How Easy Can You Make A Linux Desktop Look?

[adamorjames]

Post your screenshots of a Linux desktop(using any DE and WM) looking as simple and easy to use as possible while still including functionality. Basically think of your grandparents or parents or someone who isn't very good with computers and make an easy looking desktop based on that thought. :)
Example: I made the top bar 55px and removed everything and then put a few games on it and then a web browser and OpenOffiice, I also seperated things into categories. For more options I placed a one button menu to the far left(like a start button). Then I customized the bottom panel, added clock and such. I'll post a pic here when I get a chance.

Ready, set... GO! :lolflag:

[adamorjames]

Here is mine
http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/5871/screenshotwh0.th.png (http://img210.imageshack.us/my.php?image=screenshotwh0.png)

[smartboyathome]

O_O I like :) Too bad it would be too big for me to use. ;)

[adamorjames]

O_O I like :) Too bad it would be too big for me to use. ;)

haha thanks :)
I changed it a bit and now it looks better.
http://img125.imageshack.us/img125/9650/screenshot4rv7.th.png (http://img125.imageshack.us/my.php?image=screenshot4rv7.png)

[Baby Boy]

Here is mine
http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/5871/screenshotwh0.th.png (http://img210.imageshack.us/my.php?image=screenshotwh0.png)
And I can't convince my father to switch to Linux because he thinks it's a complicated matrix-text-looking OS that is only for hackers :lolflag:.

[adamorjames]

And I can't convince my father to switch to Linux because he thinks it's a complicated matrix-text-looking OS that is only for hackers :lolflag:.

:lol: where did he get that idea? :lol:

[Baby Boy]

:lol: where did he get that idea? :lol:

Probably that movie "Die Hard 4" we've seen. ;)

[adamorjames]

Probably that movie "Die Hard 4" we've seen. ;)

Oh, I thought he got some of it from you. :lolflag:

[ramjet_1953]

I like the cooler pastels of my desktop. It just seems a bit more relaxing on the eyes.

Regards,
Roger :cool:

[kerry_s]

i did 1 for grandma awhile back with nothing but desktop icons for everything. she loves it.

mines fairly simple i'm sure it would be easy enough for any 1.

[rogers45]

I like the cooler pastels of my desktop. It just seems a bit more relaxing on the eyes.

Regards,
Roger :cool:

Wow very nice, can you make one to me ;)

//

[Salpiche]

I like to keep it clean and with photos of my family or familiar places as my desktop wallpaper.

[adamorjames]

i did 1 for grandma awhile back with nothing but desktop icons for everything. she loves it.

mines fairly simple i'm sure it would be easy enough for any 1.

Very simple :lolflag:
Neat that you are using Debian. I don't see much Debian desktops around here :D

[kerry_s]

Very simple :lolflag:
Neat that you are using Debian. I don't see much Debian desktops around here :D

debian just works better on the old stuff, my laptops a 450mhz 256ram, using the custom install this thing is fast and fully tweaked for low resource.

[xterico]

Hi guys, here is my desktop.

[NightCrawler03X]

Hehe, here's mine.
It's easy to use, it just looks a bit nerdy :)



:) :)

[Baby Boy]

Hehe, here's mine.
It's easy to use, it just looks a bit nerdy :)
:) :)
Ha, ha, very nice. Optical illusion ;).

[lnogueir]

Hi guys, here is my desktop.

Hi!

Can you help-me? I love that top panel with hardware monitor!

Please!

[adamorjames]

Hi!

Can you help-me? I love that top panel with hardware monitor!

Please!

It's called pypanel.

[xterico]

It's called pypanel.

No, its conky with a very simple configuration.

[Nymphadora]

I like the cooler pastels of my desktop. It just seems a bit more relaxing on the eyes.

Regards,
Roger :cool:


That's very pretty and relaxing. I love those soft colors.

[lnogueir]

conkyrc please!

Can you post?

[adamorjames]

No, its conky with a very simple configuration.

Ahh :lolflag: I don't where my brain was/is.

[alwiap]

here's my october desktop, as you can see i only need the interwebs pretty much on my desktop, all i use is ktorrent and occasional amarok, the only few apps i need to use i use in xp. (which i use only when i HAVE to :) )

[dRock1286]

I like the cooler pastels of my desktop. It just seems a bit more relaxing on the eyes.

