Does FOVE support OSX or Linux?

Regarding OS support in general, FOVE's public software release has supported Windows from the beginning (currently we support Windows 8.1 and later).

Linux

Linux is supported as of October 2020 (v1.0). It requires Ubuntu 20.04 & NVIDIA binary drivers. Please see our detailed article on how to install and use here: https://support.getfove.com/hc/en-us/articles/900003198366

We have not yet backwards compatibility between versions. For example a Linux application built against SDK v1.0 will not run against the runtime for v1.1. So make sure to use the right version. We hope to commit to backcompat in the future.

Mac

Internally, we have Mac builds, but the lack of direct mode support prevent it from running at low latency.  There's about an extra frame of latency when running in extended mode, which can work for certain specific applications, but general 3D content is not recommended without direct mode. Depending on your use case, it may be ok.

Since SteamVR used to support Mac, apparently there is some capability for direct mode, but Apple does not expose it publicly as far as we know. If you have any information on this, we would be interested to hear it, please get in touch.

Also, recent macs other than Mac Minis do not have HDMI ports, so adapters are required. The user must test on their own which adapters work with the FOVE. Since most Macs have Intel graphics, it may not be able to render at the resolution and framerate needed, but Macs with NVIDIA or AMD graphics should be sufficiently powerful. We eagerly hope to profile the M1 capabilities, but haven't test tested arm64 on mac.

Get in touch

If you need a Mac build, or a Linux configuration not supported please contact the support portal, and we may be able to work with you to get you a custom software release that suits your needs. If this is significant work, it may require a development contract, but we're generally happy to work with people and get them running on whatever setup they like.