Shall we do an Ubuntu migration party to celebrate the upcoming BE release?

[Teodosio]

Hello,

why don't we organize a nice Ubuntu migration party in order to celebrate the upcoming release of Civilization Beyond Earth?
I would be happy to have more fellow civ players enjoy the improved performance, reliability and security of Ubuntu (compared to Windows 5, 6, 7, 8...).

I could be available for tips and advice and probably other GNU/Linux players would be willing to help too.

Who wants to be to first to jump on the ship?

 

[rastak]

As a heavy Linux user at work I'd love too. What are the chances all of my 170+ steam games will work just fine? Probably not a very good chance (as in none) unfortunately.

 

[MadDjinn]

As a heavy Linux user at work I'd love too. What are the chances all of my 170+ steam games will work just fine? Probably not a very good chance (as in none) unfortunately.

Steam has been supporting Linux, with a number of games, for a while now.

Not all games, nor all developers, but it's not 'none'

 

[Lord of Harmony]

I had no idea what you were talking about until you mentioned that it was a computer. I thought you were asking me to immigrate to a small, impoverished country in Africa.

 

[Teodosio]

As a heavy Linux user at work I'd love too. What are the chances all of my 170+ steam games will work just fine? Probably not a very good chance (as in none) unfortunately.

I advice you to check your Steam Library! More than half of the games in my library are available on GNU/Linux. To think that just one year ago almost none of them were!

I had no idea what you were talking about until you mentioned that it was a computer. I thought you were asking me to immigrate to a small, impoverished country in Africa.

That's the idea behind the party! To let people know that there is a better, safer, faster way to use your computer. And that is fully compatible with Civilization 5 too (and soon with Beyond Earth)!

Who wants to be the first volunteer for migration?

 

[rastak]

Steam has been supporting Linux, with a number of games, for a while now.

Not all games, nor all developers, but it's not 'none'

]


Hey Mad, love all the Non-EU stuff on your channel.

I said "What are the chances all of my 170+ steam games will work just fine? "

I stand by the fact there is no chance ( none ) that they all will work.

 

[Zet]

I just wish the graphics driver support was better on Ubuntu. But this is a bit of a chicken and egg problem. The more people use Linux, the more reasons there are for improving the drivers.

 

[rastak]

@Teodosio - Surprised there are so many titles supported. So far in checking about 12 games I regularly play, two are supported. I frankly figured all the ones I checked would be unlikely. Still, I wouldn't toast 90% of my games to gain zero functionality over what I have today.

 

[rastak]

Does Civ BE even support Linux? It says Direct X 11 required....

 

[Epic Eric]

Does Civ BE even support Linux? It says Direct X 11 required....

If it'll be anything like Civ V, it's gonna be ported to Linux by Aspyr later.

Still, it's the same as the OS X version: it ain't coming on release.

 

[cooldude1128]

I'll stick with Windows XP thanks. It's never failed me yet, and it runs CiV fine.

 

[AriochIV]

Yes, by all means, you and the other 10 people who switch to Ubuntu, have a party.

 

[Teodosio]

I just wish the graphics driver support was better on Ubuntu. But this is a bit of a chicken and egg problem. The more people use Linux, the more reasons there are for improving the drivers.

At the moment driver support for Nvidia and Intel is great. I don't know about AMD. Video driver performance probably is or will be better than Windows because the Linux kernel is just faster and much easier to work with (being open source has its advantages).

I'll stick with Windows XP thanks. It's never failed me yet, and it runs CiV fine.

I am sure there is something you might want. Perhaps you would appreciate a modern and reliable 64 bit OS? Or would you like to be safe from viruses? How often are you reinstalling Windows every year? Or, have you ever thought about full disk encryption? What if somebody steals your pc and gets all of your data? These are just examples of what is waiting for you.

Yes, by all means, you and the other 10 people who switch to Ubuntu, have a party.

Hello Arioch! I guess I should thank you for your website, I check it daily for updates and information!
What do you use for updating it, ftp or sftp? sftp is more reliable, encrypted and it is basically the industry standard for remote file transfer but... it doesn't really exists in Windows, although is has been around for around 20 years, funny it isn't?
BTW, both of them are natively supported by KDE in Ubuntu... I mean that once you have opened the remote folder with the file manager you can directly open and save files with your editor, without the need of uploading them separately (blink, blink...). This is all native, without need to buy a third party software.

Let's wait for a volunteer! You can even install both of the OS's at the same time if you want... but why would you keep a NSA backdoor on your pc I don't really know!

 

[Zet]

At the moment driver support for Nvidia and Intel is great. I don't know about AMD. Video driver performance probably is or will be better than Windows because the Linux kernel is just faster and much easier to work with (being open source has its advantages).

I've had some minor problems in the past with AMD drivers. Also the OS cannot return to normal after going to sleep while a game is running. My printer and headset were difficult to install due to poor drivers.

So Ubuntu is a second class OS for gaming still, but it's passable. Civ V runs fine.

There are few other flaws too, but despite them, I've grown to like it. Package managers are just superior to the Windows model of installing software. Windows is expensive, slow, comes with a lot of software I don't need, and misses the software I actually do need, and is seemingly redesigned every few years just to get people to buy a new version.

