KDE.... aaaarrrrrrrrrggggggg

[BrokenKingpin]

Lately I have been jumping from DE to DE trying to figure out what I want to use for my primary machines. I was a long time Gnome2 user, and I just didn't feel conformable in Gnome3 or Unity (after using them both for a few weeks).

So lately I have tried LXDE, which I found very fast, but I had issues with power management stuff (screen not turning off, not hibernating when inactive, etc). I then tried Xfce, where I had some hanging issues and similar power management issues as I did in LXDE. Also, X crashes 50% of the time I try and shutdown my machine.

So then I tried KDE (Kubuntu 11.10). I have tried KDE a few times over the last year or so, and with each release it gets better, but there is always something that keeps me from using it full time. I love the design of the plasma desktop though, so I really want to like it.

I just seem to run into so many little issues that keep me from using it:
- My clock refuses to go to a 12 hour format, even though that is what is specified in the region settings
- The KDE wallet... it just annoys me to no end. I put a password in for my wireless connection, but it fails to look it up when my machine boots.
- Themes... for whatever reason I cannot find a theme that I like, and if I do it makes my machine crash or everything just goes crazy.
- Seems a but bloated for my netbook. I tried the low fat package, which sped things up, but it also made everything look like crap.
- Everything just seems overly complicated... takes me 15 minutes to find any config options I am looking for.

With each Kubuntu release I really want to like KDE and stick with it, but I just can't do it. I guess I will try it again in 12.04. I am not saying KDE is terrible by any means, I am just venting a bit.

Seems like everything has changed overnight from what I have been used to in the last decade, and I just can't seem to find something I can live with on a day to day basis. I think at this point Xfce is probably the closes thing to what I am looking for, so hopefully 11.10 of Xubuntu has ironed out some of the issues I had with the previous version.

[2F4U]

So lately I have tried LXDE, which I found very fast, but I had issues with power management stuff (screen not turning off, not hibernating when inactive, etc). I then tried Xfce, where I had some hanging issues and similar power management issues as I did in LXDE. Also, X crashes 50% of the time I try and shutdown my machine.

As far as I know, LXDE uses the power management from XFCE, since there is no LXDE specific package. It needs time to get used to KDE since it has its own philosophy and therefore is very different from Gnome or XFCE. If you are not willing to invest this time, its probably better to use something different.

[PaulW2U]

- Everything just seems overly complicated... takes me 15 minutes to find any config options I am looking for.

Persevere. I tried Kubuntu many times and gave up many times before I eventually stuck with it. Now I use nothing else.


If you are not willing to invest this time, its probably better to use something different.

Good advice. I've always disliked the KDE defaults. It took me a long time to get the look and feel that I have now.

[NormanFLinux]

Lately I have been jumping from DE to DE trying to figure out what I want to use for my primary machines. I was a long time Gnome2 user, and I just didn't feel conformable in Gnome3 or Unity (after using them both for a few weeks).

So lately I have tried LXDE, which I found very fast, but I had issues with power management stuff (screen not turning off, not hibernating when inactive, etc). I then tried Xfce, where I had some hanging issues and similar power management issues as I did in LXDE. Also, X crashes 50% of the time I try and shutdown my machine.

So then I tried KDE (Kubuntu 11.10). I have tried KDE a few times over the last year or so, and with each release it gets better, but there is always something that keeps me from using it full time. I love the design of the plasma desktop though, so I really want to like it.

I just seem to run into so many little issues that keep me from using it:
- My clock refuses to go to a 12 hour format, even though that is what is specified in the region settings
- The KDE wallet... it just annoys me to no end. I put a password in for my wireless connection, but it fails to look it up when my machine boots.
- Themes... for whatever reason I cannot find a theme that I like, and if I do it makes my machine crash or everything just goes crazy.
- Seems a but bloated for my netbook. I tried the low fat package, which sped things up, but it also made everything look like crap.
- Everything just seems overly complicated... takes me 15 minutes to find any config options I am looking for.

With each Kubuntu release I really want to like KDE and stick with it, but I just can't do it. I guess I will try it again in 12.04. I am not saying KDE is terrible by any means, I am just venting a bit.

Seems like everything has changed overnight from what I have been used to in the last decade, and I just can't seem to find something I can live with on a day to day basis. I think at this point Xfce is probably the closes thing to what I am looking for, so hopefully 11.10 of Xubuntu has ironed out some of the issues I had with the previous version.

All the Linux DE's are modular. Enlightenment e17 is the most modular of them all. You basically build it the way you like it. In the end, they more or less work.