Regards,
Roger :cool:

what is your wallpaper? where can I get it?

[oxalá]

here's my october desktop, as you can see i only need the interwebs pretty much on my desktop, all i use is ktorrent and occasional amarok, the only few apps i need to use i use in xp. (which i use only when i HAVE to :) )

what theme and icon set are you using?

[Crafty Kisses]

here's my october desktop, as you can see i only need the interwebs pretty much on my desktop, all i use is ktorrent and occasional amarok, the only few apps i need to use i use in xp. (which i use only when i HAVE to :) )

That's pretty easy. :)

[kaurxxl]

My Desktop (http://kaurxxl.deviantart.com/art/My-Desktop-68439317) :P ... well at least I think it is good looking :D

[Baby Boy]

My Desktop (http://kaurxxl.deviantart.com/art/My-Desktop-68439317) :P ... well at least I think it is good looking :D

I like it, the wallpaper looks good black and white. I'm guessing you're into biking?

[jr.gotti]

http://s26.photobucket.com/albums/c122/jrgotti/?action=view&current=Screenshot-1.jpg

there she be!

[kaurxxl]

I like it, the wallpaper looks good black and white. I'm guessing you're into biking?
Well yea :D ... that's me in that wallpaper ...

http://s26.photobucket.com/albums/c122/jrgotti/?action=view&current=Screenshot-1.jpg

there she be!
I like that dock there :)

[jr.gotti]

I like that dock there :)

AWN with the Curves extension compiled in...it's on the forums here somewhere. =]

[xterico]

conkyrc please!

Can you post?

Sorry man, i was offline for a week, this conf is from http://www.gnome-look.org/content/show.php/Another+conky+scripts?content=58555

[Tyr_7BE]

here's my october desktop, as you can see i only need the interwebs pretty much on my desktop, all i use is ktorrent and occasional amarok, the only few apps i need to use i use in xp. (which i use only when i HAVE to :) )

That's the best one yet if you ask me. That or maybe the first one. Sparse, minimalistic, but still pretty and the fonts look beautiful. And you get huge bonus points for having Compiz-Fusion drawing the drop shadows. Drop shadows, when done properly, make a desktop look simple and elegant. The only thing I would have done differently is maybe not have a terminal as the app you're showing. Yes it looks nice, but terminals aren't easy. Show off a web browser or something else that doesn't scare people.

Guys, the whole point of this thread is how EASY can you make your linux desktop work. If you want to show off desktops that display kernel stats or have terminal backgrounds, or usse FVWM, there are other places for that. The point of this thread is to collect shots that comfort people who are afraid of computers.

[BLTicklemonster]

http://img137.imageshack.us/img137/8910/simpledesktopdz0.th.png (http://img137.imageshack.us/my.php?image=simpledesktopdz0.png)

Here's my icewm desktop. Pretty simple.

[BLTicklemonster]

I like the cooler pastels of my desktop. It just seems a bit more relaxing on the eyes.

Regards,
Roger :cool:

OooooWeeeee! I like that wallpaper! Where can it be found, if you don't mind me asking?

[Baby Boy]

http://img137.imageshack.us/img137/8910/simpledesktopdz0.th.png (http://img137.imageshack.us/my.php?image=simpledesktopdz0.png)

Here's my icewm desktop. Pretty simple.
You could work on those fonts.
It's nice, but too sharp for my taste.

[SM0k3]

Here's mine. Suggestions welcomed I'm all for a better looking but simple desktop :)

[smartboyathome]

Here's mine. Suggestions welcomed I'm all for a better looking but simple desktop :)

I would say move the window and desktop switchers to the top bar and delete the bottom bar.

[SM0k3]

I would say move the window and desktop switchers to the top bar and delete the bottom bar.

