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'Rocket League' loses online multiplayer on Linux and Mac
Psyonix has announced that it is withdrawing support for Rocket League on Linux and macOS as part of its push to update the game with "new technologies." In a statement, the company said that it was "no longer viable" to maintain support for the macOS and Linux / SteamOS versions of the title. Consequently, after a final patch in March, online functionality (one of the main reasons to play the game) will be deactivated.
Half-Life games are free on Steam until March
With the first Half-Life game in more than a decade set to come out in March, series creator Valve has made every game in the franchise free to play for the next two months. As long you have Steam installed on your Windows, Mac or Linux computer, you can play all of Gordon Freeman's adventures, including Half-Life and its excellent Opposing Force expansion, as well as Half-Life 2 and its two subsequent DLC episodes.
Steam might be coming to Chromebooks
Google is reportedly working to bring Steam to Chromebooks. Kan Liu, director of product management for Google's Chrome OS, shared the news with Android Police. Unfortunately, Liu didn't reveal a timeline or share which games might be available.
Chrome will make website notification requests less irritating
Mozilla isn't the only one waging war against annoying website notification requests. Google has announced that Chrome 80 will show a "quieter" notification interface that won't seriously disrupt what you're doing. Whether you're on desktop or mobile, you'll get a brief, relatively non-intrusive alert (with a bell icon to see what you missed) instead of the usual pull-down. You'll have to enable this more respectful approach manually at first, but Google said it would eventually activate the feature automatically for both people who often block notifications as well as sites with "very low" opt-in rates.
Firefox puts an end to annoying notification requests
Firefox already has the option of blocking website notification requests, but Mozilla wants to go further by replacing them altogether. The newly available Firefox 72 replaces irksome notification pop-ups with a speech bubble that appears in the address bar. You'll still have access to notifications if you want them, but your web surfing won't come to a screeching halt when you visit a site for the first time.
Chrome beta helps you find offline-friendly files in web apps
Sophisticated web apps can make videos and other files available offline, but finding that media is tricky if the website doesn't give you an easy way to find it. Soon, though, that search might be trivial. Google has released a Chrome 80 beta whose centerpiece is a Content Indexing framework that lets progressive web apps list all their offline-capable content. You could find a must-have photo or report without wading through pages to get it. The framework is just in an an "origin trial" phase between now and Chrome 82, but relief is in sight.
Brave says 8.7 million people use its privacy-focused browser every month
Almost four years after its first release, privacy-focused web browser Brave is officially launching. Starting today, you can download version 1.0 of Brave on Android and iOS, as well as on Windows 10, macOS and Linux. With Brave 1.0, you can now use the company's opt-in ad platform and enroll in Brave Rewards on both iPhone and iPad. In short, this is the release where you can seamlessly use almost all of Brave's marquee features across all platforms.
The latest Windows 10 Insider build gets new PowerToys
The latest Microsoft Windows 10 preview build (19013) for Insiders in the Fast Ring includes new kaomoji shortcuts, the latest version of PowerToys and a Linux update that will send unused power back to your Windows machine. There's also a key change for Samsung phones using the Your Phone app.
Steam's new beta takes local multiplayer games online
Valve didn't wait long to give you a chance to play local multiplayer games online. The latest Steam beta client now includes Remote Play Together support that lets friends join in multiplayer experiences that would normally require sitting on the same couch. Only the host needs a copy of the game -- everyone else just needs a controller or (with permission) access to the keyboard or mouse. You can play across computer platforms (a Mac player could join a Windows game, for instance), and voice chat lets you yell at players as if you were there.
Samsung won't support Linux on DeX once Android 10 arrives
If you've been using Linux on DeX (aka Linux on Galaxy) to turn your Samsung phone into a PC, you'll need to make a change of plans. Samsung is warning users that it's shutting down the Linux on DeX beta program, and that its Android 10 update won't support using the open source OS as a desktop environment. The company didn't explain why it was shutting things down, but it did note that the Android 10 beta is already going without the Linux option.
One of Linux's most important commands had a glaring security flaw
If you've used the command line in Linux or a Unix-based platform like macOS, you're probably familiar with the "sudo" command -- it lets you run tasks with different (usually elevated) permissions than you'd otherwise have. It's powerful, but it was apparently too powerful until now. Developers have fixed a flaw in sudo that let you claim root-level access even if the configuration explicitly forbids it. So long as an intruder had enough access to run sudo in the first place, they could perform any action they wanted on a given machine.
Chrome now prevents sites from checking for private browsing mode
As promised, Google is ready to make websites respect Incognito mode whether they like it or not. The company has released Chrome 76 for Linux, Mac and Windows, closing a loophole that let sites detect private browsing by looking for the presence of a key framework. If you're tired of sites insisting that you either sign in or use the standard mode, relief is in sight.
