Valve Expands Linux Push to Shield Steam From Microsoft Cloud Lock-In

Valve深化Linux布局，防范Steam陷入微软云端锁定 Valve正在资助开源Linux生态系统，以此作为关乎生死存亡的对冲手段，抵御微软向封闭式、云端绑定操作系统的转型，后者对独立应用商店构成了威胁。 Steve Burke与Wendell深入分析了Valve持续推进Linux和SteamOS的举措，认为这是抵御微软不稳定且深度绑定云端的操作系统策略的一场生死防御战。Wendell指出，Valve并没有设置专有壁垒，而是通过在著佐权（copyleft）许可下低调资助关键开发者来保护开源社区，这与微软在Windows Store、Games for Windows Live以及激进的数据收集方面屡次破坏价值的历史形成了鲜明对比。尽管两位主讲人都承认Valve通过数字授权削弱了实体所有权，但他们也指出，即便面临掌机调度程序障碍和反作弊壁垒，SteamOS和Proton仍推动了整个行业向前发展。最终，Valve耐心细致的工程策略利用了微软的内部混乱与企业自满，成功打造出一个独立的PC游戏平台。 Valve将SteamOS及其在Linux上的投资视作一项关键的防御性退路战略，用以防范微软长期以来试图将Windows转变为绑定云端、依赖Azure的封闭花园的举措。 (0:00) 与受华尔街季度财报要求驱使的商业平台不同，Valve对Proton和Linux内核的开源贡献均受著佐权许可保护，确保了即使Valve发生战略转向，相关代码也永久保持可分叉性。 (6:21) 尽管Windows的调度程序在微星Claw 8 AI Plus等搭载英特尔混合架构CPU的设备上表现优异，但与Linux相比，其操作系统后台开销会在低功耗掌机上导致明显的帧生成时间不稳定。 (27:46) 财务分析师指出，微软游戏部门每投入1美元仅能产生约50美分的企业价值，这一表现受到了强制将本地游戏存档与OneDrive集成等激进变现手段的拖累。 (13:54)

In a discussion hosted by Gamers Nexus, Wendell of Level1 Techs argues that Valve's aggressive investments in Linux and SteamOS serve as an existential hedge against Microsoft's erratic stewardship and cloud-centric vision for Windows. While Valve's open-source strategy successfully challenges platform lock-in, both commentators note that significant hurdles remain in kernel scheduling, driver support, and digital ownership. SteamOS as a Strategic Platform Exit (0:00) Wendell illustrates Valve's reliance on Windows through an automotive metaphor, describing Valve as a passenger in a speeding car driven erratically by Microsoft. Rather than bailing out recklessly, Valve treats SteamOS, Proton, and upstream open-source contributions as a calculated exit strategy. This pivot dates back to the Windows Vista era, driven by concerns that Microsoft's long-term trajectory toward cloud-tethered operating systems and closed application ecosystems would jeopardize Steam's independent digital distribution model. Unlike traditional public corporations, Valve remains privately held, which Wendell argues shields it from short-term Wall Street pressures. Financial analysts observed that Microsoft generated only roughly $0.50 of enterprise value for every dollar deployed in acquiring gaming studios and funding Game Pass. By contrast, Valve earns customer loyalty by lowering distribution friction and quietly bankrolling independent Linux developers. Because these contributions are upstreamed under open copyleft licenses, the broader community retains permanent legal rights to fork and maintain the software even if Valve ever shifts direction. Platform Philosophy: Utility Versus Corporate Extraction (9:39) Wendell and Steve Burke contrast Valve's consumer-driven approach with Microsoft's historical efforts to monopolize PC gaming. From the original Pentium III-based Xbox to Games for Windows Live (GFWL) and the modern Windows Store, Wendell claims Microsoft has routinely prioritized ecosystem capture, data collection, and monetization over baseline software reliability. Examples include delayed patch certification pipelines on Game Pass, arbitrary DRM lockouts, and operating system prompts pushing paid OneDrive subscriptions when user document directories fill up with local game saves. This philosophical divide extends to internal tooling like the Windows Package Manager (winget). Wendell points out that despite winget's utility as a lean command-line tool, internal corporate incentives actively sabotage it in favor of pushing traffic through the graphical Windows Store to capture telemetry. Steve and Wendell conclude that while Microsoft has recognized the competitive threat posed by alternative platforms since the Vista era, internal corporate misalignment leaves the company largely ineffective at delivering superior user-facing software. The Fragility of Digital Account Ownership (16:08) Despite Valve's favorable standing among PC enthusiasts, Wendell emphasizes that Steam fundamentally dismantled physical media ownership. By normalizing digital licensing, the modern industry leaves entire game libraries vulnerable to retroactive terms-of-service changes or server shutdowns, as demonstrated when titles like Gearbox's *Battleborn* became unplayable once servers were terminated. Console manufacturers like Sony have pushed this licensing framework further by stripping disc drives from newer hardware iterations. While console apologists claim PC gamers accepted the same digital terms decades ago, Steve and Wendell argue the PC platform retains critical safeguards: open access to competing storefronts like GOG that supply standalone, DRM-free offline installers, as well as the technical ability to run local software workarounds. Hardware Execution and Linux Technical Hurdles (27:46) The rise of handheld gaming PCs highlights both the strengths and current limitations of SteamOS. On low-power hardware, heavy Windows operating system overhead results in erratic frame pacing, whereas Linux variants deliver far smoother frame time consistency. Additionally, Linux implementations allow effortless external drive portability, such as hot-swapping game-loaded MicroSD cards between devices without manual library reconfiguration. However, Linux still faces pronounced technical deficits. In testing Intel's hybrid architecture on the MSI Claw 8 AI Plus, Wendell found that while Microsoft and Intel successfully tuned the Windows thread scheduler to pin game workloads to efficiency cores, the equivalent Linux scheduler remains unoptimized months later. Furthermore, Linux gaming continues to grapple with spotty Nvidia driver stability—prompting Valve to favor AMD hardware—and aggressive, kernel-level anti-cheat engines that actively block legitimate players on non-standard configurations. Valve's stewardship of SteamOS provides a viable counterweight to Microsoft's operating system hegemony, but Linux gaming still lacks parity in competitive anti-cheat enforcement and complex hybrid CPU scheduling. Moreover, neither platform has resolved the broader industry shift away from true consumer software ownership.

