Because I never see anyone else criticize their presence, I wonder if I'm the only one who has no use for games or toys, especially toys (which I suspect to be an indulgence of software designers) on any Linux distro. I could do without any games or toys. How about you?

No games on any computers where I install Linux.

One day in 1990 my wife and I played a video game on a TV all day. We had lunch delivered, and when it grew dark again outside we thought, "What a wasted day." Haven't played one since, and have no intention of it in the future.

You remember that commercial's slogan from maybe the 70s? A mind is a terrible thing to waste.

That's how I feel about computer games.

You just reminded me to dig out my Play Station 1.

Nice. You must have a strong sense of what's really important in life, I guess.

I never said I don't play any games myself, only that I don't play any games in Linux. (I use Linux only for word processing and internet.) So I've played computer and video games since probably age 7, and only in the last 1-2 years have started breaking away from them. The only game I wish I could still play is The Sims, and that, only because I'm a writer and have a theory that the open-ended virtual life simulation stimulated my creativity when I used to play. (I think so because I used to write many bizarre, nonsensical, long-winded character biographies.)

The only game I play - if ever on linux is kpat. I am perhaps too lazy to even check other games. So yes, linux games are a strict no on my pc.

I do the full install of slackware so there are some games on my system. I don't use them though. Using the i3WM, it'd be difficult to run them without knowing their names anyway

I play all my games in Linux.. Even my Windows ones.. To each their own I guess. Is the 30 days /played on my WoW character time wasted? Probably, but no more so than time spent watching T.V with people or other "wastes of time".

I agree about the toys: I'm sure I can live without a fish swimming up and down my panel. But I do like a quiet game of patience (pysol) and in the ancient days when I was an employee, I'm sure my games kept me sane!

Runescape!

(yea-yea, I know...)

Otherwise, no extra eye-candy - I really have to gather all courage and install XFCE...

It looks like you're using Arch. If so, just type:

and it's done.

1 members found this post helpful.

I occasionally play games in any OS I run. IF there are none, I develop one. Had it not been for minefield, I might NEVER have learned to use a mouse properly: hated having a 'rat' on my desk!).

I encourage my kids to play, and to learn from their play, just set reasonable limits.

IF you need no games or toys, they are SO very easy to remove. The better distributions (Debian, Fedora, RHEL, etc) allow you to select not to install them.

This is only the second time I have ever heard anyone complain about them being included in a distribution. I have difficulty considering it a problem.

(Now had you noted that NONE of the default games are handicap friendly, I could see a valid point. That, however, is not unique to Linux.)

@ MTK358

Actually I should...it's still the windows ghost...you installed something, did the restart and were happy everything still showed up...

Gnome3 fallback is soooooooooooooooooooooooo flat...

@ wpeckham

That's an example many (if not all) parents should follow...

hehe, at least with a linux distribution you can remove the games that come with it by default, try removing solitaire, minesweeper or pinball from a windows xp or newer box, the games are considered protected system files and get put back by the os when you try and delete them. yes you can remove them but you practically have to hack your windows box to do so.

gnu/linux is an operating system just like any others, some use it for work, some use it for play, heck, even ti graphing calculators were so thoroughly hacked to be able to install games on them that TI finally gave up and officially supported installing binaries on their calculators, and that's a low power 6mhz unit designed for a specialized purpose and people put games on them, so try telling people they can't have games on a general purpose pc

the point being, it's a matter of preference, some people don't want to have to install windows just to play games so removing and not developing games at all for linux is unreasonable, but to each their own i guess

I don't see how it could possibly harm anything, it doesn't touch your existing desktop.

Anyway, I installed a lot of window managers and desktops to try, and none of them did any harm.

@ MTK358

I just did...needed a valium but afterwards...I should have done this way-way before...

This thing is fast...and productive. Just a little tuning in, and I'm off! I suspect I dont need to remove Gnome as XFCE seems to use some of the parts of Gnome...

Thanks man!

Thor