Linux Gaming Video Card?

[corfe83]

If you were buying a new system and wanted to do some gaming on linux, would you go for an ATI video card, or nVidia?

I'll split this into 2 questions:
1) Which one has better proprietary binary drivers that "just work"?
2) If I prefer to use open source drivers only, which brand is currently better for that?

 

[IGemini]

nVidia

/thread

 

[Jodell88]

nVidia

/thread

this x infinity

 

[corfe83]

Fair enough. Thanks!

 

[lxskllr]

this x infinity

I agree. What's with ATI? I always hear about them being open to free software, but their stuff always sucks for free software. I dislike ATI for other reasons, so I'd use Nvidia anyway, but what's going on with them?

 

[Jodell88]

I agree. What's with ATI? I always hear about them being open to free software, but their stuff always sucks for free software. I dislike ATI for other reasons, so I'd use Nvidia anyway, but what's going on with them?

I have no idea. AMD is definitely the most open source friendly between themselves and Nvidia, but Nvidia produces the better driver so I don't complain. Archlinux dropped the official AMD driver from their repos a while now because AMD was always behind the curve and riddled with bugs. The official catalyst driver has problems with rendering gnome-shell correctly, and it uses the opengl 1.4 pipeline with Kwin instead of the 2.0 pipeline because of a bug in the driver.

They also have the nasty habit of dropping support of their cards way too early in caparison to Nvidia.

 

[IGemini]

AMD went open source after enough negative feedback about their support, I'd imagine. Don't get me wrong, they have come a way in driver support since then, but that's merely been an upgrade from abysmal to miserable, especially compared to how much functionality they have with the same hardware in Windows. nVidia is better by the virtue of time invested in the process.

 

[Pistolera]

I agree. What's with ATI? I always hear about them being open to free software, but their stuff always sucks for free software. I dislike ATI for other reasons, so I'd use Nvidia anyway, but what's going on with them?

ATI could never figure out how to write closed-source drivers for Windows that just "worked" let alone "didn't suck." Nvidia could at least handle that much.

I still don't know why I even bought a 5870 for this box...