[96900] in RedHat Linux List
Re: xwindows
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Jose M. Sanchez)
Fri Oct 30 00:59:02 1998
From: "Jose M. Sanchez" <opjose@ex-pressnet.com>
To: <redhat-list@redhat.com>
Cc: <mwkohout@csbsju.edu>, <drgreer@QTIWORLD.COM>
Date: Fri, 30 Oct 1998 01:10:35 -0500
Resent-From: redhat-list@redhat.com
Reply-To: redhat-list@redhat.com
KDE, WindowMaker, Gnome, xfce2, blackbox, Afterstep are all what are
referred to as "Window Managers".
XFree86 supplies the underlying hardware support for a GUI based system
(read Window) manager.
Unlike Winblows where you are really stuck with what Mikeysoft decides that
is good for you, Linux allows you to replace the underlying "window"
operating structure.
Imagine, if you would that you could seperate all of the hardware support
OUT of Winblows into a seperate "packaged" (like X) and swap in second
party, program managers, desktops OS programs, browsers, clients, etc...
sorta like what the Justice Department wants Mikeysoft to do...
In effect you will have given developers a GUI based enviornment, where they
DO NOT have to worry about the hardware, but at the same time they are free
to write the "rest" of the operating system...
This is what these XFree does...
By itself all X can do is bring up a graphics screen with a pointer.
Add a WindowManager and you can use one to say make it look JUST like
windows...
... see: http://www-masuda.is.s.u-tokyo.ac.jp/~kourai/qvwm/index-en.html
For an example of someone who has taken this to an extreme...
Or totally unlike and much better than Winblows...
See:
http://www.themes.org
Click on the Windowmaker, E, and KDE themes sections for previews of how
your "desktop" can look and operate.
(themes.org is unavailable today due to routing problems...)
I personally prefer WindowMaker over KDE, due to the nice dockable "applets"
(small programs that can be always displaying updated information) I have
including...
temperature sensors, clocks, system status, processes, PPP graphs, blinking
lights, etc.
KDE will be a bit more familiar (and better) to the Windows user...
While GVWM will appear to be winblows...
This is one of the nice things Linux provides, almost unlimited
configurability...
The tradeoff is sometimes more complexity setting up menus, etc... but most
of the newest Window Managers seek to simplify customization for the novice.
KDE, WindowMaker, Gnome, etc. all now feature Newbie friendly configuration
tools.
-JMS
-----Original Message-----
From: mike kohout <mwkohout@csbsju.edu>
To: redhat-list@redhat.com <redhat-list@redhat.com>
Date: Thursday, October 29, 1998 7:57 PM
Subject: Re: xwindows
>OK, I installed linux two days ago. I was wondering if you could
>explain to me (and maybe some of the other newbies out there) what KDE
>and xfce2 are. From what I've read of your thread so far, are they like
>a replacement for XF86? or are they something else
>
>sorry if my question annoys you, but the question has been nagging me
>for a little while.
>
>
--
PLEASE read the Red Hat FAQ, Tips, Errata and the MAILING LIST ARCHIVES!
http://www.redhat.com http://archive.redhat.com
To unsubscribe: mail redhat-list-request@redhat.com with
"unsubscribe" as the Subject.
