The Linux kernel developers might lead interesting and exciting lives, but every once in a while, they need to do some of the boring stuff as well, like testing and implementing drivers for hardware into the kernel. Sometimes, that hardware is the new Steam Controller developed by Valve.

Valve has been working on a new Steam Controller for quite some time, and the device has gone through quite a few iterations. Features were added and removed just months apart, but a final form was reached some time ago. There is now even a pre-order page on Steam for this controller, which is scheduled to arrive on November 10, this year.

Maybe not a lot of people realize this, but the Linux kernel is extremely versatile, and it has drivers for a lot of hardware. It was a time when you had to be very careful about what you were buying to use in your Linux distro, but that's not the case anymore. Now, there is only a very slim chance that you'll plug in something in your Linux PC, and it won't work. That includes PlayStation or Xbox controllers, for example.

Steam Controller support is coming to Linux kernel 4.3

Greg Kroah-Hartman, one the Linux kernel developers, said that sometimes testing drivers for the kernel Releases Candidates might be a drag. On this occasion, he had to test it more thoroughly, just to make sure that it was working as it should and that there were no errors.

"Some days are harder than others when having to test kernel drivers on -RC releases. Note, all of these work perfectly, but I think I need a few more hours of testing just to be sure…" said Greg Kroah-Hartman on Google+.

One of the perks of being a Linux developer is that you'll probably get a lot of the hardware ahead of time, to implement the drivers. In this case, Greg got the Steam Controller, and he might be able to keep it.