Blogcritics Comments on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Comment by gmoron on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Fri, 3 Oct 2008 03:55:47 EDT

gnome is the gde for gmorons by gmorons.

Comment by John wills on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Wed, 10 Sep 2008 06:50:53 EDT

I think for a newbe KDE is the choice because it is good looking and like windows start menu. But gnome have better response and is better for a speedy user.

Comment by Mike on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Sun, 20 Jul 2008 21:32:32 EDT

To the poster above me, wait till KDE 4.1 comes out. It's supposed to fix everything unstable with 4.0 I've been using Linux since before Ubuntu even got started. I started with Mandrake Linux 6.2. But I barely even touched it, and was using Windblows most of the time. When 8.0 came out, Linux was drawing me in. Back then, I loved KDE. For me, it was the thing to start with, coming from Windows. But when 9.0 came out, I got bored and decided to install other desktops. I fell in love with Gnomes look and feel. I didn't care that I couldn't customize it to the extreme. For me, it just felt right, about all I can really say. But it was the ability to choose between the two that finally got me to uninstall Winblows for good, which I still do not have installed. Linux is about choice. Sure, sometimes I feel like there are too many choices out there, too many distributions, etc. But if those choices didn't exist, we'd have a Windows or Mac clone. On my newest computer, I FINALLY got everything working perfectly. It took a while to get my webcam working correctly in Mandriva. At one point in time, i even considered going back to Windblows, recently. I'm finally glad I didn't. In any desktop on Linux, we will all get peace of mind of running a quiet and smooth sailing machine. No more huge worry of spyware or adware or viruses, or other crappy Windows prone problems. I have worked with KDE/Gnome/Xfce/Enlightenment/Fluxbox, etc. I seem to always come back to Gnome. But everything I do works in any environment. Therefore I'm good in anyway, so long as I'm in Linux. Currently, Mandriva is installed. Went back to my roots after trying Red Hat(back in the day) SuSE, and Ubuntu. I have 4 desktops installed and throughly enjoy the fact that I can switch to any of them at any time without installing an entirely new distribution. I prefer Gnome, but then, as others have mentioned it will always be what you feel comfortable using most. I can't recommend one or the other more. But I'll always insist people try more than one. Linux is just cool like that!

Comment by Jan on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Sun, 6 Jul 2008 13:25:25 EDT

Just upgraded to OpenSuse 11.0 with KDE 4.0 as the default desktop. Before I used to run OpenSuse 10.3 with KDE 3.5 which was quite good, but the 4.0 seems to be quite unstable and the new system of the 'Gadgets' on the desktop instead of the regular icons seems quite strange. I think I am gonna try Gnome 2.22 now...

Comment by doorknob60 on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Tue, 3 Jun 2008 00:54:39 EDT

I started with Gnome in Ubuntu 7.04, and I liked it. Then, after a few months of Ubuntu, I decided to install the kubuntu-desktop metapackage to install KDE. I liked it, but I was just so used to Gnome and I didn't want to relearn everything again. Then, in Ubuntu hardy, I got mad at Gnome when the new version removed some configuration options to become "simpler". Then, I downloaded the KDE flavor of Debian and never turned back :) KDE for life!

Comment by FatButtLarry on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Sun, 30 Mar 2008 12:58:47 EDT

Steve, Very well written article. I"m impressed to see that you hit every nail on the head. There should be more people like you on the design side of these desktops. Your article explains in just enough details what applications are NEEDED to stay humane using Linux, and the on-going battle between which desktop to pick. I use KDE at home and Gnome at work, and I experience the same functionality vs. reliability issues that you've mentioned above. For the record, I slightly favor Pidgin over Kopete, and KDE over Gnome. Just slightly tho. ;) -Tres

Comment by Altern8 on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Thu, 14 Feb 2008 12:20:43 EST

