Linux And Steam (clientside)

haven · March 2004

<div class="IPBDescription">A little light relief from windows gamin</div> Something for a little amusement value:

<a href='http://thehavennet.org.uk/modules.php?op=modload&name=phpBB2&file=viewtopic&p=5078&sid=df6024d14887e34deea387ea31284952#5078' target='_blank'>Linux and Steam - one mans journey.</a>

One man and his adventures with linux and steam and NS <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' />

Anyone else tried doing this ? Good results ?

Anyway I think I'll stick to playing under windows for now ...

RedWingate · March 2004

Running quite fine over here but the FPS kinda suck (~30-40 on 1,2GHz 512MB RAM, 4200Ti ) :-)

Cereal_KillR · March 2004

before passing to Linux, you gotta ask yourself if it's for you. Windows is the easy of easy computing, while linux, while more safe and more geeky, might make you look cool but is nevertheless a bit more complicated to use, offers less compatibility, has thousands and thousands of distros to choose from, often come without clear help, and is overall not friendly for the average user.

Not to mention the average user who uses its computer to play a game (designed for windows) can play the game... on Windows!

Which is more than sufficient and the most enjoyable computing experience for the average computer user/gamer

panda_de_malheureux · March 2004

<span style='color:red'>*** 8 billion different kinds of nuked ***</span>

haven · March 2004

Hmmmm was hoping to avoid a flamewar on this one, but I'm not surprised that one is starting.

Windows is good, linux is also good the relative merits of either probably deserve another thread - I did this for fun and out of curiosity and not because of some philosophical belief in one OS over another. Maybe you want to try it, maybe you don't but if I never posted up that it was do-able you might not have thought of it <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif' />

I'd like to hear from anyone else who has done this succcessfully - its good to see that it can be done and have a place to ask questions should you want ...

Personally I'm now trying to get the fps improved to the point where its actually playable - I suspect that MESA may be being used instead of the ATI libGL. However at 640x480 it runs at 50fps which is certainly playable. I'll post up any successes.

explodingheadboy · March 2004

Hoping to avoid a flamewar?

What kind of stupidity is that? Once you mention lun1x on a web board you might as well have turned it into fight club.

Pykmi · March 2004

I have actually been trying to get Steam working for quiiiteee a while already.

Now I have Steam on Wine almost working, and Steam on WineX also almost working.

Both give me "Cannot connect to steam network" error though. Atleast regular Half-Life and all the other games I want to play work.

Cereal_KillR · March 2004

sorry if it felt like a flame, I was just warning about the fact Linux is not for everyone, contrarily to the belief that Microsoft is a sadist who enjoys giving strictly inferior stuff.

If you want/know how to use Linux and are comfortable with it, go ahead. If you don't even know what a console is, chances are you don't want to pass to Linux.

Aaron · March 2004

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'>Linux is only free if your time has no value - Jamie Zawinski</td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'>
I think Jamie Zawinski's words still ring true at this point, although the Linux desktop is slowly getting better. If you don't know who Jamie Zawinski is, then maybe that is another reason you should not run Linux at the moment.

panda_de_malheureux · March 2004

actually i wasnt starting a war, i was just stating in a figurative form that absolute statements are the devil. yay for nukes.

ikir · March 2004

I would play from my AmigaOne, but winex emulate only the windows API, so i can't run Steam with a PPC processor.
My friend plays very good form its linux box.... even more stable than original Winsucks <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/wow.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wow.gif' /> <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/wow.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wow.gif' />

chis1 · March 2004

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Cereal_KillR @ Mar 16 2004, 08:15 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> before passing to Linux, you gotta ask yourself if it's for you. Windows is the easy of easy computing, while linux, while more safe and more geeky, might make you look cool but is nevertheless a bit more complicated to use, offers less compatibility, has thousands and thousands of distros to choose from, often come without clear help, and is overall not friendly for the average user.

Not to mention the average user who uses its computer to play a game (designed for windows) can play the game... on Windows!

Which is more than sufficient and the most enjoyable computing experience for the average computer user/gamer  </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> 
I never asked myself

tried linux

went back to windows <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' />

I really had no need for linux, and even if i did learn to use it, still wouldent be for me... maybe in the future <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' />

haven · March 2004

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'>ow I have Steam on Wine almost working, and Steam on WineX also almost working.

Both give me "Cannot connect to steam network" error though. Atleast regular Half-Life and all the other games I want to play work.</td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'>

You get this a lot in the evenings, if you are just wanting to try it out and make sure that it actually works then try connecting in the morning when the steam network is seriously quiet. I tend to try to get it working around 8am BST for best results. On another note you can have issues with your ClientRegistry.blob (I think thats what its called). Its worth removing it and running steam - it will then re-update you to the latest version and recreates the file in the process.

As to the rest of the posts, I've been using linux for 3 years and I've no idea who Mr Zawinski is <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif' /> I suppose I better go google ...

I agree with most of the posts, yes linux is difficult, yes its badly documented and no in most cases its not needed. However if you like learning new things just for the sake of it, if you like being able to configure something in a completely personal way at a much deeper level than with many other OS's. And indeed if you just want to appear cool to the masses (I really dont think it will have the desired affect) <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' /> then you could have a look. Its there if you have an interest, if you dont then fine.

