Petition for Linux

Hi,

I just discovered this thread, so allow me a bit of background:

Although I think Windows is generally a good OS, Microsofts business practices annoyed me more and more.

So I made the switch to Linux (endeavourOS) last week. My DAW (Reaper) comes in a native Linux version, my audio interface (MOTU M4) works perfectly OOTB. Spitfire Audio, Waves, u-he, Bogren, Modartt and a lot of other plugins also work fine either natively or by using Wine and yabridge. (Some research and fiddling were needed to get all of this running.)

Also Native Access 1.14 runs under Wine and it's possible to authorize and download NI plugins. Installation however needs to be done manually from the .iso file that Native Access downloads. That's a bit annoying, but doable and so far all plugins I installed work really well.

Only exception I found is Komplete Kontrol (it's a pity but I can live with that) and recently the freebie iZotope EQ. It shows up in my Native Access but I can't install it. FAQ says I need the newer version of Native Access. Unfortunately, Native Access 2 does not run in Wine, so this is the first Plugin I really can't use in Linux. That makes me fear what will happen with future releases...

Coming back to the main topic of this thread:

Honestly, I can understand NI is not working on bringing their entire product range or even parts of it to Linux. The possible reasons have already been mentioned here and elsewhere.

But that leaves us with a Hen-Egg problem. Linux' userbase is too small to create a market interest, but how should it grow without the availability of good and established software?

If I could wish for something from NI, it would just be to make the latest Native Access version runable in Wine. I don't mind using Wine and going some extra steps to get the plugins working. Also I don't expect NI to provide any additional service or support, as we all know this is expensive. Just open up the possibility for the community to download and authorize their purchased plugins under Linux and let the community do the rest.

This brings a chance to slowly gain a reputation for the brand of being "Linux friendly", without an unsure return-on-invest. Maybe in the future the Linux audio community will be big and "worthy" enough to get native NI stuff... In the meantime, please just don't block us from buying and using your software.

PS: Maybe Spotify can serve as a role model, although they even go one step further: They provide a Linux native version of their client, as "[...] a labor of love from our engineers that wanted to listen to Spotify on their Linux development machines.". They clearly state that there's no support, so really no money needed for testing and service. But it's of great marketing value!

(As I cannot post links, you'll have to google "Spotify linux for yourself to find their page 😉 )

+1 for Komplete Kontrol (higer than v. 1) under Linux

Look here: https://github.com/GoaSkin/qKontrol

+1 for Linux!! Especially for my Maschine Mikro MK3. To all those who think Linux is an inferior OS, Linux is faster, less resource intensive, more programmable and customizable than other operating systems.

maybe if linux users were willing to pay for dev costs it might happen, but unlikely

Has anyone been able to configure Komplete Kontrol keyboards (a49, a61 or m32) to utilize DAW integration with the help of Bome Virtual MIDI driver? I can't seem to install it on Linux to view the DAW instance of the keyboard in a digital audio workstation.

I know this thread is old in the tooth, but it's 2024 and I just wanted to post some input at this point in time.
I'm a Full time Linux user, as in it's my Daily Driver. I use it for work, Games and Productivity.

I also own a Macbook Pro mid 2014 model, which is now EOL. I 'can' install modern versions of Mac OS on to it still, but this requires essentially turning it in to what may as well be a Hackintosh, which is extremely Ironic given that it's official Apple hardware. Soon however, the x86_64 arch will no longer be supported by future Mac os versions in the next 2-3 years which is a big shame, I will be stuck on whatever the last intel compiled version of mac os is, and it will eventually slip out of support for software too. Granted, nothing stops me from just continuing to use an old version, but should something ever happen and i need to reformat, the x86 version of Traktor in years ahead may well become unobtanium, much like Traktor Pro 2 has outside of Native access.

• And to be perfectly clear, I only have a macbook because I have no choice. I'm not going (back) to windows for anything, let alone mission critical applications. The first chance I get to replace it with something else, i'm taking it. Even if that means ditching Native Instruments after 10+ years of loyalty in favor of an all in one standalone solution. Apple isn't getting me to buy a new mac anytime soon.
  

I'd like to point out to the NI Product team that 'Lack of return of investment' is a moot point. By not investing, you are therefore a part of your own problem - There's 'no market share' because nobody wants to be the first to stimulate its growth, A self-perpetuating cycle of peering in to the darkness and claiming there is nothing to see, but nobody has had the foresight to purchase a flashlight beforehand.

I want you to take a look at Valve as an example. They didn't have to support Linux, but they did it anyway. Their ROI was huge. You fast forward 10 years, and they are making billions or more off the platform - have pinned an entire business model off it and released their own product around it, the latest of course being the Steam Deck. People laughed, mocked, said it would be a failed venture for them and wouldn't last, now Valve is rolling in the cash flow it pulled in. Why? Because they cornered the market. You want to play PC games on Linux? You go to Steam - It's got you covered.

So ask yourselves NI, Think about it. No other company at the time of writing has made a proper commercial offering for DJ Software on Linux. There's a few DAWs out there, Davinichi Resolve for Video editing, But DJing? Great, We have MIXXX, an open source project that's good, but it's not Traktor.

What if, You got there first. What if NI dipped a toe in the water - dropped one of their software products on the Linux space, hell even if it's only Traktor DJ 2, nothing ventured nothing gained. How many loyal NI users currently stuck in the walled garden and status quo of near-sighted business management would move to revive their perfectly serviceable but forcefully obsolescent hardware to continue using what they want to use - simply by changing the OS to one that doesn't restrict you with arbitrary Hardware support requirements and spare their machines from the e-waste pile.

Would that not corner the market?

Simple solution. Use FlatHub: Port something like Traktor DJ to Linux as a Flat Package - you control the libraries, dependencies, it's all bundled nicely in a neat little universal package that just runs, all the complicated nuances of flavor-specific support is taken care of for you.

Port Native Access (A Qt application?) to Flathub. Native access downloads and manages flat packages from NI sources, so you can control licensing eligibility for paid products.
Or better yet, just release those products as Trialware to FlatHub, with the option to add your license key to it.

As a side bonus? Traktor DJ would be automatically available for the steam deck.


Linux's Market share is growing, Soon it will overtake Mac OS, by my estimate, somewhere in the next 5 years.

If you want to make money off chickens by selling the eggs, You must first buy and hatch the eggs to raise the chickens that lay them.