Hey I havent used linux for a few years now since redhat 4. Gnome seems alot more stable then the olden days, KDE seems good too. Im undecided about eaither yet but some good points above. Cheers

Comment by ro on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Tue, 8 Jan 2008 01:26:09 EST

hmmmm... framebuffered console.... Xfce, if i *really* need a DE

Comment by flux on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Fri, 16 Nov 2007 04:53:35 EST

Even my first look at GNOME DE made me sick. I got about 1000 packages with about 100 DE applications. In GNOME menu I found just a few of them. Who says KDE menu and possibilities of KDE Control Center are confusing and comprehensive? Use Windows then. In Linux world guys try to get all possible software functionality and use max. value of its features! KDE and nothing else.

Comment by Noah on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Thu, 8 Nov 2007 20:01:31 EST

Alejandro, System>Preferences>Appearance. Then select a theme. Click "Customize" and select the "Colors" tab. Not sure if this is what your were looking for, but hope this helps!

Comment by Dimon on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Mon, 5 Nov 2007 10:54:46 EST

I find customization in KDE to be extremely sucky. Installing a GNOME theme is (usually) a breeze. Not so (usually) with KDE.

Comment by Steve on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Fri, 2 Nov 2007 21:31:05 EDT

Alejandro Nova- What you're complaining about is customization, not user friendliness. The article clearly states that customization is one of KDE's strengths, and one of Gnome's weaknesses, although it is getting better. You missed the point of the article, which was that Gnome as a desktop tends to be more reliable and stable, while KDE tends to be more flakey. For some people it's more important that their desktop works consistently well. If it's more important to you to be able to change the colour of your apps, then you obviously need a more customizable desktop. Of course KDE and Gnome aren't the only choices, they are just the more popular ones.

Comment by Alejandro Nova on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Fri, 2 Nov 2007 10:56:45 EDT

I want to call your attention about a tremendously simple thing: how to change your apps' colors. Where, where the GODDAMNNED HELL is the Color applet in GNOME, for changing apps colors? And don't tell me "Go to www.whatever.net and download our theme". No. I want a slated grey for my apps, and I want to set it by myself. Please, recall first how this amazingly simple task is done in a sane environment. Windows 3.1. (http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/archives/000341.html). Open your Control Panel, double click on your "Color" icon. Change your apps' colors freely. Windows (95 to XP, I don't know about Vista). Right click on your desktop, select the option "Properties" in the menu that you'll get, and go to the "Appearance" tab. Change here your apps' colors. KDE. Go to the KDE Control Center, that is in your K Menu. Under the category "Theme and Aspect", you'll find a "Colors" option. Feel free to change your apps colours. And... let's see how this marvelous little thing is done in GNOME, our "ultra easy to use" desktop. Open the terminal and locate a .gtkrc file, under your /usr/share/themes or similar hierarchy. Alternatively, you can load your .gtkrc in GEdit to make this ULTRA EASY task easier for you. You'll see something like this. style "industrial-default" { xthickness = 1 ythickness = 1 GtkWidget::interior_focus = 1 GtkButton::default_border = { 3, 3, 3, 3 } GtkButton::default_outside_border = { 3, 3, 3, 3 } GtkRange::trough_border = 0 ... Please, scroll until you see color codes for interface elements. You'll see something like this. bg[NORMAL] = "#f6f6f6" bg[PRELIGHT] = "#ffffff" fg[PRELIGHT] = "#202020" bg[ACTIVE] = "#d9d9d9" bg[INSENSITIVE] = "#d9d9d9" bg[SELECTED] = "#99a6bf" base[SELECTED] = "#6484a4" text[SELECTED] = "#ffffff" #this is selected item without focus: base[ACTIVE] = "#b6c9cf" text[INSENSITIVE] = "#757575" #defaults base[NORMAL] = "#b6c9cf" text[NORMAL] = "#000000" Enter the hexadecimal code for each color you want to change. GEdit won't check coherence between colors, so you'll have to check it yourself. You can change EVERY color (including gradients' beginnings and ends). When you are done (sort of), you save this file under /home/yourhomefolder/.gtkrc This surely is user friendliness, isn't it?

