The primary problem with NVIDIA is likely Gamescope. Otherwise, I don't think there's many remaining issues with the NVIDIA proprietary driver that I've experienced, in any case.

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That's a fine charity I'm sure, but if you want to support the browser project, you'll want to donate to the Ladybird Browser Initiative instead.

You make a good point :grin:

It is a bit of a mouthful, though...

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I like Firefox and I use it all the time. It's great as a user and a web dev. I don't like the user experience of Chrome; it doesn't have the features I love in Firefox. That's the main reason I use it; not for engine diversity. I use Chromium for testing only.

When it comes to engine diversity, I'll say that I made what is a significant donation for me to the Ladybird Foundation the day it was announced. Firefox is comfortable; Ladybird is exciting. I can actually fund the development of the browser I use with the Ladybird Foundation.

My reaction to this news is mostly apathy, as it does not affect me in any way. The Linux Foundation doesn't care and has never cared about the desktop, so it doesn't matter to them that every Linux distribution I know of ships with Firefox instead of Chrome. Likewise, the decisions of the Linux Foundation don't impact me much as a desktop Linux user, either.

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I think itch.io is notable just because they're one of the few stores that provide a native Linux client + an integrated Wine compatibility layer.

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I'd like to tell you that Steam sent us an email after launching Steam Deck, hoping that our device could be pre-installed with SteamOS. We did not agree to pre-install SteamOS, but agreed to provide users with a SteamOS image that matches our device for download on our official website. However, they did not provide us with a technical image or technical support, including power management tools for our device and solutions to bugs encountered by users.

How shocking that Valve wouldn't agree to provide technical support and do programming work to create drivers that work for the GPD Win on Linux, presumably for free, for an image that GPD will stick on a corner of their website that a user needs to figure out how to flash onto the device themselves.

Doesn't sound much like a partnership to me.

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Fortnite doesn't work on Linux or SteamOS because Epic will still block you from playing the game and Timmy doesn't like Linux.

Oh, I know, but I doubt most people would figure out how to even get it installed before realising it doesn't work. So I'm discounting it as a non-issue seeing as how, because it's not on Steam in the first place, most people think it isn't playable already.

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I am not nearly as optimistic, but that might just be my 3 years of keeping a dual-boot around for a single kernel-level anti-cheat encumbered game (by far my most-played game) talking.

I would be surprised if people played most of these competitive games on these handhelds. Those are the games with anti-cheat. The only exception might be Fortnite, which the average user wouldn't figure out you needed to use Heroic to get installed on a SteamOS device in the first place. Anti-cheat is a problem, but it's a bigger problem for desktop Linux players than for the Steam Deck or GPD Win.

I am skeptical that Marvel Rivals will still support Linux by the end of the year.

When anti-cheat developers say they want a "secure" environment, they aren't talking about user security. They're talking about their security; user security is often a casualty. I don't doubt that developers would prefer not to compromise their player's security, but that's kind of an inevitability when you start poking around the kernel. If CrowdStrike can't get it right, how are much smaller companies supposed to? Anti-cheat developers really need to use better interfaces for their software, like eBPF.

I don't think this "secure" environment will ever exist on desktop Linux. It's something you're only likely to see on SteamOS.

And to be honest, I would be perfectly happy to dual-boot SteamOS and Arch rather than Windows and Arch.

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Whatever level of support you promise at the time of purchase, you're bound to provide. Otherwise you'll be breaking consumer protection laws. At least in the EU. There's nothing Valve can do to make these promises legally non-binding, and I think that's how it should be.

So what about in the cases of:

1. Rocket League, which provided macOS and Linux versions in 2016, but cancelled them in 2020?
2. Portal 2, where the native version is broken on Wayland with fractional scaling?
3. Several unnamed indie games where the game won't launch because the library versions are too old/new?

Most developers have limited control over the engine they're using, so they may not even be able to fix an issue with the Linux version. Take Heart of the Machine for example: https://www.gamingonlinux.com/2023/08/heart-of-the-machine-from-arcen-games-dropping-native-linux-for-proton/

Unity just writes worse Vulkan calls than DXVK; nothing to be done.

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I wouldn't say ProtonDB was actually superior as some think. A lot of ratings are complete nosense on it, some even have completely made-up environment variables and all sorts. Both rating types have their downsides.

I wouldn't say it's as black-and-white as I initially described it, but the real value of ProtonDB is description. The reports tell you exactly what works and what doesn't (assuming the previous guy or gal has answered the questions studiously), and they contain something vitally important to the committed Linux users: Tweaks and Tips. You can also find those in the Proton thread for the game on Github, but I've found the report structure ProtonDB enforces results in more useful reports you can scan quickly.

I always do reports for both ProtonDB and in the Proton Github thread (or even open a new thread).

I agree that having a nice rating in the Steam store and in your library is really important. But I'd also love to see a separate badge if the developer officially supports the Proton build (for whatever it's worth).

Actually, what I'd really love to see is when you click the badge, it has a link for "More Information" and takes you straight to the Github issue for that game. Or if it doesn't exist, it creates one! Hard to imagine how you'd programmatically link the Github issue, but I want it.

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I will keep hammering on this point: anything short of a label with which the developers can indicate official and legally binding support for proton and/or the deck is insufficient.

There is a point: you can tell what games will work on the Steam Deck before buying them. It's not a guarantee of future support, and the "verified" wording could lead to some confusion. It has the same value as ProtonDB, which is superior to Valve's Verified system because it's more up-to-date and crowdreported.

I agree that there should be a separate rating system that indicates the developer's level of support for the platform. But it should not be legally binding, because nobody would do it and I don't think it's fair.

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