Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

TomWitko · 2009-03-03 01:32:36

Hi guys

I have been thinking of this for a few days now and I kind of find it interesting. Most light weight window managers and the programs they use are generally aimed at older slower computers with smaller amounts of ram. I am thinking of a different outlook on this sort of walking down a new trail.

I have been researching the Arch install for my lappy and am planning to do the install in a few days, have to redo my partitions so have to take a think on that for a bit. I was reading up on some of the window managers on the wiki and the the programs they use and generally look interesting and pretty functional. So this got me thinking, I have a Dell XPS 1530 with 2 gigs ram and about 260 gigs for linux. Now this is not a problem for performance other than going on battery and this is what ha gotten my attention. Generally anything will be fast but it does slow down a bit on battery.

What got me thinking was not looking into a light weight to greatly speed up a lappy though a light weight would probably smoke, but rather energy conservation. Also hard drive space is not a problem but ram hungry apps and cpu usage may make a difference with battery life. Also found my linbox playing dvd's with totem is pretty hungry. So generally thinking on the lines of playing around with light weight stuff for use when on battery power.

Also another thing I found interesting was thinking of systems that could run gnome ok but couldd possibly run really well with a light weight and all the eye candy that a user would want.

Generally have not really used light weight wm or apps other than checking them out so your input and knowledge of this would be greatly appreacieted.

skottish · 2009-03-03 01:44:44

Welcome to the forums TomWitko.

There are a ton of threads on this subject whether about WM, floating or tiling, apps, configuration -- really anything and everything has been talked about.

Ranguvar · 2009-03-03 03:17:35

I use a quad-core with 6GB of RAM, a recent NVIDIA videocard, and near a TB of storage - but I prefer lightweight WMs mostly. I think quite a few people agree with me here They're just nice to use.

Try some stuff like Openbox and Awesome. See what you think.

CheesyBeef · 2009-03-03 03:30:56

After switching to Openbox as a leightweight alternative to Gnome and KDE, I will probably not go back even when I plan on upgrading to a new system later this year.

The laptop I run now is an Inspiron 1501 with a 1.6Ghz AMD Turion 64 x2 processor, ATI radeon 1150, 2gb of ddr2 ram, and a 160gb drive. Openbox runs very nice on it.

celthias · 2009-03-03 05:26:07

High end PC or no, functionality always comes first. If you sacrifice functionality for aesthetics eventually you're gonna be re-evaluating your decision soon enough, guaranteed.

My reasons for using Openbox:
- I'm a minimalist, technically speaking.
- I'm a minimalist, aesthetically speaking.
- It's closer to the KISS principle and Unix Way of doing things.
- It adheres to my believe of building up, rather than stripping down.

This isn't to say I'm neccesarily against say.. the compiz rotating desktop, I don't actively hate it, but it's just not for me. I'm not even against compiz, I've used it, as well as a recent stint with compiz-fusion standalone, but I had to ditch it because it wasn't as functional as OB. The fantastic looking window borders etc didn't justify the lack of function.

It comes down to 3 things:
- Style
- Function
- Beliefs

Always strive for optimal function, style is a bonus that should not be placed over actually getting things done. Beliefs are important to some and influence the choice, but can't always be the focus as you might end up in an impractical situation.

It's worth mentioning I run a 2.6Ghz Quad Core, 2gig of ram, 4870 512mb Radeon and have over 1TB of storage. I also can't believe I rambled on for this long. Must be the coffee.

joephantom · 2009-03-03 05:33:52

Ranguvar wrote:

I use a quad-core with 6GB of RAM, a recent NVIDIA videocard, and near a TB of storage - but I prefer lightweight WMs mostly. I think quite a few people agree with me here They're just nice to use

++.

rok3 · 2009-03-03 08:19:38

I started using Openbox on my older Pentium 4 laptop and it's now also the WM on my new quad core desktop. When I use Gnome and KDE I always end up feeling like I'm fighting the system to work the way I want it to.

Inxsible · 2009-03-03 08:28:38

I have used Openbox and plan to use it even on my newer machines. I will definitely not go towards Gnome/KDE/Xfce.

Currently I am trying out tiling WMs -- although I have dabbled in them before, I almost always got frustrated with it in a day or two and got rid of them to get back to the relative safety of Openbox. But I think this time I would try harder.

Just like I used to hate that Openbox doesn't have a task bar by default -- I used to like Fluxbox over Openbox solely for that reason. But after using OB for quite some time (with a panel) and then eventually removing it and liking OB even more, I think a WM/DE grows on you and you get comfortable with its aspects.

I hope I can give enough time to atleast 1 of the 3 tiling wms that I am currently taking on a test drive

Bonzodog · 2009-03-03 09:18:17

I use Awesome on my AMD 64 3000+ (2Ghz), with 1Gb RAM, and 256Mb of GPU. I dont really game on it, its mostly web usage.

