Linux KDE 4.5

[marl30]

Just thought to start a thread about KDE's newest updated version to hear what others think about it.

I'm quite new to KDE. Just decided to give it a shot when I saw that Linux Mint 9 Isadora KDE came out. Yesterday I updated it to 4.5, which is quite nice, and for me, it is like a hybrid of Windows 7 and Mac.

I'm no export on Linux or KDE, but I think I'm going to stick with it for a while, but will probably dual boot it with Maverick Meerkat (Ubuntu 10.10) when it comes out. I didn't have an issue with Ubuntu why a switched. I just switched out of two reasons. I have always been impressed with the looks of KDE and its Applications. The second reason - I have a friend that I have been trying to introduce to Linux. I told him about Ubuntu, but he wasn't too impressed with it. I believe it had more to do with the fact that Ubuntu didn't appeal to him at a glance. So I took it up myself to toy around with KDE so I can try it before installing it on one of his computers.

So far, I must say, though I like it, it wasn't as straightforward to use as Ubuntu, as navigating around it was a whole different experience from using Ubuntu. It has too many manus and settings for a complete beginner to Linux. I think I may have to probably go with installing Linux Mint 9 Gnome version on his computer, since he'll be more comfortable trying something closer to Windows.

Anyhow... want to hear what you guys thought about the new KDE (4.5), and KDE on a whole?

[jamrock]

One of the good things about open source software is that you have so many options to choose from.

In my opinion, Gnome and KDE are just desktops. The underlying distro such as Mint or Ubuntu determine a lot re: ease of use.

There are so many choices and each person has his favourite. If you like the KDE desktop and you find Ubuntu easy to use, you can try Kubuntu.

I did a search for Kubuntu on the Ubuntu website and I found these two documents.

What is Kubuntu
https://help.ubuntu.com/6.06/kubuntu...t-kubuntu.html

About the Name

Kubuntu is based on the Ubuntu system, but with the latest KDE packages. Kubuntu means "towards humanity" in Bemba. Kubuntu is pronounced "koo-boon-too".

Getting Kubuntu
https://help.ubuntu.com/6.06/kubuntu...t-kubuntu.html

If you follow the link to the downloads page, you should see the latest version.

Remember that open source is all about choice. Choose the software that you like best.

[marl30]

Thanks for your reply Jamrock. Kubuntu was my first attempt at using KDE... I didn't really like it. Particularly the fact that it had no software center nor synaptic package manager, but plain old kpackagekit. This is why I decided to give Linux Mint KDE version a try, as it is a fully loaded distro with loads of software, plus it's in DVD size.

However, after almost a week of toying with around KDE GUI, I'm back to Ubuntu Gnome version. KDE is nice and all, but it breaks too easily. I've been having some weird issues with it. It even locked me out of the system a couple of times, plus all different types of issues. I just had to throw in the towel on using it as my main GUI and go back to a more stable Gnome version. It had me spending way too much time on the internet looking for solutions.

I haven't totally given up on it though. What I now did... I followed some tips over the Ubuntu forum on how to run both Gnome and KDE in one environment, instead of dual booting a KDE based and a Gnome based distros. I installed the KDE desktop environment in Ubuntu. All I do now is to go to the logon screen, choose which desktop environment I want to log into and choose between Gnome and KDE.

I'm going to follow the other tip from the forum on fully integrating Kubuntu into Ubuntu rather that just the KDE desktop environment and see how that goes, as the desktop manager of KDE seems to run flawlessly when it's integrated with Gnome.