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Latest Comments by Marlock
Comet is an open source implementation of GOG Galaxy SDK that needs testing
25 May 2023 at 12:06 pm UTC Likes: 1

There's current windows versions of GoG games which are likely to be able to use it, and hopefully new linux builds might be able to leverage this despite not being official?

Comet is an open source implementation of GOG Galaxy SDK that needs testing
25 May 2023 at 12:06 am UTC Likes: 1

that's very cool! thanks for making it clear

Comet is an open source implementation of GOG Galaxy SDK that needs testing
24 May 2023 at 7:49 pm UTC Likes: 2

big question:

does it actually (aim to) allow a game to have achievents tracked and sent to GoG's cloud when played under linux?

or does/will it serve only to show what's stored there from play sessions under windows (or WINE) with GoG Galaxy itself?

Roblox still plan to make it work with Wine on Linux
15 May 2023 at 7:45 pm UTC Likes: 2

disclaimer: this is a general impressiin from a user, not a real dev... and I'm gladly open to rebutal

linux kernel does not break userspace but breaks internal ABIs so it gets badmouthed by nvidia and the likes of it

however linux distros do have a few dire cases of ongoing userspace API breakage (eg: X.org to Wayland)

also for games and closed-source apps the fact that libs are centraly provided in a distro/user-controlled version by default rather than bundled with each app in a frozen version bothers windows-mindset devs

ps: i rather see an app break and a shim need to be constructed for some API breakage than have the app bundle a version of OpenSSL with heartbleed into it years after the lib provided by the OS was fixed

also linux did have a larger issue with non-kernel and in-kernel API breakage but Valve and a bunch of talented devs reversed this trend beautifully through the past decade, so much so that several opensource compatibility layers born from and for linux needs are ending up being used to improve software compatibility in windows (eg: DXVK can be deployed as a .dll on windows to help games that aren't working properly on DirectX 9 through 11 on windows run over Vulkan, circumventing issues that arose from windows, drivers and APIs behaving differently over time and breaking games... or even adding game-specific patches in the extra layer when microsoft and hardware driver devs don't do it)

linux also exports better API compatibility to iOS and OSX now, with stuff like Zink over MoltenVK working to keep OpenGL apps alive despite Apple's uncerimonious deprecation of OpenGL APIs years ago... it's comical how Apple is hardly ever mentioned as a bigger nuissance for API breakage than Linux, or Android SDKs for that matter... both are a nightmare to keep up with (even non-dev users can see it from their POV due to UX breakages the SDK changes intriduce at every major version, several times without so much as a warning shot), but devs seem to be quite stoic regarding those platforms

edit:
I should also mention just how much windows API stability across OS version worsened lately, which some devs and expectators don't seem to notice... IMHO it's something that started around the time of UWP, which is when the money to be made was strongly in the realm of making it harder for traditional apps to keep working and forcing the bulk of them into Microsoft Store via rewritten UWP versions...

it didn't work nearly as well as Microsoft hoped for, and Valve stepped up their Linux efforts due to this (because it was an existential threat to any other games/apps store on windows, obviously)

and now we have windows 10 and 11 with a much stronger focus on breaking old stuff if necessary to ensure new stuff is as good as it can be, as a general decision driving force and as a public discourse for choices they made in many aspects of the new OS versions

and this leaves entire machines out of the loop, hardware parts driverless, older apps working better on WINE than on Windows itself, DXVK as a necessary workaround on windows, etc

NVIDIA open sources more of RTX Remix with v0.2
13 May 2023 at 10:41 pm UTC

eventually supporting OpenGL... using Zink atop the current vulkan stack maybe?

Goodbye to Roblox on Linux with their new anti-cheat and Wine blocking
10 May 2023 at 12:20 pm UTC Likes: 2

[quote=Eike]
Quoting: MarlockStrange enough, the means (provided by Microsoft) against the roadblocks for updates are different ones than those for the installation. So you might end up with an installation that you cannot update one day - when not being able to update made you change from 10 to 11 in the first place...
As stated by the linked article:
This procedure is NOT SUPPORTED by Microsoft. While company blog posts suggest the company is aware of users taking these drastic steps, they have not yet taken counter steps to block them, and they don’t currently have plans to do so—but that doesn’t mean that they won’t.
Also there are bare minimal requirements (even with the workarounds) that may already preclude usage of a significant fleet of old machines:
It is important to note that successful Windows 11 installations will still require TPM 1.2 or better and UEFI boot capability. This will also only work for the 64-bit versions of both operating systems. Those requirements are immutable.
Win11 is just not possible where any of the above is missing, and that would include perfectly fine gaming machines like my AMD Phenom II x4 (recently broken, donated to a friend electrician and put back to use by him, gaming included). It's a nice 4 core cpu @ 3,4ghz but no UEFI.

Goodbye to Roblox on Linux with their new anti-cheat and Wine blocking
10 May 2023 at 9:29 am UTC Likes: 2

Here is a plausible reason why people might be more motivated to try Linux at home and at work there now, besides govt policies:
https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/microsoft-ending-support-to-windows-10-current-version-to-be-final-updates-101682831410557.html [External Link]

Combine India's huge mass of old PCs that can't be changed to a new PC and Win11's official minimal supported hardware restrictions, and you have effectively Microaoft to thank for any uptick in Linux usage there

ps: win11 can be installed on older hardware, but MS makes it abundantly clear this is not supported and puts several roadblocks on it
https://www.techrepublic.com/article/how-to-install-windows-11-on-older-unsupported-pcs/ [External Link]

Cartridges is another Linux game launcher and it's super-clean
6 May 2023 at 10:57 am UTC Likes: 3

does it?

1) manage (fetch/update/delete, lets you choose and configure per game) wine/proton versions for use by windows versions of games

2) manage libretro emulator cores?

3) alternative native game engines (eg: dosbox, scummvm, openra, openrb, ...)

4) use runtimes/sandbox?

so far it looks a bit like its purpose is to be a launcher over launchers (just to have a unified games list somewhere with steam, heroic, lutris and etc still needed behind it), but i may have gotten the wrong impression from the article

AMD Ryzen Z1 Series announced for handhelds, ASUS ROG Ally first to get it
25 Apr 2023 at 6:56 pm UTC Likes: 1

Quoting: cybik
Quoting: erik-reiderSo the APU in the Ally isn't so "custom" after all
It probably was, until AMD just had the realization they should standardize it :D
iirc AMD's custom cpu division has been spearheading several improvements that not much later end up in their normal CPUs at least since its creation when they poached the PS4 and Xbox Series consoles (eg: direct storage data loading to the gpu eliminating trip through ram/cpu)

Ubuntu 23.04 is out now with GNOME 44 and a stable Steam Snap
21 Apr 2023 at 7:01 pm UTC

Quoting: Purple Library GuyI wonder if ad revenue for independent websites has gotten skimpier--is Google siphoning off more of the cash than it used to?
Maybe, but IIRC word from Michael himself is that adblocks trending up was a major factor and his premium subscriber audience didn't increase enough to make up for it.

Also there has been a baby involved, which is great news in itself but also means no sleep has been had and all that.

This has been ongoing for a couple years, not something that happened these last few months.