Good suggestion, Thanks. I almost forgot I could remove the taskbar down there. Think I'll give your customizing guide a look also :popcorn:

[BLTicklemonster]

You could work on those fonts.
It's nice, but too sharp for my taste.
Well....
Basically think of your grandparents or parents or someone who isn't very good with computers and make an easy looking desktop based on that thought. :)

[Gremlinzzz]

ok so grandma and gramps can use it easy .i made the icons large so they would have no problem seeing it and made it simple to use.:guitar: http://ubuntuforums.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=48945&stc=1&d=1194114251

[adamorjames]

ok so grandma and gramps can use it easy .i made the icons large so they would have no problem seeing it and made it simple to use.:guitar: http://ubuntuforums.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=48945&stc=1&d=1194114251

:lolflag:

[Baby Boy]

ok so grandma and gramps can use it easy .i made the icons large so they would have no problem seeing it and made it simple to use.:guitar: http://ubuntuforums.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=48945&stc=1&d=1194114251
Are you sure they'll be able to find a way to browse the world wide web? :-k

[adamorjames]

Are you sure they'll be able to find a way to browse the world wide web? :-k

Make it start up with the web browser open. :D

[sistoviejo]

Here's my october desktop:

http://ubuntuforums.org/showpost.php?p=3682207&postcount=973

I would remove the 4 gdesklets that are placed under the analog clock (cpu, memory, host and wlan info) to make it simpler.
Otherwise I think it looks cute and simple.

What do you think? :)

[adamorjames]

Here's my october desktop:

http://ubuntuforums.org/showpost.php?p=3682207&postcount=973

I would remove the 4 gdesklets that are placed under the analog clock (cpu, memory, host and wlan info) to make it simpler.
Otherwise I think it looks cute and simple.

What do you think? :)

Yeah it would be simple. The background may be too complex though :lolflag:.

[Gremlinzzz]

nice I like it .mines a work in progress just added a bottom panel bar i removed from a theme. have brown and blue one ,you wouldn't know how i can change the logo on main menu which i got from add to panel.
http://ubuntuforums.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=49002&stc=1&d=1194142694

[adamorjames]

nice I like it .mines a work in progress just added a bottom panel bar i removed from a theme. have brown and blue one ,you wouldn't know how i can change the logo on main menu which i got from add to panel.
http://ubuntuforums.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=49002&stc=1&d=1194142694

Ahh the second one is awesome. The trash can needs to be gray or white though. Awesome man.

[Gremlinzzz]

Yeah your right about that trash can.thats easy to change thxs. like i said its a work in progress.:guitar:

[It_Was_Luck]

Heres mine... I like it a lot at the moment.


http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/3025/screenshot1ij1.th.png (http://img145.imageshack.us/my.php?image=screenshot1ij1.png)

[Gremlinzzz]

found a white trash can from the same theme i got the panel bar from looks better.now i have to find wallpaper. im using the systems default backgrounds.
http://www.gnome-look.org/content/show.php/LiNsta+3+%28Linux+is+Not+Vista%29?content=44570

[smartboyathome]

found a white trash can from the same theme i got the panel bar from looks better.now i have to find wallpaper. im using the systems default backgrounds.
http://www.gnome-look.org/content/show.php/LiNsta+3+%28Linux+is+Not+Vista%29?content=44570

Ah, your using the "Dropline Neu!" icons. I always liked them. :) Anyway, good work, I think that desktop looks great!

[sistoviejo]

Yeah it would be simple. The background may be too complex though :lolflag:.

you're right teh background is hard to understand :lolflag:

[rzrgenesys187]

Here's mine, keep it pretty simple so i guess its not very interesting. Running Beryl

[Gremlinzzz]

Thats it this is my theme i look like a commercial for linux.guess im not that good at matching themes .

[sistoviejo]

Thats it this is my theme i look like a commercial for linux.guess im not that good at matching themes .

how do you change the icon for the gnome menu?

[smartboyathome]

how do you change the icon for the gnome menu?

Change the distributor logo for your icon theme (which will either be located in /usr/share/icons or ~/.icons) and update your icon theme.

[Gremlinzzz]

how do you change the icon for the gnome menu?

it change with the icon theme i installed
http://www.gnome-look.org/content/show.php/LiNsta+3+%28Linux+is+Not+Vista%29?content=44570
the Neu just drag and drop the package to themes then choose install

[Gremlinzzz]

it change with the icon theme i installed
http://www.gnome-look.org/content/show.php/LiNsta+3+%28Linux+is+Not+Vista%29?content=44570
the Neu just drag and drop the package to themes then choose install

go to preferences then appearance choose theme tab then drag package to the window a choice pop up will appear choose install.case noobs read this:lolflag:

[sistoviejo]

go to preferences then appearance choose theme tab then drag package to the window a choice pop up will appear choose install.case noobs read this:lolflag:

that worked for me.
thx!

