Steam for Linux

[Lyokanthrope]

[QUOTE=The Baconator;38544504]There needs to be a Linux desktop environment that has a taskbar similar to Windows 7's taskbar. I mean the rest of the GUI I don't care, but damn you can't beat the Windows 7 taskbar, that stole the title for best taskbar from OSX's dock.

There also needs to be a less console fiddling way of install propriety video drivers, I mean c'mon the open source ones are useless unless you enjoy not gaming at all.

Also the whole "ask password for everything dur hur" needs to be optional.

I don't care for security or being some open source guy, I care about the fact that your average Linux distro from a few years ago is superior in terms of kernel and other "under the hood" stuff to Windows in pretty much every way imaginable. But damn Linux GUI's and traditionalism are an anchor to a ship made of diamonds, next to a leaky boat (Windows)[/QUOTE]

dockbarX can imitate the Windows 7 superbar, and most distros integrate a GUI to install drivers automagically..
And nothing can really be done about the ask password for everything unless you want to grant everything root when asked (which could be a really REALLY big security issue)

[ShaunOfTheLive]

[QUOTE=The Baconator;38544504]Also the whole "ask password for everything dur hur" needs to be optional.[/QUOTE]

It is optional, if you change sudoer permissions or just log in as root.

[Fenteale]

[QUOTE=Altair_PT;38543358]I managed to start TF2, had to remove Mouse and other useless USB crap I had on...[/QUOTE]

Can you elaborate? I'm having this exact same problem.

[Miya]

ubuntu made me feel like a old grandmother using windows for the first time

can't open .run files without lookin up tutorials or anything

hopefully i get used to it soon, till then i am sticking to win 8 till i get a bit more familiar with ubuntu.

[.Lain]

[QUOTE=Wii60;38545944]ubuntu made me feel like a old grandmother using windows for the first time

can't open .run files without lookin up tutorials or anything

hopefully i get used to it soon, till then i am sticking to win 8 till i get a bit more familiar with ubuntu.[/QUOTE]
Get to used to it as quick as possible, that's where the fun really starts.
Learn bash while you're at it, most useful system upkeep tool ever.

[editline]22nd November 2012[/editline]

[QUOTE=The Baconator;38544504]There needs to be a Linux desktop environment that has a taskbar similar to Windows 7's taskbar. I mean the rest of the GUI I don't care, but damn you can't beat the Windows 7 taskbar, that stole the title for best taskbar from OSX's dock.

There also needs to be a less console fiddling way of install propriety video drivers, I mean c'mon the open source ones are useless unless you enjoy not gaming at all.

Also the whole "ask password for everything dur hur" needs to be optional.

I don't care for security or being some open source guy, I care about the fact that your average Linux distro from a few years ago is superior in terms of kernel and other "under the hood" stuff to Windows in pretty much every way imaginable. But damn Linux GUI's and traditionalism are an anchor to a ship made of diamonds, next to a leaky boat (Windows)[/QUOTE]
similar to win7?
Cinnamon + Mint Menu (cinnamon even has a Win7 start menu if you want that)
And you can install video drivers from the 'additional hardware drivers' in Ubuntu/Ubuntu derivitives.
You can change sudoers as already mentioned if you want, but it's generally a safety hazard.
Windows is a lot less safe when you're in administrator all the time. Same goes for Linux.

[The Baconator]

[QUOTE]Windows is a lot less safe when you're in administrator all the time.
[/QUOTE]

true but Windows doesn't ask for your password, or even force a password, and local admin has been disabled since Vista.

[Bumrang]

mine never asks for a password?

[editline]21st November 2012[/editline]

it just does everything without needing a password

[editline]21st November 2012[/editline]

do you mean sudo...? I am genuinely confused right now :v:

[.Lain]

[QUOTE=Bumrang;38546667]mine never asks for a password?

[editline]21st November 2012[/editline]

it just does everything without needing a password

[editline]21st November 2012[/editline]

do you mean sudo...? I am genuinely confused right now :v:[/QUOTE]

He is complaining about needing to put in a password to manage things that you [I]should[/I] need to have a password lock on.
Apt, gparted etc.

