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Ask Slashdot: Should Valve Start Their Own Steam Linux Distro?

Posted by Soulskill on from the bet-they-would-go-with-a-hat-name dept.

Duggeek writes "There's been a lot of discussion lately about Valve, Steam and the uncertain future of the Windows platform for gaming. While the effect of these events is unmistakably huge, it raises an interesting question: Would Valve consider putting out its own Linux distro? One advantage of such a dedicated distro would be tighter control over kernel drivers, storage, init processes and managing display(s), but would it be worth all the upstream bickering? Would it be better to start anew, or ride on a mature foundation like Fedora or Debian? Might that be a better option than addressing the myriad differences of today's increasingly fracturing distro-scape?"

5 of 316 comments (clear)

  1. why on earth would they want to do that? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Worst case, static link the binaries.

    1. Re:why on earth would they want to do that? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I agree that some people get crazy-worked-up, but I find the sabotage outcome unlikely.

      I expect they'll hang their hats on a reference distro or two like most software that isn't included in official repos. Ubuntu first, Fedora second. They want the biggest audience possible.

    2. Re:why on earth would they want to do that? by Microlith · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Because whether the community wishes to accept it or not there is a LARGE amount of "purists" that believe GPL is law and anything that doesn't have the 4 freedoms is poison.

      Well, you know. Fuck 'em. Valve is targeting Ubuntu which already includes non-free software in some repos. If they have a problem they can go use gNewSense which won't work with most of their hardware.

      Frankly I would be VERY surprised if some of those vocal members of the kernel team didn't just "accidently" make changes that broke Steam every. damned. time.

      I would. Such malicious changes would have be very, very deliberate to interfere with a userspace application. And then you'd have to account for the hypocrisy of doing that while not interfering with the use of Linux with other proprietary applications. Not that Steam would need a kernel module or anything, since it's an entirely user-space technology.

      That said, given your history of childish, insulting, and hateful rhetoric, posting such baseless attacks against the kernel developers is entirely predictable, coming from you.

      So whether one wishes to acknowledge the truth or not

      I'm sure the truth lies somewhere, but it certainly does not resemble the picture you paint.

      nothing should be allowed to 'contaminate" Linux, especially not DRM which again, like it or not, is EXACTLY what Steam is.

      Thankfully, Steam does not integrate into the OS in any real fashion.

      the purists simply won't have it, even if it causes Linux to grow.

      The purists can cause a fuss, but like any other proprietary application that has appeared for Linux the end result will be nothing since it won't impact them should they choose not to use it.

    3. Re:why on earth would they want to do that? by CapuchinSeven · · Score: 5, Insightful

      "Linux" wasn't open or free until Stallman convinced Linus it should be.

  2. There is already such a thing. by DerFlob · · Score: 5, Insightful

    There is already such a thing. It's called Windows. I want Steam on _my_ installation of whatever distro I prefer. If I had to reboot whenever I want to play, it would negate the advantages of having Steam on Linux (for me), because I already do it this way with Linux & Windows.