The WAN Show: Steam OS, Console & Controller, AMD R9 290X & GUEST Austin Evans - Sept 27, 2013

The WAN Show episode featuring Austin Evans, recorded on September 27, 2013, covers a wide swath of tech topics that were hot at the time. The hosts kick off with a lively introduction, setting the stage for a show packed with hardware previews, software discussions, and a guest interview. They highlight Steam OS, Steam Machines, and the Steam Controller as the “Triple Threat” announcements, framing Steam’s shift toward a Linux-based platform and hardware ecosystem. Immediately after, the discussion broadens to includeSurface Pro 2 and Surface 2, with emphasis on Haswell-powered efficiency, improved battery life, and 1080p screens, juxtaposed against pricing and use-case decisions for convertible devices. The hosts analyze Windows 8’s Modern UI experiences, criticizing some app and multitasking interactions when used with traditional input devices, and they comment on the broader reality of Windows 8.1 as an incremental improvement rather than a complete cure. A notable segment evaluates TouchID-style fingerprint security, presenting a critical, cautious take on biometrics and the realism of spoofing methods demonstrated by the Chaos Computer Club. The show then pivots to the AMD event and Mantle, a low-level API aimed at extracting more performance from GPUs, with Austin Evans sharing firsthand impressions and discussing the potential for cross-compatibility with consoles and the implications for PC gaming performance. The discussion continues with a portion focused on Google integration with YouTube and Google+, including comments management, uploader prioritization, and multi-channel administration, reflecting Linus’s perspective on how social features influence content discovery and moderation. Throughout the episode, the hosts pepper recurring topics with their characteristic humor and skepticism, weighing product value against price, and noting the strategic industry moves around GPUs, APIs, and platform fragmentation. They also tease future coverage of Nvidia’s Linux support and related build logs, while acknowledging the community’s enthusiasm and questions via Twitter Blitz during the stream. The guest, Austin Evans, shares his background and directs viewers to his channels while adding his on-the-ground insights from the AMD event, including his impressions of the hanger module and Star Citizen’s development context, which tightens the link between PC hardware capabilities and ambitious space-sim projects. The conversation then circles back to how Linux-based Steam OS and Steam Machines could influence gaming hardware adoption, with Linus noting that a successful rollout would require broad developer and publisher buy-in, while still acknowledging the potential for meaningful progress in home entertainment PC ecosystems. As the show closes, the hosts and Austin discuss the balance between new hardware experimentation and the practicalities of mainstream consumer adoption, including pricing considerations for the R9 290X, and the dynamic winds of GPU pricing ahead of Maxwell’s anticipated launch. The episode ends with a sense of momentum around the Linux gaming push, community engagement, and the ongoing evolution of how hardware, software, and services intertwine to shape the tech landscape. Viewers are left with a snapshot of a pivotal moment in PC gaming history when traditional boundaries between console, PC, and living room hardware began to blur, foreshadowing the broader convergence that would define the next half-decade. The WAN Show remains a time capsule of early 2010s tech culture, chronicling the excitement, skepticism, and curiosity that defined the era. The overall takeaway emphasizes practical decision-making for enthusiasts: weigh performance gains against ecosystem maturity, consider platform support and future-proofing, and stay tuned for ongoing developments in Steam and the broader PC hardware/software ecosystem. The show’s energy, guest interaction, and forward-looking discussions demonstrate why Linus and his team cultivated a dedicated audience around hands-on hardware analysis and community-driven coverage. The episode exemplifies how early experimentation with Steam OS and related hardware foreshadowed the emergence of new formats for living room computing, and it captures the enduring appeal of a show that seeks to demystify complex technology through accessible discussion, demonstrations, and collaboration with influential voices in the field.

Topics · technology · gaming · hardware · software · media & entertainment