Ubuntu vs Crunchbang

[arcdrag]

Crunchbang works very nicely on aging hardware that isn't quite obsolete yet. For example, my five year old dell laptop with 512 MB ram likely has more unused memory while idle than netbooks with 1 GB memory have while idle when running Vista or 7. On that laptop, Hardy was using about 220 MB ram while idle, whereas #! uses 80-90 MB.

Granted, the default install is far more minimalist, but I absolutely love the idea of installing conky by default and displaying commonly used hotkeys on conky. This is a feature that I really think Ubuntu should try out.

[drawkcab]

Crunchbang is actually a really nicely pre-configured Openbox install, they've done a fantastic job with it. I like both to be honest.

True.

[coldReactive]

Hmm, I was just wondering what DE crunchbang uses, as OpenBox is a Window Manager.

[CJ Master]

Hmm, I was just wondering what DE crunchbang uses, as OpenBox is a Window Manager.

You don't have to have a DE, just a Window Manager. Well, it depends on the WM.

[coldReactive]

You don't have to have a DE, just a Window Manager. Well, it depends on the WM.

Yeah, because compiz I think needs a DE to run.

[Tibuda]

Yeah, because compiz I think needs a DE to run.

No, you can run compiz alone.

[jaxxstorm]

Again, there is NO "vs"! Just as there is no "Vs" between Ubuntu/Debian

Crunchbang is a Ubuntu derivative...

Now if you posted Ubuntu vs Macpup Opera you would have a good subject matter for a new thread.

http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.p...81#post7764781

I haven't seen you reply to a thread without mentioning macpup opera

[itreius]

There's no point in comparing them. For starters, Crunchbang wouldn't be able to exist without Ubuntu. Then there's also the fact that Crunchbang tries to be lightweight, while Ubuntu caters to needs of mainstream users.
I myself prefer ArchLinux for whenever I want a fully customized distro.

[mrgnash]

I like Ubuntu with LXDE at the moment, although Crunchbang is swell too

[XubuRoxMySox]

A desktop environment is not the same thing as a window manager, first of all. A window manager is basically all you need to have a functioning system for your applications. Crunchbang uses a really awesome window manager called Openbox.

Crunchbang does not have a desktop environment (Gnome, KDE, Xfce, LXDE, E17, etc) at all. You get a gorgeous black desktop with a menu of key combinations to reach your applications, like Super+W for the web browser. OR you can right-click the desktop and select from a window that appears.

At first look a newbie would say, "Omygosh... there's nothing to click on!"

That's because there is no desktop environment! And a desktop environment has a lot to do with the speed and functionality of your computer.

I loaded LXDE (the ultra-light desktop environment) into Crunchbang to make it "newbie friendly," but discovered that LXDE doesn't "play nice" with Crunchbang (even though LXDE relies on Openbox). I had forced shutdown issues, sound issues, etc. It turns out that the same persistent buggy issues seem to be common with all the Ubuntu/LXDE derivatives I tried, not just Crunchbang.

Crunchbang works best as is. I learned a lot in my attempts to add a desktop environment, but Crunchbang is not meant for that. It's gorgeous, versatile and powerful just the way it is - and you can customize Conky and wallpaper and all sorts of stuff even without a desktop environment installed.

-Robin