Wendell 与 Steve Burke 探讨指出，Valve 对 Linux 与 SteamOS 的深度投入绝非单纯的开源理想主义，而是为了摆脱微软对 Windows 操作系统不可预测控制的防御性逃逸策略；尽管 Valve 凭借用户至上的工程逻辑在掌机领域动摇了微软的统治，但数字所有权的削弱以及 Linux 面临的调度与反作弊壁垒依然是关键考验。 平台防御与摆脱 Windows 的逃逸路线 (0:00) Wendell 将 Valve 与微软的依存关系比喻为困在失控车辆中的乘客：微软是驾驶行为怪异且难以预料的司机，Windows 是正在高速行驶的车辆，而 SteamOS 与 Proton 则是 Valve 经过精密计算后准备安全跳车的逃生方案。Gabe Newell 早在 Windows Vista 时代就洞察到微软领导层脱离了 PC 游戏核心需求。Wendell 认为，微软的战略终局是将 Windows 演变为依赖 Azure 云服务的封闭生态，将本地计算降级为受限的瘦客户端，并通过应用商店建立绝对门禁。这种趋势对 Steam 的分发根基构成了致命威胁。 面对潜在的渠道封锁，Valve 并不寄望于微软改变追求自身利益最大化的商业惯性。依据 Newell“盗版在本质上是便利与服务问题，而非价格问题”的判断，Valve 致力于通过降低兼容门槛提升玩家体验。相比微软试图利用操作系统控制权强行推销生态，Valve 将资金注入开源运行时环境，以建立一个由自己掌控、同时让玩家与开发者免受微软生态绑架的独立避风港。 开源许可的法律防线与私营体制优势 (6:21) 针对科技界对大型商业公司涉足开源项目的普遍疑虑，Wendell 澄清表明，Linux 社群对 Valve 的信任并非建立在道德善意之上，而是源于互惠型开源许可证（Copyleft）的刚性法律约束。与 Nvidia 的专有驱动或包含二进制代码块的驱动环境不同，Valve 赞助独立开发者并将 Proton 与内核补丁全数推回上游开源仓库。这意味着相关技术成果永久归属于全人类，即便 Valve 日后变更商业路线或放弃 Linux，整个生态依然保留合法分支并持续演进代码的完全权利。 此外，Valve 的非上市公司地位为其提供了抵御资本短视行为的关键屏障。Wendell 与 Steve 指出，一旦 Valve 这样的平台巨头被公开资本市场或私募股权掌控，企业目标必将不可逆转地转向取悦华尔街季度财报。届时，公司将不再专注优化用户体验，而是会利用其市场支配地位向开发者与玩家进行极限利润抽榨。现阶段 Valve 能够私下为关键开源项目提供充沛资金而不谋求封闭控制，正是得益于其不受公开市场利益绑架的独特所有权结构。 微软的垄断惯性与资本低效困局 (9:39) 回顾微软从初代搭载奔腾 III 的 Xbox、Games for Windows Live (GFWL) 到 Windows Store 的布局历史，Wendell 与 Steve 认为微软始终试图利用系统霸权控制 PC 游戏，却屡次因傲慢的产品逻辑遭遇挫败。Steve 提到，GFWL 繁琐且故障频发的数字版权管理机制曾逼迫购买正版光盘的用户不得不转用盗版；而如今 Windows Store 与 PC 版 Game Pass 混乱的认证管线，依旧导致游戏补丁上线频率显著落后于 Steam，严重挫伤了开发者的协作意愿。 金融分析师的评估进一步暴露了微软游戏扩张策略的低效：微软在工作室收购与 Game Pass 补贴上每投入 1 美元，仅创造约 50 美分的企业价值。微软未将资金转化为持久的用户护城河，反而推行强制将本地游戏存档同步至空间狭小的 OneDrive 并诱导付费扩容等消耗用户信心的设计。Wendell 还揭露，微软内部产品经理为了抓取商店流量与遥测数据，甚至主动掣肘广受好评的 Windows 软件包管理器 winget。这种将强制引导置于系统实用性之上的做法，不断将核心玩家推向竞争对手。 数字所有权的剥离与开放 PC 容灾机制 (16:08) 尽管 Valve 在提升平台易用性方面贡献显著，Wendell 仍尖锐指出，Valve 在整个游戏行业中造成的最深远负面影响是彻底瓦解了玩家对物理所有权的认知，将买断软件的概念扭曲为不可撤销的数字许可。这种模式使玩家完全受制于单一平台，一旦服务关停或公司条款变更，玩家账户中的数字资产就可能彻底消失，正如 Gearbox 旗下的《恶灵附身》（Battleborn）因服务器下线而彻底无法运行一样。 然而，Steve 与 Wendell 强调，PC 平台与索尼 PlayStation 等封闭主机的关键区别在于 PC 生态保留了逃生通道。在主机厂商逐步取消物理光驱、迫使玩家接受完全剥夺所有权条款的背景下，PC 用户依然拥有多样化的容灾选择。玩家不仅可以转向 GOG 购买提供离线独立安装包且无须客户端登录的游戏，还可以在平台政策恶化时借助本地数据修改或绕过验证来保护自己的运行权利，维持对本地硬件与软件的实质支配。 掌机能效表现与底层的调度驱动瓶颈 (27:46) 在手持硬件领域，Steam Deck 的爆发证明了精简系统相较于 Windows 的体验优势。Steve 与 Wendell 指出，在受制于 15W 至 30W 功耗墙的便携 SoC 上，Windows 庞大的系统开销与后台杂乱线程会导致严重的帧生成时间抖动，而在桌面端这种缺陷往往被强劲硬件掩盖；运行 SteamOS 及 Linux 衍生系统的掌机则展现出更为平滑的帧率一致性。这种底层效能差异促使第三方掌机厂商也开始逐步拥抱 Linux 发行版。 尽管如此，Linux 游戏生态依然存在不容忽视的技术短板。Wendell 在测试搭载 Intel 酷睿 Ultra 混合架构的微星 MSI Claw 8 AI Plus 时发现，微软与 Intel 深度定制的 Windows 线程调度器能精准将游戏负载指派至能效核心，在兼顾续航的同时提供流畅体验；而 SteamOS 及 Linux 内核对应的异构调度机制在数月后依然表现混乱。此外，Nvidia 显卡驱动在 Linux 下的不稳定表现，以及大型发行商对高权限反作弊系统的强制绑定，依然是 Linux 彻底取代 Windows 的核心硬件与软件壁垒。 Valve 凭借精准的开源投资与以玩家为中心的工程实现，成功在手持设备与 PC 核心玩家群体中构筑了突破微软 Windows 垄断的支点。然而，Linux 方案若想真正成长为全方位的操作系统替代者，仍取决于 Valve 能否持续施加行业影响力以化解反作弊系统的准入封锁、补齐异构处理器调度的技术短板，以及在数字许可制不可逆转的浪潮下，整个生态能否维系开放标准的去中心化保障。

[16:08] Wendell: I think the worst thing that Valve has done in the industry as a whole is to change the mindset of of ownership. [6:21] Wendell: The trust is not implicit. The trust is enforcement in a license. [6:21] Wendell: Any company that is as large and dominating as Valve, if it is taken over by public interest or private equity or anything else that is money focused, the impetus will definitely become how do we leverage what we have to extract more money. [12:02] Wendell: I think it's you can't trust Microsoft to do what is in their own best interest for business because they don't understand the problem that they're trying to solve.