To be fair I rarely ever even have to put my password in

[Jookia]

Pick one:

[] Security
[] No Password

[editline]22nd November 2012[/editline]

[QUOTE=The Baconator;38546486]true but Windows doesn't ask for your password, or even force a password[/QUOTE]

This is a bad thing. You should need a password to add new executable code to a system installation.

[QUOTE=The Baconator;38546486]and local admin has been disabled since Vista.[/QUOTE]

It's kinda sad that security is so bad that it doesn't matter if you're admin to do things like that.

[editline]22nd November 2012[/editline]

[QUOTE=The Baconator;38544504]I don't care for security[/QUOTE]

This is a bad attitude to have. If you can do bad things to your system without a password, so can viruses.

[.Lain]

How can you just not care for security
Don't come crying when you accidentally rm -rf /.

[Matt-]

[QUOTE=The Baconator;38544504]Also the whole "ask password for everything dur hur" needs to be optional. [/QUOTE]

The only time I have to enter a password is when installing software or critical system stuff like partitioning etc.. What's the problem?

[Meatpuppet]

Can anyone actually tell me why I should switch to Linux? I've heard it's the "better" OS, and I tend to agree with Facepunch, but what's actually so good about it? The main reason I've been wanting to get it is because linking and compiling libraries is so much easier on Linux, and the fact that Steam is coming to it almost makes me want to switch. How does it differ from other OS's in terms of moddability, security, aesthetics? I'm just curious.

[Jookia]

[QUOTE=Meatpuppet;38550761]Can anyone actually tell me why I should switch to Linux? I've heard it's the "better" OS, and I tend to agree with Facepunch, but what's actually so good about it?[/QUOTE]

It's designed properly. It's much more stable than Windows, and more secure (less viruses). It's also a developer's wet dream.

[QUOTE=Meatpuppet;38550761]The main reason I've been wanting to get it is because linking and compiling libraries is so much easier on Linux[/QUOTE]

Not really. Just more organized. Use the terminal to install the library and just use it.

[QUOTE=Meatpuppet;38550761]How does it differ from other OS's in terms of[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=Meatpuppet;38550761]moddability[/QUOTE]

All the source code (except for shit like some video drivers and Skype and Flash) is available around the Internet for your toying with. The entire system itself has applications tracked for easy installation/removal, and downloading from remote locations. So to update your entire system you run one command, same with adding/removing applications/libraries. It also means developing is easier as everything connects together properly.

[QUOTE=Meatpuppet;38550761]security[/QUOTE]

Unix was built back in the 1970s where main frames were connected to remotely using dumb terminals with nothing really installed. It's by design meant to be secure against local attacks. In fact it's better than Windows in almost all aspects in design.

Windows was built in the 1980s with the idea that only one person is using the computer. It's kind of gone on to multiple accounts but it's still a bit of a wreck security-wise.

[QUOTE=Meatpuppet;38550761]aesthetics? I'm just curious.[/QUOTE]

Eh, you can choose from a few different desktop environments and use their applications and all that. I just use Xfce and run what I want.

[T3hGamerDK]

[QUOTE=Meatpuppet;38550761]Can anyone actually tell me why I should switch to Linux? I've heard it's the "better" OS, and I tend to agree with Facepunch, but what's actually so good about it? The main reason I've been wanting to get it is because linking and compiling libraries is so much easier on Linux, and the fact that Steam is coming to it almost makes me want to switch. How does it differ from other OS's in terms of moddability, security, aesthetics? I'm just curious.[/QUOTE]

No one can tell you why YOU should switch to Linux, but people can tell you a lot of good things about using a system based on Linux.
It mainly differs in its openness. Most Linux systems are completely open source, and as such everything can be modified. Some, more than others.
It differs in choice too. The choice to change whatever you like. There's usually no set aesthetics, although one is usually pre-defined in most distributions, but this can almost always be changed to fit exactly whatever you want.
Security is a thing that depends on the distribution too, but mostly it's a user thing. Don't do stupid shit and open up your computer and all of the ports to the internet while all your services are running.

[danharibo]

[QUOTE=The Baconator;38544504]There needs to be a Linux desktop environment that has a taskbar similar to Windows 7's taskbar. I mean the rest of the GUI I don't care, but damn you can't beat the Windows 7 taskbar, that stole the title for best taskbar from OSX's dock.

There also needs to be a less console fiddling way of install propriety video drivers, I mean c'mon the open source ones are useless unless you enjoy not gaming at all.

