Steam Deck Platform Driver Posted For The Linux Kernel

[phoronix]

Phoronix: Steam Deck Platform Driver Posted For The Linux Kernel

A Linux kernel driver was posted today for platform control support for Valve's upcoming Steam Deck...

https://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=Steam-Deck-Platform-Driver

[CochainComplex]

I'm really looking forward to its release and also the steam os going public just to have a look at it.

[Lanz]

I am very psyched to finally be able to PC game literally anywhere. The portability here is just epic. Will probably get a few Decks in the long run, for my younger relatives.

[grigi]

I am very psyched to finally be able to PC game literally anywhere. The portability here is just epic. Will probably get a few Decks in the long run, for my younger relatives.

And I'm not allowed to order one. Even if I provide delivery addresses of family in Washington or London...

(sulking quietly in a corner)

[bemerk]

Wonder why the patches didn't come from an official company address.
Regardless of that, it is nice to have mainline support for a portable gaming device so early.
The switch still is not supported by the official kernel, is it?

[jonwil]

The difference is that the manufacturer of the Nintendo Switch explicitly doesn't want people running Linux on the device while the manufacturer of the Steam Deck intends to ship the device with Linux as the pre-installed OS.

[DrYak]

phoronix Hey, Michael, are there plans for you recieving one from Valve for testing? or otherwise, are you planning some crowdsource to be able to buy one for testing?
(At least if NDAs allow you to answer the above).

And I'm not allowed to order one. Even if I provide delivery addresses of family in Washington or London...

(sulking quietly in a corner)

Yup, same in .ch
I hope Vavle will manage something.

The difference is that the manufacturer of the Nintendo Switch explicitly doesn't want people running Linux on the device while the manufacturer of the Steam Deck intends to ship the device with Linux as the pre-installed OS.

Pre-installed and FRIGGING NOT LOCKED!!!! Yay!.

Want to hack stuff on the NetBSD powering Sony hardware? Out of luck, since the removal of "Other OS" option on PS3. You have to wait until the homebrew hacking scene find an exploit, and then you risk your account banned and/or the next update closing your possibility.

Want to hack Nintendo Switch hardware? As mentionned above: no.

Want to hack Microsoft hardware? Well.. it turns that "kind of". At least "dev mode" is a thing, but you're still limited to the confines of what you can do from an SDK. So mostly only making user-mode software for it (not replacing the OS). Better, but not the level of the next entry:

Want to hack Valve hardware? Yes, not only it runs linux, but you have the option to:

• Install something in a separate container and have an official base OS image that get auto-overwritten by each update (i.e. an almost un-brickable situation similar to how Google Chrome OS works)
• take over the the offical Arch-based SteamOS and do your own installation, updates, with pacman.
• wipe the official SteamOS and install any other distro you like, optionnally with that distro's steam package (e.g. openSUSE and steam from package.opensuse.org)
• wipe the official SteamOS a completely different OS: some *BSD, AndroidX86 or even freaking Windows.

Though the last two Steamdeck aren't a very optimal idea now:

• Other Linux distro (and to some extent Androidx86) would have to wait until all the Steamdeck-specific optimization hit upstream repos and reach them in order to have roughly same category performance as SteamOS. ← at least this will be temporary. We're guaranteed to get eventually there, thanks to opensource of Linux and SteamOS being based on it.
• This will probably never happen with *BSD due to lack of enough community developpers.
• And will probably take eons until microsoft decide to move their arses and provide some not ridiculously under performing driver pack…
• …unless they get eventually scared by big shift in market shares eating their Xbox profits and decide to put effort releasing some Xbox OS packs for handheld PCs that could also be twisted into working with Steamdeck at a less ridiculously bad performance than plain Windows 11)

[caligula]

The difference is that the manufacturer of the Nintendo Switch explicitly doesn't want people running Linux on the device while the manufacturer of the Steam Deck intends to ship the device with Linux as the pre-installed OS.

Exactly. This is just insane. Full official Linux support. Only some Chinese x86 tablets even come close to this level user friendliness.

[rmfx]

I hope they make a dedicated website for their SteamOS and provide a good doc and ISOs for pc users.

This distro may become what was needed for years and years: finally a single linux target for game developers!

Right now, Valve’s lack of employees shows. All their doc pages are lame. Their games updates and products follow up are very bad. Half of steam pages are dated. This company has zero consistency and perfectionism dna. It’s time to make some more efforts if they want to be the new Linux center of attention…