[0:00] Microsoft and Sony have gone out of [0:02] their way to make gamers have the worst [0:06] experience possible. I love the the new [0:08] thing where the hacked PlayStations can [0:10] actually play PS2. [0:12] >> Yeah. [0:12] >> Like Sony did not actually have to [0:14] invest any engineering or R&D time in [0:16] that. They just had to be not [ __ ] [0:18] with letting people accessing the [0:20] hardware. [0:20] >> So, let me stop you right there. You're [0:23] asking for a lot right now and I'm not [0:25] sure that's going to fly for the [0:27] shareholders and I would ask that you [0:29] really [0:30] be more empathetic towards the [0:32] shareholders. [0:35] >> Why does Valve care about Linux? Why [0:38] does Valve contribute to Linux? [0:39] >> Valve cares about Linux in the same way [0:42] that Valve is a passenger in a car and [0:46] the driver of the car maybe does some [0:48] unsafe things. They might be screaming [0:51] incoherently. You really like we have [0:53] this thing as human beings where like we [0:55] want to understand what's going on in [0:57] somebody else's mind. [0:58] >> Is the driver Microsoft? [1:00] >> The driver is Microsoft and the car is [1:01] Windows. [1:03] >> Okay, that's I don't know if that's [1:06] better or worse than the opposite. [1:08] >> You know, it's like we're at a car in [1:10] motion on the highway. Like Valve can't [1:11] just open the door and tuck and roll. [1:14] Like that's also kind of dangerous. So [1:17] Valve is working on a plan to make it [1:19] safe for them to tuck and roll. Okay. [1:22] >> And that plan is Steam OS. [1:23] >> So, cuz here's what I've been wondering [1:25] about it is, you know, with Steam OS [1:27] getting pushed, obviously, it's it's a [1:30] good thing for Linux to have more [1:32] development support from a company with [1:34] as many resources as Valve, especially [1:36] with the focus on gaming where it's been [1:38] lacking for so long. That's all good. Uh [1:41] the [1:43] I was wondering if Valve has looked at [1:45] sort of the market and if they've maybe [1:49] out of paranoia or otherwise projected [1:51] that oh there's a chance we get game [1:53] stopped. you know, there's a chance that [1:55] we just through no sort of control of [1:57] our own become totally obsolete where [2:00] with GameStop, they're already pretty [2:02] obsolete, but uh with Sony, for example, [2:05] killing discs, [2:07] unless they can pivot their business, [2:08] there's not a reason for them to exist [2:10] to sell games anymore. And Steam is [2:12] ultimately just mostly a digital [2:14] storefront until it's recent Harbor [2:16] Ventures. So, do you think, you know, is [2:19] it a paranoia from Valve that our [2:23] storefront could be supplanted by [2:25] something Microsoft does or, you know, [2:28] >> I think that in order for Valve to be [2:31] supplanted by Microsoft does, it would [2:33] have to fundamentally change their [2:34] understanding of the customer. [2:36] >> They would have to want to deliver value [2:37] to the customer in a way that doesn't [2:40] unjustly enrich themselves. [2:41] >> Okay? So, that's never going to happen [2:44] with Microsoft. [2:46] This video is brought to you by us and [2:48] our Microsoft t-shirts on [2:50] store.gamersex.net. [2:51] We just restocked these after having [2:54] sold through all of our inventory again. [2:56] Now the third time because so many [2:58] people are such big fans of Microsoft. [3:01] This is our most popular design we've [3:02] ever launched. Even just wearing it [3:04] around, I get compliments from people [3:06] who have absolutely no idea what a GN is [3:09] because I assume they like Microsop so [3:12] much. They must just be mega fans of [3:14] Microsoft who love being reminded of its [3:17] existence. These directly support our [3:19] deep dives and research. You can grab [3:20] them on the store. They feature a Micro [3:22] Sloppy logo with event viewer icons [3:25] including a blue screen of death frowny [3:27] face, a Tux the penguin we've made, and [3:30] the classic red X and yellow bane. You [3:32] can grab these alongside things like our [3:34] GN Wireframe V2 mouse mats on the store. [3:36] Perfect for both your mouse and keyboard [3:38] for a clean desk space and fully [3:40] designed in-house by Andrew for the art [3:43] with wireframe components and a [3:45] dystopian multilevel citystyle layout [3:48] connected by highways of cables and [3:50] tubes which the internet is still a [3:52] series of. We use a custom blue rubber [3:54] underside matched to the blue stitched [3:56] border and you can grab these and more [3:58] like the microsop shirts on [4:00] store.gamersex.net. [4:02] Back to it. I I've I've always been [4:04] impressed by Valve saying things like [4:05] look we try to strike a balance between [4:07] you know this or that. Valve or Gabe uh [4:10] Gabe Noel the you know one of the [4:12] founders I think his current CEO. [4:13] >> Current CEO is his title. [4:15] >> Yacht owner. Yeah. [4:16] >> Yacht and submarine [4:17] >> right owner. [4:18] >> Couple yachts. [4:18] >> Yeah. Um it's like I hope he's having [4:21] fun finding that underwater alien base. [4:24] You got to you got to do that right. I [4:26] mean that's that's [4:27] >> you got to spend money on things that [4:28] matter, I guess. Um, and so, you know, I [4:31] think that, uh, he's sort of famous for [4:33] saying, uh, what is it? Piracy is not a [4:37] cost problem or it's a it's a [4:38] convenience problem. [4:39] >> Yeah. [4:40] >> And so, the naive shareholder argument, [4:43] anti-shareholder argument is, well, but [4:45] we can't sell those PS2 games a second [4:47] time in the PS2 on PS5 format [4:51] >> if they can just put their old PS2 disc [4:52] in the PS5, right? Yeah. And we need to [4:54] sell it again. So, [4:56] >> yeah. when in fact it would drive demand [4:58] of the console itself, which would [5:00] elevate demand for all things [5:02] PlayStation. [5:02] >> I mean, speaking for myself, I have a [5:04] lot of every old console I ever owned, I [5:07] still own. And I like a lot of those [5:10] games. I like a lot of those games more [5:12] than current games. I don't really want [5:14] to get them out and deal with trying to [5:16] convert form like video output formats [5:19] into modern TVs. [5:20] But in something like a PS5 situation, [5:23] it might make sense to buy uh a newer [5:27] device just to play the older games [5:28] because it's easier. Yeah. Right. And so [5:30] I I agree with you. I think [5:31] >> Well, think think about PC gaming before [5:35] Steam or PC gaming without Steam or [5:37] other coherent launchers is like you [5:39] were dependent on the game publisher to [5:41] keep up with Windows. Yeah. [5:43] >> Games that came out for Windows 2000 [5:46] were not compatible with Windows XP. [5:48] They also weren't compatible with [5:50] Windows 2000 because nothing was. [5:53] >> Although ME was worse. [5:55] >> ME was worse. [5:55] >> 2000 was a lot better than ME [5:57] >> or Windows 95. It's like I got these [5:58] really cool DOSs games and I want to [6:00] play them in in Windows 95. And with [6:02] Steam, you know, you have the same kind [6:04] of a problem. It's like the publisher is [6:05] going to have to put in some work into [6:07] updating it for the platform. But Steam [6:09] can give you the real numbers. It's like [6:10] these people tried to launch your game [6:13] and failed because you didn't update it, [6:15] >> right? [6:15] >> Update. Oh, we