With the Steamboxes shipping out to testers today, Valve has now released SteamOS to the masses. Be warned though, don’t mess with this unless you know what you’re doing.
SteamOS, as many of you will know, is based on Debian Linux, so if you have no idea about Linux then it’s probably best you leave this alone for now. No point completely screwing up a system just because this is new. Valve say that “unless you are an intrepid Linux hacker” wait until 2014 to try SteamOS. You have been warned!
If in the other hand you’re competent with Linux OSes this is probably worth a look. The minimum system requirements are as follows:
- Intel or AMD 64-bit capable processor
- 4GB or more memory
- 500GB or larger disk
- NVIDIA graphics card (AMD and Intel graphics support coming soon)
- UEFI boot support
- USB port for installation
Valve has kicked up an FAQ which explains the process of installation and other bits and pieces if you want to take this for a spin. Obviously as this is a Linux OS it does not run Windows games but eventually “seamless” streaming will be available eventually from your Windows box of tricks.
Valve’s servers have been hit hard with demand and they are warning potential testers to be careful where they download it from as there are some dubious links kicking around at the moment.