[wolfen69]

You're trying to use it on a netbook? It's way too heavy for that. I'm using Kubuntu 11.10 64 on my i5 quad core laptop, and it runs perfectly. I've never been a huge fan of K in the past because of little niggles, but with K 4.7, it seems to be very solid and works great. I don't worry about changing the theme, and just change the wallpaper. Overall, I'm very impressed with the latest Kubuntu release.

[dniMretsaM]

Lately I have been jumping from DE to DE trying to figure out what I want to use for my primary machines. I was a long time Gnome2 user, and I just didn't feel conformable in Gnome3 or Unity (after using them both for a few weeks).

Thank you for actually giving Unity fair chance and not coming on here after using it for half an hour with a 2 page essay on why it's the worst thing ever! (Can you tell I'm a little annoyed?)



- My clock refuses to go to a 12 hour format, even though that is what is specified in the region settings

That's weird. Mine runs on 12 hour time. I actually think I'll see if I can switch it. If I figure it out, I;ll let you know. In the mean time, file a bug report.



- The KDE wallet... it just annoys me to no end. I put a password in for my wireless connection, but it fails to look it up when my machine boots.

System Settings -> Account Details -> KDE Wallet -> untick Enable the KDE wallet subsystem
That should turn it off.


- Themes... for whatever reason I cannot find a theme that I like, and if I do it makes my machine crash or everything just goes crazy.

It's possible that the cause of this is the semi-recent release of KDE 4.7.x and a some themes might not work on it correctly yet. I just use the Oxygen theme that comes with it (I prefer the black theme to the default Air, which is gray-ish).


- Seems a but bloated for my netbook. I tried the low fat package, which sped things up, but it also made everything look like crap.

LOLOLOLOL.
Ok, sorry for the outburst, but KDE is not meant for netbooks. It's the heaviest of the popular DE's (KDE, GNOME, LXDE, and Xfce). I run it on a 9 yo desktop w/ the low fat package and it still runs faster than my old XP install did. So I'm Ok with it. Would love to see it run on a more modern machine though! :p


- Everything just seems overly complicated... takes me 15 minutes to find any config options I am looking for.

It does kinda have that feel, but eventually you get to know where stuff it and it becomes easier. I recommend you make good use of the search function (either KRunner or the search within System Settings itself).

Good luck!

[BrokenKingpin]

LOLOLOLOL.
Ok, sorry for the outburst, but KDE is not meant for netbooks. It's the heaviest of the popular DE's (KDE, GNOME, LXDE, and Xfce). I run it on a 9 yo desktop w/ the low fat package and it still runs faster than my old XP install did. So I'm Ok with it. Would love to see it run on a more modern machine though! :p

Well, the netbook is fairly recent and can run Unity and Gnome3 without issues. And I figured because KDE has a netbook interface it might run okay lol. The interface itself is actually really nice for a netbook, just too sluggish.

[wolfen69]

Well, the netbook is fairly recent and can run Unity and Gnome3 without issues. And I figured because KDE has a netbook interface it might run okay lol. The interface itself is actually really nice for a netbook, just too sluggish.

On my netbook, Unity was a tad slow, (with an ssd no less) so I installed Lubuntu on it and now it runs great and the power functions also work well. Maybe you could do a minimal install?

[dniMretsaM]

Well, the netbook is fairly recent and can run Unity and Gnome3 without issues. And I figured because KDE has a netbook interface it might run okay lol. The interface itself is actually really nice for a netbook, just too sluggish.

I see where you're coming from (new netbook, KDE's netbook interface, etc.), but I doubt it would work out real great (as it apparently didn't). I would recommend Lubuntu on any netbook, personally. KDE on pretty much anything else.

[BrokenKingpin]

I did have Lubuntu (11.04 I think) on my netbook for a while, but for whatever reason it would not automatically hibernate when inactive. The screen would turn off, and eventually it would just run out of battery and hard shutdown. I could not resolve it for the life of me. I might give Lubuntu 11.10 a try though.

[FuturePilot]

I put a password in for my wireless connection, but it fails to look it up when my machine boots.


Wireless has been broken on KDE since KDE 4 was released. The KDE front end to network-manager just sucks.

[ubupirate]

You're trying to use it on a netbook? It's way too heavy for that. I'm using Kubuntu 11.10 64 on my i5 quad core laptop, and it runs perfectly. I've never been a huge fan of K in the past because of little niggles, but with K 4.7, it seems to be very solid and works great. I don't worry about changing the theme, and just change the wallpaper. Overall, I'm very impressed with the latest Kubuntu release.

