System76 - New Desktop Environment Written in Rust Expected Summer 2023
Numerous media outlets had reported about the fact that System76 – one of the most prominent Linux-based computer manufacturers out there – was going to tackle an enormous task. That would involve creating a new desktop environment, written in Rust.
That was a little over four months ago. Fast forward to yesterday, Destination Linux interviewed Emma Marshall, vice president of customer care at System76. In the episode, Emma was asked what the purpose of this ambitious project was.
Proton GE: What it is, Why it Should be Used, and How to Install
Proton GE. You might have heard that name tossed around somewhere, maybe seen some benchmarks done with it, but don’t know what it does. Well, this article will explain just that and the advantages it has over vanilla Proton. It also explains how to easily install it on your system and make use of it.
What is it? The “GE” in Proton GE stands for “Glorious Eggroll.” Per the interview from Boiling Steam, the name came about from the developer playing “off the card of being Asian and really liking eggrolls, and being a generally lighthearted person.
Kernel 5.17 Released, Here’s What’s New (AMD P-State support for Zen 2)
Today marks the release of Linux kernel 5.17. Doesn’t seem to offer much of anything in the gaming landscape, but there’s hardware support for a bunch of new motherboards and processors.
Here’s a basic rundown of what’s new:
support for AMD’s new P-State driver for AMD Zen 2 APUs – this is particularly good news for the Steam Deck as that is the APU it’s using and P-State delivers better power efficiency.
Articles to Bookmark/Wiki Added
I’ve added a link in the navigation bar to access LGC’s “timeless” articles. Guides, game reviews, interviews with developers, and whatever else I may cover. As LGC constantly provides new articles every day, these older articles can be difficult to find. So, I made this page to make finding these articles easier.
So far I’ve got the Slippi guide, tips for playing GRID Legends on NVIDIA graphics cards, how to use the Steam Deck UI, the Project Heartbeat review, and a few developer interviews.
Interested in Working for Canonical? May Want to Think Again
I invite you to take a look at the first step in the interview process at Canonical:
Image credit: Reddit and the original poster
Read that for a few minutes and tell me whether the interview process is absurd, or someone at Canonical has just too much time on their hands.
First, the spelling error in the first sentence: “to joint the Ubuntu WSL engineering team.” Second, “very occasionally.” It should just be “occasionally.
News Round-Up for March 11-18 (New Stadia Tech)
Was hoping to get this out yesterday but time flies. Hope a day late isn’t going to bother anyone.
News Steam Deck-related
ETA Prime – A YouTuber that mostly focuses on emulation – released a Steam Deck review last week, and covers the gaming as well as the emulation aspect of the Deck. Needless to say, the Deck is one of the most powerful handhelds out there for emulation. Gameranx also had a video review That Boiling Steam contributer that got a Steam Deck?
An Interview with Thomas Castleman, Creator of Drauger OS
Thomas Castleman is the creator of the Drauger OS distribution, based off of Ubuntu. Thomas’ goal is to provide gamers a pleasant gaming experience by shipping the Xanmod kernel, a lightweight desktop environment, and stability by using Ubuntu as the base. A while back I had reviewed the distro when it was in its’ early stages on Boiling Steam, but now I had wanted to check in with him and see how Drauger OS is doing these days.
Slippi: Getting it Set Up on Linux
Super Smash Bros. Melee. The game I will cherish to time indefinite. I won’t spend this article on my fascinations with this game (although I may do that in a separate post); let’s get right to the point. Let’s get this game set up on your Linux machine (and maybe your Steam Deck?) so you can start playing the game online with others…with rollback netcode! The process really isn’t that complicated, but this guide should give you some tips on how to get the best experience.
Fedora: The New Ubuntu?
I happened to be subscribed to The Linux Experiment’s YouTube channel. I noticed a new video he posted yesterday regarding the strengths Fedora has over the last couple of months he’s used the distro. Other mainstream Fedora users include Adam Adamou, chief strategy officer at OverActive Media (esports organization), and the developer of Proton GE. And now Nick is the latest to join the Fedora crusade.
Canonical had paved the way to Linux adoption; Ubuntu had a decent software lineup, an easy-to-use interface, and it was “pushing innovation in the desktop space.
New DualSense Controllers Feature Thicker Springs for Triggers
Steve from TronicsFix released a video less than two weeks ago where he tore down three new DualSense controllers from Sony. The newer models – the pink, purple, and light blue – seemed to have a slightly different motherboard layout. But what he found out as he was taking it apart was the analog sticks could potentially be upgraded.
The potentiometer is the same color all around – before, there was one side where the color was different.