Here is some good news to offset the two recent bad news articles. According to the latest Steam Hardware Survey for August 2016 Linux market-share on Steam has grown two months in a row.
Linux total: 0.83% + 0.02%
Ubuntu 16.04.1 LTS 64 bit 0.28% + 0.22%
Linux 64 bit 0.09% + 0.01%
Linux Mint 18 Sarah 64 bit 0.06% + 0.06%
Well, that's certainly something now isn't it (as in, it's better than nothing, or going down further). It looks like both Linux and Windows ate into Mac market-share which dropped by -0.03% (Windows had +0.01%).
These are still tiny percentages we are talking about, but I am hoping this trend continues for a while.
Note: SteamOS and Steam Big Picture are still not included in the survey and it's a manual survey, so you're not included in it unless you get the pop-up asking you to submit your details. Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
Linux total: 0.83% + 0.02%
Ubuntu 16.04.1 LTS 64 bit 0.28% + 0.22%
Linux 64 bit 0.09% + 0.01%
Linux Mint 18 Sarah 64 bit 0.06% + 0.06%
Well, that's certainly something now isn't it (as in, it's better than nothing, or going down further). It looks like both Linux and Windows ate into Mac market-share which dropped by -0.03% (Windows had +0.01%).
These are still tiny percentages we are talking about, but I am hoping this trend continues for a while.
Note: SteamOS and Steam Big Picture are still not included in the survey and it's a manual survey, so you're not included in it unless you get the pop-up asking you to submit your details. Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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0.02 monthly increase, in two years we will hit 1% at this rate, yahoo!
0.02 at 0.83 is ca. 2.5% monthly growth. If we keep this growth rate (i.e. 2.5% a month), we will hit 1% in 9 months though.
Of course, there are many unknowns. When will SteamOS be finally included? What impact it would have if it was included? Is there a chance for some critical mass that would accelerate the growth if exceeded? Is there a positive feedback loop worth talking about, i.e. developers more likely to publish for Linux depending on the market share of Linux? Probably not, as it makes little difference if it's 0.8% or 1.8% - it's still miniscule - but perhaps if we crossed 1%, we would see more dedicated porting devs like Feral or Aspyr.
NB, as I no longer play games on Debian, only on SteamOS, I could be a lost Linux user in these stats :)
Last edited by skinnyraf on 3 September 2016 at 8:06 am UTC
0.02 at 0.83 is ca. 2.5% monthly growth. If we keep this growth rate (i.e. 2.5% a month), we will hit 1% in 9 months though.
Of course, there are many unknowns. When will SteamOS be finally included? What impact it would have if it was included? Is there a chance for some critical mass that would accelerate the growth if exceeded? Is there a positive feedback loop worth talking about, i.e. developers more likely to publish for Linux depending on the market share of Linux? Probably not, as it makes little difference if it's 0.8% or 1.8% - it's still miniscule - but perhaps if we crossed 1%, we would see more dedicated porting devs like Feral or Aspyr.
NB, as I no longer play games on Debian, only on SteamOS, I could be a lost Linux user in these stats :)
Last edited by skinnyraf on 3 September 2016 at 8:06 am UTC
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What? Nobody is decrying the inaccuracy of these "irrelevant" surveys? I guess that only happens when the number goes down...LOL
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lucifertdark Sep 3, 2016
We have to remember that, when added together, these statistic "anomalies" sent us from 1.3% to .83%, during the "Windows10 rush", so there must be something. :)That something was people updating to Windows 10 & having it trigger the survey the first time they started steam after the update, it's still not accurate & never will be till EVERYONE does it all at once.
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I've got the survey this month and surprisingly it has one new question! That's really rare as it hasn't changed for years. This is what it looks like:
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oldrocker99 Sep 3, 2016
Once upon a time (the 80s), MS-DOS was seen as the serious, business-oriented OS, and Macs were the artistic, game-oriented PCs. Over time, Macs became serious office machines, and Micro$oft developed DirectX, making Windows PCs the choice for gamers. Along with Windows PCs, Linux users are able to upgrade their desktops, something that Mac users just can't easily do. Macs are simply not built for gaming, and it might be instructive to watch the Steam Mac percentage drip, drip, drip away, even though they've got a boatload more Steam games than we currently have.
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Once upon a time (the 80s), MS-DOS was seen as the serious, business-oriented OS, and Macs were the artistic, game-oriented PCs. Over time, Macs became serious office machines, and Micro$oft developed DirectX, making Windows PCs the choice for gamers. Along with Windows PCs, Linux users are able to upgrade their desktops, something that Mac users just can't easily do. Macs are simply not built for gaming, and it might be instructive to watch the Steam Mac percentage drip, drip, drip away, even though they've got a boatload more Steam games than we currently have.
mac aren't the best option for gaming (neither linux), but people will keep using it for gaming (same than linux), and that's the only thing that matters, than there is a market, if they "aren't built for gaming" is irrelevant, what matters is than people also use it for that purpose.
Last edited by edo on 3 September 2016 at 6:17 pm UTC
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I would say Mac and Linux combined eating into Windows is a better result (and more likely) than Linux overtaking Mac.
Linux being a slightly bigger niche and Mac's a slight smaller niche but Windows still being 95% of the install base doesn't change anything.
True, And I don't think you'll find anyone here disagreeing with this, or questioning the value of a declining Windows share if that happened.
It's just an interesting observation, these tendencies (if minuscule). I wonder why the Mac share decline - and for that matter, I also wonder why Windows share increase. I'm surprised it's even *possible* to increase when you're at 90+ percent market share.
Last edited by Beamboom on 4 September 2016 at 8:09 pm UTC
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A tiny fluctuation, virtually meaningless. And still not polling Big Picture users, SteamOS or otherwise.
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I've got the survey this month and surprisingly it has one new question! That's really rare as it hasn't changed for years. This is what it looks like:
Just got it for the first time in a long period, and got this question.
Also, it turns out that you can't get it if steam starts in BP mode (even if you close it afterwards).
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