Which Desktop Version Do You Prefer? Vote Here

[vrkalak]

While I use Openbox WM with NO desktop on my Debian 'testing' install.

I still use and like Mint-8 Xfce CE the best.

The Mint Team and Devs did an awesome job, on this one.

[Biker]

I usually tend to gravitate towards KDE, however, I have been known to use XFCE, IceWM and Enlightenment as well. To me, Gnome just doesn't have the final "polish" that other managers have going for them.

[xtaticego]

well i use Openbox,Thunar,cairo-dock.

[Nexus]

I use Gnome 64 bit.

I've tried KDE, just well seems more sluggish on my system than Gnome, and really I'd rather have the better performance than "Polish" besides adding Cairo-dock, and some Screenlets I get all the polish I really need.

On top of that I really don't like the plasma desktop KDE has switched too, it's just too much...at least for my taste. I've not tried any of the other desktops. I found one I liked and pretty much have stuck to it.

[Arman]

Well I don't have any version of Mint installed atm, but I am waiting to see how Mint 9 LXDE turns out and will most likely be installing that. I had a horrible experience with Ubuntu 10.04, I got it to install but it was hands down one of the (if not the) worst performing distro I have had on my machine, and this was only after 3 days of having it installed . Arch ran better with KDE and desktop effects on (unfortunately I messed something up and was too lazy to re-install it).

Anywho, I have tried out LXDE quite a few times, and I am always surprised by how much it has improved each time I've tried it. If Gnome and KDE didn't have such a huge headstart, I would easily be able to say that lxde would be the #1 DE in a few years. While that is probably impossible, I think it will pass up Xfce sooner than most people expect it to .

[Jay514]

Anywho, I have tried out LXDE quite a few times, and I am always surprised by how much it has improved each time I've tried it. If Gnome and KDE didn't have such a huge headstart, I would easily be able to say that lxde would be the #1 DE in a few years. While that is probably impossible, I think it will pass up Xfce sooner than most people expect it to .

An Interesting Theory, Only time will tell I suppose.

[Dodge]

Thanks Mick, I tend to misspell in a hurry

Is that better than misspelling SLOWLY?...


I just prefer to stay with Gnome 64. It is much faster on this machine and is rock solid. Everyone did a great job on this Distro...

[FedoraRefugee]

Given the few number of votes cast and the large numbers of Mint out there, I wonder how representative this survey will turn out to be?

I think as the sample size increases you will see Gnome and KDE both distance themselves from the smaller DEs. I think Xfce probably has a much wider usage than Lxde but judging from these numbers I may be surprised. At any rate, I think we have a smaller group of more serious users taking this poll and as such you will see more of the smaller window managers than the average joe who just uses Mint but does not participate in the forum and is not such an enthusiast as us.

And now that we have a decent sample size, let's digest this poll.

Let's add the 32 bit and 64 bit versions together as I want to only look at how the DE's compare to each other.

Gnome = 51%
KDE = 24%

So, Gnome and KDE combined equals EXACTLY 75%

This is just what I would have expected! Gnome is twice as popular as KDE but together the big dogs control 3/4 of Linux home desktops. (According to this poll, the fact that Mint is Gnome-centric certainly skews things here, but I would suggest this still represents the "overall" picture as there are many more Gnome-centric distros than KDE-centric ones).

Lxde certainly DID surprise me! Not only did Xfce NOT pull away like I was certain it would, but at the moment Lxde actually has one more user in this poll than Xfce does!!!

Arman writes:

Anywho, I have tried out LXDE quite a few times, and I am always surprised by how much it has improved each time I've tried it. If Gnome and KDE didn't have such a huge headstart, I would easily be able to say that lxde would be the #1 DE in a few years. While that is probably impossible, I think it will pass up Xfce sooner than most people expect it to .

I disagreed with that last thought, but maybe I am wrong! I have to admit my Xfce fanboyism is showing through and I want Xfce to win, but you know what? Good on Lxde!!! I am actually glad to see another DE come up to help Xfce rival the big dogs, what I call the bloat brothers. I am very impressed with what Kendall has done with Peppermint and I think I will certainly have to give Mint 9 Lxde a spin when it comes out!

Anyway, Mint and Lxde combined take 17%! I think this is skewed a bit towards the positive side, I would suggest that in the big picture 15% usage for both these "baby" DEs would probably be more accurate. Still...With Lxde joining the party these guys are both growing. I have to agree with Linuxviolin in his view of where both Gnome and KDE are heading with the direction they seem to be going. I predict a migration away from both these DEs. Especially as people grow into Linux and gain enough maturity to handle the alternatives, though both Gnome and KDE are in no danger of losing their huge share of the desktop.

That leaves little ole' Fluxbox with 3%. That would be about right. Openbox is seeing some resurgent interest with Crunchbang and as the WM for Lxde. Of course there are other favorites out there such as WindowMaker and ICEWM. But I would venture to say that Fluxbox is the most popular. All told these small WMs generally only appeal to the guru types and the serious users. They require a good amount of discipline to use. Because of this they will never really "go" anywhere, but they do represent the true nature of Linux. I would say big picture we are looking at well under 10% combined for all of these small WMs. But you know what? That suites me just fine! I like being a part of that elite crowd, and there is a certain feeling of speed and control that comes with these small guys.

