Steam OS for PC! Take my $330!

[Gurgeh]

I am sat here this morning... (it is a sunny day, the windows are open, the breeze is cool, the coffee is fresh...) on my sofa, with Steamdeck in its dock outputting to my TV, my bluetooth ergonomic keyboard on my lap with my blue tooth mouse next to me (all effortless paired),,, and it is a 'dream'.
Steam Arch KDE Plasma is a 'dream' and a 'pleasure to use.
I hate pretty much everything about Windows 11. Is just not a nice OS, and thatss before all the ai, and the hidden agendas.
For the love of Gabe... please, please, release a SteamOS for PC.
Get into bed with AMD and sort the GFX drivers out (forget nvidia) , it will help get games devs on board with optiising for AMD.
Launch a mega marketing campaign. Make it clear that SteamOS will always be 'beta plus', Support for any and all hardware will be limited best endevours.
But please, please, release it.

Without thinking I would be willing to pay:
> $330
> provided I have 2 months grace to test Steam OS for PC for my hardware before purchasing activation.
> For an OS that has 5 years of security fix software assurance on the activated SteamOS major version
-> limited to that code which is not open source but developed by Valve
-> or where open source then fixes should be availed to me
--> For medium and low CVEs provided the open source provides a fix for the current major version of the opensource component. (fixes only available via major version changes at Valve's sole discretion.)
--> For High CVEs in all cases.
-> I accept no 'entitlement' to guaranteed break-fix support. Hardware variety and an open source considerations are too complex. All break fix is best endeavors. I have the option to not to avail myself of even security fixes if something breaks, or to not activate in the first place (and go Windows), or not change hardware away from previously working installations. The hardware supplier/customer market will likely take care of testing and assurances for any new hardware.
> I would accept SteamOS activation ala Microsoft style. (tied to serial configurations etc)
> I would accept Steam update repos for 'SteamOS' components being access restricted to those with current support.
> I would expect to still have access to Steam repos for non-valve packages but distributed re-packaged by valve.
> I can avail myself of updates to SteamOS major versions for free if I elect, within software assurance period.
> After 5 years further support is at $60/year. I may have to accept a free update to the SteamOS major version to avail myself of this extended support, and best endevours break fix support limitations still apply. (2 month cool off of the extended support if update fails)
> I expect to be able to transfer my SteamOS license to another configuration of part serials, but this this will invalidate activation on the old combination.
> I would accept 'non-activated' OSes being entirely crippled.
> expiry of support alone does not de-acrivate a licence. Only access to software assurance.

@Fellow gamers
Best endevours is all you can expect though. If it breaks. It breaks. If you cant update someting... you can't update it. (hardware or software). If you don't like it, go windows, or expect to pay 'way' more. No idea if $330 for 5 years is even at all viable for just readily available security fixes.
Don't even try to complain if something breaks. You rollback, and wait.. and wait...
This is linux. You'll get what valve think they can 'afford'. And absolutely nothing more. The very best of endevours will be for security, and for some hardware SteamOS will not be an option for perhaps a long time.
But I think this 'might' be viable, and will work better as hardware suppliers have to get more directly invested in linux.

Please, SteamOS for PC.
And I do want to pay for it. Because I think that will deliver better quality.

[Gurgeh]

What about OEMs? I suggest a customer education marketing campaign. That 'some' hardware may come with OEMs support add-ons, but that the OEM is entirely responsible for any assurances made. That valve epects OEM partners to honour any assurances made for their add-ons when hardware is sold with a SteamOS badge, or be shamed by valve, and that in the absence of an OEM support package, normal SteamOS software assurance will apply.

[N]

It's probably going to be released for free by the end of the year. I personally wouldnt want to pay 300+ for "best endeavors" and "if it breaks, don't try to complain" so i'm not sure it would be very profitable solution.

be patient. it will be here soon.

[André]

I use the SteamOS 3.8 repair image on my PC, but i cant update this version. On my Ryzen mini PC it works fine with updates. On my Gaming PC i need a boot loader (Clover) to boot up. Without Clover it does not boot.