Kubuntu also seemed to work nicely on my AMD Athlon II quad-core also when I played around with it. Only a few "lag" bits here and there, maybe because I was trying to do too many things at once on it. lol

[dniMretsaM]

Wireless has been broken on KDE since KDE 4 was released. The KDE front end to network-manager just sucks.

Just curious but when was the last time you tried it? I know there have been major enhancements in 4.7 alone. That really has nothing to do with the wallet asking for his password, though.

[MG&TL]

...when I see others' KDE setups, they look awesome. Then when I use it, it just irritates me.

I think the thing that most annoys is the feeling of:

"OMG they tried to prettify a command-line by making it transparent and giving it tabs. It's a command-line!It's not meant to be pretty"

Although I've only tried kubuntu. Apparently Ku- is a fairly pathetic KDE distro (although I couldn't see a problem). Might have to try SUSE or Mandriva or something.

[dniMretsaM]

Apparently Ku- is a fairly pathetic KDE distro (although I couldn't see a problem).

Never really understood why people say this. Seems pretty awesome to me.

[MG&TL]

Never really understood why people say this. Seems pretty awesome to me.


Looks pretty awesome to me too. Meh. I won't know until I try another one.

[FuturePilot]

Just curious but when was the last time you tried it? I know there have been major enhancements in 4.7 alone. That really has nothing to do with the wallet asking for his password, though.

I didn't say it did have anything to do with the wallet. But the last time I tried was 11.04 and it was still broken. Also tried with various different wireless hardware. It would never automatically connect to my network.

[cariboo]

If Kubuntu seems to be running a bit slow on your netbook, give the kubuntu-low-fat-settings package a try, it is supposed to reduce memory usage by 30% and decrease boot times by 33%. I'm just about to try it myself. I'll report back with my findings. I'm just waiting for the iso to finish downloading. :)

Edit: by adding the kubuntu-low-fat-settings package, boot time was reduced by 11 seconds, and ram usage dropped by 50MiB. If I didn't find KDE so annoying, I'd run it on my netbook.

[dniMretsaM]

If Kubuntu seems to be running a bit slow on your netbook, give the kubuntu-low-fat-settings package a try, it is supposed to reduce memory usage by 30% and decrease boot times by 33%. I'm just about to try it myself. I'll report back with my findings. I'm just waiting for the iso to finish downloading. :)

Edit: by adding the kubuntu-low-fat-settings package, boot time was reduced by 11 seconds, and ram usage dropped by 50MiB. If I didn't find KDE so annoying, I'd run it on my netbook.

He already tried that. Tl;dr :p

[jefelex]

He already tried that. Tl;dr :p

I have KDE installed as a option, but I hardly ever use it - I am a gnome classic guy myself, Been steeped with gnome for years and it's difficult to "graduate" to something else! :-) I'm not sure what I'm gonna do once gnome as I know it is gone - Unity is too much like apple (don't like it at all) KDE is fancy, but I don't require all that eye candy. Makes me really reluctant to move up to 11.10, since the gnome I'm used to is not supported, and I've heard that if you upgrade to 11.10, it wipes out the desktop you've worked for years to refine and perfect. Might move to Debian and import my desktop as is to it (take a bit of work, but at least its not likely to change much for the foreseeable future!)

I really think it's unfortunate that Ubu have gone this route thinking "we know what is better for our users" (We know where that comes from!!)

Oh well - just have to use what there is, and enjoy it!

[T.J.]

It's been my experience with 11.10 that you might be better off using Kubuntu's updated KDE 4.7.2 PPA. There are a few bugs in the KDE packages that were released with 11.10.

I don't know if it will fix your specific problem, but it is most definitely a place to start.

[dniMretsaM]

It's been my experience with 11.10 that you might be better off using Kubuntu's updated KDE 4.7.2 PPA. There are a few bugs in the KDE packages that were released with 11.10.

I don't know if it will fix your specific problem, but it is most definitely a place to start.

I've actually been considering upgrading to 4.7.2. You say it's good, huh?

[NormanFLinux]

Wireless has been broken on KDE since KDE 4 was released. The KDE front end to network-manager just sucks.

PCLOS uses its own Internet connection, as I believe Mandriva does. Has always worked for me.

[wolfen69]

I might give Lubuntu 11.10 a try though.
Let us know how it goes. I couldn't be happier with lubuntu on my netbook. It's like it was made for it. Nothing wrong with that, eh?

[viperdvman]

So then I tried KDE (Kubuntu 11.10). I have tried KDE a few times over the last year or so, and with each release it gets better, but there is always something that keeps me from using it full time. I love the design of the plasma desktop though, so I really want to like it.

