Move from Unity to KDE Plasma: Install Kubuntu or not?

[Claryn]

Hi.

 

So ahead of Ubuntu 18.04 LTS I want to move to another DE that has the same user interaction and design as Unity. I am currently running 16.10 with Unity on my MacBook and Desktop.

As far as I know, you can install KDE Plasma ontop of Unity, or just replace Unity. Or you can reinstall the whole OS and replace it with Kubuntu with KDE Plasma. 

 

I have used these machines for over a year, and have done a few changes in order to get stuff like trackpad etc. working in Unity. So my question is wether or not I should reinstall the OS and use Kubuntu instead of Ubuntu, or if I should just install KDE Plasma on my current installs of Ubuntu 16.10 with Unity? 

Are there any significant changes from Ubuntu to Kubuntu, other than KDE Plasma vs Unity?

[noahdvs]

You know 17.04 is out right? You should update to 17.04 before moving to KDE. After that, you can just use sudo apt install kubuntu-desktop and change to it in the login screen. I don't think there are any significant changes between Ubuntu and Kubuntu outside the default DE and applications. I do recommend using the Kubuntu Backports PPA though. That will allow you to use the latest version of KDE.

 

If you want to make KDE look like Unity, you'll need to install some new widgets. If you want an application menu like the Unity Dash when it's maximized, use the Application Dashboard and if you want one like the non-maximized Unity Dash, use Simple Menu. To get titlebar buttons in a panel, you will need the Active Window Control widget. Unfortunatly, the Global Menu widget only work with Qt base applications, so if you plan to use any GTK based apps and use their menu bars, you shouldn't use it. If you want something