KDE vs Gnome on Linux

[anon11259538]

Thank you

[anon79740302]

@Regime6045

For me, it’s KDE. I find GNOME unusable.

Heh… I couldn’t stand GNOME, and used to be a Plasma advocate for years. But as I kept growing disillusioned with KDE, I decided to give GNOME yet another try with Fedora Linux 41… and now I don’t see myself going back. I’ve finally realized that I used to dislike GNOME’s workflow because I merely thought that I understand it, but never really did. Heck, maybe I still don’t quite get it, but I have a much better idea now at the very least.

As a rule of thumb, if you can’t use GNOME without extensions, you’re missing the point.

There easiest way to switch between windows remains Alt+Tab

Nope, that would be Alt+Esc — to switch windows directly (within the same workspace). Using Alt+Tab is a better idea when you have multiple apps open across different workspaces. Further reading: Keyboard navigation

Virtual desktops can be nice but I think the intended workflow is a bit like on a phone where you have one full-screen app at a time.

I hear there are plans to implement mosaic tiling at some point, which does seem promising.

[anon11259538]

Why do you use Gnome, not KDE?

[anon79740302]

As I see it, GNOME goes for quality over quantity; it’s quite consistent and polished which I appreciate, while Plasma tends to be the opposite of that… and is just a right mess, to put it bluntly: from the supposedly advanced theming that works well only on paper (and is crutches all the way down), to the many papercuts I encountered, but KDE devs never bothered resolving, likely because adding new features is more fun than fixing old bugs (and yes, I did have an account on their bug tracker).

Speaking of which, here are some of my pet peeves, off the top of my head:

• 402690 – Duplicate entries in Location sidebar for encrypted volumes
• 422529 – Put config files inside a kde subdirectory in ~/.config, ~/.local/share, and ~/.cache (see also Configuration file mess in ~/.config : r/kde)
• 450137 – Using Minimize All twice brings back the window, but the active window from before loses focus
• 456213 – Consider using “Minimize All” as the default behavior/widget, rather than “Show Desktop”
• 458934 – Dolphin should cryptsetup-close ejected LUKS volumes

While Plasma did feel like a breath of fresh air (a breeze, if I may) to this Windows refugee at first, the more I used it, the less I liked it. And roughly 6 years later I decided that I no longer want to be a Plasma user. Now, GNOME is by no means perfect, but right now – to me – it’s the lesser of two evils.

Your mileage may vary.

[anon11259538]

Doesn’t Gnome have even more problems now? I’ve heard that for the same games, people often choose KDE instead, because Gnome constantly has issues with extensions, and without extensions, Gnome itself is unusable for me. For example, I always made Gnome look almost like KDE by installing Dash to Panel and other extensions that KDE has by default, like Clipboard Indicator and Weather (there’s no weather in KDE either, but that extension works more stably in KDE). And somehow, after switching to KDE, it seemed to me that KDE is faster than Gnome. What about you? To me, it’s unclear where Gnome is headed—they seem to aim for minimalism, but many problems go unfixed for a very long time, like switching keyboard layouts.

I believe in Cosmic, I want the beta version to come out so I can fully try Cosmic. I tested it a bit before, but it was still rough back then.

[anon11259538]

KDE basically requires almost no configuration. It’s much quicker to set up compared to Gnome, even though Gnome is minimalist. But for me, I don’t really want to use Gnome visually without extensions. Yes, some functions are missing until you set it up, but out of the box, you could say KDE works.

[anon79740302]

@anon11259538

Doesn’t Gnome have even more problems now? I’ve heard that for the same games, people often choose KDE instead

I have yet to do much gaming on GNOME, but Elden Ring (Steam/Proton) and StarCraft II (Battle.net/Wine) seem to be running just fine.

because Gnome constantly has issues with extensions

Personally, I use only two: apps-menu (which is official) and appindicator (by Ubuntu devs); both come from Fedora’s repos. I have yet to experience any breakage, but that’s likely because I’m not using a rolling distro.

and without extensions, Gnome itself is unusable for me. For example, I always made Gnome look almost like KDE by installing Dash to Panel and other extensions that KDE has by default, like Clipboard Indicator and Weather

Well, as I mentioned earlier, that only means that you’re missing the point of GNOME. It’s not meant to be used the same way as, say, stock Plasma.

(there’s no weather in KDE either, but that extension works more stably in KDE)

Hm… Wasn’t there a tray widget that’s hidden by default?

And somehow, after switching to KDE, it seemed to me that KDE is faster than Gnome. What about you?

Hard to tell. Both DEs seemed quite snappy to me, but that might be simply because of my 5800X3D.

To me, it’s unclear where Gnome is headed—they seem to aim for minimalism, but many problems go unfixed for a very long time

Typical FOSS, I’m afraid.

like switching keyboard layouts.

Is that when the most recent layout “gets stuck”? Grinds my gears…

I believe in Cosmic, I want the beta version to come out so I can fully try Cosmic. I tested it a bit before, but it was still rough back then.

Yep, it does look promising. Incidentally, you might be interested in the new Fedora COSMIC Spin (the DE remains in alpha, though).

P.S.: Oops, the COSMIC Spin has been mentioned already… Time to have some sleep, I guess.

[anon79740302]

@anon11259538

KDE basically requires almost no configuration. It’s much quicker to set up compared to Gnome, even though Gnome is minimalist.

Heh, it’s the opposite for me: initial configuration of Plasma always took me a lot of time (I have OCD), whereas setting up GNOME is fast and oddly fun (I find the Settings app downright cozy).

But for me, I don’t really want to use Gnome visually without extensions. Yes, some functions are missing until you set it up, but out of the box, you could say KDE works.

Just use whatever works for you, and ignore all them DE zealots.

[benm (Ben)]

Gnome can always almost do exactly what I want but the process of getting it exactly always falls short or is too complicated. KDE just makes sense for me.

[anon11259538]

Ye, gets stuck switching keyboard layouts. The weather is hidden in the widgets; you just need to add it, right?

[anon79740302]

@anon11259538

Ye, gets stuck switching keyboard layouts.

Hopeably, this MR is going to solve at least some of the issues…

Apply custom input source to lock screen and modal dialogs (!3681) · Merge...

The weather is hidden in the widgets; you just need to add it, right?

Properly speaking, it should be part of the System Tray widget; IIRC, it’s one of the last entries, not shown by default.

[anon79740302]

@anon79740302

Personally, I use only two: apps-menu (which is official) and appindicator (by Ubuntu devs); both come from Fedora’s repos.

P.P.S.: I meant to say places-menu, not apps-menu… The latter can be handy as well, though.