install minimal LXDE desktop

[ccc]

hi

Howto install a really minimal LXDE desktop?

[seppalta]

http://lxlinux.com

[jjaythomas]

Depends what system want (base Distro)...

on Mint discontinued ,unless want to install on larger base or LMDE (try install from 'Swift Linux')
on Ubuntu try Lubuntu or Peppermint
lot of others (check/search 'Distrowatch)

P.S. Crunchbang (& ArchBang) are excellent, but are acually 'Openbox" with some (but not all) of the LXDM stuff thrown in.

J.Jay

[xenopeek]

Let's keep it on topic please. The question was asked in the Linux Mint support forum, so let's assume OP wants to to run Linux Mint with a minimal LXDE desktop. Else OP would have asked the question in Chat about Linux & Other Distributions section of the forums, to get suggestions about other distros.

Back to the question at hand, installing the lxde package will install LXDE to your computer. Other users have had success with installing this on top of either the Linux Mint 13 MATE or Linux Mint 13 Xfce editions. You can of course install LXDE on top of any Linux Mint edition, but the applications installed by default would make a little more sense perhaps with MATE or Xfce.

As to "really minimal", do you mean bare-bones as in with few programs, or do you mean one an installation that is fit for very old computers?

[seppalta]

The LXDE desktop can be installed over just about any distribution. The minimal install will be to install the lxde-core package which consists of pcmamfm, openbox, lxpanel, lxsession and xscreensaver. The complete LXDE system consists of 11 primary packages and a few supporting packages depending upon the distribution, each related to a special function and each essentially independent, which makes after-market installing and substituting very easy. Besides the above 5 components, you will probably want a display manager, a monitor configuration tool, a task manager and a terminal. See http://lxlinux.com/#19 for a discussion, which includes some information regarding weights, of the choices for these as well as other items. My experience has been that the best and lightest system can be constructed by putting lxde-core on top of the Mint Debian (LMDE) xfce system: http://lxlinux.com/debian.html and integrating some of the xfce-components with the lxde ones and removing the rest. It is much easier to construct and the result is much faster and lighter than with the Mint 13 Mate or xfce systems which carry a lot of Ubuntu mass. The main caution with the rolling release system is to make sure that the only open repositories are the Mint ones when the big update packages come.

[nunol]

You can also start with a full Mint 12 LXDE install and remove everything you don't need: viewtopic.php?f=42&t=96465

Mint 12 LXDE updates nicely to Mint 13, just remove mint-search-addon, point the repos to maya and precise, use apt-get to update, upgrade and dist-upgrade, reinstall mint-meta-core and that's it! The process takes a while and will need about 1GB of free disk space.

[aes2011]

http://lxlinux.com

Sorry if this is inappropriate here but will MenuLibre be lighter than Lxmed which is what you recommend above (in section ? From what I see, it doesn't need Java.

[seppalta]

I have no experience with MenuLibre, but it appears to me to be more of a "Menu" than a "Menu Editor". I use Java for several programs, so it is a "must" on my systems. If you want to avoid Java (lxmed), why not just make your own template for .desktop files - the prescription of what is needed is in http://lxlinux.com/#11. Put the .desktop file in /usr/share/applications or /usr/local/share/applications. The application will automatically appear on the LXDE menu. To remove an application from the menu, just delete its .desktop file, or put the line NoDisplay=true in its .desktop file. This is truly the minimal editor.

[aes2011]

... just make your own template for .desktop files - the prescription of what is needed is in http://lxlinux.com/#11. Put the .desktop file in /usr/share/applications or /usr/local/share/applications. The application will automatically appear on the LXDE menu. To remove an application from the menu, just delete its .desktop file, or put the line NoDisplay=true in its .desktop file. This is truly the minimal editor.

The template will definitely come handy. As for removing applications from the menu, I prefer hiding them using NoDisplay=true rather than deleting the .desktop file.

[SiKing]

Hey all.

I am in the same situation, I suspect, as the OP: install minimal LXDE.

installing the lxde package will install LXDE to your computer. Other users have had success with installing this on top of either the Linux Mint 13 MATE or Linux Mint 13 Xfce editions.

I installed lxde on top of LM13-main (cinnamon) and I was toltally surprised that everything worked right out of the box.

The other question I had: should I add any additional repositories in order to have access to everything LXDE? Is there, for example, a separate repo for Lubuntu?

Thanx!

[xenopeek]

Is there, for example, a separate repo for Lubuntu?

I think Lubuntu has all their software in the main Ubuntu repository, though they have a PPA for backporting software to prior releases (like for if you wanted the Lubuntu Software Center on a release prior to 12.04, you would need to add their PPA).

They have two meta packages that install either the core or the full Lubuntu desktop; lubuntu-core and lubuntu-desktop respectively. Those meta packages pull in other default packages for Lubuntu. Like for the core packages with artwork, default settings, and a plymouth theme. For desktop it install default applications as well, like abiword, chromium-browser, mtpaint, and so on. If you install either of these, you might end up with some work as it might install packages that conflict with Linux Mint (like the default settings, display manager, or such things that it installs). You can have a look at either of these two meta packages and see if there are things you want to install, but Lubuntu also provide a list online with the default applications they install (if that is what you are looking for): https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Lubuntu/Applications

[SiKing]

I am more concerned about having access to "everything LXDE" versus "everything Lubuntu". I don't even know if that statement makes sense.
So in my case it sounds like the answer is: if you are running Mint-main, you already have all the repost you need.

[xenopeek]

Yes, I think so.

[ausmuso]

Hey all.

The other question I had: should I add any additional repositories in order to have access to everything LXDE? Is there, for example, a separate repo for Lubuntu?
Thanx!

No, SiKing, you don't need any additional repositories. I've put LXDE desktops on top of many Mint versions (plus some other distros I won't mention here) and it alsways seems to work out of the box!
Maybe that's why the Mint Gurus don't see a great need for a separate LXDE version?
Have fun!