Tech For Everyone #22: The Linus Effect

GOOD MORNING! And in case I don’t see you, good afternoon, good evening, and goodnight.

Since launching one week ago, Open For Everyone has served up 16,000 page views to 12,000 unique visitors. To say I’m blown away by that is an understatement. If you were one of those 12,000 wonderful readers, you have my sincere thanks.

When it comes to creating content, writing was always my first love. I almost gave up on it following several disappointments at Forbes and elsewhere (hello Voice exiles), but finally having my own site, under my control, has changed everything.

And I’m writing my ass off.

If you’re feeling generous and want to support that, you can buy me a coffee on Ko-Fi! If not, sharing my words is ALWAYS appreciated!

BTW, are you playing Halo Infinite? I could use a good Fireteam. Add me on Xbox Live. I’m Hike Monster.

Now, we need to talk about the decidedly positive ripple effect a certain Linus Tech Tips is having on the Linux world…

Thanks to the ongoing Linux Gaming Challenge at Linus Tech Tips, and the impending Steam Deck launch, Linux gaming is enjoying more exposure. But it’s also under the microscope.

If you’ve been watching, you probably saw Linus Sebastian’s Pop OS installation implode when he tried to install Steam.

That incident led to both System76 and KDE patching their respective Linux desktop environments to prevent users from straight up deleting their COSMIC or Plasma desktops.

So, what’s next from this ripple effect? 12-year-old Rudra Saraswat has stepped up to the plate. And he’s created a “Linus-proof” app called Gamebuntu!

Designed specifically for new Linux users coming over from Windows, Gamebuntu is basically a bash script with a nice clean GUI. Click “Install,” and it does a BUNCH of tedious stuff that no one likes to do manually.

Stuff like this:

You can read my full writeup about Gamebuntu at Open For Everyone right here.

If you’re using Linux and streaming anything, the Fedora Project wants to hear from you. (Podcasters too!)

Why? On this recently published Fedora Wiki page, Christian Schaller (Director for Desktop, Graphics, Infotainment & i18n at @RedHat) explains that the the use case for live streaming has skyrocketed in the last decade. Whether you’re a gamer, a coder, a podcaster or just someone physically separated from loved ones, it’s become almost a utility rather than a luxury.

These use cases have only been amplified by the pandemic. 

In a nutshell, the Fedora Workstation Live Streaming Compatibility Initiative aims to “make sure that Fedora Workstation has the best out of the box experience for the software and hardware.”

Every initiative begins with a first step. In this case, it’s listing the strengths and weaknesses of Linux compatibility. Then, the exciting part: articulating potential partnerships with hardware and software makers. 

Key to this discussion is that Fedora wants to partner with entities “that have an interest in both upstream and downstream enablement.” Meaning, of course, that it wants the entire Linux ecosystem to benefit.

The initiative clearly states that Fedora intends to gather support from vendors and industry players to build moment around this. 

Plainly put, your input is valuable to the Fedora Project on this one. If you’re creating content on Linux, give Schaller your feedback. 

Find out more here:

Benjamin is awesome btw. He’s the creator of GOverlay, a great app for Linux that installs MangoHUD and acts as a killer overlay for benchmarking and monitoring. And making your games just look better.

He recently updated GOverlay to look great on Steam Deck.

OH, speaking of Steam Deck. Here’s yet another article I kicked out this week:

Is for you to forward this email to someone who might enjoy it!

Thanks a ton for reading my words! If you want to connect with me and the awesome Linux + Gaming community we’ve built, here are some ways to do that:

Until we cross paths again, take care! And take care of each other.