With regards to documentation, hopefully this thread might help someone in that regard...

amarc · March 2004

Its not like it will make a difference, you will still be crap <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/wink.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wink.gif' />

Jabba_The_Hunt · March 2004

I've tried linux many times and while its great for programming, and basic stuff it takes far longer than I want to take to install a program, and getting games to work is even longer. So yeah im back with Windows <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' />

tbh I dont think they will ever replace windows until they embrace microsoft standards.

smokingwreckage · March 2004

Gotta wonder about that. Waiting for enlightenment.

t0mcat · March 2004

i've recenlty dropped winXP from my hdd, and installed Gentoo Linux.

since that moment, i've never rebooted winXP.

i used many apps in win, most of them for web-devel purposes: dreamweaver, photoshop, coreldraw.

and i was also a NS addicted gamer.

in this month i've found every apps i needed, installed them in linux, and now i can work with it much better than with winXP.

the point is that u must forget how you used an OS, and learn how to use a new one.
u cannot find the same windows things in linux.
u must think in a new way.
i did so, and now i don't have any problem.

u don't have photoshop, u have gimp.
u don't have corel draw, u have sodipodi.
u don't have dreamweaver, u have nvu.
and theese are only a few examples.

problems installing apps? nope, with a good packet manager, like the Gentoo's one (Portage), u just type emerge "packet", and u have installed it, compiled on your machine, optimized for your cpu.

problems installing hardware? sometimes it's true, sometimes it's not: it was hard to me, but in the end i got it, to install my SATA Raid under linux. but it was also really quick installing a USB scanner or the soundcard.

it's not easy, coz it's not intended to be so. but nothing it's impossible.

today i've finally solved the only problem i had: running steam under linux.
i've found a winex3.3 binary, installed it, and now i don't even have to reboot before a cw coz i'm no more afraid of a thoose f**kin' crashes that were occuring after 30 minutes of NS session.

everything is sweet now, and i'm really happy i have a OS that uses 100% of my hardware, that i can get days and days of uptime without stability issues, i don't have any security problem, and i have a lot of FREE apps almost equivalent or in some cases even more powerful than windowz ones.

u must give it a try, without using it like a windows-clone.
u have to use it as it is expected to be used, as GNU/Linux: many command-line performs, using a TRUE multi-user system, and learining reading the HUGE ammount of stuff u can find over the web.
u won't have any limit to your productivity and/or creativeness.

just my 2 cents.

p.s.
sorry for english mistakes, but i'm italian <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' />

Zaggy · March 2004

I find the Linux prompt a lot of fun, especially the scripts (like .bat files in windows) are VERY strong, and you can do about everything with them.

but for games... <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/sad.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='sad.gif' />

Vadakill · March 2004

I've been a linux server admin for 5 years now and I think it's great, as a game server. Personally I don't think anyone should serve a game from anything but Linux, especially in the windows hostile environment that the Internet is now a days. But this really isn't about the server side of things, it's about Linux as a desktop.

Do I use Linux as a desktop? Nope! Why? Because I'm a gamer, and a lazy one at that. I want to be able to install a game and have it just work right out of the box. When I administer a server I expect a certain amount of work, when it's time to game I want to game NOW DAMNIT!

There is a "however" to this though. This is in the case of the person who is not a gamer. I believe 95% of the corporate world can get along just fine with Linux as their desktop. They do not need to play games, they only need productivity applications which linux does just was well as any Windows application.

So what's a Linux desktop look and feel like? Try downloading <a href='http://www.knoppix.com/' target='_blank'>Knoppix</a>, burn it to a CD and boot from it. You can try playing with Linux without messing with your current hard drive at all, it runs completely from the CD. If you do try this, please keep in mind that it won't be as responsive since it is running completely from CD.

The only way I can really see Linux breaking into the gaming market is if they pull a Xbox type approach. Do I mean launch a console? No. I'm talking about developers doing what they do currently for consoles. Take the stripped down kernel, optimize it by making sure they compile in only the things they need and make the game bootable from the CD.

Comments?

GWAR · March 2004

I gave linux a shot, I enjoyed it as a desktop OS. But no matter what i did I could not get those damn nvidia drivers working for 3d support.

And only recently I found out even if I installed them correctly I would still have no 3d support <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/sad.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='sad.gif' />

Its quite impressive, you got steam working under linux when it barely runs under windows.

Dark_Hand · March 2004

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (GWAR @ Mar 22 2004, 02:46 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> I gave linux a shot, I enjoyed it as a desktop OS. But no matter what i did I could not get those damn nvidia drivers working for 3d support.</td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'>
NVIDIAs new linux drivers are rediculously simple:

Shut down X

Extract the drivers

Run the drivers, all the installation is done for you. It will automatically download the files you need for your particular kernel, or automatically compile new ones for you if it can't find them

Edit your XF86Config file to use the new drivers (usually entails changing 'nv' to 'nvidia'

Restart X

Enjoy your new drivers!

And that's from memory. <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif' /> Very simple now! And I had no problems with Steam on Linux when using the newest version of WineX

GWAR · March 2004

Even after doing all of the above, I still had a wonderful black screen (or a corrupted one if I boot with a older kernel)

I need a new video card before attempting gaming under linux anyway.

haven · March 2004

Compared to the ati drivers the NVIDIA ones are rather nice to install <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif' />

I assume you can get X working prior to the NVIDIA drivers being installed ? Also what kernel are you running and what card do you have ?

Anyway I've gotten my Natural Selection to run in OpenGL mode properly now (previosly it was only in software mode), I've gone from 20-30 fps @640x480 to 40-50 fps @ 1600x1200. With the migration to OpenGL I've not had a single steam crash either.

For anyone else who might be having issues - I found I had a duplicate copy of LibGL.so under /usr/X11/lib/ this contained MESA drivers and was being invoked instead of my ati drivers. Once I removed it then it worked fine (NB DONT try to symlink it as it wont work).

I'm still getting sound corruption in NS although DoD and Cstrike both work perfectly (99fps @1600x1200 in cstrike). Has anyone else had sound corruption issues with winex 3.3 and did you find out the cause ?

Thanks