Redsandro

You are right, their offer on their website:
https://www.codeweavers.com/portjump
This would give Serif the opportunity to give an insight without much risk and with minimal effort whether a simple "port" might be possible without much effort.
For me this is by far the most realistic possibility to realize a Linux version without much effort!

Just.. wow. That's some bending down backwards logic just to be angry. Mozilla does actually legally owe Debian redistribution rights of their browser because it is a right explicitly granted in their Mozilla Public License. Mozilla owns the trademark "Firefox" and demanded Debian stopped using the trademark. So moving on is exactly what Debian did. Just change the name to stop the nagging from Mozilla's legal team. "Can they just do that?" Yes they can, because Mozilla released Firefox as open source. Apparently it rubbed you the wrong way 15 years ago and still does. Affinity is not open source, so it will not have that problem.
Eventually Mozilla realized that this situation hurt their brand awareness so they granted Debian the right to use the name "Firefox".
I understand now why "the Linux community" has not been as accommodating to your interpretation of events as you had hoped.

You sound a bit salty. Please be careful with your interpretation of the facts when preaching to an audience. Like it or not, Debian has ideals of freedom for users in the broadest sense of the word. It was the Mozilla Corporation - not Debian - that demanded Debian stopped making changes to the (open source) source code of Firefox that would integrate Firefox better with Debian. So Debian had to re-brand for legal reasons in order to retain their freedom to make changes to the code.
Also note that this issue is almost 15 years old, as is perhaps your experience with Debian. The Mozilla Corporation saw that they weren't being helpful in the open source community while claiming to be a part of it, so Mozilla repealed the demand almost 5 years ago. Firefox ESR has been available in the current stable branch ever since, and the non-ESR version will be available after the ESR life cycle.
Personally I think vanilla Debian isn't a good desktop choice apart from a specific audience. People usually take a Debian-based derivative such as LMDE. Debian even recommends using a Debian derivative in stead of pure Debian on their website. The power of Debian's conservative approach to changes is that it's one of the most stable distros out there. You do know that Ubuntu is a Debian derivative directly based on Debian-testing, right?
So I guess the suggestion for Debian is based more on the idea that targeting Debian-testing targets the same foundation that is used for Crunchbang, Deepin, Devuan, Kali Linux, Knoppix, LMDE, PureOS, SolusOS, SteamOS, Ubuntu and more.

This is currently our only hope, as the Affinity team will not work on a Linux version for at least this major release cycle of the suite.
However, currently a WINE version does not work. With some hacks you can get the app running, but it will crash as soon as the art board is initialized. The OpenGL or Direct3D initialization (I forgot which one is used in the latest version) has some unmapped functions that causes the crash AFAIK.
What we do know from recent experience with WINE and Proton is that - unlike running a VM - WINE performance could be similar to a native Windows version.
We should have a FAQ for this topic, because most questions have been answered now. All we can do is wait for some WINE or Proton devs to figure out what functions to map to WINE libraries, or start a crowdfund to pay a WINE dev to do so.

