@alessandro (Here is a copy of my reply in another instance.)
Looks like the growth comes mostly from Windows (-0.56%) users switching to Linux (+0.52%). MacOS (+0.05%) users mostly seem just to upgrade MacOS and are mostly unaffected by the overall numbers. Inside of the Windows numbers, Windows 10 (-1.56%) users switching to either Windows 11 (+0.92%) or choosing an alternative platform (-0.56%). Numbers do not add up perfectly, because these statistics are estimation based on asking randomly a fraction of the user base.
There was some earlier article that a large portion of Linux users are using the Steam Deck, which is Linux-based.
googles
Not the article I was thinking of, but makes the point:
https://www.gamingonlinux.com/2023/08/linux-overtakes-macos-users-on-steam-thanks-to-steam-deck/
42% of Linux users are Steam Deck users.
It’s very good news for Valve, which is seeing their platform do well. And it’s good news for users of other Linux distros in the sense that compatibility with Valve’s Linux probably helps ensure support for them.
But it doesn’t mean, I think, so much that lots of Windows users are moving to Linux unless they are abandoning their desktop for a Steam Deck. More that there are likely people using both a Linux-based device – Steam Deck – and a device running another OS.
