Wait, which of these Windows users are aware enough of Linux to have a formed expectation of Steam working under it or not? Like, they don’t know enough to understand what it is, but they’re super concerned that Steam, of all things, won’t run on it?
Are these Very Real Windows Users from Canada? Did they approach the poster with tears in their eyes?
I think they expect gaming on linux to be like gaming on macos which is actually awful. As someone who has spent like her entire life gaming on linux, I tried to help a friend figure out how to run a game on their mac and it took so long to get working and was so confusing
Probably the only thing they know about Linux is from when the YouTuber Linus Tech Tips tried to install Steam and broke his computer. That’s why they’d bring up Steam specifically.
Man, scale is such a hard thing to get intuitively.
I mean, yeah, Linus Sebastian has a huge following. It’s a huge following of self-selected nerds, though. Most people have no idea who he is. Wouldn’t even know what he’s talking about if you showed it to them.
And that was one thing that he did once. That mostly nobody cared about unless they are an active Linux fan. Which is itself a tiny niche.
Humans just have a hard time parsing when things are big or small, particularly if it’s things they are a part of. This is not stupidity, it’s just how human perception works. It works both ways, too. A lot of mondern media is about having these parasocial relationships with huge media personalities and thinking you’ve found some hidden gem only to find out that your grandma follows them already.
It’s not that we’re dumb as a species, it’s that we’ve created this ecosystem built specifically to exploit human perceptual limits for profit and now it’s all we have. It kinda sucks.
Sorry, I went places there, but this whole thread (and honestly, the entire Lemmy linux community) makes me think about this constantly.
Wait, which of these Windows users are aware enough of Linux to have a formed expectation of Steam working under it or not? Like, they don’t know enough to understand what it is, but they’re super concerned that Steam, of all things, won’t run on it?
Are these Very Real Windows Users from Canada? Did they approach the poster with tears in their eyes?
Here is my take on their thought process:
“it’s not Windows, gaming under non-windows is crap, my main game point is steam, so can it run steam?”
Here’s my alternative proposal for their thought process:
“Linux?”
Alternately “I wonder what’s for dinner”.
People really overestimate how top of mind Linux is for the average Windows user.
It’s me lol and that’s basically my only concern as a potential newbie
When I switched from Windows to Linux, that was literally the first thing I heard from a colleague: "What about your games?
He knew what Linux was, but had never used it (until I convinced all my colleagues to switch to Linux).
I think they expect gaming on linux to be like gaming on macos which is actually awful. As someone who has spent like her entire life gaming on linux, I tried to help a friend figure out how to run a game on their mac and it took so long to get working and was so confusing
I don’t think they expect gaming on Linux to be anything. I don’t think they consider gaming on Linux at all.
Probably the only thing they know about Linux is from when the YouTuber Linus Tech Tips tried to install Steam and broke his computer. That’s why they’d bring up Steam specifically.
https://www.virtualcuriosities.com/articles/4304/it-happened-yes-do-as-i-say-linux-newbie-accidentally-destroys-system-in-15-minutes
Man, scale is such a hard thing to get intuitively.
I mean, yeah, Linus Sebastian has a huge following. It’s a huge following of self-selected nerds, though. Most people have no idea who he is. Wouldn’t even know what he’s talking about if you showed it to them.
And that was one thing that he did once. That mostly nobody cared about unless they are an active Linux fan. Which is itself a tiny niche.
Humans just have a hard time parsing when things are big or small, particularly if it’s things they are a part of. This is not stupidity, it’s just how human perception works. It works both ways, too. A lot of mondern media is about having these parasocial relationships with huge media personalities and thinking you’ve found some hidden gem only to find out that your grandma follows them already.
It’s not that we’re dumb as a species, it’s that we’ve created this ecosystem built specifically to exploit human perceptual limits for profit and now it’s all we have. It kinda sucks.
Sorry, I went places there, but this whole thread (and honestly, the entire Lemmy linux community) makes me think about this constantly.