How to use the steam program. Steam - what are these programs

", - experienced gamers say goodbye to each other. And any avid lover of computer games understands what is at stake. About a place where each of them is a superhero. About where you want to return again and again. About the virtual "home" where the games dear to the heart live.

Steam is...

You probably already guessed what Steam is. This is a gaming platform, a service designed for buying and launching computer games, communication between players, creating gaming communities and much more related to gaming.

Being the brainchild of Valve, in the early 2000s, Steam was used only to distribute and activate the products of this developer. Today it is a complete social network with many features, like Facebook or VK, which supports more than 10,000 games and applications from different manufacturers: Sega, Epik Games, Ubisoft, Rockstar Games, etc., many of which are free.

The Steam platform exists in a web version, accessible through a browser, and as an application for all major stationary and mobile operating systems- Windows, OS X, Linux, PlayStation 3, Android, iOS, and Samsung Smatr TV Tizen OS (limited). Installation and use of the service is completely free, payment is charged only for the content.

Features, pros and cons of the platform

In recent years, the functionality of Steam has grown to such a scale that even a developer will probably not be able to say which of its functions is the main one. Its users are provided the following possibilities:

• play on any supported device;
• buy promotional content with a 50-75% discount and play paid games for free, and such promotions are held almost constantly;
• install game updates in a priority order - the platform does this automatically;
• do not think about the safety of game data - Steam also takes care of it;
• create and save backup copies of game distributions;
• activate supported games purchased in boxed versions;
• buy games as a gift to other users;
• return the money spent if you didn’t like the game (the opportunity lasts up to 14 days after the purchase, provided that the toy was launched no longer than 2 hours);
• create personal pages and groups, join communities;
• find like-minded people and friends;
• exchange messages and communicate in the built-in voice chat;
• share achievements;
• exchange, buy and sell game items - inventory, cards, etc.;
• take screenshots and shoot videos, post videos on YouTune;
• record and broadcast streams without third-party programs;
• receive the latest news about the events of the game world;
• listen to music stored on the device instead of game soundtracks;
• give other users access to your library of games (family sharing);
• customize the design of your personal page to your liking;
• use the developer's technical support services.

And since Steam is the official game content store, the products that are distributed through it are 100% legal and safe.

Among the shortcomings service users attributed:

• The inability to use the means of obtaining illegal privileges over other players (cheats).
• The inability to run pirated content.
• There is a high risk of losing the account, and with it the funds that are stored on the balance sheet. Steam user accounts are very attractive to attackers and are often attacked. To prevent attacks, the platform has a built-in Steam Guard, but it does not guarantee complete security.

Someone thinks that buying content through Steam is too expensive and for this reason does not use the platform. However, it makes it possible not only to spend, but also to earn real money. One of the ways to earn money mentioned above is the sale of game equipment. Also, some users manage to unofficially sell previously purchased games, and experienced gamers earn money by promoting and selling upgraded accounts.

How to register on Steam

To register on the Steam service, launch a pre-installed application or open the store.steampowered.com website, go to the "Login" section and click the "Create an account" button.

Enter your email address, its confirmation and verification code. Accept the user agreement and confirm the registration by clicking on the link that will come in the email.

After confirmation, return to the registration section, come up with a unique name for yourself that will be displayed to other users, and a password. Click Finish Registration.

How to link a payment instrument to your Steam account and replenish your account in the system

To link a bank card to your Steam profile, go to the "About account" menu. In the Store Operations section, click Add a payment method to this account.

Select a payment system from the list and enter the card details — number, expiration date, CVV/CVC code.

In the "Account Information" section, enter your real name, surname, postal code, residential address and phone number. In the fields "Settlement address" and "Settlement address 2" enter the street, house/building and apartment number.

Once a card has been linked, Steam Store purchases will be debited from the card's balance.

In addition to linked bank cards, you can use money on your personal Steam account to pay for content.

To replenish your account balance, do the following:

• Click the "+Top up balance" button in the "Store Operations" section. Choose one of the proposed amounts (minimum 150 rubles).

• Choose a convenient payment method. In the CIS countries, Visa, Mastercard, Maestro and American Express cards are available for this; payment systems PayPal, Yandex.Money and Webmoney; mobile phone account and bitcoin cryptocurrency. After making your selection, click Continue.

• Further actions depend on the specific payment method. Complete the payment by following the instructions on the screen.

How to download games

Selection, purchase and installation of games are made through the "Shop" section of the main menu. The distribution of content by genre and other categories (new releases, top sellers, etc.) is in the column on the left.

Clicking on the banner of the game will take you to the purchase page. More detailed information about the offer is posted here: trailers, gameplay screenshots, description, system requirements, as well as the game distributions themselves and additional paid content. This page contains information about discounts and promotions.

To buy something from the offer, click the "Add to Cart" button next to the product and, following the instructions, make the payment. The purchased game and additional content will be downloaded to your Library.

How to add friends

To add Steam users as friends, go to the main menu section named after you and select "Friends". Enter your username in the Find Friends field. After it is found, click "Add to friends".

In addition, the "Add to friends" button is present on the personal pages of Steam users:

And on the personal page of your profile in the "Your friends" section there is a user search string by login and game name (the system shows who you played with):

The add friend function becomes available after replenishing the account balance or purchases in the amount of $5 or more.

In general, the Steam platform is quite simple to understand and master, just wander through the sections - and everything becomes clear without explanation. Moreover, it is fully translated into Russian, and in addition to it, it supports 25 more languages ​​of the world.

You can often hear the question, what is Steam and how to use it. Steam is the best, at the moment, service for online purchase of computer games. Here you can find hundreds various games for Windows and MacOS operating systems. In this article, we will look at the main features that Steam provides users.

The Steam service has four main parts: Store, Library, News and Community. We will now look at each of these parts in more detail.

Score this is a catalog of games where you can choose and buy the game you like. After the game is purchased, it moves to the Library section and starts downloading, after the download is completed, you can play.

Library this is the catalog of the games you bought. Once you buy a game, it stays in your Library forever, and you can always download it using Steam and start playing. This way, all your games are concentrated and cataloged in one place.

News not a particularly interesting section. Here you will find news about the Steam system, new games and updates.

Community is a social network for gamers. Here you can chat with Steam users that you have added as friends. The community provides many opportunities for organizing joint leisure time playing computer games.