Also the whole "ask password for everything dur hur" needs to be optional.

I don't care for security or being some open source guy, I care about the fact that your average Linux distro from a few years ago is superior in terms of kernel and other "under the hood" stuff to Windows in pretty much every way imaginable. But damn Linux GUI's and traditionalism are an anchor to a ship made of diamonds, next to a leaky boat (Windows)[/QUOTE]

There's plenty of things that can emulate Windows 7's taskbar behavior, KDE's task manager for example.

When there's no licencing issues preventing them from being installed, we can talk (Plus from what I remember, installing them in Ubuntu is virtually painless.)

Asking for passwords [b]is[/b] optional, it's just never done that way because it's horribly insecure, UAC isn't annoying because it prompts you all the time, it's annoying because it breaks certain applications.

There's no such thing as "Linux GUIs", there are desktop environments such as KDE, Gnome, XFCE etc. that can [i]run[/i] on Linux, and are the norm for desktop distros, and all of them are nicer and support more customization than Windows.

[AltairPT]

[QUOTE=Mangmasta;38545351]Can you elaborate? I'm having this exact same problem.[/QUOTE]

This depends on what you have connected to your USB ports.
For example, I had a Microsoft Xbox Wireless Receiver on one of them, and that was making me unable to start TF2, just disconnect the stuff you don't need, and if you still can't run it, then it could be your mouse or keyboard...

[T3hGamerDK]

[QUOTE=danharibo;38550860]
There's no such thing as "Linux GUIs", there are desktop environments such as KDE, Gnome, XFCE etc. that can [i]run[/i] on Linux, and are the norm for desktop distros, and all of them are nicer and support more customization than Windows.[/QUOTE]

This is true, and some of them run on other Unix-like systems, such as OSX or BSD variants.

[danharibo]

[QUOTE=Meatpuppet;38550761]Can anyone actually tell me why I should switch to Linux? I've heard it's the "better" OS, and I tend to agree with Facepunch, but what's actually so good about it? The main reason I've been wanting to get it is because linking and compiling libraries is so much easier on Linux, and the fact that Steam is coming to it almost makes me want to switch. How does it differ from other OS's in terms of moddability, security, aesthetics? I'm just curious.[/QUOTE]

I'll try to keep it short.

Building software is almost entirely painless thanks to the centralized libraries and headers, something where Windows falls flat on it's face.

In terms of mod-ability, since just about everything you'd want to change is a user-space application running on-top of the kernel, you can change just about everything. The applications themselves are incredibly flexible also; KDE (which is my DE of choice) has a bounty of options as well as addons that add even more features (for example, I can turn on wobbly windows and desktop cube if I wanted, but I don't want to).

Security of course, is a strong point in Linux. If you know what you're doing, you'll probably never have any problems (and even if you don't know entirely what you're doing, it's fairly difficult to mess it all up).

Aesthetics is quite a moot point, since you can install any Desktop Environment you want, and most of them support themes, so you can make your DE of choice look like just about anything.

[Meatpuppet]

Ok, now that you guys have convinced me,

1) How manageable/quick is it to switch between Windows (gaming) and Linux (everything else)? How will I install Linux on a computer that already has Windows?
2) I'm pretty set on Ubuntu, but what other distros are out there that are worth taking a look at?

[danharibo]

[QUOTE=Meatpuppet;38551033]Ok, now that you guys have convinced me,

1) How manageable/quick is it to switch between Windows (gaming) and Linux (everything else)? How will I install Linux on a computer that already has Windows?
2) I'm pretty set on Ubuntu, but what other distros are out there that are worth taking a look at?[/QUOTE]

The *buntu installer can automatically re-partition your disk drive for you (don't forget to back up in case the planets have aligned and today is your unlucky day) and set up dual-booting.

*buntu is probably the best distro for a beginner.

[MatheusMCardoso]

I would recommend Mint over Ubuntu if you are a complete beginner.

It`s just like ubuntu but with more pre-installed features like codecs and uses gnome based interfaces which are similar to windows.

[Flaming Spaz]

[QUOTE=Meatpuppet;38551033]Ok, now that you guys have convinced me,

1) How manageable/quick is it to switch between Windows (gaming) and Linux (everything else)? How will I install Linux on a computer that already has Windows?
2) I'm pretty set on Ubuntu, but what other distros are out there that are worth taking a look at?[/QUOTE]

Something you have to remember is that a lot of games won't work under Linux, so if you're fine with the current line-up/don't mind dual-booting then go for it.

