Why do you use Linux?

With the widespread support for Steam/Valve on this forum because of their contributions to making Linux gaming easier, I’m now confused as to why people here are using Linux in the first place.

I personally do so out of support for FOSS software, the customizability, and actual ownership of software, which I thought were most people’s primary reasons for using any Linux distro. Steam seems antithetical to all of these. The software in the first place became popular as a form of DRM, and it gets publishers to use it for the allowance of DRM on the platform. The Steam client has the absolute minimum customizability. Your account can be banned at any point and you can lose access to many of the games you have downloaded.

Whenever I game on Linux I just use folders to sort my game library and purchase any games I want to play on itch.io or GoG. On my Linux PC I stay away from clients like Steam because I want a PC that works offline, and will work if all of my accounts were banned. It’s more of a backup PC.

Since Steam has every characteristic of Windows, 0 customizability, DRM, plenty of games that are spyware, I see no reason to really not use Windows instead for the much easier time I can have playing games.

Yes, I prefer many of the features of Linux distros, but using a client like Steam defeats the purpose of them. Ridiculous storage requirements due to unoptimized dependencies, having to have a background client running for some games and wasting resources on doing so.

So, why use Linux and support Steam, or use Linux and use Steam?

ono,

I think a better title for your post would be, “Why do you use Steam?”

sederx,

Simple.i don’t use steam

Zaphod,

Because I own my PC, not Winshit

okamiueru,

What is it you want to know? “why do you use Linux” seems like it assumes something about what you might want to know.

Like, why Linux and not MacOS/Windows? Or, what are the Linux specific stuff you use it for? And when you say “Linux”, I’m sure you don’t mean the kernel, but likely Linux kernel + some package manager + some window manager?

The answer to a lot of these things are true statements for me, but will come across as incredulous. They are:

  • Gnome is a more consistent user experience over both MacOS and Windows. Gnome 9/10, MacOS 4/10, W11 3/10.
  • It is the actual “just works”. (the list is looong)
  • It’s much more usable for power users.

Are the main ones. I cannot think of a single thing either MacOS or W11 does better, that isn’t “well, you can run X software on it”, which is a fair argument and likely a valid deal breaker for many use cases/professions. But also not really the fault of the OS. And there are many, many reasons why MacOS and W11 are a pain to use.

c0mbatbag3l,
@c0mbatbag3l@lemmy.world avatar

Even being on Linux isn’t enough for Linux users, now. Gotta have every piece of software they approve of and none of the ones they don’t. On top of it you have to use it for the same reasons, too.

Fucking Christ, you guys make me want to never mention that I use Linux.

OverfedRaccoon,

I’ll try and keep it short with a bullet list, as I can tend to be long-winded about everything.

  • Helped recover files on an old laptop in the Win XP days (how I got started).
  • Breathed new life into older hardware that was too crappy for Windows.
  • Thought it was neat, novel, fresh, etc.
  • Free. Why pay for or pirate Windows?
  • FOSS and, specifically, FOSS alternatives to paid software I’d otherwise have pirated.
  • Less targeted for malware.
  • Windows 11 says no to my aging, but plenty capable, computer (the last holdout on Windows til Win 10 hits EOL).
  • Reasonable, optional telemetry.
  • Not having to reboot (possibly more than once) during updates.
  • Fun to learn.

There are some reasons to like Windows, but it’s harder to justify with the direction Microsoft is, and has been, moving.

EDIT: To actually answer your question about Steam and Linux… because I have a Steam account that I’ve had for many, many years with 1000 games that predates me moving to Linux in a more serious capacity. While I could move to GOG (and have), I’m not just going to throw away my game library. But also, Steam working to make gaming more mainstream on Linux is a net positive for Linux in general. That was always the reason many people gave for why they wouldn’t switch - that, and proprietary software that won’t run on anything other than Windows or maybe Mac.

root,

I started using Linux at tge end of last year when I built myself a new gaming PC. Had enough of Windows telemetry and wanted to start taking small steps to improve my digital privacy. Ditching Windows for Linux is the easy part.