For me, the desktop choice is all about functionality.

I have tried all the eye candy in the past, my box will do it without thinking about it, but it got to me very quickly, and I switched to Openbox for about 2 years until this month when I realised I wanted tiling, and switched to Awesome.

Last edited by Bonzodog (2009-03-03 09:18:52)

Zeist · 2009-03-03 10:30:50

I use Awesome an a C2D E6750 with 8GB of ram and a Radeon X850XT, and most of the apps I use are console apps. To me awesome is the WM that has allowed me to get most functionality and control over every little detail.

Gigamo · 2009-03-03 11:25:08

Awesome on a T7700, 2GB RAM and 8600M GT here, for quite a long time now. For me it's the perfect mix of control, stability and speed.

koch · 2009-03-03 13:08:26

awesome
overclocked e6750
nvidia 8800gts 640mb
4 gb ram

why? read last 2 posts

eldalion · 2009-03-03 13:19:35

No need to lock your screen when afk with awesome, compared to KDE or Gnome or any other user-friendly desktop.

KimTjik · 2009-03-03 13:59:53

Hardware specifications are irrelevant except for being a limiting factor. Above that there's no reason to sacrifice functionality for bloat. If functionality means lightweight then it's even better. At least that's my view.

(Window Maker --> Fluxbox --> XFCE --> and now Awesome; it hasn't been a decision based on what's lightweight)

When it comes to applications though I simply choose what in my view works best. I would probably make other choices if running a low spec computer, but that decision I make when it becomes necessary.

pogeymanz · 2009-03-03 14:00:05

rok3 wrote:

I started using Openbox on my older Pentium 4 laptop and it's now also the WM on my new quad core desktop. When I use Gnome and KDE I always end up feeling like I'm fighting the system to work the way I want it to.

+1

I always feel like I'm forced to do things a certain why when using a DE. I like having complete control over what is in my menu, how I choose to log in and shut down, etc.

I've heard that not using Compiz can really help battery life. I suppose it applies to any compositing, so try out Openbox without xcompmgr and see if your battery life is better.

I actually quite liked Compiz-Fusion standalone, but it isn't totally glitch-free on my hardware, so Openbox stays.

CheesyBeef · 2009-03-03 14:25:13

eldalion wrote:

No need to lock your screen when afk with awesome, compared to KDE or Gnome or any other user-friendly desktop.

Hahahaha that is probably very true... unless someone knows how to move the mouse and use the command line.

aaaantoine · 2009-03-03 14:25:46

I've tried fluxbox and wmii at various times, and I might try Openbox soon, but I like to have a full-blown desktop environment.

So, kdemod at least for the time being.

der_joachim · 2009-03-03 17:53:37

One more reason for using a light WM: gaming, either native or wine-based.

initbox · 2009-03-03 19:53:06

I use Ratpoison on my Quad Core-machine.

I got annoyed at all the useless bloat in my Ubuntu (Gnome) install and I tried trimming it down more and more and eventually I installed Arch and haven't looked back.

At first I used Openbox, and started removing the tray and taskbar apps and eventually ran bare Openbox. Then I decided to try Awesome. The automatic tiling made me go nuts, every time I got the layout the way I wanted some dialog popped up and all the windows jumped around, ARGH! I went back to Openbox for a while but I couldn't use floating windows any more.

I looked at my options and tried Ratpoison since screen is awesome. Haven't changed back. But I have to admit, sometimes I would like to have some simple bloated system since it's pretty hassle free. I've trimmed my system down so much that some tasks are hard to accomplish without tinkering.

So, here I am, unable to use floating window managers anymore, yet sometimes wanting to. If I have to use Windows elsewhere it somehow doesn't feel retarded (floating window management, everything else does...) Also, the only program I regularly that has a GUI is Firefox, and even then it's Vimperator. Sometimes it's a pain, but I can't go back. CLI is just madly efficient and simple and fast.

I get the urge to hurt kittens when I have to use Windows with GUI's and no proper CLI. For example, changing your IP is like 6 dialogs deep, which is crap compared to "ifconfig eth0 1.2.3.4"...

TomWitko · 2009-03-04 01:36:50

Another question pertaining to lightweight window managers would be to functionality. How functional are they and can they be hacked for more functionality. I remember reading where you could use gnome panel in XFCE. So got me thinking if it would e feasible to hack a bit and add stuff I would like in a light wm to make it more functional than normal.

I remember years ago I was impressed with ice indow transparency.

Also non 3d generated eye candy also interested me in general.

So how functional can you make a light weight and is there things for lightweight that are improvements over say, Gnome of KDE.