[Jookia]

[QUOTE=Meatpuppet;38551033]1) How manageable/quick is it to switch between Windows (gaming) and Linux (everything else)?[/QUOTE]

It's a reboot (ugh) away.

[QUOTE=Meatpuppet;38551033]How will I install Linux on a computer that already has Windows?[/QUOTE]

Back your shit up, download Ubuntu (or Linux Mint, Ubuntu's politics are a little upsetting lately), and boot the CD. The installer is infinitely simple.

[QUOTE=Meatpuppet;38551033]2) I'm pretty set on Ubuntu, but what other distros are out there that are worth taking a look at?[/QUOTE]

Rebecca Black OS, Ubuntu Christian Edition, or [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjGSMUep6_4]Gentoo[/url].

[T3hGamerDK]

[QUOTE=Jookia;38552095]It's a reboot (ugh) away.

Back your shit up, download Ubuntu (or Linux Mint, Ubuntu's politics are a little upsetting lately), and boot the CD. The installer is infinitely simple.

Rebecca Black OS, Ubuntu Christian Edition, or [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjGSMUep6_4]Gentoo[/url].[/QUOTE]
I can vouch for Gentoo. And if you don't feel like setting everything up from the ground up, but like the idea to be able to recompile packages on the go, then I can recommend Sabayon, a Gentoo based system with both Portage and a binary package manager.

[.Lain]

Also, don't use Wubi. Never.

[supersoldier58]

Whats wrong with Wubi?
(I'm not defending it and I will never use it, but I am curious what horrible features does it include?)

[TTSDA]

When I try to start steam, I get this error:

ILocalize::AddFile() failed to load file "public/steambootstrapper_english.txt".
X Error of failed request:  BadName (named color or font does not exist)
  Major opcode of failed request:  45 (X_OpenFont)
  Serial number of failed request:  12
  Current serial number in output stream:  13

Does anyone know how to fix this?

EDIT: Fixed by adding this to my /etc/X11/xorg.cong:

Section "Files"
    FontPath    "/usr/share/fonts/100dpi"
    FontPath    "/usr/share/fonts/75dpi"
    FontPath    "/usr/share/fonts/cyrillic"
    FontPath    "/usr/share/fonts/encodings"
    FontPath    "/usr/share/fonts/local"
    FontPath    "/usr/share/fonts/misc"
    FontPath    "/usr/share/fonts/TTF"
    FontPath    "/usr/share/fonts/util"
EndSection

[.Lain]

[QUOTE=supersoldier58;38556355]Whats wrong with Wubi?
(I'm not defending it and I will never use it, but I am curious what horrible features does it include?)[/QUOTE]
If you get acquainted with Ubuntu and want to get rid of windows, then good luck with that.

[editline]22nd November 2012[/editline]

also lol linux on NTFS

[editline]22nd November 2012[/editline]

Also various problems related to filesystem management and hibernation (which is non existant)

[editline]22nd November 2012[/editline]

tl;dr if you want to try linux then use a VM. Or if you are somewhat competent with disk management, just shrink, and install.

[ShaunOfTheLive]

[QUOTE=FlubberNugget;38556503]If you get acquainted with Ubuntu and want to get rid of windows, then good luck with that.[/QUOTE]

"While Wubi does not install Ubuntu directly to its own partition this can also be accomplished by using LVPM, the Loopmounted Virtual Partition Manager, to transfer the Wubi-generated Ubuntu installation to a dedicated real partition"
[url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wubi_(Ubuntu_installer)[/url]

[.Lain]

[QUOTE=ShaunOfTheLive;38556867]"While Wubi does not install Ubuntu directly to its own partition this can also be accomplished by using LVPM, the Loopmounted Virtual Partition Manager, to transfer the Wubi-generated Ubuntu installation to a dedicated real partition"
[URL]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wubi_(Ubuntu_installer)[/URL][/QUOTE]
Then you might as well just install it on it's own partition.
The LiveCD installer even has a big INSTALL ALONGSIDE Windows ___ option for those less literate with partition management

not to mention how slow wubi is