Steam for Linux open beta

By Mathiasdm
in Back Page News

 Share

Recommended Posts

Mentor

Mathiasdm

Posted
Posted

Steam for Linux Beta Now Available to All

The Steam for Linux beta client is now available to all Steam users, so if you've been patiently waiting for an invitation to join us, consider yourself officially invited!

With a growing catalog of Linux-supported games, an active Steam for Linux community group, and a new GitHub bug reporting repository, the timing?s right to jump in and share your feedback.

Source: http://store.steampowered.com/news/9638/

  • Reacon and Glassed Silver
  • Like 2
Link to comment
https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/1126866-steam-for-linux-open-beta/
Share on other sites
Grand Master

Aergan

Posted
Posted

They're expanding their market to other platforms and that's a good thing. It's hardly "the end of Windows".

Props to them for having a Github repository.

  • nitins60, theyarecomingforyou, Glassed Silver and 4 others
  • Like 7
Grand Master

Pupik

Posted
Posted

So This is the end of Windows.

Yeah, because that's what happened when Steam was released for OSX (What, like two years ago?). Everything was changed and people moved to Mac, after dumping their gaming machines and forgetting about Windows.

And the game developers? They just rushed in and developed their games to support OSX, too.

Grand Master

threetonesun

Posted
Posted

Yeah, because that's what happened when Steam was released for OSX (What, like two years ago?). Everything was changed and people moved to Mac, after dumping their gaming machines and forgetting about Windows.

And the game developers? They just rushed in and developed their games to support OSX, too.

Well, you can't run any video card on a mac, and the ones they do spec are often sadly outdated. Also Apple controls the driver releases.

So... Linux is at least starting out better.

Grand Master

Duffydemon

Posted
Posted

Yeah, because that's what happened when Steam was released for OSX (What, like two years ago?). Everything was changed and people moved to Mac, after dumping their gaming machines and forgetting about Windows.

And the game developers? They just rushed in and developed their games to support OSX, too.

forgot my /FOSSnazi tag.

Grand Master

firey

Posted
Posted

Why?

Windows 8...

Due to Windows 8, and the quality Linux Distros coming out, I think more and more people are taking the plunge. Currently the major hold back is gaming. If my games ran on Linux without issue, I would likely be using it as a daily driver. I don't like/agree with the direction Microsoft is going, and it's unfortunate that the only way to have my computer as I want it, is to stick with an older version of Windows.

That, in my opinion, is why.

  • f0rk_b0mb and Glassed Silver
  • Like 2
Grand Master

threetonesun

Posted
Posted

That, in my opinion, is why.

Opinions are great, and all, but the answer to "why" is because Steam is creating its own console which will be built on Linux, and this is a) a great side benefit for those of us on PCs, and b) a huge QA opportunity.

It's not like Linux gaming hasn't had a chance in the past. Back when the choice was the relatively crap Windows ME, and Red Hat was making a real push and was still free, ID and a few other companies released Linux versions of games, that you could actually find at the store and buy in a box. It's never been a Windows vs. Linux thing.

Grand Master

+Majesticmerc MVC

Posted
  • MVC
Posted

Why?

Two reasons.

First, the Linux gaming market is basically untapped. There aren't many of us, but that's probably because there aren't many games (chicken/egg scenario). There is money to be made however, since the Humble Indie Bundles consistently show that Linux users pay more for their bundles than Windows and Mac, so that's got to mean something.

Second, the Steam console is coming, and it will run Linux. Releasing the Steam Linux beta is basically a sly beta test for the Steam client that will be used in the console. Getting developers to write games for Linux will also give them a bigger collection of launch games when they finally release the Steam box.

Community Regular

ingramator

Posted
Posted

Opinions are great, and all, but the answer to "why" is because Steam is creating its own console which will be built on Linux, and this is a) a great side benefit for those of us on PCs, and b) a huge QA opportunity.

It's not like Linux gaming hasn't had a chance in the past. Back when the choice was the relatively crap Windows ME, and Red Hat was making a real push and was still free, ID and a few other companies released Linux versions of games, that you could actually find at the store and buy in a box. It's never been a Windows vs. Linux thing.

