Danie van der Merwe

5 of the coolest things you can run on Docker

Mon, 11 Nov 2024 14:51:35 -0300

gadgeteer@hub.netzgemeinde.eu

5 of the coolest things you can run on Docker

These are some refreshingly different things to consider running on Docker.

Covered in the linked article are:
* game servers for popular multiplayer titles
* Kasm Workspaces
* LLMs and image generators (Generative AI)
* emulate retro games inside your browser
* macOS

See 5 of the coolest things you can run on Docker

Tired of running the same set of Docker images? You can spice things up by running these five services

#technology #Docker #gaming

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10 brilliant PC games you can enjoy without a graphics card

Tue, 29 Oct 2024 18:20:25 -0300

Danie van der Merwe

gadgeteer@hub.netzgemeinde.eu

10 brilliant PC games you can enjoy without a graphics card

Modern PC gaming often gets a bad rap for being too demanding, pricing out countless gamers who lack powerful graphics cards. Plus, the state in which some AAA games get released, makes them a struggle to play even on high-end GPUs. Fortunately, the most demanding games don't always equate to the most impressive ones.

Even if you don't have a recent graphics card on your gaming PC, you have a treasure trove of titles to explore. You actually don't even need a discrete GPU (or a PC) to experience these must-play games. Even your laptop with Intel HD or Iris Xe graphics (or AMD equivalent) can handle these titles, albeit sometimes with optimized settings.

Firewatch looks like an interesting game to try.

See 10 brilliant PC games you can enjoy without a graphics card

Worried your integrated GPU isn't good enough for modern games? Well, here are 10 awesome titles you can still play smoothly on integrated graphics.

#technology #gaming

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Thinking of Buying a Cheap Racing Wheel? Don't Bother

Tue, 08 Oct 2024 16:11:39 -0300

Danie van der Merwe

gadgeteer@hub.netzgemeinde.eu

Thinking of Buying a Cheap Racing Wheel? Don't Bother

Incredibly true! I wasted money my first time around by “saving” money on a cheaper steering wheel… That 270 deg rotation, no pedals, no gear shifter option, compatibility issues, etc all broke my experience. I could not get my truck to keep on a straight line properly even.

I forked out for the Logitech G29 wheel with pedals and shifter, and what a major difference. It is by no means a pro wheel, but it does everything I need and performances well enough to really enjoy the games i use it will. It is compatible with everything (including Linux) and has a couple of useful extra buttons and paddles to make the game experience great.

This wheel cost a bit more, but I've been using it for a good many years now without any issues.

So, like the title goes, really don't bother with a wheel that does not meet the basic requirements. A Logitech G29 is probably a good minimum benchmark to work from.

See Thinking of Buying a Cheap Racing Wheel? Don't Bother

Avoid making a wheely bad purchase.

#technology #gaming

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Yes, You Can Get the Epic Games Store on Your Linux PC. Here's How

Mon, 30 Sep 2024 08:35:20 -0300

Danie van der Merwe

gadgeteer@hub.netzgemeinde.eu

Yes, You Can Get the Epic Games Store on Your Linux PC. Here's How

The Linux gaming community has grown rapidly over the past few years, thanks to open-source game development and compatibility layers. With all these games, Epic games are also making headlines in the Linux community. It's now easier than ever to run Epic games on Linux.

Yes, you can play Epic Games titles on Linux, but it requires a workaround since the Epic Games Store doesn't officially support Linux. Instead of the official Epic Games launcher, you can use alternative tools like the Heroic Games Launcher to access Epic Games on Linux. Another option is Lutris, a game management platform for Linux, which uses programs like Wine that allow you to run Windows games on a Linux system (including the Epic Games launcher).

Steam Games does a pretty good job of running many Windows games quite seamlessly using the one-click compatibility software, but it is great to also have all these alternatives as well. I started using Steam Games mainly when I was still dual booting between Windows and Linux, and did not want to pay twice for the same game (I imagine cloud logins makes this mostly redundant nowadays).

See Yes, You Can Get the Epic Games Store on Your Linux PC. Here's How

Playing Epic Games on Linux isn't a dream anymore.

#technology #gaming #linux

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How I turned OBS into a ShadowPlay replacement — works on Windows, macOS, and Linux

Tue, 17 Sep 2024 16:11:23 -0300

Danie van der Merwe

gadgeteer@hub.netzgemeinde.eu

How I turned OBS into a ShadowPlay replacement — works on Windows, macOS, and Linux

If you have an Nvidia graphics card, you've probably heard of ShadowPlay. It's a feature that you can enable so that when you press a key bind, it saves the last X amount of minutes to a folder on your PC. It's constantly recording using a hardware encoder for a limited hit on your GPU, and it's something that you can't really get on any other hardware. AMD's equivalent is ReLive, but it pales in comparison to ShadowPlay and its performance. However, with OBS, you can make your own ShadowPlay that works on any machine... and yes, it even works on Mac and Linux.

OBS has a feature that you can enable called "Replay Buffer." It does the same thing as ShadowPlay and ReLive, except instead of actively writing temporary recordings to the disk, it stores them in your system memory.

This is actually quite a good idea, and I really like that it is cross-platform. If you use Steam Games, they also came out with an auto-record feature that can easily save that last 2 hours (or longer) of play. I've been using that on Linux the last month or two.

See How I turned OBS into a ShadowPlay replacement

OBS is a popular streaming and recording tool, but you can turn it into a very competent Nvidia ShadowPlay replacement... on any hardware.