Key STEAM features

• Purchase of games. If you don't know what Steam is, it's best to start by buying games. There are a large number of games available in the Steam catalog. And most of these games can be bought from anywhere in the world. All you need is internet access to fund your Steam account and download the game after purchase. Having bought at least one game, you will quickly understand all the possibilities of this system. You can top up your Steam account using Webmoney, MasterCard, American Express, Visa, PayPal, and other payment services. Replenishment is fast and hassle-free.
• Free games. Steam users have access to a large number of free games.
• Convenient client. You can also work with Steam using a browser. For a quick introduction to what Steam is, go to . But, in order to get access to all the features of Steam, you need . The client is an application with which you can replenish your account, buy games, communicate with other players and much more.
If the game you purchased from the physical store is also sold on Steam, you can add it to your Game Library. To do this, just enter the key to the game. After that, this game will become available in your Steam account, and you can download it at any time when you need it.
• Save game settings to Steam Cloud online storage. By saving the settings online, you can not worry about their safety.
• Create offline game backups. If you have a slow Internet connection and it is difficult for you to download games, you can create a backup copy of the game purchased on Steam and burn it to a disc or other

The service replaced the earlier WON system, which was a more highly specialized service and was not a data distribution system over the Internet (digital distribution). The history of Steam began in 1999 with success Team Fortress Classic and Counter strike. Even before the release of the final versions, these games have become one of the most popular multiplayer games. At that time, the popularity of games reached a maximum of 2-3 thousand active players. Number of players TFC and CS after a couple of years, it has increased several times. As a result, Valve began to rethink the traditional methods of organizing online games. It was necessary to solve problems in the light of the further influx of players. This mainly concerned automatic updates, improvement of the anti-cheat system. When the developers were working on this system, they came up with the idea to use this platform to sell games. The implementation of this idea seemed too expensive, so Valve was looking for cooperation with various companies such as Amazon, Yahoo and Cisco, offering this approach, but all were limited to promises. Since the system was so necessary for Valve, the company decided that it would implement this idea itself.

The Steam interface of the first version.

Steam was first introduced at the Game Developers Conference on March 22, 2002. Version Steam 1.0 became available during beta testing Counter-Strike 1.4. Steam installation was required for beta testers CS 1.4, but was only an additional component for the final version.

Further development

AT Steam 2.0 the user interface has been slightly changed and an instant messaging system with friends has been integrated. In late 2003, Valve announced their plans to shut down WON and make Steam mandatory for Valve's online games. This caused the ire of many players who then created WON2 as a replacement. On July 26, 2004, the World Opponent Network was shut down and replaced by Steam.

Steam interface version 2.5

In September 2004, it became known about the court Vivendi Games with Valve. The first company claimed that distributing Half-Life 2 through Steam violated a publishing contract. Vivendi lost the case and was banned from continuing to license Valve's games for Internet cafes. The contract between the two companies was later terminated and Electronic Arts was chosen as the new retail publisher by Valve.

The standard Steam interface of the third version.

In November 2004, Valve released Half-Life 2, the first single-player game to require a Steam client in without fail. At the end of 2005, third-party games first appeared on Steam: Rag Doll Kung Fu(12 October) and Darwinia(December 14).

The Steam Game Library of the fourth version in a compact form.

At the end of 2009, the design of the official website was slightly changed - instead of dark yellow, blue tones appeared, and it also became possible to purchase games online through the Steam website without using the Steam program. At the same time, Valve began development of the fourth version of Steam with a completely new design. The beta version was released at the end of February 2010, in which all interface menus were significantly redesigned. At the same time, the design of the official website was greatly changed for beta users. The design of the Steam shell, as well as the in-game overlay, has been almost completely redesigned. In particular, instead of the three standard lists "Games", "Trailers" and "Tools", a new menu "Library" appeared, in which, in addition to these 3 subsections, a new one was added - "Downloads". At the same time, 3 options for displaying games became available - a list with detailed information and background, a large list with updated icons, and a grid with large icons. The compact view is no longer supported. In addition, many bugs were fixed, the built-in browser began to use the WebKit engine instead of Trident, available only for Windows, which significantly increased performance and security, and also made it possible to port to other platforms. The format of skins for the fourth version has also undergone changes, which made the skins of the third version non-working. The stable version was released by Valve on April 28, 2010. The design of the Steam Community and the main Steam web page for all users has also been updated. In the release version, the ability to collapse the Library menu to a compact view was restored, while the old low-format icons were replaced with new colorful three-dimensional style. This update was the largest since the launch of Steam in 2003.

This version of Steam caused mixed reviews from the community. On the one hand, the interface has become more intuitive, logical, modern and colorful. On the other hand, there were many flaws, imperfections, and there were also problems with performance on weak machines. This has been fixed in subsequent updates.

In March 2010, information about the future transfer of Steam and all Source games to Mac OS X appeared on Valve's official websites. On May 12, 2010, the final version of Steam on Mac was released. For some time, performance problems were observed on Mac OS X, on August 18, Valve announced that performance-improving updates had become available. .

On September 10, a Steam wallet was announced and launched into beta testing, with which users could transfer certain amounts of money to it to use them later. It finally appeared on Steam on September 30, along with an update to the Team Fortress 2 game.

On March 3, 2011, Valve announced and launched into beta test the Steam Guard service, which was supposed to provide additional security for user accounts. When this service was enabled, access to the Steam account became possible only from the current computer; to enter the recording from another computer, it was necessary to enter an additional code, which was sent to e-mail. Steam Guard was also shown at CeBit 2011 by Gabe Newell, who posted the password to his account there and stated that no one could steal it. The service became publicly available on March 16 .

On January 26, 2012, a beta version of the Steam client for the iOS and Android operating systems was announced.

Name

Also, the distribution of Steam has affected digital distribution in general. Immediately after the release of Half-Life 2 (requiring the mandatory installation of Steam), this service attracted the attention of many players. Steam was the first successful project in this area (about 25% of copies of Half-Life 2 were sold through Steam). Shortly thereafter, several major companies such as Sega, EA Games, and 3D Realms announced their similar services. Smaller companies such as Stream Theory and Virgin Games also announced their projects.

However, some of them did not bring their own projects to completion. Sega began selling its games on Steam, and Game xStream's Triton service that distributed 3D Realms games was closed (3D Realms games also moved to Steam). Electronic Arts also distributes some of its games through Steam, despite having its own Origin marketplace (in addition to digital distribution, this service is also intended for online sales of games on physical media).