I think, overall, that if I had to fudge numbers in this poll I would give Gnome a wider margin over KDE. I think Lxde and Xfce combined might come out a few points down in an "overall Linux usage" poll. But I am actually fairly impressed how this small sample broke down. I would suggest that it is probably pretty close to the big picture.

[MALsPa]

The poll's fun, but what kind of conclusions can you really draw from it?

The question "Which Desktop Version Do You Prefer?" is a very different one than "Which desktop environment or window manager do you prefer?"

I think I mentioned before, I prefer the main (GNOME) version of Mint, but GNOME isn't my favorite desktop environment.

How many people who voted have spent any significant amount of time with, or even tried, each of the Mint versions? If they haven't, then how would they know which version of Mint they prefer?

How many people who voted have never tried anything other than the main (GNOME) version?

How many people, for whatever reason, chose not to even vote?

It's interesting to look at it, but I would be careful about drawing any conclusions from this poll. Personally, I would rather have seen a poll that said, "Which Mint version are you using?" With a multiple choice option for those who use more than one version.

[FedoraRefugee]

The poll's fun, but what kind of conclusions can you really draw from it?

The question "Which Desktop Version Do You Prefer?" is a very different one than "Which desktop environment or window manager do you prefer?"

I think I mentioned before, I prefer the main (GNOME) version of Mint, but GNOME isn't my favorite desktop environment.

How many people who voted have spent any significant amount of time with, or even tried, each of the Mint versions? If they haven't, then how would they know which version of Mint they prefer?

How many people who voted have never tried anything other than the main (GNOME) version?

How many people, for whatever reason, chose not to even vote?

It's interesting to look at it, but I would be careful about drawing any conclusions from this poll. Personally, I would rather have seen a poll that said, "Which Mint version are you using?" With a multiple choice option for those who use more than one version.

You are right, of course. I have not tried the Mint 8 Lxde version myself, though I have at least ran the rest live.

It is also true that different distros seem to react to DE/WMs in different ways.

But the point of my post was that I think this poll probably does represent the bigger picture. Of course that would be impossible to prove, I would imagine that there are many small pockets of users whom are less likely to even take polls. But does it matter? I mean, half these chuckleheads root for distrowatch rankings! At least I am not THAT bad!

[dawgdoc]

...I mean, half these chuckleheads root for distrowatch rankings! At least I am not THAT bad!

Hey, that wasn't personal was it? I only made that Isadora is #1 post in humor. If that stuff actually mattered I would use Ubuntu, drive a BMW, wear GAP/Polo/CalvinKlein (did I just date myself), use Windows/Mac ...whatever trend keeps you in the incrowd.

(I drive a 10 y/o Explorer, have a 4 y/o laptop, 7 y/o desktop, wireless B router, etc.)

And this post is in jest also, my skin is not paper thin.

[FedoraRefugee]

...I mean, half these chuckleheads root for distrowatch rankings! At least I am not THAT bad!

Hey, that wasn't personal was it? I only made that Isadora is #1 post in humor. If that stuff actually mattered I would use Ubuntu, drive a BMW, wear GAP/Polo/CalvinKlein (did I just date myself), use Windows/Mac ...whatever trend keeps you in the incrowd.

(I drive a 10 y/o Explorer, have a 4 y/o laptop, 7 y/o desktop, wireless B router, etc.)

And this post is in jest also, my skin is not paper thin.

You need an ipad these days!

[dawgdoc]

You need an ipad these days!

I'm still out of step. I have a Palm T3

[Jay514]

@FedoraRefugee
I think that some of your assessments may have a a point to them,( as in the big Picture ) But I also think that you may be over analyzing the whole thing a bit. One of the goals of the poll is for the Devs to see what their Distro is achieving, where their Distro stands, & most important = how many users are using said Distro. Which IMO probably is not a total tally of all the users, cause it is not a mandatory vote.
I was hoping that there would be a lot more input, but it seems that for the most part,only SOME of the older community members have been the ones to participate. Now this is not totally the case, & I understand that not a lot of Newbies will not have a formed opinion for voting on , due to lack of experience with various Distros. So that is not what I expected, I was expecting a lot more votes from the Community Forum Users, & that could change since the poll runs for a while more now.

Now what is really amazing to me is the Low Vote total for the x64 Distros, It seems that since all laptops sold in the last 3 years & most desktops, have all been x64 capable, & there has to be more than the #'s reported using these editions.I would have thought it to be @ least half of the x32's.

@Dodge = Dyslexia I guess It should have a few words added, & look like ( Thanks Mick, I tend to misspell when I am in a hurry )

[FedoraRefugee]

Okay, but my point was that this Mint poll actually represents an accurate microcosm of the big picture. Look at it in reverse if you will, did you really expect different percentages? I could have predicted the outcome of this poll simply by knowing what the DE/WMs stack up like throughout the Linux world. If anything I am surprised the Gnome number is not higher, and I would guess the Lxde number is a reflection of this particular distro and not a larger trend, but as Lxde is so new I could be wrong.

In any case, I am sure you had your own reasons for this poll and that is fine. I was not concerned with that at all, I am simply having some fun with the numbers presented. It means nothing.

edit: Oh, BTW dawgdoc, I did not realize that you had posted that other thread when I made the distrowatch comment! It was made purely in jest. Now, if you will excuse me, I got to hit the Mint page another 1,500 times before bed or our ranking will slip!