Best Linux Desktop GUI?

[dalekphalm]

Hey Guys,

 

Been thinking about installing Linux as a secondary system again (VMWare Player to start, possibly multi-boot later).

 

I've used several distro's in the past: Fedora (Core 7, quite old) and Ubuntu the most. I'd LIKE to stick with one of those, but am open to distro's that are branches or based off of those two (Or something else if you can REALLY convince me).

 

So my question, which is the best Desktop GUI? I'd prefer something similar in feel to Windows 7, or something incredibly awesome that's different. I do NOT want anything like OS X (One of my friends is using a GUI that looks like OS X with the apps bar thing at the bottom).

 

Which Desktop gui/distro combo do you prefer, and why? Screenshots would be preferred as well of your actual desktops so I can see real-world desktop use/appearance.

 

I tried Ubuntu 12 with Unity, and it was very pretty looking, but didn't seem that useful in actual usage.

 

I also want something with as much GUI as possible. I do NOT want to go into Terminal unless I'm just messing around or for learning.

 

So... Linux Guru's... suggestions?

[raxx]

Check out Mint's options as well. It is based on Ubuntu but it gives you a few more desktop options. I might go with Mint when I build my new system next week.

[raxx]

Also, using the terminal is where some of the best stuff in Linux is found. It might look scary, but it is really easy if you search the web or have a good book.

[Hans Christian | Teri]

The terminal is indeed where Linux happens, you might as well get used to it. When you know how to use it it is just magical! As for the best "GUI" this is really a religion war. I swear by Awesome WM (yes, that is the name), a tiling window manager that's quite easy to get into. Again it's one of those things that you have to get used to, but once you do you will love it.

 

If you want something easy and straight forward however, I'd say go with Linux Mint, it comes with everything you need and the GUI style (whether you go for the MATE or Cinnamon version) is very close to what you already know.

[AW3i]

*snip*

[NaftaLord]

Check these links, there's some good info on desktop environments with some images.
http://www.howtogeek.com/163154/linux-users-have-a-choice-8-linux-desktop-environments/
http://www.renewablepcs.com/about-linux/kde-gnome-or-xfce

Personally i run Mint 15 with Cinnamon, cinnamon comes with most tools you need to configure
your desktop as you like, it's pretty easy to use and comes with right amount of options to tweak.
It works for me..

 

[dalekphalm]

Thanks for the response so far guys. Obviously getting into Terminal will be beneficial for learning the ins-and-outs of Linux (I already have some basic Terminal experience from College), but I want a nice useful Desktop because if I'm using it as my day-to-day machine, and want to change a setting or adjust something, I'd rather be able to do it nice and quick via a gui of some sort.

 

I'm downloading Linux Mint 15 with Cinnamon right now, and am gonna give that a whirl and see how it goes. I have a couple other ISO's saved on my server (Fedora I think, possibly Ubuntu w/ Unity) that I'll likely drop into a VM to look at again as well.

[lutzee]

If you are looking for something lightweight and customisable XFCE is great

I've found KDE not so great though, and cinnamon is in the middle

Equally you could go for something really light weight like OpenBox (just a window manager actually) which comes really nicely setup on Crunchbang

I often find its quicker to change some things in the terminal than having to navigate though menues

[dalekphalm]

If you are looking for something lightweight and customisable XFCE is great

I've found KDE not so great though, and cinnamon is in the middle

Equally you could go for something really light weight like OpenBox (just a window manager actually) which comes really nicely setup on Crunchbang

I often find its quicker to change some things in the terminal than having to navigate though menues

Having something "lightweight" is not necessary at all. In fact, I'd prefer if it's graphically rich and has as many built-in applications and utilities, etc, as possible.

 

It's going to be used on my Gaming rig (Intel Xeon w3520 4 core w/ hyperthreading + 8GB RAM and SSD), so I'm NOT worried about getting a minimalistic system for slow performance.

 

Customizable on the other hand, would be quite nice. I'll give my first impressions of Cinnamon once I've got it setup. Had to enable VT-d on the motherboard as hardware virtualization was disabled in the bios.

[NaftaLord]

Small tip.

Install dconf-tools from the repository, it is a really good

and some times a necessary tool to change hidden gnome settings,

works great with cinnamon too..

 

https://apps.ubuntu.com/cat/applications/dconf-tools/

some info on it.

 

 

[lord4163]

You should go through some distros and environments, its personal preference.

[MdX MaxX]

I definitely recommend Cinnamon.  It's feels a bit beta, but it's pretty and has a lot of the kind of customization that GNOME had.

 

Of course, I'm speaking as a Linux n00b.

[IdeaStormer]

There is no one solution and you need to use them to see if they are for you, with the plethora of Window Managers for Linux you really need to test them on your own to determine.