AMD Ryzen 3000 systems need a BIOS fix for Linux, 'Destiny 2' issues
Last week AMD officially released its new Ryzen 3000 Series CPUs and Radeon RX 5700 graphics cards, but there's a small problem with the CPUs. As some Linux users quickly noticed, there's an issue with newer distributions based on 5.0 or higher that makes the OS unable to boot. Some people have been able to get around that by taking the systemd component back to an older version or a newer patched edition, but now gamers on Windows are having an issue with Destiny 2. Over the last few days they noticed the game would not launch when used on systems with the new chips and reported the problem to Bungie. In a statement, AMD told Phoronix that it has implemented a BIOS fix for the problem that's causing the issues and distributed it to motherboard manufacturers. Now we just have to wait until they make the patched versions available to customers, which Forbes mentions could happen as early as next week for beta releases. Separately, NVIDIA should have a fix out soon to address BSOD crashes on systems combining the Ryzen 3000 with GeForce GPUs. AMD: AMD has identified the root cause and implemented a BIOS fix for an issue impacting the ability to run certain Linux distributions and Destiny 2 on Ryzen 3000 processors. We have distributed an updated BIOS to our motherboard partners, and we expect consumers to have access to the new BIOS over the coming days.
Canonical backtracks on pulling 32-bit support from Ubuntu Linux
Last week, Ubuntu announced it would end support for 32-bit applications, starting with its next release. But the decision was not well-received, especially by the gaming community, and Valve announced plans to drop support for Ubuntu in Steam. In response, Canonical (which produces Ubuntu) has decided to support select 32-bit i386 packages for Ubuntu versions 19.10 and 20.04 LTS.
Steam will stop supporting Ubuntu Linux over 32-bit compatibility
If you're a Linux gamer who prefers Ubuntu, you might want to look for another distribution in the near future. Valve is dropping official support for Ubuntu in Steam as of the operating system's upcoming 19.10 release, which will cut 32-bit x86 components. The Steam crew aims to "minimize breakage" for existing Ubuntu users, according to Valve's Pierre-Loup Griffais, but it'll shift its attention to another distribution in the future.
Windows 10's redesigned Terminal is available in preview
It's a good time to be a Windows power user. Microsoft has released a preview version of Windows 10's redesigned Terminal (known as just Windows Terminal) through its app store, giving you a considerably more powerful command line tool. You can run the Command Prompt, PowerShell and Linux features from one central place, complete with tabs, a hardware-accelerated text engine and extensive customization -- it's just what you've wanted if you thought the all-black background was a little too austere.
South Korea's government will switch to Linux over cost concerns
Some governments might have fallen out of love with Linux, but South Korea appears ready to start a torrid affair. The country's Ministry of the Interior and Safety has outlined plans to switch government computers from Windows to Linux due to both lower costs and a reduced dependency on a single operating system. The Ministry will trial Linux on its PCs and roll it out more broadly if there aren't any major compatibility or security issues.
Google is making it easier to build Android apps on a Chromebook
At I/O last year, Google announced it was adding Linux support to Chrome OS, a move that made it a lot easier for web and Android developers to use Chromebooks. One year later, the company says that more than half of all Chromebooks now work with Linux, and all new devices released this year will support Linux as well. And today, Google has a handful of developer-focused updates that'll make building Android apps on Chrome OS a good bit easier.
Windows 10 will get a built-in Linux kernel this summer
The suddenly-cozy relationship between Linux and Windows is taking another step forward, as Microsoft announced in a blog post that it's going to ship a full Linux kernel in Windows 10. It will arrive first with Insider preview builds by the end of June, underpinning the new Windows Subsystem for Linux 2. The first release will be based on version 4.19, the latest stable Linux release, and will keep up with each stable release going forward. According to Microsoft this isn't its first release of a Linux kernel -- that came last year on Azure Sphere -- but it is the first time on Windows. By making this switch as a "drop-in replacement" for the current emulator, it should speed up performance significantly, with faster bootup and more efficient use of memory. Users can interface with it either by installing a distribution from the Microsoft Store or sideloading. Also, the kernel itself will be open source, with instructions available to create your own, and Microsoft has pledged to contribute changes it makes open for others to use. All of this news also came after Microsoft earlier announced a new version of its Windows Terminal command line app.
Firefox silences annoying auto-play videos
As promised, Mozilla is about to make web videos decidedly less annoying. Its newly released Firefox 66 blocks auto-playing videos by default, preventing web ads or video sites from startling you when you're not ready (or willing) to watch. Some sites will still play the video regardless, Mozilla said, but will stay muted until you choose otherwise.