Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

winterhunter · 2009-07-08 06:15:03

Hi everyone,

I want to install Linux with XFCE on a computer, and I was wondering which is the easiest distro to get XFCE up and running. I remember jumbling with debian last time around (two years ago), but I think there must be something easier.

Thanks a lot!

s0ulslack · 2009-07-08 06:34:54

Xubuntu or Ubuntu seem to be pretty popular these days, I'm sure others will give a few other good suggestions

xfcelav · 2009-07-08 12:28:30

Debian ;D

unicav · 2009-07-08 16:25:55

Slackware comes with xfce now and it's absolutely awesome. I used to run Gnome on my desktop but tried xfce for a change and realy like it. I started with the 4.4 release that was included with Slack 12.2 and then upgraded to xfce 4.6 without any problems.

brain)(vision · 2009-07-08 16:47:33

slackware is absolutely the best choice if you want a stable OS. I don't know what's your confidence with informatics arts but I would tell you not consider people how talk about easy and difficult linux distro.. An easy distro, most of the times, want to make the work for you, without you're able to choose.. just as win does..
But finally, everybody is free to do as he prefers..

bye..!

P.S. pay attention on similar or double posts.. http://forum.xfce.org/index.php?topic=4071.0

BaldFat · 2009-07-08 23:18:40

Xubuntu = BLOAT (Well Ubuntu anything equals bloat IMHO)
Slack = Stable 1.5 year old OS IMHO
Arch Linux = Bleeding Edge fast distro
Mint Xfce = Pretty awesome with bloat
OpenSUSE = A good balance between the bleeding edge and the "stable" OS IMHO

I personally run Arch and I am seriously thinking of switching to LXDE for a desktop enviroment.

-Marc

bytor4232 · 2009-07-09 01:02:47

I install it on Ubuntu, from a command line only install using the alternate installer. Xubuntu is great, but it comes with too many things that I don't need. I install xfce from the metapackage xfce4, then install all my apps one at a time. Much leaner and meaner that way.

pcalvert · 2009-07-09 06:13:15

There is no "best distro" for Xfce since "best" depends on user preferences.

I noticed that you mentioned Debian. Did you know that there's a special Debian CD for Xfce (and LXDE) now?

Phil

xfcelav · 2009-07-09 18:43:02

pcalvert wrote:

I noticed that you mentioned Debian. Did you know that there's a special Debian CD for Xfce (and LXDE) now?
Phil

It is. Debian is a CD you can install XFCE or LXDE. In fact, in Debian Testing Synaptic has added a section specifically for Xfce.

shoaib · 2009-07-10 01:01:00

i would say ubuntu is one of the best in accordance of the relaibility and consistency

pcalvert · 2009-07-10 01:54:33

There's also the Xfce version of sidux. That should be an easy one to install, but it is based on Debian Sid, so it is a "bleeding edge" distro which is not suitable for most people. I plan to install it soon so I can play with it and try some ideas that I have.

Phil

lordcris · 2009-07-24 21:26:17

there is only one distro:

GENTOO

pcalvert · 2009-07-25 11:30:35

bytor4232 wrote:

I install it on Ubuntu, from a command line only install using the alternate installer. Xubuntu is great, but it comes with too many things that I don't need. I install xfce from the metapackage xfce4, then install all my apps one at a time. Much leaner and meaner that way.

How does Xfce look when you do that? I looked at some screenshots of Xubuntu and was turned off by how they tried (very hard, apparently) to make Xfce look like GNOME.

Phil

bytor4232 · 2009-07-27 12:36:54

There is a single panel along the bottom. Plus, the icons are different.

Conan · 2009-07-27 15:53:56

DREAMLINUX 3.5 ... after you install, update to XFCE 4.6.1, and you will give a fast distro. Very fast distro.
I cut off AWN, Engage, bluetooth, and other superfluos for me.
GOBLINX G:Mini 3.0... is other good distro. fast and easy.