I have a gigabit up/down (1000/1000 mbit) fiber in my house too for the last 5 years now. This really changes the way you see "internet". My friends and colleagues who have gigabit fiber too; offices of customers, it's like they are all internal storage devices. The bottleneck is no longer our connections; it's the servers of external services. 
50 kilometers south of me they have started offering a 10 gigabit up/down connection. I wouldn't know what to do with this, because even my RAID cluster I use for work (video) writes about 230 MByte/second as an absolute maximum. That's not even 2 gigabit. But keep in mind that this cluster can be considered old; new drives or even SSD are becoming heaps faster. For example, if you shop for an NVMe M.2 drive, you see al these new PCIe 4.0 drives that are so fast that they come with coolers. PCIe 4.0 SSDs are designed for  5000 MByte/s (read) and 4400 MByte/s (write), significantly faster than PCIe 3.0.
But imagine this. IIRC my 2014 DDR4 memory has a speed of 8 Gigabit. So that 10Gbit fiber would be faster than my computer memory. Making @SrPx's dream a reality. Of course, then came DDR5 memory with 50 Gbit/s and they are working on GDDR6 with 768Gbit, but it's not like my 2014 computer feels slow.
I know western countries like Germany or certain states in the U.S. have many places with old technologies where people dream of getting even 200 mbit/s on their internet connection as if it's a fantasy straight from Star Wars, but that's because everyone already pays good money to keep the old system up and no one is interested in investing in a new technology because of it. But you already see that eastern countries like Romania has places where they skip the old technology that they never had and went straight to fiber. The west is slowly catching up, but 5 years ago, a third of the world top 15 cities with the fastest average broadband speed were Romanian.
This is called dialectics of lead. If once you(r county) was/were the first, now you're probably last in line. But the transition to 1000/1000 Mbit or even 10/10 Gigabit is happening now. Or actually started 10 years ago. Internet speed really is a fading argument. Some places in former head start countries like the Netherlands, Germany, Great Britain, France, Sweden and Ireland were lucky to get it as early as 2012 because they made the biggest radio telescope emulator in the world (LOFAR) and needed a fiber infrastructure for that. Now it's the other way around: Because countries like Poland and Latvia make a fiber network, they also add LOFAR stations to extend the telescope because they might as well.
But even people that have 20/20 (cable D2) or 500/50 (cable D3) or similar using the 1940's network of coax cable, they can look forward to some major new developments once their (hopefully not) monopolist overlords decide to invest in some new DOCSIS equipment. D3.1 (being rolled out now) can go up to 10000/1000 mbit, and D4 to 10000/6000, rivaling current fiber speeds. If you have cable internet, technically you're good (pending overlord investments).
People limited to using the 1890's cupper phone line network are really starting to see the limitations of their network. Their providers can decide to upgrade the equipment to VDSL2 17a for a maximum speed of 100/100 mbit for the luckiest ones living close to the phone station. And in the future, when really stretching it, they think they can do VDSL2 35b 400/400 mbit. But that's really the end of it, and every meter you live further down the line, you'll lose speed. If you have cupper internet as your only option, technically you're on a dead end street. Write to your representative and tell them your town needs fiber before it's too late and everyone else's "cars" can "drive 700 Mph" except the ones from your town.
I have deviated from the topic somewhat but I hope this was an interesting read.

Honestly when I have done with something, I don't want to return. That's how it is with Windows. I don’t want to use Windows in a VM just to be able to use any kind of software.
Yes, there is “GPU Passthrough” and “Looking Glass” to give you a bit of the "integration into the desktop environment" feeling. However, this is only fake and costs extra money (second graphics card, etc.) and efforts. As mentioned by @msdobrescu, “you leave Windows for a reason”. Exactly for this reason, I don't want to use Windows again. No matter by which methods. (I am not talking about Mac / IOS, because I absolutely despise Apple products).
And if after years - this post has been alive for 3 years already - and countless posts later, the developers still don't think that software on Linux could possibly make money, then I'm really sorry.
In that case, the only option for me, as a consumer, is to go without the Affinity software. I know, one swallow doesn't make a summer, but as a customer they will lose me for upcoming Affinity products or upgrades. At some point this should also be financially noticeable for them.
By the way, I find the idea of @Framelynx with a Steam+Proton version or the CodeWeavers port interesting. Only as a temporary solution, until a native version is available, but a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush ...
It feels a bit like the discussion about Star Citizen and Chris Roberts. The thoughts and a comment from one of the developers, about the current state, would be great. After three years of discussion!

