SteamOS

Tuco_sl said:

Not like it matters atm anyway, with only 300 participants your chances of getting a box are extremely low.

Seems weird that they're chucking 300 boxes to random people instead of spending months and months of giving limited demos to the press at conventions.

Click to expand...

I'm sure it's not that random. They probably are targeting people that use certain systems and play certain games. The press will still get their demos.

Lord Gaben knows best.

If he knew best we would have HL3, 4, and 5 by now. This is like if Google decided to stop developing their search engine and only work on youtube.

Tuco_sl said:

Not like it matters atm anyway, with only 300 participants your chances of getting a box are extremely low.

Seems weird that they're chucking 300 boxes to random people instead of spending months and months of giving limited demos to the press at conventions.

Click to expand...

Which one costs less money and gives more feedback ? Shipping 300 boxes or renting space at multiple conventions. I'd be very surprised if there aren't a few notable youtubers among those 300. Besides, I can't imagine hardware sellers passing a chance to move more gaming PCs as Steamboxes and advertising that during the conventions.

Glad they went with a Debian based distro. The most intriguing bit is they are using their own graphics compositor, thank god they are not using compiz.

Requires a 500 GB hard drive? Why?

meStevo_sl said:

Download is up. Here's the FAQ.

SteamOS FAQ :: Steam Universe

Click to expand...

Weird. Up until a couple weeks ago I thought I was going to be really excited when SteamOS finally was released, but out of the dozen games I have on steam (I just started using it during that last Steam Sale thing) only like 2 or 3 are Linux compatible. I'll probably install SteamOS this weekend anyway, since my new comp doesn't have a Linux install on it yet. I really really hope SteamOS is enough incentive for more developers to start making Linux compatible versions of their games.

The one big thing that I'm surprised about (and in the best way possible) is that they did include a desktop environment and are offering typical Linux programs right from the start. Every package Valve hosts on their own repositories is just another heaping serving of delicious gravy. I bet they'll have plenty of volunteers to develop and maintain SteamOS compatible packages if they decide to accept outside help doing that.

I'm expecting both of these situations to improve as time passes too.

Tuco_sl said:

I still think if Valve really wants this to get rolling they'll need a source engine with native SteamOS support.

Click to expand...

Concur, HL3 and Portal 3 stat.

Agraza_sl said:

Concur, HL3 and Portal 3 stat.

Click to expand...

2014 is marked as the release date of the Source Engine 2, and it would be pretty weird not to have a game or two. I am really hoping they blitzkrieg the fuck out of gamers this year and announce the Orange Box 2 with Half Life 3, Team Fortress 3, and Portal 3 all for $40 and oh by the way it runs on Windows, Mac, SteamOS, PS4, or Xbone with a single buy and for an extra $50 you can get a Steam controller. PC Master Race fatality.

This year also had GDDR6 and DDR4, the new Mantle API from AMD (sort of a next gen OpenGL/DirectX that allows much easier cross-platform porting), who knows what Nvidia will want to try and counter with, and the new Unreal Engine. Should be good times, especially since almost all top tier next gen console games are getting PC ports.

spronk_sl said:

2014 is marked as the release date of the Source Engine 2, and it would be pretty weird not to have a game or two. I am really hoping they blitzkrieg the fuck out of gamers this year and announce the Orange Box 2 with Half Life 3, Team Fortress 3, and Portal 3 all for $40 and oh by the way it runs on Windows, Mac, SteamOS, PS4, or Xbone with a single buy and for an extra $50 you can get a Steam controller. PC Master Race fatality.

This year also had GDDR6 and DDR4, the new Mantle API from AMD (sort of a next gen OpenGL/DirectX that allows much easier cross-platform porting), who knows what Nvidia will want to try and counter with, and the new Unreal Engine. Should be good times, especially since almost all top tier next gen console games are getting PC ports.

Click to expand...

If I were them and released those games, I'd make it SteamOS exclusive for the first month.

Tuco_sl said:

It blows my mind that they released an open source OS just three months after announcing it. Much like when Steam was originally released I don't see the upset yet. It'd be pretty compelling if someone ported a graphics engine to SteamOS that outperformed the Windows version. I still think if Valve really wants this to get rolling they'll need a source engine with native SteamOS support.

Looking at the distro and the problems people are having with it it also seems like this truly isn't a desktop replacement or even an OS that people can just download, install on an HTCP and use with their TV. For now it seems the intent is to allow third parties to build Steam Machines from it.

Click to expand...

I know most people here don't play dota 2 or teamfortress before it, but Valve's plan I believe is to get the the steam OS out there because they know that the community at large will create a lot of apps for it. Much like all the user created cosmetics in Dota 2. Valve doesn't even have to hire artists - outside artists make cosmetics for dota - get paid handsomely for good work and valve takes a cut and handles the tax side of it through the steam marketplace. And the work coming out of the outside artists is really outstanding because there is a lot of competition to make great items. I think that part of what you're seeing is Valve laying the groundwork for linux community to use steamOS as a platform where if they have a great idea that it will get real traction with the capacity to monetize it for single individuals or very small teams.

Why can't I ever get this lucky.