4 ms·

I doubt 2013 is the year of Linux gaming because lets be honest everyone has been saying 20xx is the year of Linux is some aspect. However, the support behind L

I doubt 2013 is the year of Linux gaming because lets be honest everyone has been saying 20xx is the year of Linux is some aspect. However, the support behind Linux appears to be stronger compared to 2007. I don't want to speculate Windows 8 was behind it, but it kind of is (Gabe from Valve expressed his disdain for Windows and their new app store model a while back). Linux is as good if not better than Windows. It has come a long way and gaming will definitely be just another feature of Linux in 2 to 3 years time. I'm predicting 2014/2015 is when Linux gaming becomes really hot and everyone releases games on it.

deleted 14y ago
[deleted]
illumen 14y ago
Android is linux.
- brudgers 14y ago
  The goalposts are moving. That's not what the article claims.
testimoney2 14y ago
As a developer I find Linux very annoying to use. I have tried Ubuntu on different boxes, even on powerful gaming computers, but it doesn't seem as stable as Windows 8 does. Launching programs, or switching between windows has sometimes a little bit of lag (and I'm on an i7, 8gb of ram etc...) I hate having the slightest bit of lag. For me it would be easier to work on linux, but its just not as nice to use as Windows 8 is.
- pimeys 14y ago
  Or then you have a super fast, super productive desktop with no distractions. Depends how you configure it. Here's mine. (the configs can be stored to github, of course) https://dl.dropbox.com/u/2402047/Screenshot%20from%202013-02-15%2016%3A21%3A49.png https://dl.dropbox.com/u/2402047/Screenshot%20from%202013-02... It's not doable on OSX or on Windows. It's damn fast on my own macbook (2008 edition) and on my work desktop (i5, 16 GB, SSD)
  - jiggy2011 14y ago
    Weirdly enough whenever I have tried to use a minimal tiling WM the Window redraws become horrifically slow, whereas Unity with all the eye candy cranked up is smooth as silk.
  - testimoney2 14y ago
    Not for me :(. I like having eye candy, even though it does give a lot of distractions.
    - pimeys 14y ago
      Depends what's eye candy for you. For me it's pure solarized colors and lots of terminals open... :)
  - glogla 14y ago
    Don't you want to make blog post about your setup or something? I love Linux, but I don't like Gnome Shell or Unity (or KDE or something), and on Desktop it's easy, you just install awesome and run with it. But for a few years I had only laptop, and I was always afraid that things like sleep, or volume and brightness control keys woudn't work, because they seem to be tied with Gnome for some reason. If you could share some more about your setup, that would be great.
    - pimeys 14y ago
      Most of the stuff is here. Sorry for the messy emacs configuration, I'm just studying it after ~10 years of vim. https://github.com/pimeys/dotfiles https://github.com/pimeys/dotfiles Also, two branches: work and macbook. The screenshot is from the work branch.
    - chongli 14y ago
      You might want to try Xmonad. It's a tiling window manager that's extremely extensible and very fast/clean to use. Here's an old demo of it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyNkBLhIpQk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyNkBLhIpQk
    - 14y ago
- BCM43 14y ago
  What desktop environment are you using? That can change things a lot. I find the default Debian Gnome3 to be pretty good.
  - testimoney2 14y ago
    Ubuntu is now by default Unity and not Gnome. I like both, both didn't find one that doesn't lag for me, maybe im doing something wrong with the drivers :/
- wting 14y ago
  3D desktops are not at the responsiveness level of Windows or OS X despite improvements over the years. As a result, there is still a significant amount of Linux users using 2D desktops. For example, I'm using Gnome 3 fallback (i.e. classic mode) with xmonad. I know quite a few running AwesomeWM with no DE, and others using Ubuntu 2D. That being said, setting up xmonad or AwesomeWM requires a higher initial investment but you gain more control and efficiency in the long run. It's the same argument for using vim/emacs over notepad.
- Shorel 14y ago
  There's work underway to make Unity faster. I expect Raring Ringtail 13.04 to have a lot of improvements in that area.
EthanHeilman 14y ago
The biggest change for 2013 is that microsoft is throwing PC gaming under the bus and trying to move all gaming to the consoles. Evidence, you want evidence: 1. Gaben and a bunch of other people says it's true (http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-11-06-gabe-newell-right-declare-windows-8-a-catastrophe http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-11-06-gabe-newell-rig...) 2. MS is no longer supporting cross platform (xbox/pc) development and is killing XNA. (http://www.extremetech.com/gaming/147289-microsoft-kills-xbox-360pc-cross-platform-development-declares-directx-no-longer-evolving http://www.extremetech.com/gaming/147289-microsoft-kills-xbo...) Also steam supporting linux has significantly increased the number of linux games. Android linux compatibility is a big win for casual games on linux.
gosu 14y ago
What you're saying is reasonable, but I'm amused by the fact that the standard template for this discussion is NOT "it's the year of the Linux desktop, I just know it!" but rather: "Is this the year of the Linux desktop now?" "No, that's a cliche. But Linux is getting better and Windows is bad as ever." "Next year will be the year of the Linux desktop!"