This is currently our only hope, as the Affinity team will not work on a Linux version for at least this major release cycle of the suite.
However, currently a WINE version does not work. With some hacks you can get the app running, but it will crash as soon as the art board is initialized. The OpenGL or Direct3D initialization (I forgot which one is used in the latest version) has some unmapped functions that causes the crash AFAIK.
What we do know from recent experience with WINE and Proton is that - unlike running a VM - WINE performance could be similar to a native Windows version.
We should have a FAQ for this topic, because most questions have been answered now. All we can do is wait for some WINE or Proton devs to figure out what functions to map to WINE libraries, or start a crowdfund to pay a WINE dev to do so.

I'll add this to the conversation (if this is an add - it's a looooong topic and I didn't read it all).
I come from a background in film and television post. Mac is the platform for managers, Linux is the platform for most artists. The notion that 'Linux people don't pay' is false - they pay $1K+ per year for Maya, Resolve, Unity, Fusion, Houdini and Nuke. Linux has a professional version of every type of creative application with the exception of photo editing and print design - the two areas Affinity serves. It can also go from design to code to delivery in a way no other OS can (code is creative!!).
I'll add another point as someone who has worked in film, commercial production, and interactive design - Windows is challenging. It's inconsistent. You're never certain what you're looking at. Type changes size. It renders differently in different applications. There is a reason why people in visual arts are always wanting to move to another OS. 
Macs are great, but prices are astronomical and their need for perfectly reflective monitors is bizarre. We shouldn't have to spend $5K on a machine, and then another $15K renovating our home office so there are no visible reflections.
Linux provides a clean & consistent experience, it's extremely stable, there are great distros, and there is an ability to tailor your setup to your needs. Best of both worlds (if we can have the same tools). 
Is it possible to partner with someone like System76 or ElementaryOS to build and sell machine/OS combos? Maybe companies like The Foundry and Blackmagic? You could work together to drive people to the platform. I can't estimate the size of the opportunity, but it could be big. As others have said, it offers a chance to do something competitors do not do, and creates a potential wedge in an important, but under-served, market - professional creatives. Imagine if you could turn film and commercial production from Mac to Linux. That seems like a good idea. Heck, I'd even pay a fee for cloud services, and i already own licenses for every OS.
If you build it, they will come...
 

This is currently our only hope, as the Affinity team will not work on a Linux version for at least this major release cycle of the suite.
However, currently a WINE version does not work. With some hacks you can get the app running, but it will crash as soon as the art board is initialized. The OpenGL or Direct3D initialization (I forgot which one is used in the latest version) has some unmapped functions that causes the crash AFAIK.
What we do know from recent experience with WINE and Proton is that - unlike running a VM - WINE performance could be similar to a native Windows version.
We should have a FAQ for this topic, because most questions have been answered now. All we can do is wait for some WINE or Proton devs to figure out what functions to map to WINE libraries, or start a crowdfund to pay a WINE dev to do so.

I hear this statement from time to time over the last 6 years. It usually shows what type of work you do and how you use your computer.
People care less about their OS and more about one specific tool when they use this tool exclusively, fulltime for the entire week or month. For example when they are an employee with one task in a big company.
People care more about their OS and less about one specific tool when they multitask in multidisciplinary fashion, for example when they are indie game developers, work for a small studio, are self-employed or use the software as a hobby.
The reason has been discussed multiple times, and I'm surprised that people still "don't get" it: The multidisciplinary developer already has 11 tools and 4 toolchains running on their favorite OS; in this thread that's Linux. Booting to a different OS means not having those 15 assurances. Suddenly you're handicapped. It's not worth it, unless you're going to do one single task for the entire day. And even then it's annoying, because you don't have your favorite music playlist, screen calibration software, video conferencing software, storage configuration and all that other secondary stuff running. Splitting call history, conversations and configurations between two operating systems is just plain annoying. Adjusting every configuration twice is annoying. It's not worth it.
Many of us - me included - have the Affinity license, did use it on a foreign OS for some time, but have given up on using Affinity products because it's not worth switching OS in order to use it.
So we ask: Can we have a Linux version? We'll even pay again. Because paying for a good tool that works in your favorite OS is worth it.