I just seem to run into so many little issues that keep me from using it:
- My clock refuses to go to a 12 hour format, even though that is what is specified in the region settings
- The KDE wallet... it just annoys me to no end. I put a password in for my wireless connection, but it fails to look it up when my machine boots.
- Themes... for whatever reason I cannot find a theme that I like, and if I do it makes my machine crash or everything just goes crazy.
- Seems a but bloated for my netbook. I tried the low fat package, which sped things up, but it also made everything look like crap.
- Everything just seems overly complicated... takes me 15 minutes to find any config options I am looking for.


What kind of netbook are you running and how much RAM are you running on it? I've run the Kubuntu 11.04 and 11.10 LiveUSBs on my netbook and it runs pretty nicely on it. Then again, I have an AMD "Nile" V105 with ATI Radeon HD 4250 and 2GB RAM.

For the record, there are both Desktop and Netbook workspaces for KDE Plasma. Just go into Workspace Behavior under your settings, and you can change it from Desktop to Netbook, or Netbook to Desktop. If you're installing Kubuntu on a netbook, then it probably loaded up the netbook interface by default. I honestly like running both.

It's great that you've given each desktop environment a fair chance... especially with each release of Ubuntu. Hope you find your home in one of them :)

[wolfen69]

It's great that you've given each desktop environment a fair chance... especially with each release of Ubuntu. Hope you find your home in one of them :)

I've found it. My home is Ubuntu. Using any other OS is unacceptable.

[Ric_NYC]

Activities > Search and Launch



If you use a small, portable device such as a netbook, then Plasma Netbook is the KDE Workspace for you as it was built specifically for those kinds of devices. Its user interface that has been custom tailored to the usage patterns associated with these kinds of devices and can therefore help you get the most out of your portable devices.

http://www.kde.org/workspaces/plasmanetbook/

[kvvv]

- The KDE wallet... it just annoys me to no end. I put a password in for my wireless connection, but it fails to look it up when my machine boots.

Weird, when it asks for the password tell it remember it. Or search for wallet settings in either the menu or the system settings and see if you can do something.



- Themes... for whatever reason I cannot find a theme that I like, and if I do it makes my machine crash or everything just goes crazy[quote]
I agree this is somewhat tough, and setting the system theme is harder than gnome2. I can only suggest a few things. Ambiance theme for plasma is very nice.
Also in application appearance in the style tab, try out one of the other styles.

[QUOTE=BrokenKingpin;11375819] I am not saying KDE is terrible by any means, I am just venting a bit.


Yeah, but IMO it's the best desktop available now.

[T.J.]

I've actually been considering upgrading to 4.7.2. You say it's good, huh?

I'd say "adequate." I tested it in VirtualBox 4.1.4 and it seemed a better version that the officially released one with 11.10. In my case, "kpackage" was broken until I went to the PPA.

I really do wish you the best of luck. Perhaps an LTS release might work better.



I'm going to go out on a limb, and say for posterity that my experience with the last two Ubuntu releases have not been positive ones. Despite best efforts, bugs just don't fixed within the rigid 6 month timeframe. This is not a criticism, just an observation. I'd guess that Canonical devotes what resources they have to officially supported packages.

The rest are taken straight from Debian Unstable, and might miss out on whatever patches Debian makes after that.

[dniMretsaM]

I'd say "adequate." I tested it in VirtualBox 4.1.4 and it seemed a better version that the officially released one with 11.10. In my case, "kpackage" was broken until I went to the PPA.

I really do wish you the best of luck. Perhaps an LTS release might work better.



I'm going to go out on a limb, and say for posterity that my experience with the last two Ubuntu releases have not been positive ones. Despite best efforts, bugs just don't fixed within the rigid 6 month timeframe. This is not a criticism, just an observation. I'd guess that Canonical devotes what resources they have to officially supported packages.

The rest are taken straight from Debian Unstable, and might miss out on whatever patches Debian makes after that.

Nah, I don't want an LTS version. Oneiric works great for me. As for me, all 3 versions of *buntu that I have used have been great. And no, packages are not taken from Debian Unstable. Most packages are the version deemed stable by the devs (there are a few exceptions, but not many).

[T.J.]

And no, packages are not taken from Debian Unstable. Most packages are the version deemed stable by the devs (there are a few exceptions, but not many).

Fair enough, I stand corrected. =) I've never kept up with the exact mechanism that Ubuntu uses to select packages from Debian. I imagine part of my ignorance is from the fact I usually just use Debian out of habit, and I try to take pains to avoid too much friction. Debian is far easier to modify IMHO - but I like most of what Canonical is trying to do with Ubuntu.

From what I tested, I hope that the PPA works for you if you try it. So far so good as far as I can tell.

Take care.