Comment by miguel on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Sat, 29 Sep 2007 11:06:41 EDT

I'm documenting my experiences in both desktops as a set of advantages in my blog.

Comment by manmath sahu on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Mon, 17 Sep 2007 03:39:30 EDT

I was used to PCLinuxOS and KDE (its default desktop), but for the sake of performance I changed my desktop to Gnome. There was a considerable performance boost, it also looked suave. But then, I had to install all the KDE stuffs again and setup KDE as the default desktop, because I was unable to setup autologin in Gnome. Would anybody plz tell me how to setup autologin in Gnome? Thanks in advance

Comment by ethana2 on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Wed, 1 Aug 2007 12:55:08 EDT

Menu categorization and theming make a difference for me. That's what I love about Ubuntu with GNOME. When you look through your programs, there aren't 500 of them. In graphics, for example, I might have only Blender, Inkscape, and The GIMP. Simple. If KDE is going to add all that power, it needs to nest categorization. for example: -graphics- --pixel/2d-- ---GIMP--- ---GNU paint--- --vector/2d-- ---inkscape--- --3d animation-- ---blender--- --video-- ---LiVES--- All you would see is -graphics- --pixel/2d-- --vector/2d-- --2d animation-- --video-- Don't flood me with options all at once. I want them, but I don't need to look through 50 things when I open the games menu. ...or 70 when I go to system tools... The whole KISS principle. The site is telling me there's a banned word in there, but I don't know what it is, so...

Comment by Chris on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Fri, 27 Jul 2007 09:18:11 EDT

XPDE is my current one and i mus say it works better than gnome and kde put together and if configured properly kde apps and gnome apps work just fine plus I love the xp interface i gotta say it was done right as much fud i have against M$ i like the xp interface plus my wife seem to know how to use it just fine

Comment by Luis on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Thu, 31 May 2007 02:41:48 EDT

Of course KDE, most GNOME fans never give me any kind of real reason (I like GNOME too btw), but KDE is more responsive, it's fast, it have the better applications (amarok is better than any other music player, konqueror is far faster than Nautilus when you open something, K3b is better than Brasero, and the list go on and on and on). I love KDE, but I even love more e17! That's the perfect mix, e17 amazing eye candy (better than any other desktop) mixed whit speed (it's fastest desktop out there) and KDE applications (use dolphin as my filemanager), and why not some e17 own apps (there are some EFL applications that are pretty well, like exhibit picture viewer or the news module rss reader (wich is SOOOOO light, it's a lot better than Akregator or Liferea). Well, See you

Comment by 101101 on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Sat, 19 May 2007 02:53:46 EDT

KDE all the way. A few people have mentioned that Gnome is more stable than KDE. I feel quite the opposite.

Comment by Chuck on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Fri, 2 Mar 2007 21:22:07 EST

I had a nearly identical experience (in the same order) as Steve Wild, the author above. And, I feen the same conclusion. I'm currently running Ubuntu w/ the KUbuntu desktop files installed through Synaptic. I'm testing several customizations on KDE. Edgy KUbuntu is pretty. I'm holding on for Fiesty with the 3D desktop enabled, since Mandriva let me down. I love customization. I'm an ex-winblows user that used to run LiteStep since ealy on in 2.14 on through till I installed Ubuntu the first time with Breezy. But, I keep using GNOME most of the time. You asked ^o^

Comment by jebbiss on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Thu, 15 Feb 2007 20:15:21 EST

I switched to linux in may last year. I started with OpenSuSE 10.0 KDE as my desktop. After a few weeks I knew I was a linux addict. In august I decided to try Ubuntu with, of course the gnome desktop. After a few weeks I installed Kubuntu (K for KDE) since I preferred KDE's look and feel. In October when Ubuntu/Kubuntu 6.10 came out I installed Kubuntu on my new computer and Ubuntu on my old computer. This is what I have right now. I like them both, I really wish that we could combined them together since they both have very good qualities and minor disadvantages. I would recommend people to try the desktops before making a final choice. The first time I tried Gnome wasn't long enough for me to see its advantages. I think I'll install XFCE again and give it another go at it since I only tried it for a few days last September. This also goes with the which linux distribution to use. My motto is keep an open mind and try them all, then decide.

