Quickie: Playing Games on Linux

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What is Linux?

Linux is actually a kernel, not an operating system. However, the word Linux has become a generalization of any Unix-based operating systems that run on the Linux kernel. Many of these "Linux" distributions can actually run on other kernels such as FreeBSD (which is what Mac OS X uses).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux

What native games are there?
From free Open Source games to official commercial releases, you may find a detailed list below:

But what about my Windows games?
Wine is a translation layer (a program loader) capable of running Windows applications on Linux and other POSIX compatible operating systems. Windows programs running in Wine act as native programs would, running without the performance or memory usage penalties of an emulator, with a similar look and feel to other applications on your desktop.

To figure out how well your game would work with Wine, visit the Wine AppDB. Not only will you find a "compatibility rating", but usually there is also a quick tutorial on how to make it run better.

What graphics hardware works best?
Up until recently, NVIDIA has always had the best Linux support. ATI has always been a sore spot because of the 3rd party proprietary bits in their drivers which held them back from releasing the specs and a fully supported Linux version. However, with the recent R600 chips, AMD/ATI has shown great promise.

For more information please see ATI's Linux FAQ.

Where can I get support?

The great thing about Linux is the community. Below is just a quick list:

Ubuntu

General

Other Links

 
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