[santiagoward2000]

Wow!! They look awsome!! I really need to learn that desktops can be cool and simple!

[gekaare]

This is what my grandma easily understands :)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2315/1896751596_6e3eeba184.jpg?v=0

[adamorjames]

This is what my grandma easily understands :)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2315/1896751596_6e3eeba184.jpg?v=0

ooh that's nice man you did that for her?

[santiagoward2000]

This is what my grandma easily understands :)

Beautiful!

[gekaare]

ooh that's nice man you did that for her?

Well, not really hehe. But the sudoku game is for her :) I made it this way because I felt the workspace on my laptop was very narrowed down by the top and bottom bars. I made a thread asking help to make a mockup also to further improve this thing I have going on here. I feel there is more room for improvements. Check it out and please comment, it isn't finished yet but help is appreciated :)

http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=604609

[Gremlinzzz]

My last try for grandpeople if they cant use this i quit

[flegory]

Pretty boring w/o desktop effects. http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o146/flegory/Screenshot.png

[Gremlinzzz]

My new system never have any problems with programs.

[rzrgenesys187]

how do you change the icon for the gnome menu?

In the terminal type gconf-editor. apps >> panel >> objects. Then scroll down through the objects until you find one who's object_type is a menu-object. In this object, at the bottom check the use_custom_icon checkbox. Scroll back up and where it says custom_icon, type the location of the icon you want to the right of custom_icon.

If you can't understand any of this just comment back. I'll try to check this thread.

EDIT: Sorry didn't realize he already solved this. Should've read the last page :)

[Nooreazy]

http://img219.imageshack.us/img219/773/screenshotjh6.th.png (http://img219.imageshack.us/my.php?image=screenshotjh6.png)
Heres mine :D

I just need some good icons and learn how to set em up :(

[Nooreazy]

This is what my grandma easily understands :)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2315/1896751596_6e3eeba184.jpg?v=0
Can i get a hi-rez image?
it looks effing awsome man

[sistoviejo]

In the terminal type gconf-editor. apps >> panel >> objects. Then scroll down through the objects until you find one who's object_type is a menu-object. In this object, at the bottom check the use_custom_icon checkbox. Scroll back up and where it says custom_icon, type the location of the icon you want to the right of custom_icon.

If you can't understand any of this just comment back. I'll try to check this thread.

EDIT: Sorry didn't realize he already solved this. Should've read the last page :)

actually I had changed the icon theme.
This helped me change the start icon.
thx!

[gekaare]

Can i get a hi-rez image?
it looks effing awsome man

Thanks, nice that you like it. I am also open to ideas of any kind to improve further. The screenshot is uploaded to Flickr if that helps

http://www.flickr.com/photos/18636993@N08/

[Gremlinzzz]

http://img219.imageshack.us/img219/773/screenshotjh6.th.png (http://img219.imageshack.us/my.php?image=screenshotjh6.png)
Heres mine :D

I just need some good icons and learn how to set em up :(

im using these icons u might like or maybe not .to install download package to desktop.
http://www.gnome-look.org/content/show.php?content=38835
then right click desktop click change desktop background then click themes tab. drag icon package you downloaded to the themes window a popup will appear click install or i think it says use theme click that. if you want to uninstall it just go to home folder view check show hidden files in there will be icon folder open and delete the folder inside NEU is the folders name.

[tokinux]

The simplest part about mine is that i've provided my less-than-willing family members easy access to their windoze files :p

[rainwalker]

Here's mine
The only thing I don't like is that the dark theme doesn't always play nice with programs...

[MrSpiffdifilous]

Heres mine. I condensed all the menu's at the top into one single menu because I didn't like having multiple menus up there. The taskbar at the bottom also retracts to the side of the screen when I don't feel like looking at it. I like not having it on the screen all the time but found it to be a pain to not have it at all.http://fc02.deviantart.com/fs22/f/2007/316/e/f/Linux_Made_Simple_2_by_ravinlunatik69.png

I kinda caught the screenshot utility bursting away but oh well, you get the picture. Sorry for the image being so big.