At the end of November 2008, Brad Wardell (eng. Brad Wardell), the head of Stardock, which owns digital distribution service Impulse, said that, in his opinion, "Steam is the undisputed leader in the digital distribution of PC gaming content, with approximately 70% of the market. Our Impulse service comes in second with around 10%. Everyone else shares the remaining 20%." He also added that in 2009 publishers receive about 25% of the total income from sales of games through such services.

Capabilities

Multilingualism

Steam is currently available in the following languages: English, Dutch, Danish, Italian, Spanish, Korean, German, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Thai, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, Finnish, Turkish, French, Swedish, Czech, and Japanese .

Steam implemented regional protection due to the fact that in different regions, boxed editions of Steam games have different prices. That is, games purchased in Russia (in a boxed version) will not work outside the CIS (such protection was implemented by the release of Half-Life 2: Episode One in 2006). At the same time, this approach allows publishers to make available any official voice acting, since publishers do not have to worry about re-exporting games. Most of the games purchased on Steam are multi-regional and unrestricted as they are sold at the same price in all regions.

Online games

It is the responsibility of the part of Steam that is responsible for playing games over the Internet to obtain a list of servers, check the versions of the client and server to ensure they are compatible, as well as provide the server with information about the Steam account and block accounts found to be cheating by the Valve Anti-Cheat service from access to all online Steam games that support VAC technology. Steam also blocks access to users who do not have a Steam account (No-Steam versions of games) or on whose account there is no purchased game, which is another component of DRM protection. This component cannot be bypassed by hacked versions of Steam, as it requires hacking or bypassing Valve's authentication servers.

Match Making

This feature appeared with the release of Left 4 Dead. Its essence lies in the fact that players do not immediately connect to the server, but first to the lobby created by one of the players. The lobby leader can choose game parameters (map, difficulty level, etc.), “kick out” someone who has joined, make access to the lobby only for friends or by invitation. After the required composition of players is recruited, the lobby leader starts a server search. Steam selects the most suitable empty server on which it sets the required settings and connects players from the lobby to it.

Steam Cloud

This feature allows you to save game data (such as personal configurations, keyboard and mouse settings, logo sprays for multiplayer games, save files) on Valve's servers. This feature is useful for those who use their Steam games on multiple computers. The following games are currently supported on Steam Cloud: Half-Life 2 , Half-Life 2: Episode One , Half-Life 2: Episode Two , Portal , Portal 2 , Left 4 Dead 2 , Team Fortress 2 , Alien Swarm , Sid Meier's Civilization V, Plants vs. Zombies, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Dota 2, Call of Duty: Black Ops, Fallout: New Vegas, Braid, Worms: Reloaded, Metro 2033 and others.

Steam Community

In 2011, the inventory was redesigned again, and it became possible to view and exchange in-game items directly through the Steam website. In addition, Gifts, Guest Invitations, and Discount Coupons have also become associated as inventory items under the Steam category, and can also be traded. Also included in the Steam category are special items (for example, coal) dedicated to special promotions and giving the opportunity to win prizes or exchange them for a cheap game. By default, items from the Steam category are visible only to the owner of the account, while items from games may be visible to other players, depending on the privacy of the profile.

The inventory feature is currently used by Team Fortress 2, Portal 2, Dota 2 and a number of indie games.

Steam Workshop

The Steam Workshop is an item gallery made by Valve that is designed to create and review items created for various games by users. At the moment, you can upload items to the workshop for Team Fortress 2, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Sid Meier's Civilization V, Portal 2 and Dota 2.

Steam Greenlight

Achievement system

Some games have achievements- optional game tasks, each of which saves information in the game. At the same time, if Steam is launched in online mode, the achievement is also saved on the Steam account, which allows you to restore previously obtained achievements when you reinstall the game. The first games to use this system were the games orange box. All games from this set, except for Half-Life 2 and Half-Life 2: Episode 1 (for the PC versions of these games, achievements appeared only on May 26), offered players a random set of achievements, the completion of which carried absolutely nothing but information in the statistics Steam. However, after some time, the accomplishment of achievements was displayed on the gameplay of the network team shooter Team Fortress 2, for which extensive updates are currently being released, expanding the weapons of each playable class. Along with each such update, the developers supplement the list of achievements with a set specifically for the improved class. Completing achievements can unlock new weapons, and quests can force you to change your tactics. At the moment Team Fortress 2 is the only game that makes full use of the achievements. Another Valve online shooter, , after switching to the updated game engine, he also received a set of achievements, but their completion does not affect the gameplay.

The system was later added to the Steamworks Developer Kit, allowing achievements to be added to any Steam game. The first non-Valve game to support the system was audiosurf.

In games whose engine is heavily integrated with Steam, achievements can only work when the Steam client is running online (mainly Valve games). In most third-party games, they can work without Steam, but they are not saved on the Steam account. For example, in Unreal Tournament 3, achievements are tied primarily to the game account and only when the Steam client is launched online are also saved on Steam servers. At the same time, if achievements are deleted from Steam, they will be saved in the game itself.

There is a program for unlocking/locking Steam achievements on a game account - Steam Achievement Manager. With its help, users can add achievements to themselves without the need to earn them in the game "fairly" or remove them. And this applies even to games for which achievements have not been released and are in the testing phase. The program has spread primarily among Team Fortress 2 players, since unlocking new weapons directly depends on the number of achievements received.

For the convenience of creating a backup, Steam provides for splitting the archive into files of 640 MB, 4.7 GB, or as directed by the user. Then the archives are written to disks by any program. There is no built-in optical disc burning feature on Steam. However, backups can also be done manually by burning the contents of the SteamApps folder to disk.

Features under development

The developers periodically announce what features they are going to implement on Steam. Such declared but not yet implemented functions are:

The possibility of choosing an alternative browser for the Steam client was also promised (only Internet Explorer was used), but with the release new version client on April 26, 2010, which uses its own WebKit-based wrapper, the need to find an alternative browser is no longer necessary.

Promotions

passes (English) Guest Passes)

From time to time, players who own any multiplayer game will be given a guest invitation, which can be sent to anyone via Steam itself or email. The one who received the invitation, in turn, can activate it and play for several days. full version games.

Weekend discount Weekend Deal)

Every weekend there is a discount on one or more games. As a rule, it is 50 - 75%. Thus, you can buy games much cheaper than usual.

