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What is Steam?
Steam is a digital content management system that provides content delivery, component revision control and data security to developers of such content. Steam is embedded within a Steam-enabled application giving it a virtual file system from which it can obtain "resources" (not files) from a local cache, CD, or the Internet.
Communicating with the Steam backend servers, digital rights management allows access to subscription (pay or free) content while at the same time ensuring the user's content is always current. Advanced content "preloaders" are used to load the caches during application execution as well as during normal PC (or console) operation.
Caching content locally eliminates typical issues associated with streaming content, since the data only needs to be read once. As the cache fills, a Least Recently Used algorithm purges old content and allows new content to take its place. Additionally, "trickle" downloading allows content to be delivered unobtrusively so that the content "just appears" to the user when it's ready. In the case of Half-Life or Counter-Strike, there's no more rushing to an FTP site just to fight for the opportunity to download the latest update, map, or mod. It will "just be there" when Valve says it will.
Steam, in the end, provides game and application developers with a much simpler method for delivering content to their users, whether it's for a controlled beta or all-out publishing.
What does it do?
Steam lets you:
- Buy Valve games via the Internet, and start playing within minutes of confirming your purchase
- Access your games from any PC
- Stop worrying about product updates and patches (they're all handled automatically!)
- Instant-message your friends, even while playing games
- Browse and connect to game servers
- See when your friends are playing, and join their games
In addition to using Steam to deliver games, Valve is also making Steam available to other software developers.
Steam is a distributed file system and shared set of technology components that can be implemented into any software application.
With Steam, software developers are given integrated tools for direct-content publishing, flexible billing, ensured-version control, anti-cheating, anti-piracy, and more.
The Steam SDK also includes an integrated set of communications tools and Valve's Graphic User Interface (V-GUI) that provide built-in support for a variety of services such as instant messaging, configuration, and server browsing.
Where do I get it?
You can download Steam for free from the official Steam website, www.steampowered.com
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