Gnome. But I use 3 extensions (dash to dock, desktop icons and appindicators) and the adw-gtk3 theme so GTK3 apps looks the same as GTK4/libadwaita apps.
Sway is really impressively stable if you're willing to learn it and set it up. It's a tiling WM.
I've been running the same arch install with roughly the same sway config for 3 years. My computer has never been so boring!
I bounce between Xfce and Plasma. I used Xfce for... I don't know, 15 years? And only switched to plasma for a while because of getting a hidpi laptop before Xfce had support for it.
When I switched from Windows definitely Cinnamon but by now it's Gnome, it's a little odd at first but I absolutely love the workflow!
Nowadays KDE.
plasma, xfce and sway/swayfx.
plasma and xfce are DEs, sway is a wlroots-based wayland compositor (tiling window manager).
I'm currently using KDE Plasma with i3. I like it fine. I love i3, and KDE works to tie everything together and add consistency for theming. Previously I was using i3 on XFCE, that was easier to set up. Plasma tends to require special configuration to make it play nice with i3, but once you're over that hump it makes for a pretty decent combination.
Gnome. On my laptop KDE and cinimon have given me a LOT of issues. I've had a lot of linux problems due to my hardware tho but finally found a fix and don't want to change
Ubuntu 23.04 and GNOME.
I'm now full time on sway
Productivity is through the roof!
I’ve been using Debian with Cinnamon desktop for a while. I tried XFCE but it didn’t click and I really disliked how you added an app launcher to the dock. Cinnamon gets out of my and just works for the little that I need.
Ubuntu's GNOME.
Not technically a DE, but for productivity and full customization I use DWM (DWL is available for Wayland). It is super easy to use, keyboard centric and can be modified to behave exactly the way you want, as long as you patch it.
Started with GNOME, then once I got more comfortable I jumped ship to hyprland
KDE or cinnamon are probably the closest ones to windows if you're looking for familiarity but I think gnome/tiling wms improve on that
Hyprland and other tiling wms are great but only if you're the kind of person who likes to tinker and fiddle constantly
only if you're the kind of person who likes to tinker and fiddle constantly
What if, completely hypothetically, I'm the kind of person who is incredibly lazy and just wants things to work out of the box with minimal effort and maintenance?
I've used Dwm for a long time, then switched to awesome, for the easier configuration! Loved both, really can't stand a floating wm no more
Gnome, KDE is also nice but the default doesn’t function in a way that makes sense to my brain anymore after using gnome
I love the swipey gesture workflow on gnome on the laptop
@governorkeagan My preferred Desktop environment is Cinnamon. I used to prefer swaywm but it's not a complete DE.
LXDE
I'm new to this but KDE basically has all of the aesthetics customization features and quality of life features I always wanted out of Windows + Rainmeter. Finally I can have my videos pinned on the top easily every time. Finally I can have my fancy widgets. I can have universal color themes and fonts beyond what Windows ever offered. So there is more abstract stuff out there, but for now I'm living the long lost dream.
Started with XFCE but migrated away due to bugginess with my outdated system. Next was KDE. I was pleasantly surprised by how lightweight it ended up being after hearing otherwise. Now I'm on Sway, and it makes this old computer scream!
TDE. Does its job, doesn't mess with my workflow by changing stuff that worked perfectly well before, but still has plenty of built-in software and general stuff for the occasions that I need it. But then, I'm a weirdo by tech enthusiast standards.
Gnome. Mostly vanilla except for some extended tiling for when I need it. Also sped up animations.
I bind Activities to an extra mouse button. But I'm also comfortable without that.
I've used a lot of stuff over the years. Started with the kde 3 series. I just don't really want to do a lot of fiddling anymore, and find the default Gnome workflow to be a really good fit for me.
My favs:
I started with Zorin, then GNOME via Pop!OS, then KDE, vanilla GNOME, then KDE again.
Who knows cos they all have good features.
I use gnome as a primary, it feels really polished and doesn’t break or crash. Very modern, but if you want to have a super-customized experience, you’re gonna have a bad time. Extensions break every update and so do themes, so you either wait for the dev to port it or so it yourself. Annoying, so I only use vanilla for now.
Maybe I’ll try plasma, looks cool.
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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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