I hear this statement from time to time over the last 6 years. It usually shows what type of work you do and how you use your computer.
People care less about their OS and more about one specific tool when they use this tool exclusively, fulltime for the entire week or month. For example when they are an employee with one task in a big company.
People care more about their OS and less about one specific tool when they multitask in multidisciplinary fashion, for example when they are indie game developers, work for a small studio, are self-employed or use the software as a hobby.
The reason has been discussed multiple times, and I'm surprised that people still "don't get" it: The multidisciplinary developer already has 11 tools and 4 toolchains running on their favorite OS; in this thread that's Linux. Booting to a different OS means not having those 15 assurances. Suddenly you're handicapped. It's not worth it, unless you're going to do one single task for the entire day. And even then it's annoying, because you don't have your favorite music playlist, screen calibration software, video conferencing software, storage configuration and all that other secondary stuff running. Splitting call history, conversations and configurations between two operating systems is just plain annoying. Adjusting every configuration twice is annoying. It's not worth it.
Many of us - me included - have the Affinity license, did use it on a foreign OS for some time, but have given up on using Affinity products because it's not worth switching OS in order to use it.
So we ask: Can we have a Linux version? We'll even pay again. Because paying for a good tool that works in your favorite OS is worth it.

I hear this statement from time to time over the last 6 years. It usually shows what type of work you do and how you use your computer.
People care less about their OS and more about one specific tool when they use this tool exclusively, fulltime for the entire week or month. For example when they are an employee with one task in a big company.
People care more about their OS and less about one specific tool when they multitask in multidisciplinary fashion, for example when they are indie game developers, work for a small studio, are self-employed or use the software as a hobby.
The reason has been discussed multiple times, and I'm surprised that people still "don't get" it: The multidisciplinary developer already has 11 tools and 4 toolchains running on their favorite OS; in this thread that's Linux. Booting to a different OS means not having those 15 assurances. Suddenly you're handicapped. It's not worth it, unless you're going to do one single task for the entire day. And even then it's annoying, because you don't have your favorite music playlist, screen calibration software, video conferencing software, storage configuration and all that other secondary stuff running. Splitting call history, conversations and configurations between two operating systems is just plain annoying. Adjusting every configuration twice is annoying. It's not worth it.
Many of us - me included - have the Affinity license, did use it on a foreign OS for some time, but have given up on using Affinity products because it's not worth switching OS in order to use it.
So we ask: Can we have a Linux version? We'll even pay again. Because paying for a good tool that works in your favorite OS is worth it.

Don't forget that Apple has $250 billion sitting on a bank account gathering dust. It wouldn't surprise me if at some point they use some of it to "brute force" Apple's success.

I observed the whole opposite within the last years. Apple is moving more and more into mass market making professional users more and more unhappy. Especially in software development, where had been a great increase in software developers the years before.
Only the graphic and design area seems still to get seriously respected by apple.
 
For software developers who did not fell in love with apple and just want a good choice to work, apple became more and more a unserious lifestyle product.
The same happens with Microsoft Windows 10, so more and more software developers move to linux.

Actually, I see a lot of users here with a license for the Mac and/or Windows version of Affinity products, would like to have a chance to (find out what it's like to) switch to Linux.
It's often that people's first experience with Linux is a positive one, and they quickly learn that their newfound enthusiasm is met with outdated opinions, arguments from ignorance, and psychologically interesting ad hominems like rabid and zealot in which an attempt is made to argue against the positive experiences of the new Linux user by likening their personal computing choices to the the characteristics of a small idealistic group of Stallmanists in the hopes of discrediting these newfound opinions by their Windows using peers, who are afraid that some formerly trivial minority OS like Linux might take away some of their software support privileges when developers might actually choose at some point to divert some of their focus and attention to this new upcoming reality.
Don't worry, you've got nothing to fear from this thread for at least the entire 1.x release branch.