Occasionally, Steam hosts major game sales, usually around the New Year's Eve period. Such promotions took place in late 2009/early 2010 and late 2010/early 2011. Most games during the promotion period are sold at prices reduced by 33 - 75%, as a rule, with the exception of recently released ones. In addition, super discounts of up to 90% are set on certain games every day and a timer is activated, after which the list of games with super discounts changes.

Sometimes the discount goes to the game of the developer, who does not allow the purchase of games from Russia. You can't buy this game. However, if this game is bought as a gift by a user who lives in a country where purchase restrictions do not apply, the game can be linked to an account and played.

Mid-week promotion

Every Wednesday, Steam offers a substantial discount on one or more games. As a rule, the discount is 50 - 75%.

Deal of the day

Every day, a game is selected for which a discount is provided. At the same time, in addition to this promotion, there is also a mid-week promotion on Wednesday.

Publisher's Week

From time to time, Steam provides significant discounts for a whole week on games from one specific publisher (Ubisoft, EA, etc.).

free weekend

In December 2006, Valve confirmed the implementation of advertising in Counter strike website CS-Nation and announced the imminent release of the beta version of the game with ads. On March 5, 2007, an update was released for Counter-Strike that added ads. On January 9, 2008, advertising was added to Counter-Strike: Condition Zero .

In an interview with the site GamesIndustry.biz Gabe Newell stated that advertising in CS- just an experiment to implement in-game advertising as a feature of Steam. And this function can be used, for example, in free games that pay off through advertising.

Account operations

Create an account

The user can create an unlimited number of accounts. The first time you open Steam, the account creation button is displayed automatically. The user must provide an account name and password, an email address that can be used to reset the password, and a secret question and answer in case the user forgets the password. An account can be created both through the Steam program and through the store website, however, a restore request can only be sent through the Steam client. The account name can contain Latin letters, numbers and underscores _ . In this case, the account name should not be already registered, and should not contain the word valve and steam- this is done to prevent the possibility of impersonating Valve employees and administrators in order to steal the password.

Activation

However, this system has a number of serious drawbacks:

1. To install the game requires an internet connection and a mandatory update to 100%. Otherwise, the game cannot be installed. Thus, users who have a low-speed modem or expensive (if paid by traffic) Internet connection cannot download updates and start playing, even if they have a boxed version of a Steam game.
2. Inability to activate the game or download updates for it when the Steam servers are loaded.

It is precisely because of these shortcomings that pirated No-Steam versions have become widespread, since such versions do not have Steam. Such games can be launched immediately, without connecting to the Internet and running Steam. Pirates also created hacked versions of Steam for users with an Internet connection, allowing you to download games and play them without paying. However, these versions become outdated rather quickly, and it becomes impossible to download new games or updates for some existing games. Through such hacked Steam clients, it is also impossible to play on licensed servers controlled by Valve under accounts Steam.

However, it was the activation that caused the most complaints from Steam users. Being a bottleneck in Valve's game distribution system, Steam activation servers were overloaded on the day of release Half Life 2, despite all the efforts and assurances of Valve (in particular, the pre-loading of the non-boxed version announced by Valve long before the release of the game), and many buyers were forced to wait for many hours, waiting for a stable connection with the servers and decryption of the game files.

Buying games

Instead of buying game boxes, discs, CD keys, a Steam user gets the opportunity to download purchased games from Steam servers from anywhere where the Steam client can be used. Games can be purchased individually (with some exceptions) or as part of "packages" of several games (if any) that cost less than the total price of the games individually, sometimes even several times. At the same time, it should be taken into account that the volume of such “packages” can be tens of gigabytes, which must be downloaded via the Internet, which, in turn, requires a high-speed cheap connection.

All purchases are made from the desktop of the Steam client or on the store website through any browser, and the data is transmitted over an encrypted connection. To ensure greater security, payment information is not saved, so it must be entered again each time. Purchases are made through a virtual shopping cart. Steam has a wallet to which users can transfer money and keep them in it. Payment for purchases is possible either through this wallet or by transferring money. The following payment methods and wallet replenishment are supported:

Popular in Europe, Maestro debit cards are not directly supported, but can be used when paying with PayPal. For a long time, payment methods were limited to only credit cards and bank payment systems using accounts linked to credit cards. This was the reason for criticism of Steam, mainly in countries where strict criteria are set for obtaining credit cards (for example, age) and non-banking Internet payment systems (for example, WebMoney) are predominantly developed. For the Russian Federation and the CIS, the situation changed on November 2, 2010, when Steam allowed payment for games via WebMoney for these countries.

Price

Prices for games and downloadable content on Steam vary somewhat. Now the lowest price for the game is $0.99USD ( Fortix), downloadable content $0.99USD ( Just Cause 2: Monster Truck), Downloadable Manuals $1.99USD ( Portal 2: The Final Hours), or $2.99USD ( Ctulhu Saves the World & Breath of Death VII Double Pack) and the highest price for the game $59.99USD ( Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3), downloadable content $39.99USD ( The Sims 3: Late Night), Downloadable Manuals $19.99USD ( Homefront: Prima Official Strategy Guide) or $49.99USD ( Valve Complete Pack).

In different regions, the price may differ from the standard or be different for different titles of the same game. For example, the game S.T.A.L.K.E.R. costs $9.99USD, but the same game costs $19.99USD in America, as it is called S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl. Thus, you can buy two identical games. First days after release Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare had a huge range of prices: $49.99 USD in Russia and America, $69.99 USD in France and $88.50 USD in Australia. Also, for example, All Point Bulletin sold for $49.99 USD in America and $28.99 USD in Europe.

Retail Keys

A CD key is a kind of code for activating a game on the Steam service, which is a set of 13 characters ( old Retail version of Half-Life), 18 characters ( Prey), 25 characters ( SiN Episodes: Emergence) and 26 characters ( The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings), which in turn consist of Latin letters and numbers. Typically, the CD key is printed on a sticker under the disc or on the disc itself (Retail version), on the back of the booklet (DVD version) or on a separate sheet (Collector's Edition). The key also confirms your purchase of the game, when you enter it in the window product activation the game will immediately connect to your Steam account. In addition to Valve Corporation products, keys can activate third-party games. Some games that can be activated with keys:

Account blocking

This window STEAM issues if the account is blocked.