[N]

if you cant wait, google Bazzite

[Gurgeh]

Originally posted by N:

It's probably going to be released for free by the end of the year. I personally wouldnt want to pay 300+ for "best endeavors" and "if it breaks, don't try to complain" so i'm not sure it would be very profitable solution.

be patient. it will be here soon.

I absolutely get you. However, some rare few companies can do the right thing without being forced to, and I believe there is an amount of effort that Valve would be forced to make above and beyond the minimum that would deliver a good result, that would 'earn' trust and loyalty.
It might mean adoption is slow. But once they start delivering, I think it might work.
The terms would be a get-out jail clause for factors outside of their control (which is linux in a nutshell)
and they would have to keep reinforcing the get out clause, because one day, it will happen.
I think they should take some money if they are putting in work. I've never seen anything free that works really well (again, linux in a nutshell)
I do need something more polished and consistent than regular linux if I'm goign to break free of Windows. If I can't ditch windows... then I don't need the headache of an extra OS to maintain.
I don't need another janky linux distro that becomes unrecognizable every three years when some group of devs get bored and get itchy feet. I've got plenty of those already.

I suppose if its free I'll use it along side Windows I'm having to pay for 'provided' gaming performance is 100% as good as Windows. If its 99%, there is no point, if I'm still having to pay for Windows.
Or I'll accept 97% performance if I can get rid of windows entirely. But to get rid of windows I need much better stability, and consistency of experience, and interoperability than any distro has ever come close to delivering yet.
Ubuntu/fedora all you end up getting is whatever is good enough to keep RedHat's business customer's needs happy. And the same for Suse. All the other's... I expect them to be withering away in three years time when the next hip distro comes along. No I don't have the time to configure my own Arch, and why would I use Debian as a 'feature rich daily driver GUI workstation ecosystem'?
I'm tired of janky VNC remote control that is hard to setup, and never works anything like as well as Windows RDP. I'm tired of linux RDP being even harder to get working. I'm tired of UIs being unrecognizable every three years. I'm tired of looking up how to do something and the interface I have to work with for software component X is always unrecognizable, or based on some silly 3rd-4th party add-on package that takes half a day to configure and breaks.

I want a secure, stable, highly interoperable, power-user-feature righ 'GUI' operating system. I can do command line. (implementing X project hypervisors blah blah) But I don't expect expect to have to, if I don't have to for windows. I've got stuff to do.
But I want valve to deliver a an operatig system that has good non gaming workstation features, where 90% of them work well, not the usual 70%, even if the broken 10% then constantly shift form this to that as upstram open source breaks stuff. But valve needs a get out of jail free card for that 10% that keeps shifting, and the resources to fork KDE, when all the devs suddenly decide they are going gnome again. or incase KDE suddenly decides to release unrecognizable 'KDE neutronium;

Stuff like the business with wallets and GPG in Steam OS. I can handle that a bit, but I expect there is a lot of that waiting for me if I was to 'really' start to use SteamOS, and I don't see that getting better without Valve making the investment that requires they earn a revenue from it. (I dont' mean add revenue, I already have Windows for that)

If I'm to replace windows, as great as SteamOS is for steamdeck, its still not good enough to replace windows as a daily driver for my official affairs.

But if its free, and has 100% performance for gaming I'll give it a go. But why on earth would Valve want to become a charity?

[N]

its already free. google Bazzite. it also comes free with the steam deck. they are also adding support to other handheld PC's.

SteamOS wasnt made as a product, it was made as part of the steam deck. Valve wanted software independence from microsoft and apple, not to sell an operating system. we will get SteamOS for free as a side effect of their desires.

its kinda like how GPS tracking is free for US civilian use because the military relies on it and it costs very little to run.

[Drak3]

You don't really need official SteamOS for a desktop PC. It's ultimately Arch linux specialized around a single device.

You can achieve the same thing with Bazzite, CachyOS, or ChimeraOS with very little work, or with a little effort, you can get a more general distro, install gamescope and configure Steam to start in big picture mode at login.

I like SteamOS as a handheld OS, but it's suboptimal for a regular desktop or laptop.

