Date: Wed, 22 Jul 2020 20:41:07 +0200 From: Polytropon <freebsd@edvax.de> To: Don Wilde <dwilde1@gmail.com> Cc: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Subject: Re: FreeBSD (GhostBSD) Question? Message-ID: <20200722204107.e19f8052.freebsd@edvax.de> In-Reply-To: <b1166d38-0e83-a6e5-77df-1025e60af5cb@gmail.com> References: <CAPmsJLC001JNO==5VQoP6vBLzGT1g7L2fKR_ifd0BUSsxWmdAw@mail.gmail.com> <1720589882.5509006.1595431360144@mail.yahoo.com> <b1166d38-0e83-a6e5-77df-1025e60af5cb@gmail.com>
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On Wed, 22 Jul 2020 09:45:08 -0700, Don Wilde wrote: > I don't see that any of these GUI installers help a whole bunch for what > I want. I can see their usefulness for those who come from the Doze or > Mac -- or even Ubuntu -- worlds, but that's not where I want to go. I'll > just do it the old-fashioned way because I want to know what's getting > installed. The problem with desktop environments, not limited to MATE, or Xfce, or Lxde, is that they come with their equivalent of "accessories" - little programs that you might or might not need. If you wish to avoid this, install a graphical file manager and a window manager, but keep in mind that this is _not_ a desktop environment anymore! I tend to do this because I wish to have control over what is being installed, and I also use software from any "GUI lands" which are part of the Linux and UNIX experience: KDE programs, Gtk programs, and I don't care about "visual consistency" - it has been gone, it no longer exists, not even on the Mac (and "Windows" has said goodbye to it long time ago). So I only need to required libraries, but not the stuff a full desktop would include. For example, I have a "service system" that runs FreeBSD with the IceWM window manager (theme "metal2"), plus the program wbar (Warlock bar), and a Mac background image. It looks very expensive, and I tend to start all the different Gtk / Qt / ... programs via terminal, except for those already present in wbar (typical stuff like Firefox, an audio mixer, WiFi manager, LibreOffice and so on). Most desktop environments have moved to "let's include everything, maybe someone needs it, and when it's not there they'll complain" approach. "Old-fashioned" desktops like Mate or Cinnamon have quite good control over what additional parts to install, Gnome 3, in my opinion, does not fit: even though you can configure a lot, it feels like you have to fight the system to make it do what you want, instead a system supporting your workflow. -- Polytropon Magdeburg, Germany Happy FreeBSD user since 4.0 Andra moi ennepe, Mousa, ...
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