On top of that, the PC itself seems to have peaked. It's hard to think that Valve sees this as the right time to pour resources into PC gaming on Linux. It's much more likely to have something to do with the console we know they're working on.
Majority of Linux kernel is pretty good because of servers, super-computers and Android.
The only reason Linux needs Desktop users is for better graphics drivers and games. Now that Valve is making their game-console, the graphics drivers should improve tremendously, and there should be a lot of new games.
So there is no real need for wide acceptance of Linux desktop.
Of course, this is a rather selfish point of view. I believe that the world would be a better place if everyone used Free Software (and Linux). It would encourage collaboration of many groups of people, and would be really beneficial for all software.
Even with all the Smartphone BS out there, the PC market is still immensely bigger than all of of the smartphone/tablets combined. Why do you think people still make games and applications for PCs ?
What mess? Unity is getting to be quite tolerable. Gnome is forging ahead with their vision and Mint provides a nice alternative to Ubuntu with several different UIs. I don't understand the argument that this is "bad". People have been saying that since the dawn of Linux and it's boring and an non-point.
If you accept that "PC" has peaked, Valve/Steam is screwed anyway. If consumers keep flocking to iOS/Windows8, let alone to Android... then Steam will die a painful death and modern computing will be reduced to mindless one-at-a-time "apps".
Ironically, the "mess" of Linux desktop is the only platform that isn't going for a signed, verified, OEM only software model eroding consumers' rights and freedoms along the way.
The same people were probably complaining about the mess with IE6, Firefox and Opera a few years ago. Some do not like choice and prefer to have a single standard to rely on. :)
Never have I heard such glowing praise.
Unity allows me to utilize more screenspace, very effectively. The latest version is pleasant to look at. I'm still not a huge fan of the default lens, but that will get better with time or as someone creates a replacement for the default lens.
Beside, that's a pretty pithy lame reply to your original remarks. Disappointing.
Elementary is great, although currently only working well with 12.04. Cinnamon is great, my mother figured it out intuitively immediately based on Windows XP (much faster than with Windows 8 or OS X). Gnome-Shell is "OK", I find it's a taste thing and most people what more out of it.
Which, by all accounts, will be more-or-less a Linux PC.
And Linux-on-the-desktop seems healthier now than a couple years ago. The reason it's harder to recommend one single Linux distro, is that even casual users have more than one good choice. I don't see "Unity/Gnome 3/Mint/etc." as a "mess". If you want a single, monolithic platform, we already have that. It's called "Microsoft Windows".
