What is the difference between GNOME, KDE, Xfce and LXDE?












6















What is the difference between GNOME, KDE, Xfce and LXDE desktop environments?










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  • 1





    This is not about Ubuntu. Questions about other Linux distributions can be asked on Unix & Linux.

    – Radu Rădeanu
    Dec 10 '13 at 10:09






  • 6





    How is this not about Ubuntu? Ubuntu flavors as Kubuntu und Xubuntu do make use of those Desktop managers.

    – cuichi
    Dec 10 '13 at 10:11











  • @cuichi simple, that invites too many answers and these answers change too fast. Also, is about the DE, which can be used in any OS. And going for the most upvoted answer, only a link to Wikipedia, you can figure.

    – Braiam
    Dec 10 '13 at 13:51








  • 1





    The answers prove that this question is not too broad.

    – Reinier Post
    Jun 16 '14 at 9:35
















6















What is the difference between GNOME, KDE, Xfce and LXDE desktop environments?










share|improve this question




















  • 1





    This is not about Ubuntu. Questions about other Linux distributions can be asked on Unix & Linux.

    – Radu Rădeanu
    Dec 10 '13 at 10:09






  • 6





    How is this not about Ubuntu? Ubuntu flavors as Kubuntu und Xubuntu do make use of those Desktop managers.

    – cuichi
    Dec 10 '13 at 10:11











  • @cuichi simple, that invites too many answers and these answers change too fast. Also, is about the DE, which can be used in any OS. And going for the most upvoted answer, only a link to Wikipedia, you can figure.

    – Braiam
    Dec 10 '13 at 13:51








  • 1





    The answers prove that this question is not too broad.

    – Reinier Post
    Jun 16 '14 at 9:35














6












6








6


2






What is the difference between GNOME, KDE, Xfce and LXDE desktop environments?










share|improve this question
















What is the difference between GNOME, KDE, Xfce and LXDE desktop environments?







gnome kde xfce desktop-environments lxde






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share|improve this question













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share|improve this question








edited yesterday









karel

57.9k12128146




57.9k12128146










asked Dec 10 '13 at 10:00









K.K.Vinay KumarK.K.Vinay Kumar

62116




62116








  • 1





    This is not about Ubuntu. Questions about other Linux distributions can be asked on Unix & Linux.

    – Radu Rădeanu
    Dec 10 '13 at 10:09






  • 6





    How is this not about Ubuntu? Ubuntu flavors as Kubuntu und Xubuntu do make use of those Desktop managers.

    – cuichi
    Dec 10 '13 at 10:11











  • @cuichi simple, that invites too many answers and these answers change too fast. Also, is about the DE, which can be used in any OS. And going for the most upvoted answer, only a link to Wikipedia, you can figure.

    – Braiam
    Dec 10 '13 at 13:51








  • 1





    The answers prove that this question is not too broad.

    – Reinier Post
    Jun 16 '14 at 9:35














  • 1





    This is not about Ubuntu. Questions about other Linux distributions can be asked on Unix & Linux.

    – Radu Rădeanu
    Dec 10 '13 at 10:09






  • 6





    How is this not about Ubuntu? Ubuntu flavors as Kubuntu und Xubuntu do make use of those Desktop managers.

    – cuichi
    Dec 10 '13 at 10:11











  • @cuichi simple, that invites too many answers and these answers change too fast. Also, is about the DE, which can be used in any OS. And going for the most upvoted answer, only a link to Wikipedia, you can figure.

    – Braiam
    Dec 10 '13 at 13:51








  • 1





    The answers prove that this question is not too broad.

    – Reinier Post
    Jun 16 '14 at 9:35








1




1





This is not about Ubuntu. Questions about other Linux distributions can be asked on Unix & Linux.

– Radu Rădeanu
Dec 10 '13 at 10:09





This is not about Ubuntu. Questions about other Linux distributions can be asked on Unix & Linux.

– Radu Rădeanu
Dec 10 '13 at 10:09




6




6





How is this not about Ubuntu? Ubuntu flavors as Kubuntu und Xubuntu do make use of those Desktop managers.

– cuichi
Dec 10 '13 at 10:11





How is this not about Ubuntu? Ubuntu flavors as Kubuntu und Xubuntu do make use of those Desktop managers.

– cuichi
Dec 10 '13 at 10:11













@cuichi simple, that invites too many answers and these answers change too fast. Also, is about the DE, which can be used in any OS. And going for the most upvoted answer, only a link to Wikipedia, you can figure.

– Braiam
Dec 10 '13 at 13:51







@cuichi simple, that invites too many answers and these answers change too fast. Also, is about the DE, which can be used in any OS. And going for the most upvoted answer, only a link to Wikipedia, you can figure.

