Gaming on Linux

Blumpkinstein · 05-24-2006, 12:35 AM

I am interested in Linux.
I have done some searches, read up a bit and I still have some basic questions.

Are all "versions" of the Linux OS free?
Where do I get them safely (free of trojans/viruses)
How can I tell what build is the newest?

I am making a new system to be used for gaming almost exclusively.

I am currently playing:
Doom3
Quake4
Unreal Tournament 2004
Guild Wars
And as soon as it comes out UT2k7 (can't wait).

Of course I will be in need of security software.
I am looking for good GOOD & FREE:
anti-virus software
anti-spyware
firewall

I have listed the new system specs. I included the item numbers from Newegg.com for those who want a peak at more detailed specs.
I am intending of running my games in SLI mode, hence the twin vid card order.

ASUS A8N-SLI Premium Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 SLI ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
Item #: N82E16813131540

AMD Athlon 64 3700+ San Diego 2000MHz HT Socket 939 Processor Model ADA3700BNBOX - Retail
Item #: N82E16819103539

G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered Dual Channel Kit System Memory Model F1-3200PHU2-2GBNS - Retail
Item #: N82E16820231047

TWO eVGA 256-P2-N541-TX Geforce 7600GS 256MB GDDR2 PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail
Item #: N82E16814130020

OCZ GameXStream OCZ600GXSSLI ATX12V 600W Power Supply - Retail
Item #: N82E16817341001

Drives:
Twin 80 Gig Western Digital SATA hard drives, will want to RAID 0 these.
Sony DVD burner

Blumpkinstein · 05-24-2006, 01:10 PM

Please don't consider this a bump. I have done some more research and have found sites that have Linux OS's, learned that there seems to be alot of them and have discovered that they are all free. It seems it is highly likely that all the hardware I just bought and the games I have listed as my interests are gonna work as well.

The only question is...which one would see suit me best, considering the new hardware I have purchased and listed in my previous post and the games I wanna play.

Other details:

I wanna:
Run a SATA RAID 0 with my twin 80 gig WD hard drives.
Use my Dlink wireless network card
Use my wireless logictech keyboard (internet pro) and mouse (mx 1000).

**K-B** · 06-02-2006, 04:01 PM

FYI, all versions of Linux are NOT free. Some paid distros may have a slimmed down "free" version, such as Xandros and Suse. Linspire for example is not free.

Volt-Schwibe · 06-02-2006, 06:30 PM

kbalona is right, alot of them, like mandriva, and the ones kbalona mentioned, offer a free version as well as a paid version.

as far as your hardware, i almost never see problems with linux using hardware. (video card support is still kinda shaky though)

as far as the games....

you might not be as happy as you are hoping for, linux doesn't get along with direct x all that well.

shuuhen · 06-05-2006, 11:02 AM

Most versions of Linux are free. I recommend looking at other threads on versions of Linux, then you can come back to this thread and post any questions you have about Linux distros.

For firewalls, look into Shorewall and GuardDog.

For virus protection, you can use ClamAV.

I haven't really done much gaming on Linux (I have old, slow computers), but there are games out there for Linux.

Doom 3
http://zerowing.idsoftware.com/linux/doom/

Unreal Tournament 2004
http://www.linuxelectrons.com/articl...40419200456201

Quake 4
http://zerowing.idsoftware.com/linux/quake4/

Unreal Tournament 2007 - Don't know about this one, but it seems like UT games are generally released for Linux.

Guild Wars - So far I haven't seen this one available for Linux, although you might be able to get it running in Wine or Cedega (although it seems like people haven't had much success with their attempts).

I know there are more games that work with Linux, like Neverwinter Nights, although you might have to do a search with google.com/linux to find the required information and files.