 

[cooldude1128]

I am sure there is something you might want. Perhaps you would appreciate a modern and reliable 64 bit OS? Or would you like to be safe from viruses? How often are you reinstalling Windows every year? Or, have you ever thought about full disk encryption? What if somebody steals your pc and gets all of your data? These are just examples of what is waiting for you.

I've been considering switching to Windows 7 lately. I haven't had a problem with viruses for a long time, and I've never had to reinstall Windows. Encryption might be a good idea. I'm fairly certain nobody out there would want my PC, or could even get at it, and even then such a problem wouldn't be isolated to just XP.

 

[Teodosio]

I've been considering switching to Windows 7 lately. I haven't had a problem with viruses for a long time, and I've never had to reinstall Windows. Encryption might be a good idea. I'm fairly certain nobody out there would want my PC, or could even get at it, and even then such a problem wouldn't be isolated to just XP.

Full disk encryption is a very good idea. Yes, very probably nobody is out to get your pc, but you can never know and it is better safe than sorry, after all. This is just one of the things you get out of the box with Ubuntu.
Are you considering switching to Windows 7? A OS that just after installation consumes more than 20GB of hdd space and 1GB of ram? When I saw that I was like "what the...?". An installation of Ubuntu uses one quarter of those resources. More performance for your applications!

Do you know about the package manager? You can install and keep updated every application from a single place. No need to browse the Internet to download files and to keep hunting for patches. Think like a system-wide Steam.

What if your computer doesn't boot anymore? You can just start Ubuntu with a live system on usb and access your computer and data as usual. You can install the system via usb too. Hell, it has been several years that I don't have cd/dvd drives anymore on my computers. Is anyone out there still using them? They are so 20th century.

So, is anyone going to try it out? Once you move from Windows to GNU/Linux you don't go back anymore.

 

[AriochIV]

Hello Arioch! I guess I should thank you for your website, I check it daily for updates and information!
What do you use for updating it, ftp or sftp? sftp is more reliable, encrypted and it is basically the industry standard for remote file transfer but... it doesn't really exists in Windows, although is has been around for around 20 years, funny it isn't?

You're welcome. I use sftp (FileZilla on Windows 7).

 

[bhavv]

Noty. I have no issues with Windows and I want all my games / software to work.

 

[rastak]

Full disk encryption is a very good idea. Yes, very probably nobody is out to get your pc, but you can never know and it is better safe than sorry, after all. This is just one of the things you get out of the box with Ubuntu.
Are you considering switching to Windows 7? A OS that just after installation consumes more than 20GB of hdd space and 1GB of ram? When I saw that I was like "what the...?". An installation of Ubuntu uses one quarter of those resources. More performance for your applications!

Do you know about the package manager? You can install and keep updated every application from a single place. No need to browse the Internet to download files and to keep hunting for patches. Think like a system-wide Steam.

What if your computer doesn't boot anymore? You can just start Ubuntu with a live system on usb and access your computer and data as usual. You can install the system via usb too. Hell, it has been several years that I don't have cd/dvd drives anymore on my computers. Is anyone out there still using them? They are so 20th century.

So, is anyone going to try it out? Once you move from Windows to GNU/Linux you don't go back anymore.

I would if a fatal hack rendered Windows (God I hate defending these guys, I only use it for gaming) unusable....then again at that point I'd hang it all up and that would be the end as the Doors once sang......

 

[Teodosio]

You're welcome. I use sftp (FileZilla on Windows 7).

Well, it seems we have a very nice case here! Wouldn't you prefer if it were possible to use the remote folder via sftp just like it were a local filesystem? Just open and save with the editor?
With Ubuntu you would be able to run a versioning system on your computer too (like Git, great for any kind of coding) or to login directly to the hosting via ssh to perform quick operations. All of that natively and closely integrated with every other part.
For a developer GNU/Linux is a great help.

Noty. I have no issues with Windows and I want all my games / software to work.

Don't you fear having a computer full of backdoors?
About software, you will get better software in Ubuntu in 90% of the cases.
About games, we will get there soon. 12 months ago only 10% of my Steam library was working under GNU/Linux, no it is more than 55%! I can only guess what will happen in another few months, when the Steam Machines come out.

I would if a fatal hack rendered Windows (God I hate defending these guys, I only use it for gaming) unusable....then again at that point I'd hang it all up and that would be the end as the Doors once sang......

You said that you are already using GNU/L at work, you are a good candidate! What desktop environment are you using, KDE, Gnome, something else?
If you want a pc purely for gaming I would suggest LXDE that is extremely light and fast: it uses less than 200MB of ram! And it is quite nice too, my old mother has been using it for around three years and she never complained or needed assistance. I remember when she had Windows, I had to perform "support services" every 2-3 months, oh hell that was a nightmare.


How long can Windows still last? Videogaming is the last IT market when Windows still holds (servers, databases, mobile, HPC are long gone) and every big player is quite tired of it (think of Valve or Google). Having to work with a closed OS is quite a pain because you are restrained by their rules, every business resents to do that.
Have ever asked yourself why every big software developer is working to release on GNU/Linux even if the user base is still so small? Think of CivBE, Rome 2 TW, Borderlands pre/sequel, Tropico 5, The Witcher 3, XCOM, Paradox games etc... This is because they are all betting on the end on Windows in the gaming market too.