Comment by EMoShunz on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Thu, 15 Feb 2007 11:22:41 EST

I am a recent Linux convert. Tried Ubuntu (Gnome) as it came recommended. It's great. After some research I switched to Kubuntu (KDE). I haven't used either enough to give a definitive response, but what I can say is that each pushes the other to improve. The reason I chose Kubuntu; the geeky Windows guy in me loves the future. From everything I've read KDE 4 and KOffice 2 running on Qt 4.2 is going to be amazing. Even the Gnome die hards can only sling mud, there are no actual bad things to say. I use it now to get familiar. IMHO Kubuntu 7.10 is going to be the thing that can push Linux into the public hands. I have already made most of my friends promise to at least dual-boot it this November. Linux doesn't need to catch/beat Windows, they need to eye OSX and then the world will switch (see Parallels, Security, Stability...but proprietary, which is where Linux can win).

Comment by Josh Zenker on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Mon, 5 Feb 2007 01:02:33 EST

I tend to prefer Gnome in most situations. Of course, to be fair, KDE and Fluxbox both have their strong points. KDE gears itself toward customization, which is a very GNU/Linux thing to do. Fluxbox has its virtue in being lean and mean. The reason Gnome has become the default environment on my desktop? It tends to be more stable, albeit noticeably slower. Sometimes KDE is too bleeding edge for its own good. Plus, in sharp contrast to Fluxbox, Gnome adds newly installed programs to the menu without extra work on my part. I have to edit enough little config files to administer my system without fussing with the menu too. Of course, someone else may prefer a different desktop environment for wholly different reasons. That's the beauty of GNU/Linux; you're empowered to make that choice.

Comment by Bruce on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Tue, 30 Jan 2007 20:27:46 EST

I switched to Gnome from KDE for the same reason. Although Gnome has less features it has proved more stable. If a feature will not work perfectly it is better not to have it at all.

Comment by stolennomenclature on Desktop War: KDE vs. Gnome

Tue, 30 Jan 2007 18:43:28 EST

I concur with your comments re the reliability aspect. I have never been able to use KDE on a single occasion without something crashing. Gnome rarely goes down. However Gnome (Linux?) still does not handle removeable devices or optical drives very well. Of course Windows only handles optical drives well because it can't actually do anything with them apart from read them. You need third party apps to write to them, and none of them work properly either. As to customisation - most of it is about colours and icons. Style and not substance. What needs to be got right most of all is the substance. I like style too, but not at the expense of substance. Actually despite all the style options, backgrounds, icon styles, bitmaps, etc, most Linux distros still look mostly ugly. Only Apple seems to have figured out how to make GUI's look really good and slick. Ubuntu for example seems to be trying to make the worlds ugliest desktop - and in the past they laregly succeeeded - thankfully things are improving slightly, despite the brown. Debian is still right up their with the best of the most-ugly-distros-ever, but it does work - and thats the most important bit. It seems to me that the free software world has lots of skilled coders, but not many people who understand user interface design and human ergonomics. KDE's code may well be great (bugs notwithstanding) but the desktop is such a bloated mess. All you want to do with a desktop is open files and folders in windows. We need - proper handling of removeable devices; proper handling of optical drives (including formatting media, packet writing, mount rainier support); Microsoft to do everyone a favour and go bust. Thinks that everything.