I like this forum so far!

buttons · 2009-03-04 01:49:14

XMonad doesn't fill nearly enough of the 8GB of RAM I have. It doesn't stress the 3Ghz dual core nor the 9800GT on two 22" monitors, either.

I run the same setup on my mini 9 netbook.

'Lightweight' just means 'minimalist,' or 'doesn't bloody get in your way'

As many people have said, functionality comes first. If you show a tiling WM to someone who doesn't consider the PC their livelihood they're going to think you've gone to the dark ages. You show it to a serious coder and you're liable to get, 'Holy @#$ where can I get that?'

Ranguvar · 2009-03-04 02:20:24

Hmm... what if someone made a new WM, a blend of Compiz-style elegance and effects with the functionality and gets-out-of-your-way-ness of Openbox, Ratpoison, Awesome, etc.? Tiling or not (both?). Enlightenment is actually pretty close to what I mean (too bad it doesn't offer tiling and is way under-staffed).

I would so jump on it Minimalist in everything - except they don't worry (as much) about adding features, like compositing. And even then a focus more on usability and elegance over gratuitous eye-candy. For people who have fast PCs and want the minimalist approach with some more elegance.

buttons · 2009-03-04 02:38:55

Ranguvar wrote:

Hmm... what if someone made a new WM, a blend of Compiz-style elegance and effects with the functionality and gets-out-of-your-way-ness of Openbox, Ratpoison, Awesome, etc.? Tiling or not (both?). Enlightenment is actually pretty close to what I mean (too bad it doesn't offer tiling and is way under-staffed).
I would so jump on it Minimalist in everything - except they don't worry (as much) about adding features, like compositing. And even then a focus more on usability and elegance over gratuitous eye-candy. For people who have fast PCs and want the minimalist approach with some more elegance.

http://code.google.com/p/xmonad/issues/detail?id=19

Last comment was Jan 08 (by Thayer of arch fame, no less)

If you REALLY want everything, you might try something like xmonad (which has gnome support) + gnome + xcompmgr

This would give you access to gnome-do, which is sex. There's an old mini-guide on the ubuntu forums which I've never tried, but just might one day: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=975329

This is xmonad-centric, obviously, but I'm unaware of similar efforts with any of the other tiling WMs

Ranguvar · 2009-03-04 02:47:24

Sorry - no Gnome for me. Personal morals

e17 has a couple of compositors (Bang, ecomorph, ecomp) that could be ported to other WMs, or are already universal. Xmonad could build off one of those.

Last edited by Ranguvar (2009-03-04 02:48:02)

hollywoodb · 2009-03-04 02:58:05

I prefer Xfce. It doesn't start as fast as openbox, but it uses less resources once started than a openbox session with comparable functionality on my laptop (see other recent threads I've been active in).

With Xfce 4.6, I've run out of compelling reasons to run Gnome or KDE. It really is quite a fine environment that is very fast and unintrusive. I recommend at least trying it, as it doesn't have a lot of deps and is easy to remove. On a laptop I recommend `pacman -S xfce4{,-appfinder,-places-plugin,-datetime-plugin,-power-manager}` Leave out the power manager for a desktop. On laptop, use alt+F2 to run xfce4-power-manager once you log in and then forget about it. I also like wicd for wifi management.

In the WM category I prefer openbox over others, although I haven't spent much time with tiling window managers. However even running openbox I find myself using Xfce applications such as ristretto and thunar.

Honorable mention for LXDE (which uses openbox as its WM), but in my experience Xfce 4.6 uses fewer resources and offers better functionality.

Arch Linux

#1 2009-03-03 01:32:36

Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#2 2009-03-03 01:44:44

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#3 2009-03-03 03:17:35

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#4 2009-03-03 03:30:56

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#5 2009-03-03 05:26:07

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#6 2009-03-03 05:33:52

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#7 2009-03-03 08:19:38

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#8 2009-03-03 08:28:38

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#9 2009-03-03 09:18:17

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#10 2009-03-03 10:30:50

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#11 2009-03-03 11:25:08

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#12 2009-03-03 13:08:26

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#13 2009-03-03 13:19:35

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#14 2009-03-03 13:59:53

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#15 2009-03-03 14:00:05

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#16 2009-03-03 14:25:13

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#17 2009-03-03 14:25:46

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#18 2009-03-03 17:53:37

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#19 2009-03-03 19:53:06

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#20 2009-03-04 01:36:50

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#21 2009-03-04 01:49:14

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#22 2009-03-04 02:20:24

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#23 2009-03-04 02:38:55

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#24 2009-03-04 02:47:24

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

#25 2009-03-04 02:58:05

Re: Yor take on lightwight WM, apps on highee end pcs and laptops

Board footer