From SteamOS
“SteamOS is Linux-based, and the vast majority of the Steam library runs on SteamOS, thanks to the Proton compatibility layer”
So they provide their own OS and dependencies.
I think so. Steamos is a 64 bit kernel, but there are apparently lots of its apps still 32 bit. Someone who knows games might correct me here?
Yup - i586, and i686 (which mostly have PAE - i.e. you can address more than 4 GB of RAM with a 32 bit O/S and CPU)… I think some Windows server O/S could use PAE, but none of their desktop O/S did - and even the way Microsoft used 4 GB on 32 bit was shonky - i.e. you could only use 3 GB out of the box, then do some other stuff if you had a “Pro” version of Windows and use 3.5 GB - but NEVER the full 4096 MB… kinda like the old 640k bullshit…
x86_64 can still run i386 binaries and libraries… Note : the Arch based SteamOS on SteamDeck is x86_64…
I am a bit of a gamer - I run Ubuntu 24.04 (previously Pop!_OS 22.04) x86_64 - and I also game on Steam using Proton (i.e. Wine) - the main Windows game I play is Age of Empires II : HD / Definitive Edition - i.e. it’s a 100% i386 32 bit Windows game and it runs no issues on my x86_64 Linux desktop…
Not really - e.g. the Vulkan stuff in Steam works fine on my AMD Radeon (using open source drivers)… Vulkan is the GPU stuff in Steam and emulated for Windows games in Steamplay / Proton (i.e. Wine) - I think it does the DirectX garbage that Microsoft insist on… I’m not really 100% sure - Steam does pretty much 100% of the heavy lifting and I’m not particularly motivated to look under the hood…
No - they provide the drivers… I run Steam on Ubuntu… Valve’s “SteamDeck” OS runs their inhouse developed version of Arch - but just 'cause you have a SteamDeck - it doesn’t mean you can say “I run ARCH BTW” (any more than you could with Manjaro or Garuda)…
Note: getting steam going on Ubuntu and Pop!_OS is as simple as :
sudo apt install steam… I’ve never tried it on Debian…
That will run for quite a while as there’s a vast library of libraries to download and install (including 32 bit i386/686 stuff)… Once it’s installed - you should have a menu item “Steam” - fire it up - login to Steam (they make you do MFA via email) and you then use the Steam client to install any games in your library. Within the Steam client - you can do things like pick which version of Proton to use for a Windows games - there’s a bewildering list of available Proton options!
Glossary to help non-gamers follow this thread
SteamOS - a version of Linux based on Arch. Supposedly optimised for games. Runs on what hardware?
Steam - refers go both software and a games store. The software can run on any Debian based Linux, or on SteamOS.
SteamDeck - I am lost … can someone complete this.
Proton -
Wine -
Wine is the main Linux Windows emulator. It has been around forever.
Proton is the same thing but newer and was developed expressly for compatiblity with games. I haven’t used wine in years and bnever tried proton.
Wikipedia says that Steamdeck is a handheld game computer with Steam installed on it.
Wine (originally an acronym for “Wine Is Not an Emulator”) is a compatibility layer capable of running Windows applications If you check the wine site !
But yes its superb.
Dont forget they also do a paid for version, which I have never tried
Funny thing is, since i386 protected mode allowed for addressing a LOT of memory (something like 2TB?), due to how it was designed. Microsoft’s limitation was either due to idiocy or due to them wanting to make it hard to use their desktop os for a server. I am 100% certain, though, that it was not due to the limitations of the processor.
