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Dumping Windows for GNU/Linux, Even for Gaming
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XDA ☛ This operating system saved my wife's old Surface Go, and it's not what you think
Technically, FydeOS is a Linux-based operating system, but so are ChromeOS and Android. These products aren't typically talked about in the same breath as Linux at large, so FydeOS deserves the same treatment. It's Linux-based, but it's something all its own, too.
FydeOS is a community project that brings Google's ChromeOS to all kinds of PCs. It's not like the official Chrome OS Flex, which kind of does the same thing, but lacks support for Android apps and has a somewhat annoying installer. Setting up ChromeOS Flex installation media requires a dedicated browser extension, and it makes it harder to use that flash drive for anything else, too. FydeOS works much more like Windows or a normal Linux distro in that sense, so it's already a great start.
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XDA ☛ I installed Bazzite on my PC, and it has me reconsidering Windows
I spend most of my computing life inside macOS, and it remains the environment where I do almost all of my writing, communication, and everyday organization. My Windows PC fills a narrower but important role as the machine I turn to for gaming or for documenting workflows that need to be captured inside a Windows environment. That setup has worked for years, and I have rarely questioned it, mostly because neither macOS nor Linux has offered a gaming experience that feels reliable enough to replace Windows completely. When I installed Bazzite out of curiosity, I assumed it would be a fun experiment, but nothing that would shift how I divide my time between platforms.
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XDA ☛ I used the Arm translation layer in the Steam Frame and it's got promise
Sure, the Steam Machine might be getting most of the attention, but the VR headset is neat. It's powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon SoC, just like the Meta Quest range, so you might be thinking that it'll only be able to play your Steam library when plugged into a PC — but that's not the case at all. Valve has ported SteamOS to Arm, and uses an x86 translation layer to enable your Windows games to run on the non-native OS and architecture.