– Braiam
Dec 10 '13 at 13:51






1




1





The answers prove that this question is not too broad.

– Reinier Post
Jun 16 '14 at 9:35





The answers prove that this question is not too broad.

– Reinier Post
Jun 16 '14 at 9:35










4 Answers
4






active

oldest

votes


















2














Wikipedia has a comparison so you can look it up there. And the arch wiki has another too. Just read them through.






share|improve this answer



















  • 1





    This is a link-only answer…

    – Melebius
    9 hours ago



















3















  • Unity is a nice 3D desktop environment designed for good performance on recent hardware. Unity is a graphical shell for the GNOME desktop environment. In 17.10 and later the Ubuntu Desktop uses GNOME as the default desktop environment instead of Unity.

  • KDE is an alternative lighter weight desktop environment to Ubuntu's default interface. Plasma is the default desktop interface for KDE. It includes an application launcher (start menu), the desktop and the desktop panel (often referred to simply as the task bar).

  • Xfce is a lightweight 2D desktop environment designed for better performance on older hardware.

  • LXDE is a minimalistic desktop environment, somewhat like Windows XP in look and feel. It is designed to run on legacy hardware which requires a desktop environment that has minimal system requirements.


For screenshots and information about the comparative system requirements of different desktop environments refer to How do I find out which version and derivative of Ubuntu is right for my hardware in terms of minimal system requirements?.






share|improve this answer





















  • 1





    Note that Unity is basically a layer built on GNOME by Canonical Inc. for Ubuntu. It's not really separate from GNOME

    – xji
    Dec 9 '15 at 19:06





















1














these are all desktop environments, you can still launch the same applications but how you get there and what they look like is a bit different. With some desktop environments you can change the appereance a lot (like KDE) while others will hardly allow you to change anything.



an other big difference is how much resources they will take from your system. If you have problems running Unity (default for Ubuntu) or KDE, XFCE or LXDE might run just fine.



As far as I know there is no connection between Gnome and the Mac OS.






share|improve this answer
























  • Then on what desktop is Apple Mac based on? Do they use their own desktop version?

    – K.K.Vinay Kumar
    Dec 10 '13 at 10:17






  • 2





    Mac OS X is based on a Unix variant called BSD. OS X uses its own proprietary desktop environment, designed by Apple.

    – karel
    Dec 10 '13 at 10:41





















0














To say simply, these are all the Desktop environments one can use when using ubuntu.



Generally while installing arch linux, one has to install their own DE(Desktop Environment).






share|improve this answer








New contributor




anuraag tummanapally is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.




















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    4 Answers
    4






    active

    oldest

    votes








    4 Answers
    4






    active

    oldest

    votes









    active

    oldest

    votes






    active

    oldest

    votes









    2














    Wikipedia has a comparison so you can look it up there. And the arch wiki has another too. Just read them through.






    share|improve this answer



















    • 1





      This is a link-only answer…

      – Melebius
      9 hours ago
















    2














    Wikipedia has a comparison so you can look it up there. And the arch wiki has another too. Just read them through.






    share|improve this answer



















    • 1





      This is a link-only answer…

      – Melebius
      9 hours ago














    2












    2








    2







    Wikipedia has a comparison so you can look it up there. And the arch wiki has another too. Just read them through.






    share|improve this answer













    Wikipedia has a comparison so you can look it up there. And the arch wiki has another too. Just read them through.







    share|improve this answer












    share|improve this answer



    share|improve this answer










    answered Dec 10 '13 at 10:54









    falconerfalconer

    12.2k22653




    12.2k22653








    • 1





      This is a link-only answer…

      – Melebius
      9 hours ago














    • 1





      This is a link-only answer…

      – Melebius
      9 hours ago








    1




    1





    This is a link-only answer…

    – Melebius
    9 hours ago





    This is a link-only answer…

    – Melebius
    9 hours ago













    3















    • Unity is a nice 3D desktop environment designed for good performance on recent hardware. Unity is a graphical shell for the GNOME desktop environment. In 17.10 and later the Ubuntu Desktop uses GNOME as the default desktop environment instead of Unity.

    • KDE is an alternative lighter weight desktop environment to Ubuntu's default interface. Plasma is the default desktop interface for KDE. It includes an application launcher (start menu), the desktop and the desktop panel (often referred to simply as the task bar).

    • Xfce is a lightweight 2D desktop environment designed for better performance on older hardware.

    • LXDE is a minimalistic desktop environment, somewhat like Windows XP in look and feel. It is designed to run on legacy hardware which requires a desktop environment that has minimal system requirements.


