MX Linux: Plasma vs XFCE | DistroWars

This week in DistroWars, we have a civil war between MX Linux! Which should you choose between the classic XFCE and the new KDE version? Here we will look at the two distros side by side.
#MXLinux #Plasma #XFCE

2:00p EST

00:00 Intro
04:07 KDE
11:19 XFCE
15:54 Conclusions

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[runwiththedolphin]

quick clarification: there are MX-19 "ahs" iso for Xfce as well as the non-ahs versions. (3 isos using Xfce-32bit, 64bit, 64bit-ahs, 1 using KDE/plasma 64bit ahs)

[kennyheimbuch]

KDE and XFCE have always been my two very favourite desktops for the last 15 years. So it's a very tough choice for me to choose between the two of them. Thankfully MX now comes with both of them. I believe it's the very best distro out there. I can't believe the number of machines I've installed it on - many of them quite older, and it's performed flawlessly.

[torspedia]

I haven't gotten round to run MX yet but will have a look at the Plasma version (as it's my preferred DE) when I do!

[cantdance]

MX XFCE would occasionally freeze my screen. No issue with KDE version. In fact I really like it. Keeping it as my secondary distro.
Manjaro is my main driver. Perfect combination for me..

[walter_lesaulnier]

On the MX loading screen, you can click on the moving geometric shapes and they change.

[emjaycee]

On my hardware (Ryzen 1600X / GTX 1060) and dual booted on the same drive (basic SATA HDD), KDE is about 50 - 100 Mb lower in RAM than Xfce... for what it's worth. This system, for some reason, also struggles with the AHS kernel, I find it works better for me on the 4.19 kernel. I'm sure it's just 'my' hardware :)

[davidwayne]

I'm starting to really LIKE XFCE which I never cared for earlier--- BUT I miss my TILING (pop shell or bismuth- NOT the keybanging BS).. so waiting ti lthey get hyprland into a good solid state and will try hyprland instead..

[runwiththedolphin]

one of the updates was probably a grub update. those things are annoying.

[geraldcragg]

I think you should redo this Distro wars when the 19.3 is released. MX has spent years on their XFCE and when the Plasma gets to 5.85 you'll see the Plasma improved greatly in Ram/Performance.
And there should be more choice in Distro's. 32 bit etc 👍👍👍

[mekuranda]

Thunar used to be in earlier versions of MX....Using Dolphin now...mmmm...that might fix issues I had which could not be resolved with my hardware (USB reading some external drives)...it only failed on MX with Thunar.

[iskandariacordoba]

Off topic, sort of....
If System76 would create a KDE Plasma variant of their Pop! _OS, I'd be completely sold....
KDE is where it's at Imo..
Neon's my preference.

[briansrcadventures]

I gave Kubuntu 20.04 another try for a couple of weeks. Let's just say I don't get on with Plasma at all. Too many options for options for settings of settings. So I'm back in good old Mint 20 Cinnamon. If Cinnamon ever disappeared, I'd probably end up using XFCE.

[peterjansen]

It is nice that MX Linux also has a Fluxbox version, I would like it if they would also make a version with a tiling window manager. Their Advanced Hardware Support is a great move, it makes this the number 1 Debian based distribution (inclusive Ubuntu) which I will recommend to those people who prefer Debian-based. I understood from an MX Linux user that they now use kernel 5.8. That is a big deal for gamers who use an AMD-GPU.

[amigaworkbench]

What I don't like about KDE:

I don't that I can't strip Dolphin of all panels/toolbars like I can with Thunar.
I don't like the way that panels are handled in KDE. For example, I've by accident deleted all panels.
Also, there are too many font sizes and too many different icon sizes.

I'm using Xfce with Kwin and UI generally looks cleaner then Win10 (UI standard that KDE is following).

[anarita-]

I use Linux Mint as my main disto but I also use MX Linux and they both run like a glove that just fit my needs nicely and XFCE is my choice because it has enough settings but not too overwhelmed like KDE which makes my OCD go overload and goes "NO" and unlike many distros Elementary OS which limit the user quite a bit in terms of settings and features so XFCE is a middle ground which is perfect for me as both Linux Mint and MX Linux bur like a kitty LOL :)

[RockawayCCW]

Have you ever done videos on FocusWriter or Plume-Creator? Are they any good? Is one better than the other?

[riseabove]

i3-gaps wins on low ram here at around 265MB. I have Manjaro XFCE and KDE Plasma installed on a second and third computer. My daily is i3-gaps. I think Manjaro's XFCE is one of the best I have ever installed and used and I prefer the much bigger repository from Arch side with no SNAPs.

[tommaverick]

Midori has a new browser would you please make a review of it?

[ivanguerra]

Hey Tom, thanks for your work ! You know, MX is rocking it and KDE too, so much that now AV Linux comes with the AV Linux MX edition, in the other hand, Ubuntu Studio comes very very good too, please make a review since there is not this kind of info in UTube. But first take your time learning some music, Photo, paint, etc. etc., and don´t forget to mention how this Distros can help the SciFi community, thanks again.

[yasagarwal]

Is it distrowars or desktop environment war