NEWS

NVidia and Valve Collaborate to Bring DLSS to Linux

DLSS stands for Deep Learning Super Sampling and is a temporal image upscaling technology developed by NVidia for NVidia graphics cards. This technology makes it possible to upscale lower-resolution images into higher-resolution images so they can be better displayed on higher-resolution displays.

This technology would greatly enhance the Linux gaming experience but isn't available yet for the open source platform. Both NVidia and Valve are working to change that. By using Tensor Cores on RTX GPUs to accelerate performance for supported games, NVidia is making an effort to bring DLSS to Steam Proton on Linux. This means games such as Call of Duty, Cyberpunk 2077, Fortnite, and Rainbow Six Siege could soon be playable on Linux, via Steam.

This technology will require supported graphics cards, such as the GeForce RTX 3080 and the upcoming NVidia 470 (which will also have Wayland support).

In a press release, NVidia announced (during their keynote for Computex 2021, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Kio8Hn8f3U) that it is "collaborating [with Valve and the Linux gaming community] to bring NVidia DLSS to Proton – Linux gamers will be able to use the dedicated AI cores on GeForce RTX GPUs to boost frame rates for their favorite Windows Games running on the Linux operating system."

Kali Linux 2021.2 Official Release Now Available

If you're a fan of Linux and security, you'll be glad to know the developers of Kali Linux have released a new version of the fan-favorite distribution. Kali Linux 2021.2, created by Offensive Security, includes a new collection of themes and plenty of features to attract cybersecurity pros, ethical hackers, and anyone else interested in a user-friendly penetration testing platform.

One of the most anticipated additions to Kali Linux is Kabox, which is a tool for packaging tricky applications in Docker containers to be used in the distribution. These apps are normally a challenge to package because of dependencies, legacy libraries and programs, and applications that require isolation to run.

Another new addition to Kali Linux is Kali-Tweaks, which is an automation tool aimed at helping users easily customize the operating system for tasks such as installing or removing groups of tools, changing the default login shell, and enabling different repositories (such as those for bleeding-edge and experimental software).

Also included with the latest version of Kali Linux are new packages for Raspberry Pi, new Kali-Docker images, support for Apple M1 hardware (on Parallels), Kali NetHunter support for Android 11, Ghidra (a reverse engineering tool created by the National Security Agency), and plenty of updates to the look and feel of the desktop.

Get a copy of Kali Linux 2021.2 for your platform of choice from the official download page http://(https://www.kali.org/get-kali/).

Entroware Unleashes a Beast of a Linux Laptop

Are you on the lookout for a Linux-powered laptop that can go the distance and exceed your needs for power, size, and battery life? If that sounds like the perfect machine to fill your dance card, and you're not looking for the most brilliant display on the market, Entroware has the laptop for you.

The Proteus 15.6-inch is a redesign of the original mobile workstation and includes something few other Linux laptops can match – a 73 Wh battery that can be charged via USB Type-C cable (so you don't have to carry around so many cables). The original Proteus included a 62.16 Wh battery, so this is a good jump in battery life. Although there is no claim about battery life to be found on the Proteus page (https://www.entroware.com/store/proteus), you can expect to be able to use this laptop for quite some time before you're plugging it back in for a charge.

The battery isn't the only impressive feature: The Proteus base model ships with a Core i5-1135G7 (up to 4.20 GHz with 4 Cores and 8 Threads), 8GB of DDR4 2666 MHz RAM, and a 250GB PCIe NVMe SSD. The Proteus can be maxed out with a Core i7, 64 GB of RAM, and up to a 2TB SSD. And although the screen isn't all that brag-worthy, it's still an IPS LED at 1920x1080). The Proteus also includes an expansion slot for M.2 storage devices, which allows you to add up to 4TB of capacity.

The base price of the Proteus is £819.99. You can purchase the Proteus now through the Entroware website (https://www.entroware.com/store/proteus).