I can confirm that by going to https://store.steampowered.com/ the shortcut to install Steam leads to https://store.steampowered.com/about/ and there it only offers the "steam.deb" file as an option.

I can also confirm that this file frequently doesn't pull suficient dependancies for it to work, meaning the preffered installation method for Linux should be each distro's repositories.

The best is probably making the download button direct Linux users to https://developer.valvesoftware.com/wiki/Steam_under_Linux#Native_Steam_on_Linux and to update the instructions on this page regularly, in order to avoid .

As an improvement, the page layout can begin with an iconic distro picker and a disclaimer can then be added to unsuported distros before the specific instructions.

Extra instructions for Intel/AMD and for Nvidia GPUs can then be added as necessary for distros that don't fully resolve them by merely installing Steam.

The requirements for Steam Proton can also be linked there.

If necessary, I can help list threads on Steam for Linux where people had issues with the "steam.deb" method and with unmet dependancies. There are several such threads and they include Ubuntu, especially when paired with Nvidia GPUs, given that Ubuntu x64 versions do not come with the i386 arch enabled by default.

Replace the Valve provided deb with distro specific instructions and endorse Flatpak

These are mutually exclusive things. You're proposing Valve not only be on the hook for documenting distro policies but to replace one distro specific technology with another? There is no way Valve nor anyone else should. It would be better to provide generic hooks.

The people who continue to hound projects on this fail to understand why people choose a distro to begin with.

I don't see how it's mutually exclusive.

Currently, most Steam for Linux users install Steam from their distro's repos. If they happen to be using Ubuntu or some Ubuntu based distro, they have the option of installing the Steam via the Valve provided deb package.

However, the Valve provided deb package often fails to install correctly, or fails to pull in all the dependencies, etc.

So I'm simply suggesting that Valve provide a Flatpak instead of that deb. I believe most users will continue to install Steam from their distro's repos either way.

BTW, if you think there's something I don't understand, I would welcome an explanation.

I understand the difficulty in fully and officially supporting more
install methods, but this doesn't render all that was said above null... so
I would humbly suggest the following:

1- most important: altering the link on Steam's download button on the
webpage so it at least provides normal users an instruction for Ubuntu
users directing them to the distro's Software Center and "sudo apt install
steam" as a quick alternative.

This is important because Ubuntu does provide Steam via its repos, and it
is the officially supported distro and installing steam this way clearly
handles dependancies way better than the .deb package.

It also shouldn't be hard to work with Ubuntu's repository handlers if
things need to be changed in the future.

The .deb can still be provided but with appropriate warning that it is
meant to be used by distro devs as a starting point for packaging, and is
not an adequate install method for daily use.

2- optional but easy: gradually include instructions for other distros on
the same webpage, with appropriate disclaimers above each since their are
not officially supported

This can be done via publishing the instructions here on github and having
interested distro devs and users commiting changes to make instructions
more accurate... or something to that effect

alternatively, for these unsupported distros the page can just provide
links to distro-specific instructions they might already maintain on their
own websites . eg:
https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/steam

3- optional and might be hard to support but keep it in mind for the
future: provide instructions for the flatpak version, at first with
disclaimers, then one day maybe raise it to official support status if
becomes a failproof distro-agnostic method of distribution... right now it
is already proving to be a useful alternative for people having issues with
the normal install method, but obviously official support comes with a
burden that might not yet be acceptable

IMHO number 1 is an actual issue (with dependancy handling by the deb
and/or with install procedure documentation), the rest can be taken as mere
feature requests, to be further analyzed and accepted or improved upon in
due time (though at least in part not that hard to do)

Em qua, 20 de fev de 2019 17:30, dearlygparted [email protected]
escreveu:

I don't see how it's mutually exclusive.

Currently, most Steam for Linux users install Steam from their distro's
repos. If they happen to be using Ubuntu or some Ubuntu based distro, they
have the option of installing the Steam via the Valve provided deb package.

However, the Valve provided deb package often fails to install correctly,
or fails to pull in all the dependencies, etc.

So I'm simply suggesting that Valve provide Flatpak instead of that deb. I
believe most users will continue to install Steam from their distro's
either way.

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