That's a fair opinion. Others think different, and opine that the market is artificially small. It's the famous chicken and egg problem.
We simply do not know. We can't definitively argue a position.
We can enhance a position with anecdotal evidence, or even debate a market share multiplier for example by suggesting that user characteristics imply Linux (3.38%) could have a higher degree of creatives than MacOS (9.46%) has, similar to how MacOS might have a higher degree of creatives than Windows (86.69%) has. Since the adjusted MacOS marketshare for Affinity is 9.46/(86.69+9.46)*100 = 10%, Affinity could test this hypothesis by verifying that more than 10% of their sales are for the MacOS platform. Because if the MacOS number is 25%, it would mean the creative market share om MacOS is 2.5x bigger than the actual market share. Extrapolated to Linux, the creative market share would be similar to that of MacOS. However, when this was proposed, Affinity didn't share those figures, so we cannot argue a position on that.
If this is literally about numbers, we could propose a no-cure-no-pay scheme like a crowdfunding campaign where a minimum sum of money would need to be raised, but Affinity already emphasized that they do not approve, will not support a crowdfund, and will not make a Linux version even if the money target would be reached. So we cannot probe any interest from that.
So, with all avenues closed, we the users cannot definitively argue a position, and the market for creative commercial software on Linux is now Schrödinger's egg. We don't know if the chicken exists until there is professional grade photo and vector software on Linux. All we can do is share opinions.
However, when an opinion includes ad hominems like "rabid", or empty platitudes like "It is not Serifs job to make Linux grow", it comes across as rather bitter, and we're left to speculate on the motivations and interests that inspire such fallacies.

You seeing a lot of users is anecdotal evidence, it really means nothing in terms of hard numbers and how many actual users there could potentially be. You would certainly not be using it when developing strategies for expanding a product line into a new market. And more anecdotal evidence about users first experience. I am not afraid of Linux growing or even becoming the biggest OS in the world, I would learn to use it and continue on. When the arguments for Linux go beyond reason then they are fuelled by something else. There are Apple people like this and Windows users. They are passionate about the OS of choice and like to preach the virtues of it. I would say I was like that to a lesser degree with Apple products in the past. 
I am not worried at all about Affinity on Linux. I think it would be great to have options for Linux users. I just do not see it being a smart move at this time. As it was said "nothing personal, it's just business". I am not emotionally attached to my computer, OS, or software. I like when they work and let me accomplish the work I need to get done. 
 

Hi @Noel Schenk,
They did not make any promise, but even if they did, it would cost a lot more than that.
As TonyB said on July 13, 2014:
That was in 2014 though. Five years later, they've emphasized their disinterest for a Linux version on multiple occasions.
 
A lot of Linux users (myself included) have indicated they would pay double the Affinity license fee for native Linux versions, as an incentive for them to port them. Affinity is probably honored, but it's frankly still not worth their while. I don't think we should beg a commercial party to develop for Linux if they don't want to any further. Everyone should be happy about it, and good lock to both parties otherwise. It's better for us (Linux users) to raise bounties on FOSS software for features you are missing and/or donate it to FOSS projects: Donate to GIMP, donate to Krita, donate to InkScape or donate to the Libre Graphics Meeting.