Bill Gates is reporter to have said
``640K of memory should
be enough for anybody
In 1981 to an American newspaper which afterwards he denied
SteamDeck is a handheld x86_64 computer - 16 GB RAM - and different sized SSD depending on exact model and price…
I’ve seen people (even on here) compare SteamDeck to Android - they’re NOTHING alike apart from the Linux kernel - SteamOS is a full KDE Desktop - you can plug a keyboard and mouse in and hook up a HDMI monitor and use it as full desktop O/S. SteamOS is GNU/Linux - Android is just “Linux” (via the kernel). I don’t have one - so I can’t really say one way or the other - it’s Arch based - but I don’t know if it works EXACTLY like an install of Arch - does it support AUR? I don’t know…
Steamdeck uses a Ryzen 7 with an APU what has Vega8 GPU on the same CPU “die” (and they use the OSS AMD GPU drivers)…
It’s a similar concept to the Nintendo Switch - and - there are now Asus and Lenovo handheld x86_64 gaming computers - they ship with Windows 11… But I think people have successfully installed CachyOS on them to play Steam Linux games…
Note also - the Steam “client” for Linux can install and run on Fedora and Arch based distros too… I used Fedora for maybe 6 weeks and I had several of my Steam games running just fine… What annoyed me about Fedora was having to install RPM-Fusion and EPEL repos…
I don’t have a problem with RPM / YUM / DNF based distros - but I prefer DEB. I do Red Hat and Oracle Linux support for my job…
I bought a 2nd hand ThinkPad E495 because it had very similar specs to the SteamDeck - i.e. a Ryzen with Vega8 GPU… Of course that’s just about the only similarity… The Thinkpad would be lucky to get 3 hours life on battery… I think Valve claim 10 hours for the SteamDeck…
Thanks. I think there are people like me who have absolutely no idea about gaming software or hardware. Your reply will help.
The point will probably be “moot” very soon…
Supplies of SteamDeck are being severely affected by the big AI vendors buying up years worth of future production of RAM and other silicon and GPUs et cetera…
And Valve actually announced a “console” version of the SteamDeck (like a Playstation or XBox) - but they can’t promise a shipping or launch date - thanks to AI…
Who asked for AI? Did AI ask for itself? Have we reached the singularity?
I’m glad I got that Intel GPU before all this started ramping up and getting worse… How is this ever going to be beneficial for humans? Sure it’s probably GREAT for big fat corporations and the AI tech itself - but what about humans?
The final end point of a materialistic culture does not seem to include humans.
Lordy - we seem to have really gotten off topic on this thread 
I cant really see where to split it… any suggestions?
I can certainly see some uses of LLMs in OS’
In the file manager I could, for example, look up all images and/or videos with my cat in them – especially when I forgot to rename them from their default name – and move them to their own, appropriately named, directory. Such functionality could be implemented as a plugin, no need to include it all the time.
In a mass rename utility I could simply have it figure out the appropriate names on its own.
It’s situations like these in which AI would be useful.
Maybe even in predicting which application you’re going to open first and preloading the needed libraries already – but this doesn’t require a LLM to function.
Good question, honestly. Nothing particular comes to mind. And I wasn’t necessarily suggesting to move it. I was just intrigued how far off the path we got.
Here is another quote I saw today. This one from Facebook.
Shame on yall for hating on Ubuntu. Seriously, why do yall hate Ubuntu so much? I’ve been avoiding Ubuntu for about 2 years because of all the hate I’ve seen online but after installing Zorin 3 days ago, I decided to try Ubuntu and boy, was I shocked. Everything just worked. All my drivers, every app I needed, every problem I had I found solutions on the Ubuntu forum. I just wanna know why Ubuntu is so hated despite clearly being the best distro.
Everything it says is true, but why all the hype.?
It is way more complicated than ‘is Ubuntu a good distro’
A Mercedes is a good car, but I dont want to own one.
This forum seems to specialize in off topic discussions. I am reluctant to do topic splitting… if we let the discussion happen spontaneously, without moderator interference, it seems everyone enjoys it.
I have occasionally been forced to split a topic when it developed 2 serious computer-related threads, but I dont see that splitting non-computer-related side issues achieves anything. It is just friendliness and entertainment. I vote we leave with the topic.