When migrating to Linux, some users find it easier if the desktop environment looked close enough to Windows. Why? Because the familiarity gives them enough comfort to click around and do something. It also gives them the feeling that it’s not going to be too different, at least when it comes to them using their computers. My mom and sister will kill me if I make them use Openbox or Ratpoison as their window managers, same thing goes if I installed Enlightenment or Windowmaker. They will end up feeling too weirded out by the …read more

A link to the LXDE site was on del.icio.us and I just had to click it because in this day and age, I sometimes get tired of eye candy. I like pretty desktop environments, surely but there are times when I just need to sit back and relax with simple and straightforward user interfaces. Here comes LXDE to people like me.
It uses Openbox as its window manager and other components like Leafpad (a text editor), Xarchiver, PCManFM as a file manager and other nifty apps to make the desktop experience great even for those who are using older …read more

Why having a separate desktop environment on Linux rocks
It’s probably something cool or something alien to new Linux users: the separation of the operating system with the desktop. You might be thinking, sure, I could have a new look if I install StyleXP or LiteStep on Windows. But the thing is that it’s not quite the same. I used to think it was so cool that I could do that on Windows. It made my desktop distinct from the rest of my co-workers’. But it was at a cost. Litestep was running on top …read more

I’ve always been a big fan of Gnome as well as the minimalist Ratpoison. (I know, it’s weird. But they serve different purposes for me.) Also, most of the Linux distributions include a desktop environment such as Gnome or KDE. But there are times that I wonder if there are other desktop environments out there.
Fortunately, I read about Symphony OS (and it’s being downloaded as I type and hopefully it will take less than 2 hours to download!). The desktop environment it uses is Mezzo. There are no panels on the top of the screen or …read more