 

* KDE, most GUI-ish or most that will let you get away from a terminal. Also uses the most resources, RAM, & CPU. Also, super customizable to your specific needs/likes.

 

* Unity, mainly for Ubuntu, more of a tablet interface, sure its rough at first but after a while its just another window manager. If you are really doing some work you get over it after a while and it works.

 

* Gnome, second to KDE also customizable. Also, runs KDE apps.

 

* Xfce4, a pared down Gnome, uses mush less resources and runs, Gnome/KDE apps.

 

* FluxBox, super minimalistic window manager, all commands/programs accessed via right click and menu pops up, initial setup is as empty as possible, great for the minimalist or those who hate clutter and icons taking over their desktop, you can also add a mess of things if you're into messes.

 

LInux distro is not really a factor (maybe except Ubuntu) for the window manager unless you're shy from trying different installs. Linux is not like Windows, you have choices of how you use your computer and you can also rip it out if you don't like it and try another without needing to reinstall the OS, I actually install as many as window managers as possible because well you can, sure it takes more space on your hard drive but with sizes what they are these day's its minimal to install all of the listed window managers.

 

I will add, remove or disable Nepomuk, look it up.

[SubTract]

Vanilla Gnome 3 is my preference. No extra anything. Its beautiful and easy to use.

[Kuzma]

Ubuntu is my favourite ^_^ but a lot of people have been branching off too Ubuntu Gnome :p but linux distros are all preference

[cogeary]

Well, I can't convince you on a desktop environment, mainly because I haven't found (i.e taken the time/effort to set up) my favorite desktop environment yet  :P . But for the past couple years I've been using Arch Linux, and I haven't looked back. I think it's worth a shot.

 

Essentially, the base install isn't much more than a bash prompt, so no GUI yet. Since you have to go through the initial setup process yourself, install all the software you want, and setup everything you need (sound, networking, etc), you end up with something tailor-made to your specifications and you end up feeling like you have a better knowledge of what's going on inside the OS. But the best part really is the documentation- the Archwiki really has a mass of information that's easy to digest (it can guide you right through the install).

Also, Arch is rolling release, so instead of big scheduled updates, you just get the latest stable software as soon as it comes out. I've never had any sort of instability from a buggy update, so I wouldn't worry about that. Rolling release just... makes sense. You don't have to deal with big updates messing things up and you're always up to date.

So, yeah, give it a try   -> https://www.archlinux.org/

 

Anyways, as for a desktop, the best advice I can give is to try around. If you use Arch you'll just have to uninstall whatever you don't like and then install a new DE, no having to find a new iso for each distro for a different DE or anything  :rolleyes:.

GNOME is very popular, although I personally don't like it. XFCE might be a good alternative, or LXDE. Fluxbox and Openbox are very configurable and extremely lightweight, but they take some time to set up and get used to. Also give KDE a try. It might not be as resource light, but it's also very customizeable and well-rounded, with a lot of nice transitions/effects.

Worth noting is Razor-qt. It's fairly new and is unfinished. From what I understand, it's currently undergoing a merger with the qt port of LXDE, so... it'll be interesting.

 

Good luck  ~

[Lyons]

What's wrong with an OSX-like GUI? I've been using Elementary OS for the last few weeks and it's easily the best Linux experience I've had so far. The dock is much more useful than having applications in a taskbar or on the desktop, and all of the features built in to the OS make it really user friendly, plus it has the Ubuntu software center. The dock auto-hides when you are using an application maximized, so it never gets in the way but is there when you need it. eOS seems like literally the only Linux distro that was developed with the user in mind, and I love it because there's no need to mess around with anything and I can actually get my work done. It has a real settings menu and also brings over expose' from OSX which is extremely useful for multitasking.

[Atomicnerd64]

I suggest gnome 3 stock because it is really good but since you say gaming machine I suggest Ubuntu, which is the way I've gone for the past year. Although I dual boot Windows as my primary OS and Ubuntu as the secondary OS I would say that Ubuntu is my favorite Linux distro.

[dalekphalm]

I suggest gnome 3 stock because it is really good but since you say gaming machine I suggest Ubuntu, which is the way I've gone for the past year. Although I dual boot Windows as my primary OS and Ubuntu as the secondary OS I would say that Ubuntu is my favorite Linux distro.

Oh I have no intention on dropping Windows completely. For the foreseeable future Windows 8 will be my gaming platform. With that in mind though, as more and more games are ported to Linux, this could change. Though I honestly doubt Linux will ever become the dominant PC gaming platform, at least not in it's current form. When AAA games are released simultaneously on Linux and Windows via Steam, then I'd make the full switch.

 

And yes I know I can do WINE for a lot of games, which I might do just for fun eventually, but we'll see.