I’m relatively new to the linux space, I was introduced by the steam deck which uses kde, and it’s pretty similar to windows in terms of how it works so that’s the DE i’d be leaning towards when I eventually switch. I’ve never used gnome so i’m not sure if it’d be worth using I guess?
So I’m just looking for some input from the community, do you use Gnome or Plasma, why do you use it, and what’s kind of like a pros and cons kinda thing between the two?
KDE Plasma. It makes sense to me and everything functions more or less how I prefer it to. If I need something, it’s usually easy enough to find. Plasma being flexible is a plus, but I rarely need to do any modifications.
I loathe GNOME. Any time I use it it’s like pulling teeth. On a touch surface I can maybe get it, but on desktop I honestly think it has some serious usability problems cooked in. And since GNOME extensions can break at any time, trying to “fix” GNOME is a losing battle. If I had to use GNOME, I’d install GNOME Classic which is ok. Or better yet, use XFCE or MATE. GNOME is highly opinionated and that’s fair enough, they can do their thing and people seem to like what they offer, but boy is it not for me.
GNOME on desktop is built for keyboard-centric workflows, it really shines when you don’t need to use the mouse. I’ll also say that the official extensions do not break, that’s why they’re official. Third party extensions can and do break and have weird wonky behavior, because they’re not up to the same standards.
It’s certainly not for everyone, but a big part of the reason some people have such negative views of it is because they install a bunch of third party extensions to change it into something it was never designed for, and then inevitably there are bugs or conflicts or updates break some of them. A vanilla GNOME environment with maybe a couple judiciously picked third party extensions is a very comfy experience.
Neither, XFCE.
Plasma.
As a Linux convert from Windows, IMO it’s really close in look and feel to Windows 7 or 10 but with none of the bullshit. You barely have to change your workflow if you’re already used to Windows.
I use and love both. KDE (Bazzite) on my desktop gaming PC, and Gnome (Bluefin) on my laptop for casual stuff, mostly YouTube.
KDE is a bit better for gaming since it has HDR and VRR and is the standard DE on the Steam Deck. I tried Gnome too just a few days ago, but it felt inferior in regards of gaming and content creation.
Gnome on the other hand has a place reserved on my laptop aswell as in my heart. Especially the ultra smooth and well thought out touch gestures and minimalist UI makes it perfect for laptop usage.
For me personally, I prefer Gnome over KDE. KDE is a bit more capable, but it overwhelms me sometimes. Gnome has a better concept and workflow for me. You either love or hate it, I do the first.
Both KDE and GNOME are good DEs (and there are many other great ones, and you don’t even need to use a DE; a mismash of applications with your compositor of choice works just aswell - but I digress), you can’t really go wrong with either.
For someone new to Linux, I would likely recommend GNOME, because it is more opinionated. While KDE is a lot more configurable, that also has a huge downside: configuration fatigue. GNOME is more restrictive, yes, but that has the advantage of not overwhelming you right out of the box.
If you like and wish to tinker, though, go with KDE. If you want to gently ease into Linux, go with GNOME first, and once you’re comfortable, you can still experiment with KDE. You can install both, and switch between them simply by logging out of one and into the other.
I use KDE as I can set it up just how I like it. I never got on with Gnome at all. The truth of it is that the only way to know if you prefer Gnome to KDE is to give it a good try out. Don’t forget Cinnamon, Xfce, and Mate also!
Check Bodhi Linux’s Moksha Desktop. Pretty lightweight and does work
I’m using Cinnamon, I find it better when using a customized Cinnamenu applet (instead of the default app launcher).
I used KDE Plasma for a long time ever since I started daily-driving Linux.
I like how KDE Plasma allows quite a surprising amount of customization. I also had some experience with Gnome via Ubuntu, and XFCE. Gnome looks polished, but doesn’t allow for much customization. XFCE is a lot more customizable than Gnome, but getting it to look quite right took a lot of effort.
Does XFCE today look any less late 90s than when I tried it 10 years ago?
God no.
Can’t really remember much of how it looked out of the box, since I proceeded to customize it quite heavily. However, though my memory is fuzzy, I remember it looking like a combination of Windows XP and mid 2010’s Ubuntu.
Checking with the xfce website, they have this screenshot of one of their latest versions:
I’m OK with GNOME.
I use both: GNOME works better for a desktop, KDE Plasma works better for a laptop.
There are more than those 2 options for a Desktop Environment, by the way ;)
yeah i know but as an entry level user it just seems like they’re the two most popular and they must be for a reason, I’m sure I’ll explore more in the future
I personally can’t stand any other options except for Cinnamon (since it got a redesign) and a few distro-specific ones. That’s just me though. Explore away!
I’ll be honest I didn’t even know cinnamon and plasma were different things till making this post, they look and feel so similar from the little bit I’ve used them.
Funny, I have the opposite opinion. Gnome is great on laptops, especially 2in1s. KDE Plasma is a great desktop PC environment.
I have a potato laptop, so GNOME is a little too heavy on it. I think KDE Plasma would be fine for a desktop, but I’m addicted to GNOME
KDE since I hand compiled a 2.0 beta.
I tried a lot of desktop environments and I think KDE is the best one, games runs much better than GNOME while the desktop is so smart and many features… I really tried so hard GNOME but the UI sucks, it is slower running games, there are missing options very important for me that KDE has, so for me GNOME is a NO for working/gaming purposes.
Unless you’re barely meeting the minimum specs for a game, on a properly configured system any impact on game performance between the two should be a rounding error.
But that’s the theory, when I run games on GNOME the games and desktop itself looks laggy, on KDE 4 I still noticed some lag while with KDE 5 I feel almost like playing on i3wm, with 3iwm you can run many games faster and with less lag than many Windows users (my Windows friends normally have more issues than me). While KDE 5 is my second-best option, there is no third for me. Or i3wm or KDE for gaming. And normally my PC specs stands higher than the recommended on many games (also new ones). If you can test it and provide some feedback would be great.
Gnome. Love how it just gets out of the way and let’s me do whatever I want without interruptions.
Plasma on the desktop with the 40" 4K screen with lotsa windows and desktops. Gnome on the laptop, each app full-screen and swipe left-right to switch between them.
Are you gaming on that screen, video editing, or something else? Just curious about the use case for the 40 incher. I feel like I’d be in a neck brace w/ all that real estate.
it’s way less neck strain than the usual dual 24" side-by-side. this is like having 4x 20" 1080p screens in a grid but without the annoying bezels, and that’s how I’m mostly using it. plus you have the option to expand a window in any direction when you need it, which you can’t do in a multi-monitor setup. I arrange the windows in a 2x2 grid, or go smaller, usually 3x2 with keyboard shortcuts, by way of Better Quick Tiles for Plasma 6 (Kwin extension). tried the auto-tilers, hated 'em.
when I’m done with work, jellyfin-media-player in Fullscreen TV mode with a $5 bluetooth remote from the couch for movies and shows.
gaming sure, I run the games in 1080p and the desktop in 4k, so older games allow me to turn on FSR. had problems with Gnome Shell crashing regularly, zero crashes since I switched to Plasma.
That is cool, thanks for describing your setup. I currently have a single 1440p monitor and love having more real estate than a single 1080p screen, but have often longed for a second screen, even a 1080p screen in portrait mode perhaps, idk.
So your computer desk is in your living room and you just move the chair out of the way when you want to watch TV from the couch?
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Dope. What game are we looking at in that photo?
Far Cry 5, running in 1080p on a 2160p desktop (alt-tabbing doesn’t switch resolutions, so jumping back and forth is seamless)