Valve reserves the right to block user accounts at its sole discretion. The main types of violations are:

Credit Card Fraud Any credit card fraud when paying for Steam products, including using someone else's carded credit cards, as well as making chargebacks (regardless of when the transaction was made ). Registration on the account of gifts purchased by carding. Until 2010, if a payment was refused, the gift was revoked, but the recipient's account was not blocked. However, in December 2009, Valve changed their policy and began a massive wave of bans. Valve themselves recommend not accepting gifts from unknown persons; Piracy and hacking This includes using a hacked Steam client program to access the Steam network, trying to register counterfeit or found CD-keys on the Internet. Theft, sharing or trading of other people's accounts Any actions with other people's accounts without the permission of their owners: stealing and changing the password, using the account to log in, any account operations, disclosure of account data, etc. But sharing is possible in turn. Phishing attacks and deliberate deception of users This includes communicating with Steam users under misleading names and e-mail addresses, purporting to be employees of Steam or Valve (for example: "Steam Admin" or " [email protected]”), in order to extort the password and other confidential information about the account. Buying and Selling Steam Accounts It is the original user's responsibility to use and secure a Steam account - all accounts that are bought or sold may be banned if Valve finds out that the sale has taken place. Any other violation of the "Steam Subscriber Agreement" or the "Steam Online Code of Conduct"

Also, sometimes an account can be temporarily blocked if, for example, the account was stolen and Valve blocks it until the real owner is established.

After blocking the account, the user loses the ability to download and play all previously purchased games linked to Steam, including boxed versions. Money in case of account blocking is not returned.

Collection of statistics

Sales statistics

The Steam platform provides publishers with product sales statistics (including for retailers if the game requires mandatory registration). As a result, the developer receives real-time information about game sales, which can be used to evaluate the success of the game, as well as the effectiveness of promotions.

Hardware and software

Steam collects certain information from users' computers.

Game process

• Information about the ways of passing the game, the places of the game that caused the greatest difficulties / mortality. This data, for example, can be used by developers to make decisions about balance changes.
• If the game uses an achievement system tied to the Steam system, then the game statistics page displays the percentage of players who have completed this or that achievement. Some of these statistics are available to users on the official website.
• Information about the popularity of mods: the number of servers for the mod, the number of players at the moment, as well as the total number of minutes per month spent playing the modification by all players.

Technical features

System requirements

System requirements required to use Steam:

• , Vista , Windows 7 or ". On Mac OS X, game files are stored in the "/Users/name/Library/Application Support/Steam/SteamApps/" directory. There are two formats: a modification with a change in characteristics right inside the game. Also, the use of GCF files requires unpacking library (DLL) and application (EXE) files, as well as media files, which reduces free space on the hard disk. The GCF format is based on the use of modifications when saving the original game, which makes it easier to restore it, but does not make it possible to change the base game files.

  Steam game files that do not contain a cache (NCF)

  NCF (No-Cache File) files do not contain a game cache, unlike the GCF format. All game files are in the folder steamapps/common/game name, and inside the NCF file contains only a list of these files and information about their checksum. These files are located in the folder Steam Apps together with GCF files and are needed to be able to run and update games through Steam, but are not an integral part of the game. Updates and searching for corrupted files are more difficult and longer for such games than for GCF files. NCF files can also be opened with GCFScape .

  Installation of modifications

  PlayStation 3

  Problems with localized versions of Steam

  The Steam interface has been translated into many languages, but this also causes certain problems.

It is also a great service for buying games - all the latest new items appear here at the time of release. You will not even need to get up from the couch - just press a couple of buttons, and the game is already on your computer. Read about all the main features of Steam later in this article.

Description of how to use Steam, let's start from the moment you join this gaming community.

The registration process on Steam is similar to the same procedure in other programs and social networks. You will need to choose a username and password, and then specify your email address, which will be used to activate your account and further confirm all transactions on it. You can learn more about how to register on Steam.

How to change the language in Steam to Russian

If the program displays all text in English or another language (menus, buttons, descriptions, etc.), then you need to change the application language to Russian. This can be done through the Steam client settings. You can read about how to change the Steam language to Russian in this article.

How to get a refund for a game on Steam

Steam tries to go ahead of the whole planet and was one of the first to offer the possibility of a return Money to the client's account if he did not like the purchased game. Moreover, the money is returned not only to the Steam wallet, but also to external accounts, for example, to a credit card. True, you can return only the game that you have not played for more than 2 hours. A number of other conditions must also be met. How to return the money spent on the game in this service, you can.

How to add a friend on steam

Adding a friend on Steam can be a major hassle for a new user. The thing is that the playground limits the capabilities of newly registered accounts. One of these limitations is the lack of a friend add function. How to get around this limitation if you have just started using the popular gaming service -.

How to withdraw money from steam

Although Steam does not officially support withdrawing money from an internal wallet to external accounts, it is still possible to do so. To do this, you will need to use the services of intermediaries - both companies and individuals. For information on how to withdraw money from the Steam Wallet, you can.

How to enable Steam Guard

Steam Guard Mobile Authenticator is an innovative Steam account security feature. With it, you can securely protect your account. It can only be accessed by entering a code from your mobile phone. This code changes every 30 seconds and is displayed in the Steam mobile app. Therefore, attackers will not be able to hack into your account in this gaming service. How to connect Steam Guard to your Steam account -.

How to Disable Steam Guard Mobile Authenticator

While Steam Guard greatly increases the degree of protection account, it can also cause inconvenience. Since you need to enter a code from a mobile application to enter an account with Steam Guard enabled, you may find yourself in the following situation: you need to log in, but your phone is not at hand (for example, it has run out of battery). As a result, it will take a decent amount of time until you can log into your account and play your favorite games. To avoid these unpleasant situations, you should disable Steam Guard. You can read about how to do this in this article.

How to link your phone to steam

Linking your phone to Steam is necessary to increase its protection. In addition, using the application on your mobile phone, you can use almost all the functions of the playground right on your phone. The only thing is that you will not be able to play games, but chat, activity feed, game purchases and much more are also available in the mobile application. Learn more about linking your phone to your Steam account.

How to find your Steam ID

The Steam User ID is required for use with various services. For example, using it you can find out the statistics of a player in the popular game Dota 2. Also, using the ID, you can go to the user's page.

How to find your Steam profile ID, .