Linux gaming
http://www.linuxgames.com/
http://happypenguin.org/

Arathald · 06-06-2006, 09:26 AM

Wow I thought someone would have beat me to this. Firstly, no, not all linux distros are free, as said repeatedly. Free ones are Ubuntu (a very good bet for wha you want), Debian, actually..... thats all i know that would be really good for gaming.... As far as downloading them without viruses, Ubuntu you can get right off their site at http://www.ubuntu.com Debian you can get off of http://www.linuxiso.org

As far as I know, you don't need a virus or spyware program (sertainly not spyware-- never seen it for linux). You've already got suggestions for virus software. A good firewall is Firestarter, which you can get for free on http://www.fs-security.com/
One of my favorite things about linux is most of the s/w is free and normal viruses and spyware wont run on it.

Unfortunately, that means your games, unless they have linux versions won't run on it either. linux and DirectX (which is Micro$oft's attempt at monopolizing gaming platfors) don't play well together. But fear not, there is hope! Cedega, made by transgaming, offers full support for just about every DirectX game on linux. The vast majority of the time, it works absolutely beautifully.

The one drawback is you have to get updates from their server for it to be useful for any modern games (or you have to continually compile the CVS source yourself -- stay away from that for now), and they charge a nominal fee of $15 every three months. I, however, think that's more than worth it, because games run even better with even less crashes, assuming you can get the right video drivers. You can get Cedega and sign up for an account at http://www.transgaming.com/

So, get linux, get the games that run natively on it (have linux versions), and then get cedega for those that don't.

05-24-2006, 12:35 AM	#1 (permalink)
Blumpkinstein Registered User Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Columbus Ohio Posts: 90 OS: XP	Gaming on Linux I am interested in Linux. I have done some searches, read up a bit and I still have some basic questions. Are all "versions" of the Linux OS free? Where do I get them safely (free of trojans/viruses) How can I tell what build is the newest? I am making a new system to be used for gaming almost exclusively. I am currently playing: Doom3 Quake4 Unreal Tournament 2004 Guild Wars And as soon as it comes out UT2k7 (can't wait). Of course I will be in need of security software. I am looking for good GOOD & FREE: anti-virus software anti-spyware firewall I have listed the new system specs. I included the item numbers from Newegg.com for those who want a peak at more detailed specs. I am intending of running my games in SLI mode, hence the twin vid card order. ASUS A8N-SLI Premium Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 SLI ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail Item #: N82E16813131540 AMD Athlon 64 3700+ San Diego 2000MHz HT Socket 939 Processor Model ADA3700BNBOX - Retail Item #: N82E16819103539 G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered Dual Channel Kit System Memory Model F1-3200PHU2-2GBNS - Retail Item #: N82E16820231047 TWO eVGA 256-P2-N541-TX Geforce 7600GS 256MB GDDR2 PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail Item #: N82E16814130020 OCZ GameXStream OCZ600GXSSLI ATX12V 600W Power Supply - Retail Item #: N82E16817341001 Drives: Twin 80 Gig Western Digital SATA hard drives, will want to RAID 0 these. Sony DVD burner __________________ Asus A8N SLI Premium/AMD Athlon64 3700+ 2x 1 Gb G-Skill DDR 400 RAM...dual channel 2x e-VGA Gforce 7600 GS 256Mb Vid cards... SLI 2x 80 Gb Western Digital SATA(1) HDs RAID 0

05-24-2006, 01:10 PM	#2 (permalink)
Blumpkinstein Registered User Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Columbus Ohio Posts: 90 OS: XP	Please don't consider this a bump. I have done some more research and have found sites that have Linux OS's, learned that there seems to be alot of them and have discovered that they are all free. It seems it is highly likely that all the hardware I just bought and the games I have listed as my interests are gonna work as well. The only question is...which one would see suit me best, considering the new hardware I have purchased and listed in my previous post and the games I wanna play. Other details: I wanna: Run a SATA RAID 0 with my twin 80 gig WD hard drives. Use my Dlink wireless network card Use my wireless logictech keyboard (internet pro) and mouse (mx 1000). __________________ Asus A8N SLI Premium/AMD Athlon64 3700+ 2x 1 Gb G-Skill DDR 400 RAM...dual channel 2x e-VGA Gforce 7600 GS 256Mb Vid cards... SLI 2x 80 Gb Western Digital SATA(1) HDs RAID 0 Last edited by Blumpkinstein; 05-24-2006 at 01:22 PM.

