2 gamers, 1 cpu, NO Virtualization!
www.apalrd.net
I’ve been using Linux for a long time. The first distribution I ever installed was Ubuntu 6.06 ‘Dapper Drake’, on which I ran a phpBB server for my school friends. Security was poor. But shortly after, as I learned about Linux desktops (and first daily-drove a Linux laptop around 2012), I learned about ‘Multiseat’. The Wikipedia article has a cool picture of a very 90s looking desktop tower with 4x CRT monitors, and that image was published to Wikipedia in 2005, and I saw it in middle/high school years.

This is a super interesting project, and the video is really well presented and explained, if you prefer that format.

I think this method could be brought even further by using ‘thin clients’ (a cheap laptop or used office mini-PC), making it possible to access the main gaming rig from any room in the house as long as you have access to a good network speed.

Utilizing a ‘dummy’ HDMI or Displayport stick, which simulates a monitor for the GPU, you could then remote into the gaming rig from a thin client-like PC through Parsec or Moonline/Sunlight, allowing you to use it as a fully fledged gaming or workstation PC.

If anyone decides to go that route, be aware that AMD GPU’s have pretty notoriously bad encoders/decoders, so I’d recommend sticking with Nvidia or Intel GPU’s.

  • n3m37h@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
    586·
    2 days ago

    AMD GPU’s have pretty notoriously bad encoders/decoders, so I’d recommend sticking with Nvidia or Intel GPU’s.

    Where do people get this idea??

    Here is 1440p 60fps from my 6700 XT

    https://youtu.be/F4mFHM6aAiA

    Ive been using emby for a few years and firefox doesn’t support HVEC where all my content is HVEC and have had 0 issues with my gpu re-encoding the video

    Its just nvidia fanboy bs

    • mat@linux.communityEnglish
      2·
      2 hours ago

      What magic incantation are you using? My OBS either crashes with the ffmpeg setting or uses software enc, and is always blurry. Firefox does all video and audio enc+dec on CPU. Am on all-AMD NixOS and so far gave up on any hw accel for media.

    • LiveLM@lemmy.zipEnglish
      252·
      2 days ago

      It’s not fanboy BS though, AMD encoders used to be pretty rough compared to Nvidia’s, specially at lower bitrates.

      They’ve improved a lot as the generations went on however, to the point I believe that advice no longer applies.

    • ProdigalFrog@slrpnk.netOPEnglish
      111·
      2 days ago

      Well I’ll be damned! AMD does seem to have up their encoder game with the Navi series onward.

      They were rightfully called out as having pretty bad encoders before that though, which I personally experienced on an RX 480 I used to have in my system. It made parsec a bit blurry and added quite a bit of latency.

      Also, I would stand by the recommendation to avoid older office PC’s with AMD graphics, since none of them are going to have Navi graphics.

      • who@feddit.orgEnglish
        4·
        2 days ago

        avoid older office PC’s with AMD graphics though, since none of them are going to have Navi graphics.

        The key word here being older. These days, AMD CPUs have a couple of Navi graphics cores built in, and they’re good for both office tasks and video encoding.

    • CaptPretentious@lemmy.worldEnglish
      2·
      1 day ago

      It want that long ago. Just read any OBS posts. Honestly I haven’t kept up with it for a while. A quick search shows discussions continue. Does appear most still think Nvidia has the best quality.

    • TeamAssimilation@infosec.pubEnglish
      32·
      2 days ago

      AMD used to be the shit on Linux a decade ago, much better support than Nvidia. It looks like something changed, but I only use discrete intel GPUs so I’m way out of the loop.