What is a billing address on Steam

When you use a credit card to pay for games on Steam, you need to fill in your account information. Among the fields to fill in there is a line "billing address". Many users do not know what it is and enter incorrect information.

It's simple, the billing address is the place where you live. How to fill in this field correctly when paying for Steam services with a credit card, you can read in the corresponding article.

How to put money on steam

To buy games on Steam, you need to replenish the internal wallet. You can do this in many ways: e-wallets, mobile phone bill, credit card. Detailed description you will find all ways to replenish your wallet on Steam.

How to enable trade confirmation in Steam

With the introduction of Steam Guard, the conditions for exchanging items between members of the service have also changed. Now, if you have not connected a mobile authenticator, you will have to wait 15 days for the exchange to be confirmed. This greatly interferes with the transaction, slowing them down. How to enable trade confirmation in Steam and remove the delay, read this article.

How to change your password on Steam

If you want to maintain a high level of security for your Steam account, you should change your password periodically. It may also be needed if your password is too weak and you want to set a complex password that cannot be guessed. You can read about changing your password on Steam in this article.

How to activate the key in Steam

Games on Steam can be purchased both by buying them using the service's internal store, and by activating keys purchased on third-party marketplaces. This feature is also used when activating games purchased in the format of physical media (disk). How to activate the key from the Steam game - read.

How to find the trade link Steam

The service has a large number of features and functions for conducting a full-fledged exchange and trade of inventory items. One of these features is the activation of the exchange using a link. This allows you to exchange with other users without even adding them as friends. It is convenient to place the link on various forums and sites. Read to learn more about the trade link on Steam.

How to create a group on steam

Groups on Steam are designed to bring together users with common interests. For example, you can join a group associated with a game that is coming out soon. Also create own group any user of the service can. Learn more about the process of creating a group on Steam.

How to level up on steam

Steam developers are constantly improving this playground. One of the interesting innovations is the Steam profile level. With it, you can level up your account in the same way as you level up in some RPG (role-playing game). A high level is a great reason to brag to your friends. In addition, it affects the chances of randomly dropping Steam inventory items. The higher the level, the higher this probability.

There are several ways to level up. About the most effective ways level up on Steam, read this article.

How to get free games on Steam

Steam can please its users with a large number of free games. Moreover, many of them are not inferior in quality to large paid projects. For example, one of the most popular games in the world, Dota 2, is completely free. How to get free games in this service, .

How to make money on steam

The service will allow you not only to have fun with friends, playing great gaming news, but also to earn money. There are several ways to make money on Steam. Read more about this in this article.

How to transfer money from Steam to Qiwi

Many users want to transfer money from their Steam Wallet to their e-wallet account. For example, to the account of the popular QIWI service. But, unfortunately, there is no direct opportunity to do this yet. In order to transfer money from Steam to Qiwi, you will have to use the services of intermediaries. For how to do this, .

How to check the integrity of the cache on Steam

In case of problems with launching the game on Steam, the first step is to verify the integrity of the cache. This feature allows you to check game files for corruption. If the files are corrupted, then the problem was in them. After verification, the files will be replaced with whole ones, and you will be able to play the game. Read on to learn how to verify the integrity of the Steam game cache.

How to open inventory in Steam for exchange

An open inventory will allow other users of the service to see your items without adding them as friends. This is convenient - if you have the necessary items, the user will add you as a friend and send a request for an exchange. If the desired item is not available, then you and the other owner of the Steam account will not have to waste their time on unnecessary questions. In addition, an open inventory is needed to create an exchange link. How to make your Steam inventory public, you can.

How to write to Steam support

Like any other popular service, Steam has its own support team. You can access it through the Steam program. By submitting a claim, you can solve problems related to games, account and other functions of the service. You can read more about how to contact Steam support in this article.

How to uninstall Steam

You may lose your mood to play games and want to uninstall Steam. But at the same time, in the future, you plan to resume your hobby. Here, many users are in for a trap - when you uninstall the Steam program, the games installed in it are also deleted. Therefore, read on to know how you can uninstall Steam while keeping your installed games.

How to uninstall a game on steam

Deleting a game on Steam is easy. Just press a couple of buttons and the game will be deleted from your hard drive. But even here, sometimes unexpected things happen, for example, an error during deletion. Most often this happens with games from inexperienced developers. How to delete a game on Steam in any situation,.

How to make an invisible nickname in Steam

You can surprise your friends by giving yourself a blank instead of a nickname. When they go to your profile page, they will see only an empty space instead of a name. Also, your name will not be visible in the games of the service. Read on to find out how to make your nickname invisible on Steam.

What does rep mean in steam

If you have been using this gaming service for a long time, then you have probably noticed inscriptions like “rep +” or “rep +” on the pages of various users more than once. You can read about what they mean in this article.

How to unlink phone from steam

Linking your phone to your Steam account may prevent you from logging into your account, as it will require you to enter a Steam Guard passcode. For this reason, many people unlink their mobile phone number from their Steam account after using this feature for a while. How to do this, you can read in the corresponding article.

How to change mail in Steam

A change of mail is needed if you decide to change your email address. How to do it, you can.

How to put a background in Steam

A beautiful profile background allows you to make it unique and delight your page visitors. Steam allows you to choose the page background from the options you have in your inventory. Read on to find out how to set the desired background on Steam.

How to change currency in steam

Changing the currency in Steam may be necessary if the prices in the internal service are displayed incorrectly. For example, in dollars while you live in Russia. This also affects the cost of games. You can read about how to change the price display in Steam in this article.

How to buy a game on Steam

In order to play games on this playground, you need to buy them. Buying games is one of the main features of Steam, so a lot of attention has been paid to it - games are divided into categories, there is the possibility of filtering them by various characteristics, you can view games at a discount, etc. How to correctly buy a game on Steam, you can.

How to find a friend on Steam

Since Steam uses several tens of millions of users, this playground has an advanced profile search system. With it, you can find your friends in this huge gaming community. You can learn more about finding and adding a friend to your contact list.

Steam Family Sharing

You can learn how to use Family Sharing on Steam from this article.

How to increase your download speed on Steam

Since Steam allows you to buy and download games from the comfort of your couch, and modern games are large in size, their download speed is extremely important. Agree, waiting 2 days to play the game you are interested in is unpleasant. There is a way to increase the download speed of games on Steam. Read more about it in this article.