had 70,000 people. Okay, [6:18] maybe there is something here and we can [6:20] >> Right. What um do you think is there a [6:24] bad side to Valve's involvement with [6:26] Linux? So, my question here really is [6:29] I've been thinking about this too where [6:31] I I'm thrilled what Valve has done with [6:33] Proton. When we did our Basite [6:34] benchmarking a while ago, it was pretty [6:37] amazing how far Linux has come for [6:39] gaming and, you know, in some cases [6:41] better than Windows. [6:43] The the thing I'm a little hesitant on [6:46] from sort of the reviewer standpoint is [6:50] normally it's it's not a good thing when [6:52] a giant company involves itself in [6:55] something like an open source project [6:57] and you might not know why today but [6:59] later you will. So, you know, do you [7:02] think has has Valve uh sufficiently [7:07] earned sort of the goodwill to just get [7:10] implicit trust that it's going to do the [7:12] right thing as it contributes to the, [7:14] you know, to the ecosystem? [7:16] >> The trust is not implicit. The trust is [7:19] enforcement in a license. Mhm. [7:21] >> So I think to the if you really if you [7:24] really want to get down to like the [7:25] brass tax enforcement of your question, [7:28] I think that uh Nvidia certainly and AMD [7:31] to a lesser extent um are more at risk [7:34] of that kind of thing with their [7:35] contributions. Like AMD GPU that they're [7:37] trying to do the right thing, but [7:38] there's still a binary blob there. [7:41] There's still not transparency in [7:42] >> some level of abuse of [7:44] >> Yeah. It's like what is what's happening [7:45] there? Meanwhile, the contributions that [7:48] Valve has done directly and also that [7:49] they've funded, some of the [7:51] contributions have been serreptitious. [7:52] They just show up to a smart person. [7:54] It's like, you have this figured out. [7:55] What do you [7:56] >> suitcase of money? [7:56] >> Yeah, here's a suitcase of what do you [7:58] need to like, we want you to do more of [8:00] the thing. Like, how do we get you to do [8:01] more of the thing? [8:02] >> Right. [8:02] >> And so the software and the work product [8:04] that those people are doing are governed [8:06] under open source licenses. And so Valve [8:09] has has done a good job managing their [8:11] licenses, I think, and software [8:13] development and that aspect of it. [8:14] Certainly the kernel contributions will [8:16] be useful for time immemorial um just [8:19] because the license we don't we're not [8:22] required to trust Valve. We've got the [8:24] if they change their mind cool we'll [8:26] just keep using the the code and move [8:28] on. [8:28] >> Yeah, that is a benefit with how it's [8:29] being done. Um, if if Valve were a [8:32] public company, if we just all the same, [8:35] everything applies, but if Valve were [8:37] run by I guess they're not public [8:38] anymore, but if Valve were part of EA [8:41] games when it was public or something [8:44] like that, [8:46] >> does that change, you know, your your [8:48] level of trust? [8:49] >> Oh, yeah. [8:50] >> Okay. So, so what are the types of [8:52] things that become a concern in that [8:54] situation? If you look at what has [8:56] happened to other companies that start [8:59] to have that kind of an interest, it [9:00] becomes all about over the overarching [9:03] focus on short-term [9:05] >> shareholder value. And so any company [9:08] that is as large and dominating as [9:11] Valve, if it is taken over by public [9:15] interest or private equity or anything [9:18] else that is money focused, the impetus [9:21] will definitely become how do we [9:23] leverage what we have to extract more [9:25] money, [9:25] >> right? [9:26] >> And how do we leverage what we have to [9:28] extract more money always ends badly for [9:30] the consumer. [9:31] >> Yeah. [9:31] >> It's like we don't it's never a question [9:33] of like how do we deliver more value? [9:34] How do we, you know, supplant other [9:37] people in the market? Valve has already [9:39] basically cornered the market to the [9:41] extent that they can without being [9:43] sociopathic, [9:44] >> right? [9:44] >> So, if they want more is a step toward [9:47] sociopathic lane. [9:49] >> They they do have some tendencies [9:52] uh like gambling for example, supporting [9:54] the gambling scene through, you know, [9:56] loot crates and stuff. Um [9:58] >> I think the Harvard business people will [10:00] probably look at the failure of [10:01] Microsoft. You can go all the way back [10:02] to the original Xbox based on a pennium [10:04] 3 and understand how Microsoft wanted to [10:08] leverage its position in exactly that [10:10] way to get more position. And to a [10:13] certain extent they have been successful [10:15] and they were able to do innovation and [10:16] they were able to do thing but it was [10:18] always under this this overarching like [10:21] we really need to get ourselves in a [10:23] position where we're able to uh dominate [10:26] and control and have more uh insight [10:30] into you know how these things work. [10:31] Like you look at the Windows store the [10:33] Windows Store was not designed to be a [10:34] good end user experience and it was not [10:36] designed to be a good developer [10:38] experience and because of that it has [10:40] failed catastrophically. [10:42] Is it because it wasn't designed to be [10:44] good that it failed? [10:45] >> It was designed like as if because it's [10:48] Windows, you have no choice. [10:49] >> Uhhuh. [10:50] >> And you will endure. [10:51] >> The Windows Store is awful. Is the worst [10:54] experience cuz I had to use it for a [10:56] couple games at various points. Like I I [10:59] don't remember, maybe it was Microsoft [11:00] uh or Minecraft. I mean, RTX [11:03] implementation required Windows Store, I [11:05] think, originally. And so I went through [11:06] it for that and some other games that [11:08] were only on Windows Store. It reminded [11:10] me exactly of Games for Windows Live. I [11:12] don't know how many people in our [11:13] audience, you know, used GFWL back in [11:15] the day, but like Games for Windows [11:17] Live, uh, the only time I've ever, and [11:20] this is true, the only time I've ever [11:22] pirated a game was because I had already [11:24] bought it and Games for Windows Live [11:26] decided I wasn't allowed to play it [11:28] because the disc looked suspicious or [11:30] something. Absolutely. [11:32] >> Recently, uh there have been problems [11:34] where a game on the uh the game pass the [11:39] the game pass version of the game wasn't [11:41] being updated with the same frequency as [11:43] the game from Steam. [11:45] >> And the publisher had to publish and say [11:46] it's like look this is not me. This is [11:48] like Microsoft's got this process that I [11:50] got to go through and it's like [11:51] Microsoft not having figured out [11:54] software development is not a believable [11:56] failure mode. [11:57] >> No, it's Yeah, it's shareholder value. [12:00] So for Valve, you know, what what do you [12:03] think is and I don't mean this from like [12:06] um a shrewd business sense, what do you [12:08] think their angle is for the Linux [12:10] development primarily? Like what's their [12:13] you could if we just say let's just [12:15] assume it's not just because they want [12:18] to be good people, uh but maybe they're [12:21] not being evil about it, right? So like [12:23] what's