Wow, 46 pages  Let's jump into that Linux frenzy ...
I am digital artist and developer for many years. I was trying to give Linux a try like 15 years ago. And for me it was a disaster because I wasn't nerd enough to get all the broken things working.
I switched back to Windows because it had all the tools available, which I needed. Especially tools for 3d stuff, which also were not available on Mac.
Now I am working on Ubuntu for 3 years and I would never go back. And I not considering myself a bigger nerd than any other guy working in the creative area.
I did not have any serious problem with Ubuntu since then and even if there is  something, you will find at least one answer to your problem in the net - easily.
The most important 3d applications are also available on Linux by now - Blender (of course), Substance Suite, Unity 3d, etc.
But what I actually want to say is that in my opinion open source software as Linux and Blender is obviously on its way to a wide audience. People and even big companies finally start to see what Open Source can do for them. And I am confident that it is just the beginning of a new paradigm in software development and licensing.
These old licensing models Adobe and Autodesk are using (because they were able to milk their consumers very successfully over the last decades because of a lack of alternatives) will not work anymore in a few years. Also the totally unrealistic license fees they charge are (finally) doomed.
(In my scope) Blender is maybe one of best examples. Like 10 years ago nobody took Blender seriously. And even over the last few years none of the companies I had to do with wanted to know anything about Blender. Suddenly last year it clicked and everybody wants to work with Blender. The majority of the big companies in the gaming industry are switching to Blender because they realized that they have the same or even better output by using this software instead of being slaved to giants like Autodesk or Adobe.
In a few years there will be a very successful Open Source (or at least reasonably priced) option in every area of mass market software (Affinity is a good example here). And since Open Source is deeply rooted in Linux, I am also bold enough to predict that there will also be a paradigm change in the field of operating systems towards Linux/Open Source.
Many are realizing that right now, and some are still holding onto the state of the art model of spending tons of money on mediocre and bloatware infested software.
So in the end I think it would be beneficial for any company at least not being ignorant about Linux since sooner or later you will have to develop for it anyway
Serif does a really great job since they also kind of revolutionized the graphic art industry with reasonable pricing and impressive quality of product. I guess it's just a question of time until Serif realizes that there is no way around Linux.
Cheers,
GumboYaYa

Linus Tech Tips made a general comparison between Windows and the new Ubuntu 20.04 with a pretty fair pro's and con's list. Interesting watch.
 
 

https://news.lenovo.com/pressroom/press-releases/lenovo-brings-linux-certification-to-thinkpad-and-thinkstation-workstation-portfolio-easing-deployment-for-developers-data-scientists/

Linux desktop market share above 3% for second month in a row now, rising to 3.17%.
Considering MacOS is consistently around 9-10%, I wonder at what point Affinity might become interested. Would Designer have been made for MacOS if it only had 6% market share in stead of 9? What about 3%?
https://netmarketshare.com/operating-system-market-share.aspx?options={"filter"%3A{"%24and"%3A[{"deviceType"%3A{"%24in"%3A["Desktop%2Flaptop"]}}]}%2C"dateLabel"%3A"Custom"%2C"attributes"%3A"share"%2C"group"%3A"platform"%2C"sort"%3A{"share"%3A-1}%2C"id"%3A"platformsDesktop"%2C"dateInterval"%3A"Monthly"%2C"dateStart"%3A"2019-05"%2C"dateEnd"%3A"2020-05"%2C"plotKeys"%3A[{"platform"%3A"Linux"}%2C{"platform"%3A"Mac OS"}%2C{"platform"%3A"Chrome OS"}]%2C"segments"%3A"-1000"}
I'm guessing people in lockdown are giving linux another try due to all the new releases with preinstalled video drivers, and are surprised to find that many Windows games play smoothly for both the Steam and Epic launcher. Combined with Epic's every week a free game marketing, it's tempting.

WindowsLatest.com: Windows 10 market share drops as Ubuntu record growth
Could that be due to many people working at home because of the Corona crisis? Perhaps computers at the office have Windows on them, while some private home computers run Linux.

WindowsLatest.com: Windows 10 market share drops as Ubuntu record growth
Could that be due to many people working at home because of the Corona crisis? Perhaps computers at the office have Windows on them, while some private home computers run Linux.

Oh yeah, we use Blackmagic Davinci Resolve (licensed), Fusion, Houdini and Blender. On CentOS. Mostly colleagues though; I'm not doing the NLE stuff. I use Ubuntu (which doesn't play nice with Blackmagic) mostly for scripting (python) which plugs into Blender, which does play nice on Ubuntu.