How to add video to steam

With the help of the game service, you can share not only screenshots from games, but also upload game videos. To do this, you will need to connect your YouTube account to your Steam profile. After that, you will be able to upload videos to Steam. Read on to learn how to add videos to Steam.

How to open a marketplace on Steam

The Steam marketplace is a popular destination for many users of the service. But you can not use it immediately after creating an account. There are a number of conditions imposed on the sale and purchase of items that must be met in order to unlock them. Read on to find out how to unlock the Steam marketplace.

Where are Steam screenshots stored?

The screenshot feature is one of the most popular features among users. The program saves the pictures you take in a specific folder. By opening this folder, you will get access to all saved screenshots and you can do whatever you want with them - send them to a friend on a social network, edit them in a photo editor, etc.

To find out where Steam stores screenshots, read.

How to transfer money from Steam to Steam

How to reinstall Steam

Reinstalling Steam is needed if you have any problems with the client of this program. At the same time, it is important that installed games are not lost during the reinstallation, since it can take a decent amount of time to download them again. Read to learn how to reinstall Steam.

How to add a game to steam

Adding a new game to your game library is possible in several ways. One of them is adding a third-party game that is installed on your computer, but the game is not in the Steam service itself (in the game store). You can learn how to add a third-party game to the Steam library.

How to sell items on steam

Selling things is one of the popular features of the playground. By selling things, you will receive money, with which you can later buy new games or purchase other inventory items: cards, backgrounds, emoticons, etc. To learn how to sell things on Steam, read.

How to get cards on Steam

How to update Steam

The latest version of the program contains bug fixes and may also have some new feature recently introduced. Therefore, it is important to keep the Steam client up to date. Sometimes there can be problems with the update. Read to learn how to update the Steam client.

How to find out the cost of a Steam account

The games that are present on your account can be a decent amount for their value. And you may not even know about it. In order to calculate the cost of an account, there are special services. If you want to know the cost of purchased games on your account or a friend's account, then read.

How to unblock a friend on steam

If you are annoyed by communication with some people on Steam, then you can add them to the black list. But after the resentment subsides, you'll want to put the user back on your friends list. To do this is not so easy. Steam developers have not added the display of the list of blocked users to the general contact list. To unlock, you will have to open a separate menu. You can read about how to unblock a friend on Steam in this article.

How to Clear Nickname History on Steam

The history of nicknames contains all your previous names that you put on your profile. If you want to prevent Steam users from seeing your previous nicknames, then you will have to clear your nickname history. You can't do this with a single button press. You will have to use other methods.

How to find a game on Steam

It is important to be able to use the game search in the Steam client, as it will help you find the options that are suitable for your entertainment. The search for games on this playground has flexible settings, so you can find a game that best suits your tastes. How to search for games on Steam,.

How to change login on steam

Changing your login in a popular gaming service is not an easy process. This is due to the fact that you cannot change your login through editing your profile. You will have to create a new account and transfer all the information and contact list to it. Read to find out how you can change your Steam login.

How to add music to steam

Steam may well serve as a music player. You can add your own music collection and listen to it while playing. You can learn how to add your own music from your computer to Steam.

How to call Steam

In addition to playing music, Steam can act as a voice chat that replaces popular communication programs such as Skype and TeamSpeak. Just press a couple of buttons and you can talk to your friends on the microphone. Moreover, this is possible in the format of a conference. Read on to find out how to call your Steam friends.

How to record a video on steam

Although the program supports the ability to broadcast the gameplay, it does not have the function of recording video from games. Therefore, for this purpose, you will have to use third-party applications to record video from your computer. You can read about how to record a video from a game on Steam in this article.

Where does Steam install games?

If you want to use mods for games or need to change game files, then you should know where these files are located. Read to know where Steam installs games.

How to offer a trade on Steam

The exchange feature in Steam allows you to transfer items between different users. You can exchange games, inventory items with your friends. In order to start the exchange, you need to send a request to your friend. How to do this, you can.

How to change group name on steam

Changing the name of a group on Steam is another difficult task due to the fact that the program does not have a suitable function. You will need to create a new group and transfer information from the old one. Read on to find out how to change the name of a group on Steam.

How to transfer money from Steam

How to set up Steam

The correct setting of Steam allows you to make the use of this program as comfortable as possible. You can customize the application to suit your needs. The main settings include the format of notifications about various events in the program, the display of interface details, etc. Read to know how to set up Steam.

How to get badges on Steam

Game badges you can brag to your friends. They also allow you to get various items and upgrade your profile. For information on how to get badges on Steam, you can.

How to View Trade History on Steam

How to change your account name on Steam

If you want to change your image on this playground, then you will also need to change your name. You can do this through your profile settings. You can learn how to change your account name on Steam.

How to activate the game on Steam

Activating a game on Steam can be done in several ways: you can activate a game key or activate a game that is in your inventory. Read on to find out how to activate the game on Steam.

How to exit Steam

Signing out of Steam usually means signing out of your account. This may be necessary in the event that you decide to create a new account or log in under a different user profile. Read on to find out how to log out of Steam.

How to change region on steam

Setting the region is important for the correct display of prices in the internal store of the service. This is required if you have moved to another country that uses a different currency. Read about how to change your country of residence on Steam.

Fonts for Steam

If you have been using Steam for a decent period, you have noticed that the nicknames of some users of the playground look unusual and beautiful. This is achieved through the use of non-standard fonts. You can read more about using a custom font on Steam in this article.

How to disable automatic updates in Steam

By default, Steam updates the client and games from the library at regular intervals. But perhaps you need to make it so that the update only happens when you want it, and not automatically. Read on to find out how to turn off auto-updates on Steam.

How to Verify Your Email Address on Steam

If you want to use all the features of the program, then you need to confirm the email address that is linked to your account. Using email, you can restore access to your account or confirm the exchange. you can learn how to verify your email address on Steam.

How to check game version on steam

When you're having trouble playing online with your friend on Steam, it's probably due to different versions of the game. You can check the version through the game properties. Read to find out how you can check the Steam version of the game.

How to disable Steam

After you finish using Steam, the program will need to be turned off so that it does not take up computer resources. About how to do it -.

With the help of this series of articles, you will learn about all the features and tricks of the largest gaming service in the world. We hope that after reading you will not have a single question about using Steam.

A long time ago, when computers were big, and the games for them were very small, no one could have imagined what heights the industry of this kind of entertainment would reach. After all, then no one was seriously engaged in the development of systems that prevent the unlicensed use of games.