Truth. Valve do not care about linux users at all, the whole Windows 8 is bad thing is just a complete bull crap scape goat reason for trying to cover up the fact they want to have their own gaming machine, which will have to run linux.

Windows 8...

Due to Windows 8, and the quality Linux Distros coming out, I think more and more people are taking the plunge. Currently the major hold back is gaming. If my games ran on Linux without issue, I would likely be using it as a daily driver. I don't like/agree with the direction Microsoft is going, and it's unfortunate that the only way to have my computer as I want it, is to stick with an older version of Windows.

That, in my opinion, is why.

Linux is great for a lot of things, namely hacking, however it is not good at gaming nor will it ever be. Drivers, support, market share and above all -fragmentation are going to continue to hold it back. Microsoft have not done anything to stomp out steam, so I don't know what you mean by the direction they are headed because last time I checked, steam was running on this Windows 8 box just fine, exactly the same (if not faster :p) then it was on Windows 7.

Grand Master

n_K

Posted
Posted

I was invited to the beta and since I was I got the introvision software bundle, torchlight 2 (even though it doesn't have support for linux) and I'll be getting red orchestra 2 if/when it's ported to linux.

I think that can finally put an end the endless amounts of bull**** I've kept hearing over the years of 'oh its linux, people dont pay for software'

Grand Master

theyarecomingforyou

Posted
Posted
Truth. Valve do not care about linux users at all, the whole Windows 8 is bad thing is just a complete bull crap scape goat reason for trying to cover up the fact they want to have their own gaming machine, which will have to run linux.

Valve has significantly advanced gaming on OSX through SteamPlay and it's continuing that momentum by throwing its weight behind Linux. I don't see why you feel the need to complain when Valve is doing more to advance gaming on the platform that virtually every other company combined. It's even been helping nVidia improve their Linux drivers. Valve has a long history of working for gamers and advancing the platform - your cynicism is baseless.

Mentor

grik

Posted
Posted

Thanks to Valve i now buy games and have fun with the community. On the old days we had to separate everything. Of course this can be dangerious if they take the whole market, witch i dont think that is going to happend.

Valve does a great job updating their games and a strong engine.

This topic is now closed to further replies.
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Posts

    • The 2TB Samsung 990 PRO NVMe SSD hits lowest price in over three months

      By sphbecker · Posted

      Glad these prices are starting to come down, but that is still crazy. I bought the 2TB 9100 Pro (slightly more expensive version with PCIe 5.0) last year for $240.
    • The 2TB Samsung 990 PRO NVMe SSD hits lowest price in over three months