[@R+5]

Originally posted by Gurgeh:

Launch a mega marketing campaign.

Sure, that could be nice, if it worked like the classic coca cola vs pepsi publicity war, but rather than relying in madeup drama, actually differences in features and the actual negative trends microsoft is pushing with copilot and related user tracking bs, intended to help the globalist totalitarians socialists that want to force the "disposable money model" (as in "you lose your money if you dont use it before x date") through cbdc, and end ownership of stuff ("you will own nothing and will be happy").

Originally posted by Gurgeh:

Make it clear that SteamOS will always be 'beta plus', Support for any and all hardware will be limited best endevours.

what the hell is "beta plus"?

hardware limitations are not a consequence of what valve does, but what others dev do in relation to linux. if a single company (apart from canonical) has increased significantly compatibility in hardware, and as well as "non-linux" software, is valve thanks to their early attempt to make steam os.

the new version, unlike the original, may have some limitations relative to hardware compat (in that aspect is true "buntus" still have a minor advantage), but is not as bad as you suggest, specially related for its main intended use: (video)gaming (and maybe even to be also useful for "creators", without super-specialised software or hardware requirements, like those who may need maya or some other programs that still wond work properly or at all in linux, thanks to the lack of interest in linux from their devs).

Originally posted by Gurgeh:

Without thinking I would be willing to pay:
> $330

thats not how linux works, and that also contradicts the intention of making it easier to adopt.

but i think it would be useful and fair, if valve could eventually provide a service to troubleshoot linux for a small fee. in the corporate world, thats one of the ways linux gets funds: through very specialised support for big companies that use linux in their servers to reduce cost and increase efficiancy.

Originally posted by Gurgeh:

> I would accept SteamOS activation ala Microsoft style. (tied to serial configurations etc)

if suggesting to sell the os was silly, this one is even more absurd.

Originally posted by Gurgeh:

@Fellow gamers
Best endevours is all you can expect though. If it breaks. It breaks. If you cant update someting... you can't update it. (hardware or software). If you don't like it, go windows, or expect to pay 'way' more. No idea if $330 for 5 years is even at all viable for just readily available security fixes.

Linux shill confirmed.

Originally posted by Gurgeh:

Please, SteamOS for PC.
And I do want to pay for it. Because I think that will deliver better quality.

if you want to directly support linux development, to be more compatible and efficient, then you can actually donate to arch, kde, etc.: if you want to support valve to keep using their resources in linux, you just need to keep spending in steam, and valve hardware, and use linux rather than windows, and learn its limitations, and the real reason they exist and why even with minimum support from casual users (and even when some funds have been stolen to push dei bs) it has been able to evolve enough to be a viable option, and will keep improving (and faster) thanks to the increased adoption of steam deck (and other non-valve hardware options).

[@R+5]

Originally posted by Drak3:

You can achieve the same thing with Bazzite, CachyOS, or ChimeraOS with very little work, or with a little effort, you can get a more general distro, install gamescope and configure Steam to start in big picture mode at login.

you skipped Nobara OS htpc version, which includes "steam deck mode". Nobara Os includes most common features needed for gaming, and also makes easy to configure the OS to run Davinci Resolve, as well as working with Nvidia gpus

[Drak3]

Originally posted by @R+5:

Originally posted by Drak3:

You can achieve the same thing with Bazzite, CachyOS, or ChimeraOS with very little work, or with a little effort, you can get a more general distro, install gamescope and configure Steam to start in big picture mode at login.

you skipped Nobara OS htpc version, which includes "steam deck mode". Nobara Os includes most common features needed for gaming, and also makes easy to configure the OS to run Davinci Resolve, as well as working with Nvidia gpus

Mentioning Nobara AND Bazzite is just redundant, tbh. And in my experience, Fedora derivatives are just overly meh. The only reason I brought up Bazzite in the first place is that it has become the new HoloISO in that nearly everyone recommends it solely for the fact that (when it works) it feels as close to a SteamDeck without much effort as you can get.
My experience with Bazzite and Fedora in general is to install an Arch or Ubuntu derivative instead.