In today's open source roundup: Linux professionals face a red-hot job market. Plus: Steam now has more than 500 Linux games, and what happens when you hook Ubuntu up to a barbeque grill?
500 Linux compatible games are now on Steam which is a pretty great number to point anyone at. No longer will people keep stating "but Linux has no games", but sadly they will say Linux has very little AAA games which is true, but this will be a gradual build up of course.
I'm inclined to agree with the sentiment of the article. Yes, Linux still needs more blockbuster AAA type games. But we'll get there eventually, Rome wasn't built in a day and it will take a while longer before Linux is at parity with Windows.
I believe that this will eventually happen given the change in sentiment among game developers after the release of Windows 8, and also Valve's Steam OS efforts. Smart developers do not want to be reliant on Windows any longer, they know they need to diversify their desktop platforms so they aren't as dependent on Microsoft.
It's important to remember though where we were five or ten years ago. Linux was essentially a pariah when it came to gaming. Nobody ever thought that Linux would eventually become a major platform for gaming, but that is exactly what is happening right now as I type these words.
Slow and steady wins the race, and the best days for Linux gaming are still very much ahead of us. We'll get there, we just need to be patient while Linux is built up as a gaming platform.
The barbeque grill that runs Ubuntu
I bumped into this very cool Ubuntu mod that uses a barbeque grill.
What a neat way to recycle an old grill. Yeah, it's not exactly practical, but I give it a lot of credit for originality. You have to love the creativity of some modders. I love seeing what they come up with, you just never know what you're going to get when they create one of these.
What's your take on all this? Tell me in the comments below.
The opinions expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the views of ITworld.
Jim Lynch is a technology analyst and online community manager who has also written for many leading industry publications over the years, including ITworld, InfoWorld, CIO, PCMag, ExtremeTech, and numerous others.
The opinions expressed in this blog are those of Jim Lynch and do not necessarily represent those of IDG Communications, Inc., its parent, subsidiary or affiliated companies.