the what do you think is their [12:25] number one business use case? Is it a [12:26] defensive play against Microsoft or is [12:28] it proactive or [12:29] >> I think it's you can't trust Microsoft [12:32] to do what is in their own best interest [12:35] for business because they don't [12:36] understand the problem that they're [12:37] trying to solve. [12:38] >> And so that sort of corners Valve into [12:40] having to have their own platform. [12:42] >> And so if Valve could trust Microsoft to [12:45] always optimize performance or to always [12:47] debug or to just always do the right [12:49] thing with regard to the platform, I [12:51] don't think that Valve would be [12:53] investing as much. I think that whenever [12:54] Gabe saw whatever they had planned with [12:56] Windows Vista, he decided that these [12:59] people are out of touch and we're going [13:01] to have to embrace Linux. And that was [13:02] oddly preient. It turns out and I think [13:05] what we're seeing now is also oddly [13:06] preient. I think that Microsoft if if [13:08] like the shareholder value play is [13:10] Microsoft doesn't even do Windows. [13:12] Microsoft Windows becomes a cloud [13:13] operating system. There is literally [13:15] nothing on your computer. It is a [13:16] lightweight window into Microsoft Azure [13:19] and everything that you do runs in [13:20] Azure. And then we're already there. [13:22] office is that the messaging platform [13:24] and email has effectively been captured. [13:26] Nothing runs locally. It's like I would [13:27] like to run email locally and have local [13:28] indexes and have my own server and it's [13:31] like that is a much riskier basically [13:33] impossible proposition in the Microsoft [13:36] ecosystem. Server you know all active [13:39] directory like user management it's all [13:42] insanely cloud connected and that is a [13:44] level of control that is an existential [13:46] risk to Valve. So what um do you maybe [13:50] asking [13:52] from the other side of it? Do you think [13:55] Microsoft sees what Valve's doing and [13:58] starts to exert any kind of pressure on [14:00] anybody else? Microsoft owns a lot of [14:01] game companies now they work closely [14:04] with hardware vendors and with software [14:06] vendors obviously. Uh do you do you [14:10] think that there's any risk there? Like [14:12] does in other words, does Microsoft care [14:14] enough about what Valve's doing over in [14:16] Linux land or is it like their ivory [14:19] tower doesn't even have visibility that [14:20] far down? It it's so funny because all [14:24] the questions that you're asking, like [14:25] if you have anybody in the audience [14:27] that's immediately going to the the the [14:29] Wall Street Financials and asking those [14:31] questions a different way, the person [14:33] that was just ousted from Microsoft, the [14:35] the finance bros looked at it and they [14:36] said, "This person for every dollar that [14:39] Microsoft spent, they brought 50 cents [14:41] of value to the company." So they [14:43] literally set So you look at the success [14:47] of the game pass and what Microsoft has [14:50] done with Xbox. They literally paid the [14:53] people to do to like to have the success [14:56] 50 cents on the dollar, right? [14:58] >> And they didn't they didn't build a [14:59] moat. They didn't capture anybody's [15:00] hearts and minds. They didn't turn [15:02] anything around to say, "Oh, look, [15:05] everything is actually better now. Like [15:07] Microsoft kind of gets it. They're [15:08] trying to take care of gamers, right? If [15:10] anything, it went way way way the [15:12] opposite directions. Like my game save [15:14] files stored in my documents folder. One [15:17] drive wants to obsessively compulsively [15:19] load those into the cloud. And that's a [15:22] problem because my one drive space is so [15:24] limited that it's designed to extract [15:26] money because and it's like my save [15:28] games don't need to be in the cloud. [15:29] Like I can just [15:31] >> store that locally. Like do we stop to [15:33] think about how reasonable this is? And [15:34] so like from the shareholder value [15:35] >> if they're in the cloud then we can [15:37] start analyzing the data of them to [15:39] figure out for example the time you play [15:42] games and the duration of it. So we can [15:44] then package and sell that data for [15:46] other things linked to your Microsoft [15:47] account. [15:47] >> That is the bill of goods that has been [15:48] sold to shareholders for for them to [15:51] tolerate 50 cents on the dollar for as [15:52] long as it has been. [15:53] >> I just came up with that all on my own. [15:55] Can I have some money now? [15:56] >> Yeah. Yeah. That's welcome to the [15:58] Microsoft boardroom. [15:59] >> Oh no. So, like from a reality [16:01] standpoint, all the money and effort and [16:03] everything they put in here has exactly [16:05] backfired in shareholder value. [16:08] Meanwhile, Valve just quietly is like, [16:11] don't interrupt your enemy when they're [16:12] making mistakes. [16:12] >> Well, the meme is always like, [16:15] >> you know, Valve do nothing and win. [16:18] Yeah. [16:18] >> Like, do nothing and win harder. And [16:20] like I don't want to the reason I'm [16:22] asking some of these questions is [16:23] because I am trying to look at it from [16:24] the perspective of like we don't want to [16:26] just like with any company I would never [16:29] say oh this this company is great. [16:31] That's like not a thing we at GN say uh [16:34] because they're all going to have their [16:35] problems. So I don't want to like create [16:38] a scenario where we're putting Val up on [16:39] this huge pedestal um because they have [16:42] their own faults. But at the same time, [16:44] there's a lot of the stuff where it's [16:45] like I don't know if it's just we're [16:47] we're Stockholm syndrome, you know, [16:49] where it's like there's so much not [16:52] incompetence, but actual malice from [16:55] everyone else in the field that anyone [16:58] even [16:59] >> uh helps you a little bit. And [17:01] >> well, Apple would say in the case of uh [17:03] EA that EA has unduly used its influence [17:07] with Fortnite and everything else to [17:08] escape the walled garden or Epic. Yeah. [17:11] for Epic to escape the walled garden uh [17:13] on the Apple side. [17:15] >> And so you look at all of the stuff on [17:18] the Apple side of things like how Apple [17:20] wants everybody to be in the walled [17:21] garden and it's like how you know [17:23] there's a lot of similarities to Valve [17:25] there. It's just a question of is this [17:26] hand doing this? It's like we want to [17:29] bring you this value and we will benefit [17:31] from having brought you this value or is [17:33] it we have you as a customer. What are [17:36] you gonna do? Go somewhere else? [17:37] >> Yeah. Right. What is the level of [17:39] inconvenience that you're willing to [17:40] tolerate? I think the worst thing that [17:42] Valve has done in the industry as a [17:44] whole is to change the mindset of of [17:47] ownership. [17:48] >> Yeah. [17:49] >> So, it's like your Steam collection [17:52] could disappear at any time tomorrow or [17:54] like the equation could change. That is [17:56] that is the biggest risk. That is the [17:57] biggest danger. [17:58] >> I mean, Gabe could sell or retire or [18:01] whatever, you know, [18:02] >> and then you lose your game collection [18:03] >> or it's a