I know, the Slackware is a good distro fro XFCE, but is not easy... DreamLinux, GoblinX, and others, is ALL GRAPHIC install.. updates, etc...

[ ]s

rin67630 · 2009-08-18 18:55:09

winterhunter wrote:

I want to install Linux with XFCE on a computer, and I was wondering which is the easiest distro to get XFCE up and running.

IMHO: Windows XP!

www.andlinux.org.

;-)

Laszlo

chicodogs · 2009-09-09 06:16:58

Gentoo big_smile

otto · 2009-10-26 16:15:29

smile
hi, folks! I know everyone has your own distro choice. I had used goblinx and dreamlinux because both are brazilian ones. But nowadays my best choice it's the sidux. You might view my desktop for the sidux version 2009-03, codiname momos here at http://stashbox.org/673922/sidux%202009 … 20xfce.png
Besides Iliked best the mandriva with xfce but it's not an official project (it's a community) and the releases are not so regular.
cheers.
cool

Bredin · 2009-11-19 23:40:47

I prefer ArchLinux. It's the easiet distro I've ever used. Sure, ubuntu will give you the most things preconfigured, but when you actually have to do something it feels easier on arch. There are like tons of good reading in the wiki, mostly copy-paste to get what you want. rc.conf & AUR <3

oOarthurOo · 2009-12-18 19:40:34

Second vote for dreamlinux, if you want something easy. For moderate go Debian testing. For difficult go Arch. For insane, go Gentoo.

/my two cents

Ion Silverbolt · 2010-01-14 06:03:30

"Best" is more of a personal preference. I have used xfce4 with four distros in the last year.

Linux Mint: Linux Mint is a wonderful, easy to use distro. Restricted drivers and codecs are easy to get, and you have the entire Ubuntu repos at your disposal. Linux Mint 8 xfce edition is due out very soon, but you can install it from regular mint. As with any meta distro, you will get a very easy to use desktop that just works, but there will be some bloat. If you're running anything modern in terms of computer power, I wouldn't worry about it. Linux Mint is easy to use and it's beautifully themed.

Arch Linux: Arch is a very fast distro. xfce really shows what it's capable of on Arch, and you really get to see the true xfce in action without all the massive kde or gnome crap leftover from a meta distro installation. My eeepc900 only uses 60MB's fully booted with Arch. And that's with tilda and conky running. The Arch installer doesn't feature a GUI, but it's not hard to follow. The Arch installation handbook is very helpful as is their community and their wiki. If you find it too difficult, it's easy to just go another route. However, I think it's worth it if you want a more pure xfce experience.

Gentoo Linux: This is my favorite distro. But it is also probably the hardest to use on the list. It's lightning fast, and you have ultimate control over what gets installed. xfce flies on my hp110 netbook with Gentoo. If I can help it, no other OS will ever be put on it. Gentoo has a good helpful community behind it as well as plenty of helpful howto's. Note however, it may not be suited for old hardware, as you compile everything from source.

Xubuntu: Same as Linux Mint. Easy to use. I think Mint is better. It feels more polished IMO. If you can wait for LM8 xfce edition, I would. If not, the latest Xubuntu is still a good choice.

DMcCunney · 2010-01-29 16:01:42

Hmmmm. Which distro is recommended for low end hardware?

I was given an old Fujitsu Lifebook P2110 by the mother of a friend. She loved it, and it had served well, but she had replaced it with a newer more powerful machine, and wanted to see it go to a good home. She said is was "slow slow slow".

Well, no surprise. The Lifebook has an 867mhx Transmeta Crusoe processor, a slow 5,400RPM UDMA 4 HD, and 256MB of RAM, expandable to 384. It came from Fujitsu with WinXP Pro SP2 installed, and XP wants 512MB RAM minimum to think about performing. It seemed like an appropriate platform for Linux.