In addition, there were practically no online games, since the possibilities of the Internet at that time were very stunted. The maximum that was available to gamers was to stretch a coaxial cable between their computers.

As time went on, it developed at an increasingly rapid pace. Not surprisingly, both of these problems confronted developers to the fullest. Simply put, they were faced with the need to provide players with a stable and reliable service for online battles, as well as protect their creations from illegal copying.

One of the most successful developments was the Steam service from Valve. By the way, what is Steam? What is it for at all?

Brief historical background

Steam was created relatively recently, only in 2002. However, then he was known under the name Grid or Gazelle. Its revolutionary nature was that fans of Valve's creations could buy a digital version of the game without bothering to go shopping.

At the time, Half-Life-2 was in active development, so the company wanted to receive funds from the royalties of the creators. This project was 100% successful.

The first version of Steam was sent for testing just in time for the release of CS 1.4. At that time, the service allowed the following:

• a person could independently search for servers of interest to him;
• of course, it was possible to use registered games;
• buy (!) a digital copy of the program (once again, this was a real breakthrough at that time);
• "cut yourself" into a simple client of chess or checkers.

Further development of the service

The release of Half-Life 2 was a major event in the industry. Counter-Strike: Source, released at the same time, caused no less excitement. Here are just buyers of games on a physical medium (that is, on a disk) faced a lot of inconvenience:

• the Internet was required to activate the product;
• the game had to be not only installed, but also updated via the same Internet;
• the size of updates and patches was considerable even by modern standards;
• activation often failed;
• In a word, everything was not very good.

The author of this article once bought the famous Orange Box. Expecting to play his favorite Half-Life 2, he inserted the disc into the drive... and spent the next two days waiting for all the additions and updates to be downloaded via a stunted GPRS channel.

Main innovations of the next years

The main innovation was a seriously redesigned and improved store. All legacy servers have been permanently disabled.

At the same time, Valve began to attract third-party developers, offering them to sell games through their service. The release of the first part of HL2 was marked by the appearance of regional protection. The release of the Orange Box delighted all fans with the Steam Community service, which soon turned into a real social network for gamers.

When the famous Left 4 Dead appeared, the service developed matchmaking (search for suitable opponents in online games). However, a much more important innovation was the Steam Cloud, which finally made it possible to fully synchronize settings between user accounts. Since then, the need for physical media for games (that is, the purchase of a disc) has almost completely disappeared.

Around the same time, iMac users became aware of what Steam was. To date, this platform has considerable weight in the community. Finally, last year there was a truly epoch-making event: Steam was released for Linux systems, and Steam OS was also announced.

Where to get it?

So we learned what Steam is. It's time to turn to its direct use. There are two installation methods: if you bought a game (on physical media) that can be linked to your Steam account, then the operation will be performed automatically.

If you plan to purchase programs in the Valve branded store, then visit their official website and download the client installation package. The program "weighs" several tens of megabytes, which is simply ridiculous at the present time.

Note! We have already talked about the large size of patches and updates that will be downloaded after installation. If you do not have a more or less sane Internet (at least 1 Mb / sec), then you should not contact Steam at all. Spend a lot of time and nerves.

By the way, what is a Steam key? This is a game permission that supports activation and assistance through this service. This possibility will be reported on the package with the disc or on the manufacturer's website.

How to install it?

Everything is simple here. Right-click on the installation file, select "Run as administrator". The installation dialog will open.

Very important! In no case do not install "Steam" on the "C" drive, as all your games will be installed there. Given that the same Left 4 Dead 2 or Force Unleashed "weighs" more than 10 GB, your system disk will soon be packed to capacity.

Following the prompts of the "installation wizard", thoughtfully click on the "Next" buttons. After it finishes working, the client will automatically start, update itself, after which you can start buying games. However, you will not always need to purchase: Valve constantly arranges chic sales, or even gives away some programs. In a word, just keep up!

By the way, about sales. The fact is that for the purchase you will need not only a credit card, the data of which can be linked to Steam. What is it that will come in handy to confirm your order? This is your own home address and may receive bills or written notices. As a rule, filling in this field can be neglected. In this case, some obligations are removed from the company.

Some problems

We note right away that the author of the article personally did not notice any problems (except for cases with poor Internet) during the entire time he worked with the official Steam client. However, if you download "broken" versions of No Steam Edition games from then you will definitely see them. In particular, you will immediately know what a Steam dll is.

The fact is that when you try to launch a "broken" game, a window often pops up with a message about its absence. How to fix the situation? The easiest way is to simply buy licensed content. If for some reason you don’t have such an opportunity, you can try to launch the game not through its shortcut on the “Desktop”, but by double-clicking on the .exe file, which you will find along the path D: (or another disk) \ Steam \ bin.

Viruses

It must be recognized that sometimes even owners of perfectly legal content that was bought with their hard-earned money encounter problems during launch. So, you may well see a message about the same missing DLL in the case when a normal file was modified by some kind of virus.

In a word, if the problems started from scratch, immediately install a normal anti-virus package.

Developer Opportunities

Do you know what the Steam api is? This is a unique service that allows players to try themselves in the field of creating entertainment. Speaking in Russian, this is a special tool that makes it possible to receive data both about the game and modify its code.

So, the Steam Web API mechanism is used in those games that have the corresponding icon in the store. This means that you can not only participate in online battles, but also produce your own content. Of course, in most cases this is limited only to drawing the famous hats in Team Fortress, but sometimes users create mods that are incredibly functional and beautiful.

The creator of Minerva MOD for Half-Life 2 became especially famous for this. He was so good that he was almost immediately added to the official store, and his developer was invited to work at Valve. In a word, thanks to this tool, the corporation finds its new promising employees, and gives ordinary users a unique chance for self-expression.

Identifier

By the way, and the presence of which is sometimes required to connect to some internal servers? This is your unique network name, assigned depending on the hardware characteristics of your computer. Simply put, if you log into your account from a computer and then from a laptop, in both cases you will be assigned a separate identifier.

What is a Steam ID? This is the second name of the same identifier, which we talked about just above.

To find out, in the game (which supports this feature), press the ESC key, and then enter the Status command in the console that appears. A long list of recipients will open. Among them, find the one that starts with your own game nickname. Near it will be an index of the form "STEAM_1: 0: 12345678". This is the same identifier.

Here's what Steam is and what it's for!