rental. It's like [18:04] >> right [18:05] >> that's not and there have been there [18:07] have been examples of that like I have [18:09] Battleborne. You can't there's no there [18:12] it was uh it came out right before the [18:13] original [18:14] >> I'm sorry [18:15] >> Overwatch. Yeah. And so it's just like [18:17] >> I remember it. I covered it. [18:18] >> Oh yeah. Yeah. So it's just [18:20] >> Yeah. [18:21] >> Um that is unfortunate because it you [18:23] know it wasn't an awful game. Uh but [18:26] it's just there's nothing that's just [18:28] you know [18:28] >> I'll tell you I have an uncanny ability [18:30] at picking games that just knows time. [18:33] Like in terms of games that I personally [18:35] am interested in, uh to give one [18:37] example, Cube World, [18:40] to give another example, Star Citizen. [18:46] >> Fun fact, we were the source for most of [18:48] the original reporting on Star Citizen [18:50] back in the day. I have a whole [18:51] playlist. There's like probably 20 or 30 [18:53] interviews with Chris Roberts and the [18:55] other people. People don't remember [18:56] this. That was like 10 years ago for us [18:57] now. And um and even 10 years ago, I [19:02] thought we were late to the game [19:03] interviewing them because they had [19:06] already hit their $800,000 [19:08] like fundraising and now they've done I [19:10] don't know, a billion dollars. I have no [19:12] [ __ ] idea. Anyway, it's a tangent, [19:15] but uh [19:16] >> yeah, the the ownership thing it really [19:17] is serious though. Like I think that [19:19] it's so egregious that eventually Sony [19:22] or Microsoft or somebody is just Well, I [19:24] think Sony's already saying no, no, you [19:26] don't own anything. And I think [19:28] >> they're literally saying that. [19:29] >> Yeah. And I think Valve helps prop that [19:32] up. It's like it's not your games, you [19:34] know, you don't own it. It's like it's [19:35] kind of in the superp position of [19:37] ownership and and licensing. [19:38] >> I like that. I like the superp position [19:40] phrasing. Uh it is I mean they're even [19:44] just indirectly helping in that the few [19:47] Sony defenders there are will typically [19:49] say of PC players who are, you know, mad [19:52] about the PS5 disc situation, they'll [19:54] typically say, "Well, you have Steam. [19:55] You've had Steam forever." How is this [19:57] different? I was like, well, it is [19:59] different because first of all, on a [20:00] computer, it's really easy for me to [20:02] pirate the game if I have to. Yeah. [20:04] >> Or to go to, although I might not want [20:06] to, a different launcher. Like, good old [20:08] games pretty damn good. You know, or if [20:10] you had to go to [20:12] >> Ubisoft directly, first of all, I'm [20:14] sorry, things have gone horribly. But, [20:17] you know, if you have to go to someone [20:18] else, you can. Whereas with a console [20:21] like Sony, [20:23] you buy from Sony. [20:24] >> Yeah. [20:25] >> And that's it. [20:26] >> Yeah. I have, you know, ideologically I [20:28] have purchased um from CG Project Red a [20:31] bunch of games, you know, and Witcher [20:33] the and Cyber Punk and a lot of the [20:36] stuff that's on good old games just to, [20:38] you know, it's like I already had the [20:39] Steam license. I didn't need to do that, [20:42] but I like the idea of true ownership. [20:44] And so it's like more of that pleasing. [20:46] It's like I can afford to do that. Not [20:47] Not a lot of people can afford to buy [20:49] two copies of a game. [20:50] >> Yeah. I mean, I did that for a lot of my [20:52] uh on good old games for a lot of my [20:54] older games that I still like playing [20:55] because they go through the effort of [20:58] making it easier to run from a [20:59] compatibility standpoint and it's [21:01] convenient and then it's you have an [21:03] .exe [21:04] >> and now you have the game. [21:06] >> Yeah, [21:06] >> it's like really simple. Yeah, it's [21:08] pretty nice. You don't have to log in. [21:10] So, um I guess the point being that we [21:12] have stuff like that on PC. So, for [21:14] Valve's contributions to Linux, uh where [21:17] do you see this going? like do you do [21:18] you think Valve gener because I think [21:20] they've done a pretty good job at [21:24] uh sort of adapting things to run in [21:27] Steam OS and the Linux environment in [21:28] general and it's helped other [21:29] distributions like Basite um or cashios [21:32] whatever do you think they gain enough [21:35] momentum [21:37] uh that they actually become a [21:39] significant problem for Microsoft from [21:42] the operating system side [21:43] >> I think that they they already have [21:45] become a problem because if you look at [21:47] the success of, you know, indirectly [21:50] like the the people that work on uh [21:53] Basite or Cashy, you know, would be [21:55] unhappy. It's like their it's their hard [21:56] work and it's the sweat of their brow [21:58] that has [21:59] >> put this together. [22:00] >> But the fact that [22:02] >> um Valve has helped grease as many [22:05] wheels as possible up and down the [22:07] stack. Not not just the kernel, but also [22:09] things in Proton game compatibility [22:11] behind the scenes with their 800 lb [22:13] gorilla status leaning on publishers is [22:15] like, "You should support these nerds. [22:16] these nerds have kind of a lot of money. [22:18] Stop being they're not all filthy [22:20] pirates, [22:20] >> right? [22:21] >> Um and so I think that those kinds of [22:23] things have have definitely elevated the [22:25] ecosystem. And I think that from an R&D [22:28] and an investment and an engineering [22:30] standpoint, it's also been brilliant on [22:31] Valve's part because they haven't had to [22:33] fund every single dollar of that. [22:35] Whereas Microsoft with like DirectX and [22:37] some of the other game stuff, it's like [22:39] we need to do this on our platform. And [22:41] I'm sure that there were conversations [22:43] all the way back to Balmer where it's [22:44] like if we provide this and you know [22:46] then that's going to be part of our [22:47] moat. [22:47] >> Oh, I guarantee Balmer was Yeah. [22:49] >> How's that opinion? Yeah. [22:51] >> And so it's going to be harder like [22:53] games for Windows is going to make it [22:55] easier for developers so that people [22:58] don't want to game on not Windows or you [23:00] know DOSs was a problem. Microsoft's own [23:02] DOSs was competing with Windows when [23:04] they wanted to go to a Windows [23:05] environment because [23:06] >> why doesn't this work under Windows when [23:08] it works under DOSs? Do you think what [23:10] do you think the endg game is like say a [23:13] couple of years several years into the [23:14] future? Like [23:17] how much [23:19] how much of that the market do you think [23:21] Valve with either through Steam OS or [23:23] through just Valve is pushing Linux [23:26] generally you know like all of them [23:28] Bazite Casio Steamos whatever like how [23:30] much market do you think they can [23:32] capture directly as a result of like [23:34] this this current effort? I think if if [23:36] Valve wakes up and decides that they [23:38] want they want to make more money, [23:40] >> what they decide to do is to really [23:42] embrace the platform aspect of it and [23:45] anything like that that you're talking [23:46] about are just secondary knockon [23:48] effects. [23:48] >> So if they embrace the platform thing [23:50] with