    For screenshots and information about the comparative system requirements of different desktop environments refer to How do I find out which version and derivative of Ubuntu is right for my hardware in terms of minimal system requirements?.






    share|improve this answer





















    • 1





      Note that Unity is basically a layer built on GNOME by Canonical Inc. for Ubuntu. It's not really separate from GNOME

      – xji
      Dec 9 '15 at 19:06


















    3















    • Unity is a nice 3D desktop environment designed for good performance on recent hardware. Unity is a graphical shell for the GNOME desktop environment. In 17.10 and later the Ubuntu Desktop uses GNOME as the default desktop environment instead of Unity.

    • KDE is an alternative lighter weight desktop environment to Ubuntu's default interface. Plasma is the default desktop interface for KDE. It includes an application launcher (start menu), the desktop and the desktop panel (often referred to simply as the task bar).

    • Xfce is a lightweight 2D desktop environment designed for better performance on older hardware.

    • LXDE is a minimalistic desktop environment, somewhat like Windows XP in look and feel. It is designed to run on legacy hardware which requires a desktop environment that has minimal system requirements.


    For screenshots and information about the comparative system requirements of different desktop environments refer to How do I find out which version and derivative of Ubuntu is right for my hardware in terms of minimal system requirements?.






    share|improve this answer





















    • 1





      Note that Unity is basically a layer built on GNOME by Canonical Inc. for Ubuntu. It's not really separate from GNOME

      – xji
      Dec 9 '15 at 19:06
















    3












    3








    3








    • Unity is a nice 3D desktop environment designed for good performance on recent hardware. Unity is a graphical shell for the GNOME desktop environment. In 17.10 and later the Ubuntu Desktop uses GNOME as the default desktop environment instead of Unity.

    • KDE is an alternative lighter weight desktop environment to Ubuntu's default interface. Plasma is the default desktop interface for KDE. It includes an application launcher (start menu), the desktop and the desktop panel (often referred to simply as the task bar).

    • Xfce is a lightweight 2D desktop environment designed for better performance on older hardware.

    • LXDE is a minimalistic desktop environment, somewhat like Windows XP in look and feel. It is designed to run on legacy hardware which requires a desktop environment that has minimal system requirements.


    For screenshots and information about the comparative system requirements of different desktop environments refer to How do I find out which version and derivative of Ubuntu is right for my hardware in terms of minimal system requirements?.






    share|improve this answer
















    • Unity is a nice 3D desktop environment designed for good performance on recent hardware. Unity is a graphical shell for the GNOME desktop environment. In 17.10 and later the Ubuntu Desktop uses GNOME as the default desktop environment instead of Unity.

    • KDE is an alternative lighter weight desktop environment to Ubuntu's default interface. Plasma is the default desktop interface for KDE. It includes an application launcher (start menu), the desktop and the desktop panel (often referred to simply as the task bar).

    • Xfce is a lightweight 2D desktop environment designed for better performance on older hardware.

    • LXDE is a minimalistic desktop environment, somewhat like Windows XP in look and feel. It is designed to run on legacy hardware which requires a desktop environment that has minimal system requirements.


    For screenshots and information about the comparative system requirements of different desktop environments refer to How do I find out which version and derivative of Ubuntu is right for my hardware in terms of minimal system requirements?.







    share|improve this answer














    share|improve this answer



    share|improve this answer








    edited yesterday

























    answered Dec 10 '13 at 10:32









    karelkarel

    57.9k12128146




    57.9k12128146








    • 1





      Note that Unity is basically a layer built on GNOME by Canonical Inc. for Ubuntu. It's not really separate from GNOME

      – xji
      Dec 9 '15 at 19:06
















    • 1





      Note that Unity is basically a layer built on GNOME by Canonical Inc. for Ubuntu. It's not really separate from GNOME

      – xji
      Dec 9 '15 at 19:06










    1




    1





    Note that Unity is basically a layer built on GNOME by Canonical Inc. for Ubuntu. It's not really separate from GNOME

    – xji
    Dec 9 '15 at 19:06







    Note that Unity is basically a layer built on GNOME by Canonical Inc. for Ubuntu. It's not really separate from GNOME

    – xji
    Dec 9 '15 at 19:06













    1














    these are all desktop environments, you can still launch the same applications but how you get there and what they look like is a bit different. With some desktop environments you can change the appereance a lot (like KDE) while others will hardly allow you to change anything.



    an other big difference is how much resources they will take from your system. If you have problems running Unity (default for Ubuntu) or KDE, XFCE or LXDE might run just fine.



    As far as I know there is no connection between Gnome and the Mac OS.






    share|improve this answer
























    • Then on what desktop is Apple Mac based on? Do they use their own desktop version?