So I swapped the 30GB HD it came with with a 40GB drive with similar specs from my SO's dead laptop, repartitioned, and installed Win2K Pro SP4, Xubuntu 9.10, and Puppy Linux 4.12. Win2K is also painfully slow, but is only there for times when I must have Windows for something. Xubuntu installed fine and technically ran, for suitable values of "ran". It was extremely sluggish. Puppy and its bundled apps were relatively sprightly, but third-party apps like Firefox and Open Office were another matter, and Puppy has weird quirks and compromises. Xfce was available for Puppy, which defaults to JWM, and I preferred it.

Posts in the Ubuntu forums indicated Xubuntu had a steadily increasing idea of what "low end" was, too much Gnome had crept in for it to be truly light weight, and I'd be better installing from the MinimalCD to get a bare-bones command line system, then add Xfce4 and other things manually via apt-get.

Puppy came out with a new release that supported ext4 file systems, so I wiped the Xubuntu and Puppy partitions, reformatted as ext4, installed Puppy 4.31 from its LiveCD and Ubuntu 9.10 from the MinimalCD, the added Xfce4 and other software from apt-get to Ubuntu. The MinimalCD install of Ubuntu is a lot peppier than Xubuntu, though still not as sprightly as Puppy.

Puppy is fun to play with, so I'll keep it around, but I'd like a more mainstream Linux distro as the main flavor of Linux, running Xfce4 as the interface. Any recommendations for as good distro for lower end hardware? I don't mind stuff like a command-line installer, but do want something currently maintained with a good set of available packages. Ubuntu is usable, but still a bit sluggish. If better performance is available elsewhere, I'll happily look.

This is largely an exercise in seeing what sort of performance I can wring out of low end gear, so don't bother recommending more RAM or a faster HD. The object is to see what I can do without spending money on it. tongue

Thanks in advance.
______
Dennis

Von_Zipper · 2010-02-13 02:00:48

lordcris wrote:

there is only one distro:
GENTOO

Right. The only thing is Gentoo is not a distro. :razz: It is a meta-distribution, framework to build your own Linux. You do it right and you will be awarded with most stable and responsive Linux ever. Do it wrong and Ubuntu will leave your Gentoo in dust. :-|

Conan · 2010-03-04 17:05:13

Yes, I also think Dreamlinux and LINUX MINT left behind, I think something has delayed these distros.
Sorry, but MINT GNOME 8, KDE 8 or FLUXBOX 8 are horrible compared to MINT XFCE 7 ... this is true!.
Dreamlinux this only with the alpha version "4".
Today I run XUBUNTU 10 alpha3 ... works only 30 seconds after turning on the PC, but as the friend said, is "just polished".
[]s

PS. I tried a new distro too: UNITY LINUX, good!

sotrud_nik · 2010-04-02 17:01:07

One more vote for Arch Linux. The easiest distro ever

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#1 2009-07-08 06:15:03

Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#2 2009-07-08 06:34:54

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#3 2009-07-08 12:28:30

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#4 2009-07-08 16:25:55

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#5 2009-07-08 16:47:33

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#6 2009-07-08 23:18:40

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#7 2009-07-09 01:02:47

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#8 2009-07-09 06:13:15

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#9 2009-07-09 18:43:02

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#10 2009-07-10 01:01:00

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#11 2009-07-10 01:54:33

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#12 2009-07-24 21:26:17

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#13 2009-07-25 11:30:35

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#14 2009-07-27 12:36:54

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#15 2009-07-27 15:53:56

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#16 2009-08-18 18:55:09

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#17 2009-09-09 06:16:58

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#18 2009-10-26 16:15:29

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#19 2009-11-19 23:40:47

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#20 2009-12-18 19:40:34

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#21 2010-01-14 06:03:30

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#22 2010-01-29 16:01:42

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#23 2010-02-13 02:00:48

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#24 2010-03-04 17:05:13

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

#25 2010-04-02 17:01:07

Re: Which is the best distro to install XFCE on

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