deleted 14y ago

[deleted]

illumen 14y ago

Android is linux.

brudgers 14y ago
The goalposts are moving. That's not what the article claims.

testimoney2 14y ago

As a developer I find Linux very annoying to use. I have tried Ubuntu on different boxes, even on powerful gaming computers, but it doesn't seem as stable as Windows 8 does. Launching programs, or switching between windows has sometimes a little bit of lag (and I'm on an i7, 8gb of ram etc...) I hate having the slightest bit of lag. For me it would be easier to work on linux, but its just not as nice to use as Windows 8 is.

pimeys 14y ago
Or then you have a super fast, super productive desktop with no distractions. Depends how you configure it. Here's mine. (the configs can be stored to github, of course) https://dl.dropbox.com/u/2402047/Screenshot%20from%202013-02-15%2016%3A21%3A49.png https://dl.dropbox.com/u/2402047/Screenshot%20from%202013-02... It's not doable on OSX or on Windows. It's damn fast on my own macbook (2008 edition) and on my work desktop (i5, 16 GB, SSD)
- jiggy2011 14y ago
  Weirdly enough whenever I have tried to use a minimal tiling WM the Window redraws become horrifically slow, whereas Unity with all the eye candy cranked up is smooth as silk.
- testimoney2 14y ago
  Not for me :(. I like having eye candy, even though it does give a lot of distractions.
  - pimeys 14y ago
    Depends what's eye candy for you. For me it's pure solarized colors and lots of terminals open... :)
- glogla 14y ago
  Don't you want to make blog post about your setup or something? I love Linux, but I don't like Gnome Shell or Unity (or KDE or something), and on Desktop it's easy, you just install awesome and run with it. But for a few years I had only laptop, and I was always afraid that things like sleep, or volume and brightness control keys woudn't work, because they seem to be tied with Gnome for some reason. If you could share some more about your setup, that would be great.
  - pimeys 14y ago
    Most of the stuff is here. Sorry for the messy emacs configuration, I'm just studying it after ~10 years of vim. https://github.com/pimeys/dotfiles https://github.com/pimeys/dotfiles Also, two branches: work and macbook. The screenshot is from the work branch.
  - chongli 14y ago
    You might want to try Xmonad. It's a tiling window manager that's extremely extensible and very fast/clean to use. Here's an old demo of it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyNkBLhIpQk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyNkBLhIpQk
  - 14y ago
BCM43 14y ago
What desktop environment are you using? That can change things a lot. I find the default Debian Gnome3 to be pretty good.
- testimoney2 14y ago
  Ubuntu is now by default Unity and not Gnome. I like both, both didn't find one that doesn't lag for me, maybe im doing something wrong with the drivers :/
wting 14y ago
3D desktops are not at the responsiveness level of Windows or OS X despite improvements over the years. As a result, there is still a significant amount of Linux users using 2D desktops. For example, I'm using Gnome 3 fallback (i.e. classic mode) with xmonad. I know quite a few running AwesomeWM with no DE, and others using Ubuntu 2D. That being said, setting up xmonad or AwesomeWM requires a higher initial investment but you gain more control and efficiency in the long run. It's the same argument for using vim/emacs over notepad.
Shorel 14y ago
There's work underway to make Unity faster. I expect Raring Ringtail 13.04 to have a lot of improvements in that area.

EthanHeilman 14y ago

The biggest change for 2013 is that microsoft is throwing PC gaming under the bus and trying to move all gaming to the consoles. Evidence, you want evidence: 1. Gaben and a bunch of other people says it's true (http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-11-06-gabe-newell-right-declare-windows-8-a-catastrophe http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-11-06-gabe-newell-rig...) 2. MS is no longer supporting cross platform (xbox/pc) development and is killing XNA. (http://www.extremetech.com/gaming/147289-microsoft-kills-xbox-360pc-cross-platform-development-declares-directx-no-longer-evolving http://www.extremetech.com/gaming/147289-microsoft-kills-xbo...) Also steam supporting linux has significantly increased the number of linux games. Android linux compatibility is a big win for casual games on linux.

gosu 14y ago

What you're saying is reasonable, but I'm amused by the fact that the standard template for this discussion is NOT "it's the year of the Linux desktop, I just know it!" but rather: "Is this the year of the Linux desktop now?" "No, that's a cliche. But Linux is getting better and Windows is bad as ever." "Next year will be the year of the Linux desktop!"