06-02-2006, 04:01 PM	#3 (permalink)
K-B Moderator, Linux Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: NY Posts: 2,878 OS: Vista, Ubuntu My System	FYI, all versions of Linux are NOT free. Some paid distros may have a slimmed down "free" version, such as Xandros and Suse. Linspire for example is not free. __________________

06-02-2006, 06:30 PM	#4 (permalink)
Volt-Schwibe Asst. Manager, Automotive Forums; HJT Trainee Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Behind you, watching you as you type. Posts: 7,372 OS: Click "My System" to view details My System	kbalona is right, alot of them, like mandriva, and the ones kbalona mentioned, offer a free version as well as a paid version. as far as your hardware, i almost never see problems with linux using hardware. (video card support is still kinda shaky though) as far as the games.... you might not be as happy as you are hoping for, linux doesn't get along with direct x all that well. __________________ <signature> TSF is funded by our Admin's pocket, care to help? Power Tip: Subscribe to your thread (Thread Tools) to receive an instant email notification when you get a reply. New Members: Creating a single new thread in the correct section is the best way to assure your thread will receive a reply. </signature>

06-05-2006, 11:02 AM	#5 (permalink)
shuuhen Manager Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Colorado Posts: 987 OS: Mac OS 9.1, Mac OS X 10.5.8, WinXP Pro, FreeBSD 6.0, Gentoo Linux My System	Most versions of Linux are free. I recommend looking at other threads on versions of Linux, then you can come back to this thread and post any questions you have about Linux distros. For firewalls, look into Shorewall and GuardDog. For virus protection, you can use ClamAV. I haven't really done much gaming on Linux (I have old, slow computers), but there are games out there for Linux. Doom 3 http://zerowing.idsoftware.com/linux/doom/ Unreal Tournament 2004 http://www.linuxelectrons.com/articl...40419200456201 Quake 4 http://zerowing.idsoftware.com/linux/quake4/ Unreal Tournament 2007 - Don't know about this one, but it seems like UT games are generally released for Linux. Guild Wars - So far I haven't seen this one available for Linux, although you might be able to get it running in Wine or Cedega (although it seems like people haven't had much success with their attempts). I know there are more games that work with Linux, like Neverwinter Nights, although you might have to do a search with google.com/linux to find the required information and files. Linux gaming http://www.linuxgames.com/ http://happypenguin.org/

06-06-2006, 09:26 AM	#6 (permalink)
Arathald Registered User Join Date: Apr 2006 Posts: 52 OS: Ubuntu 6.06 Dapper Drake / Windows XP Pro (for the programs we haven't made work on 'nix yet)	Wow I thought someone would have beat me to this. Firstly, no, not all linux distros are free, as said repeatedly. Free ones are Ubuntu (a very good bet for wha you want), Debian, actually..... thats all i know that would be really good for gaming.... As far as downloading them without viruses, Ubuntu you can get right off their site at http://www.ubuntu.com Debian you can get off of http://www.linuxiso.org As far as I know, you don't need a virus or spyware program (sertainly not spyware-- never seen it for linux). You've already got suggestions for virus software. A good firewall is Firestarter, which you can get for free on http://www.fs-security.com/ One of my favorite things about linux is most of the s/w is free and normal viruses and spyware wont run on it. Unfortunately, that means your games, unless they have linux versions won't run on it either. linux and DirectX (which is Micro$oft's attempt at monopolizing gaming platfors) don't play well together. But fear not, there is hope! Cedega, made by transgaming, offers full support for just about every DirectX game on linux. The vast majority of the time, it works absolutely beautifully. The one drawback is you have to get updates from their server for it to be useful for any modern games (or you have to continually compile the CVS source yourself -- stay away from that for now), and they charge a nominal fee of $15 every three months. I, however, think that's more than worth it, because games run even better with even less crashes, assuming you can get the right video drivers. You can get Cedega and sign up for an account at http://www.transgaming.com/ So, get linux, get the games that run natively on it (have linux versions), and then get cedega for those that don't.