Hi, when I say ‘noob’ I meant as an opensuse noob.
However, I’m not proficient at linux at all so I might as well fess up that I probably fit the description of a noob or don’t improve enough as I should.
Anyway, my question is about DE. I want to redo my partition scheme and I am wondering if it matters which DE I use. I like LXDE on my Debian install on my laptop. It’s a Thinkpad T41 so that’s why I choose the ligher DE and also my experience is mostly with Debian or Debian-based distros.
My desktop is a Quad Core machine so I think I could install any DE and it will run okay. But, I do like the lighter DEs. I am wondering how OpenSuse does with xfce or LXDE.
My plan is to have about three 100-ish GB partitions on my 320GB drive and one distro will be the main one with VirtualBox. I’ll install ‘experimental’ distros in a guest. The other two partitions will have Windows and another Linux distro I decide on.
If I install OpenSuse on this one, say, I was curious if I ought to use the default KDE or whether it matters which DE I use. How well does OpenSUSE integrate Gnome, LXDE and XFCE?
I hope I receive some objective answers here but I realize there will be a variety of perspectives but that’s fine.
I like that OpenSUSE, Fedora and Ubuntu (but maybe not to as much as an extent) really have developmental versions that allow for a lot of progress and interesting insight/information! Keep up the good work, devs! I want to get a SSD soon and I read that there is more support with later/more recent versions of kernel/packages/partition tools etc. Cool!
Okay, sorry to go off topic there…looking forward to some answers and insight on my questions! Thanks in advance for any replies!
Probably the easiest path for a noob is to install the gnome version of openSUSE and then install the xfce desktop environment. I personally don’t like openbox; to me it’s just an unfinished LXDE.
But I’d try that first.
Then remove all the superfluous programs from the gnome install
icee99 wrote:
> if u wanna have it idiot proof use KDE
that is certainly a matter of opinion…and one i do NOT share with
this first time poster…
to answer the question: DE selection has nothing to do with partition
scheme, and vice versa
i’d say download the Live CD for both KDE and Gnome and see for
yourself…and, i think somewhere there is a live LXDE CD…
imho openSUSE does all of them rather nicely…
but it depends on what you need/want…i kinda imagine if you are
looking for bling you are in the right place with KDE4 [and your
desktop will probably support (depending on graphics card) all the
cycles wasted to make wobbly windows and spinning cubes], if solid
dependable then Gnome, if fast and nimble then LXDE/XFCE/etc etc etc
I was just under the impression (from what I read) of when the distro is of a certain DE centric, that the ‘other’ DE doesn’t integrate well and vice versa.
I generally use KDE or am most used to KDE but I’m not sure about KDE 4 anymore. However, my current desktop can handle it fine. I am getting used to LXDE on my laptop, though, and I like the minimal nature of it now. The only thing is I still like certain apps and it’s an experience of ‘oh, it’s not there…gotta install it!’ No big deal, though. Although, I’m not sure yet how well KDE and Gnome apps will integrate with it.
I sometimes get seg/sig fault crashes in KDE. Yet, I need my K3b, Amarok and Kaffeine apps! Those are my favs. I don’t have a preferred file manager and can probably get used to Gnome if need be. I’m not of the crowd that MUST use one DE over another.
I just like the concept of a low resource DE in which I add the programs/apps I like/prefer.
Thanks for all the feedback, though! The suggestion to use LiveCDs and try it out is good and is what I usually do. I will probably try it out in VirtualBox as Linux guests, too!
I am a KDE4 fan but I would certainly agree that Gnome is more stable and more easily configured for a “noob”. The “lighter” desktops such as XfCE and LXDE are not necessarily easier or more stable than KDE, so my advice is to go Gnome. It is just as well integrated in openSUSE as KDE is.
LXDE is fairly new on openSUSE and some of us have been supporting the packagers of this on openSUSE to get it up to par. Currently LXDE is available for openSUSE-11.2 as a liveCD (from the “community”). Derivatives - openSUSE Its also going to be part of openSUSE-11.3 (included on the 11.3 DVD). Its light weight. Its FAST !! Fast is nice.
Xfce has been around for a while on openSUSE, and can be installed from the 11.2 DVD. There is also a liveCD now for openSUSE-11.2 Xfce (from the community). Derivatives - openSUSE From what I was told, the LXDE and Xfce packagers have been collaberating, helping each other out which is GREAT to see. The KDE/Gnome community could learn a few things about collaberation from the LXDE/Xfce community, instead of this constant annoying bickering and badmouthing that constantly takes place (and the mostly pointless KDE/Gnome bickering iritates me to absolutely no end).
I am a big KDE fan. But I had Gnome running on my sandbox PC and I was impressed. I like its clean (by default) look. After installing Gnome, I immediately went to my MANY KDE desktops and tuned them to look closer to Gnome in appearance. Now having stated I LIKE Gnome, there are somethings I do not like about it that can be tuned out. I hate its double click (by default). But MS-windows users will love that doubleclick. In my case, I had to disable that annoying double click requirement before it drove me nuts. The gnome yast implementation despite its good looks, is sub par. It does NOT have all the features that the KDE version has. Hence if using Gnome, I would recommend install QT and use the KDE QT YaST. This is absolute heracy to Gnome fanatics who would rather use a subpar app than admit a Gnome one is not up to snuff (compared to KDE). Of course the reverse is also true. Many KDE users will rather you use a sub par KDE app than a superior Gnome one. In the end I had to remove Gnome because, frankly speaking, its audio implementation is in very poor state of user friendliness, due to the STILL buggy nature of Pulse Audio. My advice if Audio is important, is to stay away from Gnome. If a user friendly audio implementation is very very important, go with KDE.
KDE - well what can I say? I’m a KDE fan. Having said that, as I noted above, Gnome is nice (except for its audio is bad, real bad) and LXDE is new. I have not played recently with XFCE.
I would really like to see you helping out with LXDE because we could use the help in testing/debugging, but I understand as a noob you want a simply functional desktop, and NOT a FAST but slightly limited one like LXDE.
I would be VERY skeptical of ANY openSUSE user who says Gnome does NOT work (or Gnome is junk) and KDE does work. Because Gnome is good !!
And I would be very skeptical of any Gnome user who says KDE does not work or is not stable. KDE does work !! I find it just as stable as Gnome. Maybe more stable thean Gnome due to my KDE familiarity (and lack of Gnome familiarity - a stable system does not have cr*p audio). In every case I can practically guarantee you that you are looking at users with a major axe and pet peeve to grind, and if you do a search on their handle you will find countless rants against the desktop they hate. Most of the time with NO justification.
A wonderful thing about Linux is the choice. So choose a desktop and try it.
And if you feel adventurous and want a FAST destkop, join us in debugging LXDE.
