might as well be us consumers, because it sure as hell won’t be the publishers.
As far as I’m aware, Source games should run (and run well), because Valve is making the effort.
1%
On top of that, Windows 8 is fine, stop ye bitching. Just a massive ‘content’ and ‘improvement’ patch for 7, that is all.
Sorry my second statement there seemed aimed at you Stevorooni, was ment in general (towards Gabe heh) sorry.
Just about every humble bundle game that’s been released. Then there are a few that Valve are porting to Linux. Not sure how many. There were probably a few titles that already had Linux ports as well.
So, it’s probably a fairly small percentage of the total library, but that small percentage still equates to a sizeable number of games. Definitely worthwhile for Linux users.
It’s a bit funny that to register, you have to login with your steam account.
I’m a Linux user, why at this point would I have a Steam account?
‘Cause Firefox works on Linux, thus account registration and logins work on both.
They’re probably assuming that if you’re interested, you’ll register.
Besides, it’s not uncommon for Linux power users to keep a formidable Windows machine for gaming.
or just use the wine wrapper
literally every source game works for linux under wine awkwardly enough, valve supporting linux is more of a patch and official support for most of us
and a tf2 hat.
I should hope that their Linux ports amount to a little more than checking for a Wine installation 🙂
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