Valve has fone wonders in making gaming on linux relatively frictionless all things considered and for that, I (and i believe a lot of people) am grateful. It gives us a choice in OS. Yes, Steam can be considered “DRM” but at least it’s better than Denuvo or EAC. Steam works on Linux without having to jump through hoops.

Also, Steam family sharing is awesome. I can let my partner / family play my games when I am working and they are not.

havokdj,

Steam is not mutually exclusive with denuvo or eac.

root,

That’s true. I guess the more accurate comprison would be Steam VS Epic games store since they are storefronts as well as drm.

Arthur_Leywin,

Because it’s easier to use/troubleshoot and fix problems. “Oh something broke on an update” revert to the last update. “I have an issue and it outputs an error code in the terminal” copy paste into Google/chatGPT and find the solution.

Kjatten,

Windows bad, apple bad, Google bad

Colour_me_triggered,

Because the alternatives are windows, apple, and Google.

Decompose,

I use it for my servers and for remotely programming for over a decade. Using it on a desktop setup for work or games? Fuck no!

It’s my criticism of the Linux community: They don’t understand what “being productive” really means. I need to do work during the day, and produce results. I don’t have time to deal with my docking station not working, monitors settings breaking, and tinker with them every day… not because I can’t, but because I SHOULDN’T NEED TO.

It was cool when I was a teenager… now I need to make money.

As frustrating as it sounds. On windows and mac, literally plug and play. Every time I get the exact same setup. On Linux… dear Lord… every day a different problem and a different tinker until I swore that I’m done, and went back to remote use of Linux. Linux terminal is perfect, and that’s probably all I’ll need. Linux desktop through VNC, if ever.

f4f4f4f4f4f4f4f4, (edited )

Random breakage and weird behavior is why I stopped using Windows at home. On so many machines, I’ve seen the Start menu just stop functioning… or what’s up with the system trying to update the video drivers to the version dated 1968 (the year of Intel’s founding)? Nagging me (again?!) to change my web browser to Edge… Is your browser compliant to web standards this time, Microsoft? I still don’t want to use it.

Users are taught to fear Linux “because you might have to use the command line!” when in Windows you need to use brain-melting Powershell commands like

Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register “$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml”}

just to get a functional OS back.

You pay for Windows, but the privacy terms make it clear that it’s Microsoft’s computer, not yours, yet you have to fix it yourself when things spontaneously break. If I manage to break Linux (by my own actions), at least I feel like I’m learning a bit in the process of fixing it.

jernej,

Switched from Arch to Endevour cuz the icon was prettier

Voytrekk,
@Voytrekk@lemmy.world avatar

I swapped because I did not like the direction that Microsoft is taking Windows. It felt like just more tracking, more ads, and less control with each iteration. I always felt like Linux was better, but did not meet my need for gaming. The steam deck came out just a few months before I switched, giving me the confidence that I would still be able to play the games that I enjoy.

JTskulk,

I’d use something else if it were better, but there isn’t.

Willdrick,

Made the switch way before any kind of support from steam, had several games from aspyr and feral, bought a codeweavers license and all that. For me at keast it’s about the lack of interruptions and actually enjoying the workflow on gnome. I also love the idea of fetting in touch directly with the people making the programs I enjoy and not a random support rep on the other side of the world.

On the other hand, you should probably take a deeper look at steam. There are a ton of extra modifications you can do to the client, all of them unofficial and some straight up illegal, from changing the theme to injecting enhancements on the store (e.g. displaying protondb score on store pages) to aome shady shit like unlocking DLC. Steam is DRM but it’s not denuvo or something like that. It’s easily circumventable to the point I feel safe buying games on it, knowing if they ever go for a rug pull, I could keep most if not all my stuff regardless of the platform itself.

dustyData,

Steam will let you play pirated games through their Proton and compatibility framework. What kind of DRM is it truly if it helps you pirate?

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