      – K.K.Vinay Kumar
      Dec 10 '13 at 10:17






    • 2





      Mac OS X is based on a Unix variant called BSD. OS X uses its own proprietary desktop environment, designed by Apple.

      – karel
      Dec 10 '13 at 10:41


















    1














    these are all desktop environments, you can still launch the same applications but how you get there and what they look like is a bit different. With some desktop environments you can change the appereance a lot (like KDE) while others will hardly allow you to change anything.



    an other big difference is how much resources they will take from your system. If you have problems running Unity (default for Ubuntu) or KDE, XFCE or LXDE might run just fine.



    As far as I know there is no connection between Gnome and the Mac OS.






    share|improve this answer
























    • Then on what desktop is Apple Mac based on? Do they use their own desktop version?

      – K.K.Vinay Kumar
      Dec 10 '13 at 10:17






    • 2





      Mac OS X is based on a Unix variant called BSD. OS X uses its own proprietary desktop environment, designed by Apple.

      – karel
      Dec 10 '13 at 10:41
















    1












    1








    1







    these are all desktop environments, you can still launch the same applications but how you get there and what they look like is a bit different. With some desktop environments you can change the appereance a lot (like KDE) while others will hardly allow you to change anything.



    an other big difference is how much resources they will take from your system. If you have problems running Unity (default for Ubuntu) or KDE, XFCE or LXDE might run just fine.



    As far as I know there is no connection between Gnome and the Mac OS.






    share|improve this answer













    these are all desktop environments, you can still launch the same applications but how you get there and what they look like is a bit different. With some desktop environments you can change the appereance a lot (like KDE) while others will hardly allow you to change anything.



    an other big difference is how much resources they will take from your system. If you have problems running Unity (default for Ubuntu) or KDE, XFCE or LXDE might run just fine.



    As far as I know there is no connection between Gnome and the Mac OS.







    share|improve this answer












    share|improve this answer



    share|improve this answer










    answered Dec 10 '13 at 10:12









    WouterWouter

    692716




    692716













    • Then on what desktop is Apple Mac based on? Do they use their own desktop version?

      – K.K.Vinay Kumar
      Dec 10 '13 at 10:17






    • 2





      Mac OS X is based on a Unix variant called BSD. OS X uses its own proprietary desktop environment, designed by Apple.

      – karel
      Dec 10 '13 at 10:41





















    • Then on what desktop is Apple Mac based on? Do they use their own desktop version?

      – K.K.Vinay Kumar
      Dec 10 '13 at 10:17






    • 2





      Mac OS X is based on a Unix variant called BSD. OS X uses its own proprietary desktop environment, designed by Apple.

      – karel
      Dec 10 '13 at 10:41



















    Then on what desktop is Apple Mac based on? Do they use their own desktop version?

    – K.K.Vinay Kumar
    Dec 10 '13 at 10:17





    Then on what desktop is Apple Mac based on? Do they use their own desktop version?

    – K.K.Vinay Kumar
    Dec 10 '13 at 10:17




    2




    2





    Mac OS X is based on a Unix variant called BSD. OS X uses its own proprietary desktop environment, designed by Apple.

    – karel
    Dec 10 '13 at 10:41







    Mac OS X is based on a Unix variant called BSD. OS X uses its own proprietary desktop environment, designed by Apple.

    – karel
    Dec 10 '13 at 10:41













    0














    To say simply, these are all the Desktop environments one can use when using ubuntu.



    Generally while installing arch linux, one has to install their own DE(Desktop Environment).






    share|improve this answer








    New contributor




    anuraag tummanapally is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.

























      0














      To say simply, these are all the Desktop environments one can use when using ubuntu.



      Generally while installing arch linux, one has to install their own DE(Desktop Environment).






      share|improve this answer








      New contributor




      anuraag tummanapally is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.























        0












        0








        0







        To say simply, these are all the Desktop environments one can use when using ubuntu.



        Generally while installing arch linux, one has to install their own DE(Desktop Environment).






        share|improve this answer








        New contributor




        anuraag tummanapally is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.










        To say simply, these are all the Desktop environments one can use when using ubuntu.



        Generally while installing arch linux, one has to install their own DE(Desktop Environment).







        share|improve this answer








        New contributor




        anuraag tummanapally is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.









        share|improve this answer



        share|improve this answer






        New contributor




        anuraag tummanapally is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.









        answered 8 hours ago









        anuraag tummanapallyanuraag tummanapally

        12




        12




        New contributor




        anuraag tummanapally is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.





        New contributor





        anuraag tummanapally is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.






        anuraag tummanapally is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.






























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