Welcome! This will be my blog where I'll post (most) whatever is on my mind.

Who are you?

I'm one of the journalists at Boiling Steam. This web site is dedicated to bringing you in-depth guides, reviews, news, and opinions on all things Linux, particularly when it comes to Linux gaming. There's also the occasional Q&A with the brilliant people from the likes of Feral Interactive, Valve, and others who have either helped bring great games to Linux or contribute to Linux gaming as a whole. There was a time where we also did podcasts and interviewed various people, such as Ethan Lee.

I've written for Boiling Steam for about three years now altogether -- most of the time on a voluntary basis -- covering Linux distributions, hardware, and games. Besides myself, there's two others who make up the team:

• Ekianjo - web site maintainer; has written the majority of posts there
• podiki - fellow Linux geek who has recently joined us a few months ago. We're fortunate to have someone who volunteers their time by means of contributing articles to the site!

As you could probably tell, I'm a gamer. I particularly enjoy fighting games, such as Slap City, Them's Fightin' Herds, and Super Smash Bros. Though racing games aren't exactly my cup of tea I don't mind playing them. Check out my recent review of DRAG, a racing game where realism comes to the fore rather than any sort of arcade.

When I'm not writing for this blog or for Boiling Steam, or I'm not gaming, I'm delivering pizzas. Yeah, okay, kind of a sad story considering I'm A+ and Network+ certified and took IT as a trade in vocational school. But it's better than not having a job at all, I suppose.

So, though I have not fully considered what this blog will serve for, it's probably just going to be a venting grounds for the entitled customers I've delivered to. I will probably have a few Linux posts here and there as well, depending on whether it fits Boiling Steam's standards or not. And some other random stuff, like me trying to stick on a diet and see if I can lose a couple of pounds.

Why Linux rather than Windows?

Quite a few reasons. On Windows, I don't like the fact:

• I can't change the way the desktop looks or behaves
• Updates to software isn't done by a universal means, i.e. programs need to get updated individually rather than using a system-wide package manager
• Updates are forced, and disabling them requires a great amount of effort
• I could be in the middle of playing a game or be in a voice call and Windows suddenly restarts because updates are getting installed
• Anti-virus software is needed in order to, you know, not supposedly get any viruses, assuming the anti-virus software isn't spying on the user
• A significant amount of telemetry is sent to Microsoft about every little click or mouse movement the user makes, and even after disabling it there's still some data that gets sent
• It's slow. Updates can take as long as an entire day, and forget about using Windows 10 on older hardware

Notice I haven't added any links; these points are based on my experience, and for all I know, Microsoft may have fixed some of these issues since the last time I used Windows 10, so take my point of view with a grain of salt.

This being said, however, I'm not against anyone using Windows; it does have its benefits. For instance, a lot of proprietary software can only be used on Windows and will not work with Wine, such as Adobe Photoshop. And even with the advents of Proton, some Windows games still refuse to work on Linux. So some people will need to at least have a dual-boot setup with Windows to get their day-to-day tasks done. Me, I use Linux (Pop!_OS currently) full-time and have no Windows partition, yet I live my life just fine.

Your articles are great! Can I hire you?

Heh. Said no one. But, if you happen to be looking for a freelance journalist, particularly when it comes to tech, Linux, or gaming, feel free to have a look at some of the articles I've written on Boiling Steam. Some articles you might find particularly noteworthy are:

• Emulating Nintendo Switch games on Linux
• PinePhone review
• Pinebook Pro review
• GamerOS - Distro review
• Odroid GO-Advance review

If you like what I write, you can contact me at cow_killer(at)protonmail(dot)com.