      By hellowalkman · Posted

      The 2TB Samsung 990 PRO NVMe SSD hits lowest price in over three months by Sayan Sen Yesterday, we covered a really good deal wherein you can get a 4TB TeamGroup T-FORCE G50 NVMe PCIe Gen4 SSD for a low price of just $400 with a special discount coupon. That's just $100 per TB, making it a very good offer during these hard times. The deal is still live, so you can check it out in its dedicated article here if you do not want to miss out. Meanwhile, if you don't have that kind of budget but still wish to buy an SSD for a good price, the 2TB variant of the TeamGroup SSD at $280 its lowest price in over three months. Meanwhile, those seeking 2TB but faster performance can check out Samsung's 990 PRO, which has hit the lowest price also in the last quarter or so, as it's on sale for $370 (purchase links under the specs table down below). Thus, you want a faster drive, get the 990 Pro, or you want more capacity, grab the TeamGroup 4TB linked in the first para. The 990 PRO is a PCIe Gen4 NVMe SSD and still one of the fastest drives available today for under $500. Speaking of fast, sequential reads and writes are rated at 7450 MB/s and 6900 MB/s, respectively. The random throughputs for reads and writes are 1400K IOPS and 1550K IOPS, respectively. The 990 PRO is based on Samsung's 7th Gen V-NAND flash, and it too is TLC. It packs 2 gigs of LPDDR4 DRAM cache, which helps the random performance. The endurance rating for this is 1200 TBW (terabytes written), which should be sufficient for most users. The Samsung 990 PRO is compatible with the PlayStation 5, but if you are going to use the 990 PRO on a PC, check out the Samsung Magician app that lets you track your drive's health, update its firmware, customize various settings, and more. The tech specs are given below: Specification TeamGroup T-FORCE G50 2TB Samsung 990 PRO 2TB Interface PCIe 4.0 x4, NVMe 1.4 PCIe Gen 4.0 x4, NVMe 2.0 Form Factor M.2 2280 M.2 2280 Controller InnoGrit Controller Samsung In-house Controller NAND Flash 3D TLC 3D TLC DRAM Cache None (HMB supported) 2GB LPDDR4 Sequential Read (Max) 5,000 MB/s 7,450 MB/s Sequential Write (Max) 4,500 MB/s 6,900 MB/s Random Read (4K) Up to 600,000 IOPS Up to 1,400,000 IOPS Random Write (4K) Up to 700,000 IOPS Up to 1,550,000 IOPS TBW (Endurance) 1,300 TBW 1,200 TBW MTBF 3,000,000 hours 1,500,000 hours Operating Temperature 0°C to 70°C 0°C to 70°C Storage Temperature -40°C to 85°C -40°C to 85°C Shock Resistance 1,500G / 0.5ms 1,500G / 0.5ms Heatsink Patented Graphene Heat Spreader No Get them at the links below: Samsung 990 PRO SSD 2TB (MZ-V9P2T0B/AM): $369.99 (Sold and Shipped by Amazon US) TEAMGROUP T-Force G50 2TB SSD (TM8FFE002T0C129): $279.99 (Sold by TeamGroup, Shipped by Amazon US) Good to know This Amazon deal is U.S. specific, and not available in other regions unless specified. We only use first-party seller links (at the time of article publishing); ensure that you purchase from a first-party seller link only. Check out Today's Deals on Amazon | or our recent tech deals. Become a Prime member (for Students or SNAP) via Neowin Get Prime Access - Prime for half price (for qualifying Medicaid, EBT, SNAP) Subscribe to Prime Video, Audible Plus, Music Unlimited or Kindle Unlimited via Neowin As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.
    • Major Xbox layoffs may claim South of Midnight developer Compulsion entirely

      By PeterTHX · Posted

      If you can't spell a simple word that 2nd graders learn, your entire argument is suspect.
    • UK to ban under-16s from social media following a six-week trial with teenagers

      By FloatingFatMan · Posted

      And here goes the "Won't someone think of the children" brigade. Get stuffed mate. This has NOTHING to do with making the internet safe. It's about tracking adults, spying on your online activity, and sending the boys around when they don't like something you post. Also, again, parliament have voted TWICE against this, and Starmer is going ahead anyway. THAT is anti-democratic bullsh**. They will use this law to track you, they will use this law to control you, and they will use this law to punish you if they don't like what you do, even if it's legal. And your data? Say bye bye to that. It'll be on the darkweb in weeks. I'm not some rando online. I've been an IT professional for 40 years, many of it in security. I know exactly what this means and what will happen to your data. I do not consent and I will not comply.
    • Windows 11 KB5094126, KB5093998 bugging out Office apps but it may not be Microsoft's fault

      By sphbecker · Posted

      "...but it may not be Microsoft's fault" seems like a reasonable way to tease what is going on without leaving the user with a false impression that an update is the problem. A title isn't a summery, it is meant to entice the user to read the article. It should not contain a misleading premise; which this title does not. You could maybe complain that the first paragraph should have included that detail. The writing style popularized over 100 years ago in newspapers will cover the most important information as soon as possible with details and nuance added later; the idea being that with each new paragraph you have less of the reader's focus.

  • Recent Achievements

    • First Post
      Jocimo earned a badge
      First Post
    • Week One Done
      suprememobiles48 earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • One Month Later
      Windows Guy earned a badge
      One Month Later
    • One Month Later
      Prasann earned a badge
      One Month Later
    • Week One Done
      Prasann earned a badge
      Week One Done

  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      520
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      174
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      91
    4. 4
      Steven P.
      81
    5. 5
      ATLien_0
      70
    Show More

  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!