the philosophy they already have, [23:51] they just sit down and they say, "What [23:53] do people need of their devices? What do [23:56] people want to do with their stuff? How [23:58] do we make that easier?" And some of [24:00] that might be, you know, moving save [24:02] games around. Some of that might be like [24:04] one drive type functionality. [24:06] >> Well, the uh the frame and the Steam [24:09] machine, one of the cool things that we [24:11] we tested was you can put a micro SD [24:14] card in one, put your game on it, [24:16] literally take it out, put it in the [24:18] other one, and play it there. And it's [24:20] it's pretty much no fuss, you know, like [24:22] to move a game on Windows normally is [24:24] kind of a pain in the ass. like you you [24:26] have to repoint files and stuff. But uh [24:29] but they've done you know I don't know [24:32] how much of that is Valve versus other [24:33] Linux developers but either way like on [24:35] Linux that functionality works pretty [24:37] well. [24:37] >> Yeah. Somebody probably sat down with [24:38] Valve and said like what's the console [24:40] experience that is good. It's like have [24:42] a game cartridge and you plug the game [24:43] cartridge in and it does things. It's [24:44] like well what if we put like your 10 [24:46] most popular games on a card and then [24:47] you can just [24:48] >> carry it around with you and you know [24:50] it's like we want the experience to be [24:51] the same because people seem to like [24:52] that experience. Do you get the sense [24:54] that Valve has been generally welcomed [24:56] for its contributions? Like in other [24:58] words, I I would in a lot of these types [25:00] of communities, [25:02] you know, where it's it's people who [25:04] have worked very hard to build a thing [25:05] that suddenly [25:08] obviously Linux already used all over [25:09] the world by, you know, everything, but [25:11] suddenly becomes even more popular from [25:14] this outside influence coming in. [25:16] There's there's sort of that risk of [25:17] like a stolen valor situation, right? [25:19] like [25:20] >> it's almost it in the in the situations [25:22] where I've caught Valve contributing in [25:26] that way. Um, it's almost like a reverse [25:29] stolen valor. Like they're propping up [25:32] somebody and they're just like, "Don't [25:33] say anything. Don't say anything about [25:34] the suitcases of money." Like that first [25:36] rule of suitcase money is don't talk [25:37] about suitcase money. [25:39] >> And uh and you know that that gets [25:42] things done because I I really do think [25:43] that there is an element out there, you [25:45] know, and maybe this is, you know, the [25:47] Tim Sweeney thing is like, "No, we must [25:49] supplant and and uh you know, this is [25:51] the cancer of open source, you know, [25:53] kind of stuff." May maybe that's a [25:54] thing. I I don't know. Oh, Tim Sweeney [25:56] seems actually [ __ ] crazy. By the [25:59] way, I don't know if you've read his [26:00] Twitter post. [26:01] >> He has he has a lot of opinions about [26:03] things, but it's so easy to get bogged [26:05] down in that. It's like, look, like it's [26:07] open source. You can see who works on [26:09] it. Let's go harass the person that [26:10] works on it and then they don't want to [26:11] work on it anymore. And it's like, [26:13] >> why do you It's like on on on some level [26:16] it is this is this person's job or [26:19] hobby. [26:20] >> It's like why do you need to crap on [26:23] their job or hobby? just let them do. [26:25] And if it's crazy, [26:27] >> if it sucks, then people won't use it, [26:28] right? [26:29] >> If it's crazy and it's like Temple OS [26:31] and it's like this is obviously, you [26:32] know, somebody doing something insane, [26:35] you know, just let them just let them [26:36] have let them do it. It's fine. It's [26:38] totally okay. [26:39] >> Can you build me a Temple OS server? [26:42] >> Can we do that? [26:42] >> It's not really a server, I think. I [26:44] don't Did anybody ever add networking to [26:46] it? [26:47] >> I don't know. [26:48] >> I feel like it's doesn't if it can't be [26:49] a server, I feel like it doesn't really [26:51] rise to the name Temple. [26:54] more of like an alter OS maybe. [26:57] >> It's crazy that that guy was legit [26:59] brilliant but you know um [27:02] >> but the thing you know Yeah. Yeah. with [27:04] with open source open source is always a [27:08] little bit of uh you get a little bit of [27:10] flavor [27:11] >> and behind a corporate developer you [27:13] know it's everything is whitewashed. You [27:15] know there's structures in the in the [27:17] corporation that sort of stop that kind [27:20] of flavor. Yeah. Well, that kind of [27:22] thing for being exposed to the public, [27:23] even if the fun exists. [27:24] >> Oh, you mean the Linux flavor? Okay. You [27:26] mean like the old Torvald style? [27:29] >> Yeah. [27:30] >> I think you've experienced some of that [27:32] kind of fun, you know, behind the scenes [27:34] at like AMD, but it's like this is not [27:35] an official corporate thing that we can [27:37] do, but these randos, they're a lot of [27:39] fun, [27:40] >> right? Yeah. [27:42] >> Yes. Uh [27:44] >> meanwhile, that that uh the bare level [27:46] nakedness there when you're talking [27:47] about it's like, "Oh, what did you It's [27:48] like, "Oh, I'm working on the Vulcan [27:50] frame buffers for whatever." And it's [27:51] just like, "What is this?" It's like, [27:53] "Oh, this is my tank collection [27:55] as you do, [27:56] >> right?" Have you used uh Steam OS at all [28:00] yet? [28:01] >> Yes. Uh kind Well, I mean, I've got a [28:02] I've got a Steam Deck. I got I got one [28:04] of the launch day one of the OG Steam [28:06] Decks, and I've experimented with [28:08] putting Steam OS on a lot of other [28:11] different uh hardware, and that has been [28:14] a lot of fun. Um, and a lot of the it's, [28:17] you know, cherrypicking some of the [28:20] stuff from that and seeing it make its [28:23] way back into Arch or into Cache has [28:26] also been a lot of fun. [28:27] >> How do you feel generally about Steam OS [28:31] versus some of the other dros you've [28:32] used a lot of as someone who's used a [28:34] lot of Linux? Steam OS is still very the [28:37] new version of Steam OS, this is less [28:38] true, but the old version of Steam OS is [28:40] very hyperfocused on solving the problem [28:42] for a very narrow limited set of [28:44] hardware as best they could. And the new [28:46] Steam OS uh especially with the uh the [28:50] the Cube um is more toward letting you [28:54] run that on your own thing. [28:55] >> The Gabe cube. [28:56] >> The Gabe Cube. Yeah. I think that um I [28:59] personally I think what has driven some [29:01] of that is the look of uh the handheld [29:05] games like there was the scene deck and [29:06] then we got the Asus the is it the RG [29:09] Ally? Yeah. the one from Lenovo and the [29:13] MSI Claw 8, not the Panther Lake one, [29:15] the old one, but then now also the [29:16] Panther Lake one. And I think those are [29:18] all almost all universally Windows, [29:20] right? [29:21] >> Yeah, a lot of Yeah, there's a Steam OS [29:24] variant for at least one of the handheld [29:26] devices. It might have been a Legion. Uh [29:29] but yeah, generally Windows. [29:31] >> Uh that has not gone well. [29:33] >> No, generally no. I mean, yeah, the the [29:37] Ally, the first one was successful