#technology #gaming

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You Can Now Add Family Members to Your Steam Library

Fri, 13 Sep 2024 13:11:17 -0300

Danie van der Merwe

gadgeteer@hub.netzgemeinde.eu

You Can Now Add Family Members to Your Steam Library

This seems like Déjà Vu?

Valve added Steam Families to the Steam Beta Client in May. And now, it’s ready for prime time in the stable Steam app. With Steam Families, a parent can share games in their library with up to “six close family members.” Multiple people can play games from the shared library, which includes titles that all Steam Family members own. Steam Families also supports playing shareable games in offline mode. Of course, everyone gets to earn their achievements, save their own game progress, have access to workshop files, and more.

What appears different though is the ability to pool the use of available titles. Multiple people can play the same game simultaneously so long as the shared library has enough copies of a game to play at the same time.

It's true that for family and friends you'd not be adding and removing people all the time so I suppose the 12-month rule will also stop this being abused (to some extent).

See You Can Now Add Family Members to Your Steam Library

Share your Steam games with up to 6 people.

#technology #gaming

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The FloorBoard - a DIY Foot Operated PC Button Pad

Thu, 05 Sep 2024 11:36:39 -0300

Danie van der Merwe

gadgeteer@hub.netzgemeinde.eu

The FloorBoard - a DIY Foot Operated PC Button Pad

The FloorBoard would be useful for people with limited use of their hands hence the inclusion in the Assistive Tech channel. For example, using the foot button for 'Control' means that just one finger is required for 'Copy' (Ctrl C). This avoids the necessity of using Sticky Keys (an accessibility feature in Windows designed to assist users who may have difficulty holding down multiple keys simultaneously).

It may even appeal to gamers where it could emulate foot controls such as car and aircraft pedals. Many games requite a forward and reverse action, and I must say I do find the WASD buttons a bit difficult to move quickly with in the heat of battle.

See The FloorBoard - a Foot Operated PC Button Pad

The FloorBoard - a Foot Operated PC Button Pad: After many years of service my plastic footrest finally split in two. I ordered a (stronger) replacement manufactured by Wedo. This is the 'Relax' Tilting Footrest model 2751 available from Amazon (see supplies list).
It is a strong, well designed u…

#technology #gaming #DIY

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40 Chill Games to Unwind From Your Stressful Life With

Sat, 24 Aug 2024 17:05:23 -0300

Danie van der Merwe

gadgeteer@hub.netzgemeinde.eu

40 Chill Games to Unwind From Your Stressful Life With

Video games are the ultimate form of escapism—they can absorb you into their world better than any other form of media. This means they can be a great way to relax and unwind, but not every game is well-suited for that. So today, we wanted to shine a light on the calmer side of gaming, showing off games that take it upon themselves to give you chilled and relaxing experiences.

The linked article has categories for:
* Exploration Games
* First-Person Games and Walking Simulators
* Simulator Games
* Strategy Games
* 2D Sidescrollers
* Puzzle Games
* Survival and Crafting Games

I'd also add Snowrunner to the simulator games and Valheim to the survival games.

See 40 Chill Games to Unwind From Your Stressful Life With

Looking for a game to unwind with?

#technology #gaming

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How you can play the old classics on your PC or other devices with ScummVM

Fri, 19 Jul 2024 05:46:48 -0300

Danie van der Merwe

gadgeteer@hub.netzgemeinde.eu

How you can play the old classics on your PC or other devices with ScummVM

ScummVM, short for Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion Virtual Machine, is an open-source software project that serves as a way for nostalgic gamers and retro enthusiasts alike to enjoy some older classic games. Originally developed to run classic LucasArts adventure games that utilized the SCUMM scripting language, ScummVM has since evolved into a versatile piece of software supporting a wide range of point-and-click adventure games from various developers.

At its core, ScummVM acts as an interpreter, replacing the game’s original executable with its own, while keeping the game data intact. This unique approach not only allows these games to run on modern hardware and operating systems, such as Windows 11, Linux, and even Android, but also enhances their performance and compatibility. Thanks to ScummVM, titles like Monkey Island, Day of the Tentacle, and Grim Fandango can be enjoyed with improved graphics, sound, and additional features such as widescreen support and customizable controls.

ScummVM will install on Windows, Linux (Snap and Flatpak), macOS, Playstation, Android, ARM64, Nintendo, Wii, AmigaOS, and more devices (not iOS, yet I see). They also provide about 11 freeware games to play.

See How you can play the old classics on your PC with ScummVM

ScummVM is a great way to play a bunch of the old classics on your PC, gaming handheld, or even your smartphone.

#technology #gaming #retro

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Steam’s new native gameplay recording tool also works on the Steam Deck

Thu, 27 Jun 2024 08:27:21 -0300

Danie van der Merwe

gadgeteer@hub.netzgemeinde.eu

Steam’s new native gameplay recording tool also works on the Steam Deck

Valve has added a native gameplay recording tool to Steam (Beta version) so that you can more easily capture and share clips. The game recording feature is available now in beta — including on Steam Deck.

You’ll be able to both continuously record clips with background recording or manually turn on recording with a hotkey, according to Valve’s website about the updates. When you’re recording, you’ll see the “Steam Timeline,” and you can add markers to note interesting moments you might want to come back to later.

The tool won’t record your desktop, and you can pick which audio channels are included in the recording.

It uses the GPU without impacting too much on game performance, so this can be a lot better than running say OBS Studio separately.

See Steam’s new native gameplay recording tool also works on the Steam Deck

An easier way to capture your next Elden Ring death.

#technology #gaming #Steam

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