for [29:40] Asus, but uh the performance of the [29:45] Linux variant handhelds was far superior [29:48] mostly for things like frame time [29:50] consistency. [29:51] >> Yeah. [29:52] >> Where just, [29:53] >> you know, on on a on a heavy Windows [29:55] machine with a lot of hardware, you kind [29:57] of bulldoze through weird problems with [30:01] frame time consistency and animation [30:02] error. But as you get down to the lower [30:03] power handhelds, suddenly the OS really [30:07] starts to matter and those problems show [30:09] up. And on Windows, there were a lot of [30:11] problems. [30:11] >> Yeah. The uh I've been tracking um at a [30:14] very close level the MSI Claw 8 exi [30:18] plus. [30:19] >> Great name. [30:20] >> So you got two performance cores, a [30:22] bunch of efficiency cores, and a couple [30:23] low power efficiency cores. And most of [30:25] the time the game runs fine on the [30:27] efficiency cores. And so like Microsoft [30:30] and Intel actually did a lot of work in [30:32] Windows. Like I they were like well you [30:34] were there. [30:35] >> I was with Tom Peterson. [30:36] >> Yeah. With Tom Peterson. It's like oh we [30:37] did a lot of work and blah blah blah. [30:38] And it's like yeah I mean did you really [30:40] though? Cuz Microsoft 800 lb gorilla [30:41] they don't listen a lot. [30:43] >> And it's like you can put that on your [30:44] wish list but the thing that actually [30:45] ships was he going to have that? It [30:47] actually did. [30:48] >> Yeah. [30:48] >> So uh the most impressive thing about [30:50] that was definitely the CPUuler. the the [30:53] CPU scheduler in that is actually kind [30:56] of beautiful because the games really do [30:59] run well on mostly the efficiency cores [31:02] and and let me tell you the Linux [31:03] equivalent of that on Steam OS is still [31:05] a hot mess 6 months later and so I've [31:08] been tracking on the graphics side like [31:10] the Vulcan team and it seems like Intel [31:13] is letting some of their graphics people [31:14] moonlight doesn't seem like Intel's got [31:16] a ton of people doing this but uh there [31:18] is a lot of inertia on the Linux side [31:21] some of which is from Valve some of [31:22] which is not some of which is just [31:24] community excitement because it's a good [31:25] piece of hardware um to make the Linux [31:29] experience elevated and a little bit [31:30] better and right now today the Windows [31:32] experience the Windows performance [31:34] experience and battery life experience [31:35] is a little bit better and the [31:37] scheduling because it Linux is really [31:39] good about like let's get on the the [31:41] pecores get it done and get out and it [31:44] does it it's a lot more extensible from [31:46] a user standpoint but the the users that [31:48] are extending it I don't think have the [31:50] seventh level Tom Peterson wizard [31:52] acknowledge. [31:53] >> I don't think most people do. [31:55] >> You do kind of bring up a good point [31:56] though, which is for all the benefits of [32:01] Linux for gaming in general, but also [32:02] Steam OS, there's also still limitations [32:05] on things like Nvidia support. Not [32:08] great. You know, like there's times when [32:10] Nvidia just shits itself trying to run a [32:12] game in Linux. Yeah. [32:13] >> Uh [32:15] >> and there's a reason that the stuff [32:18] Valve is shipping with Steam OS has AMD [32:21] hardware. it just happens to run better [32:23] for them. So, [32:24] >> uh, some of it is really interesting. [32:26] Uh, so I was reminded of this with the [32:28] RTX Spark launch. So, when when DJX [32:30] Spark launch, it's like, "Oh, AI, [32:32] whatever. No one cares." [32:33] >> But, uh, I put Steam on it and, um, uh, [32:38] Cyberpunk and I was able to get DLSS and [32:41] all of the x86 binaries. This was [32:43] frowned upon. I got kind of an email [32:45] that was like, we don't really want to [32:46] focus on this. [32:47] >> This is our DGX or RTX Spark. [32:48] >> DGX. DGX. So, this is a while ago. So it [32:50] was like I I think I had [32:51] >> Okay. So you put steam on it. [32:52] >> Yeah. I did a lot of thing. I was the [32:54] first one I think or one of the first [32:55] ones and then somebody from Nvidia made [32:58] a GitHub repository that was like no [33:00] stupid. This is how you do it. And it [33:01] was even better than what I did and but [33:03] it was great. Um and so but the thing [33:06] with that is that's ARM [33:07] >> and you have to understand that all this [33:08] like Nvidia special sauce is not [33:10] designed for ARM at all. [33:11] >> Uh it was x86 but you can still run [33:13] cyber punk and all this other stuff that [33:15] way. But the most interesting thing to [33:17] me about that is I think it was it [33:21] wasn't Valerant. It was one of the other [33:23] uh Warframe maybe, I don't remember. It [33:26] was one of those those those games that [33:28] has a lot of players that has an antiche [33:30] >> and it was so early in the process that [33:33] the antiche didn't trigger [33:35] >> when you when you were running. And then [33:36] a couple weeks later I went back to play [33:38] it and it was like antiche has [33:39] determined this is an invalid [33:40] configuration. And it's like well the it [33:44] was working fine. They added something [33:46] to detect somebody playing on a $4,000 [33:49] at the time. Come on, this is insane. [33:51] >> Play Valerant or whatever it was. Yeah. [33:53] >> Yeah. So, we do need Valve leaning on [33:55] people that are that that are that level [33:57] of sociopathic. [33:58] >> That's our discussion on Steam OS and [34:01] Linux in general. Uh just a lot of stuff [34:04] I was kind of I've been thinking about [34:06] with like the okay, this a lot of this [34:08] looks really good now. When does bad [34:10] stuff happen and who does that come [34:12] from? And Microsoft is the one I've been [34:14] most interested in because surely at [34:15] some point they've got to feel [34:16] threatened. [34:17] >> Uh they do feel threatened. They have [34:19] just been completely impotent to respond [34:21] to it, [34:22] >> right? [34:22] >> They they have been felt threatened for [34:24] a long long all the way back to Vista as [34:26] it turns out. [34:27] >> I give you a little microcosm of like [34:29] how insane this is. You know, Windgate [34:31] like Windgit is legit kind of cool. It's [34:32] like I can go Windgit install things. [34:34] There are forces inside Microsoft that [34:36] have sabotaged Windgit because they [34:39] don't get the same analytics from [34:41] somebody going to the Windows store and [34:43] graphically browsing to the thing [34:45] >> and like clicking through to do the [34:47] thing. There is no other explanation. [34:48] >> That's like a pure [34:50] >> shareholder type type approach. [34:52] >> Yeah. It's like I don't want to make the [34:53] operating system better. I want to [34:55] inflict these types of horrors on the [34:57] user to gently encourage them to do the [35:00] behavior that I want them to do. And [35:01] that is exactly the person you need, not [35:03] in charge of your operations. [35:04] >> That's where you come to your word, [35:05] sociopathic for the companies. Yeah. [35:09] >> So, that's it for this one. We did a [35:11] level one Linux news recap over on your [35:14] level one Linux channel. So, [35:16] >> check it out. [35:16] >> Check that out. Subscribe for more. [35:18] We'll see you all next time.