To plasma or not to plasma

General Help
1

Hello,

Instead of having our conversation in Share your desktop, what does it look like? thread, we can continue it here as it is slightly off-topic from that.

yeah i found this yesterday myself and got caught off-guard by how easy it is to switch/get installed - and it runs on x11! From what i read on the newer KDE Plasma versions, they are only tested with wayland - so i assume thats another thought - will i be running into a bunch of issues with that?

I would gladly accept this offer now @Storm. I'm at a point now where i would rather use the latest version of KDE Plasma, which is 6.3 by now. From what I've been able to find on various forums and various links around the kde project - i don't think I'll be able to run KDE Plasma 6.3 alongside Zorin. So i am considering a switch to a distro that offers the latest KDE Plasma out of the box.

Don't get me wrong - My love for Zorin started off by how great it looks and the fact that everything just works when it needs to. Now I'm at a point where I've had that small taste of KDE and i am in love with customizing the shell, icons, cursor and all kinds of other stuff. Its such a great feeling.

Here's what i am looking for:

  • High customizability
  • Stability
  • I use linux as my daily-driver, so it needs to offer decent performance so that i can game on it

and i feel that the latest KDE Plasma just might be what i am looking for. I saw someone mention KDE Neon earlier, is that perhaps something thats worth trying?

The question is now, what distro do i go for? I'd love to get a few suggestions, to have some options.

1 Like
2

If you want to stay close to what you're used to with Zorin, you may want to opt for Kubuntu or Tuxedo OS. Caveat with Tuxedo OS is that they built it for the Linux-first computers they sell, so you'll have some Tuxedo specific applications that you may want to remove. It's also Debian based, and as I recall is built on a new enough glibc that Plasma 6 is viable. I keep debating moving to it myself for that reason now that I'm capable of replacing my kernel (at least on Debian based distros).

Nobara is one I like and flirt with a lot, but it's not got the most polish. It does a LOT to make getting set up for gaming or streaming less of a hassle, and maintains a much more up to date kernel. It is, however, Fedora-based and Wayland only. On the bright side, its components are up to date enough that I never had any of the Wayland issues that I constantly had here.

3

Personally to me, while I wouldn't classify it as HIGH customizability, I would say XFCE fits these criteria pretty well. It's also disgustingly stable, and I really love that I never worry about it. As for gaming performance, I would actually say this comes more down to the distro in question, more so than the DE. I have yet to find real, steadfast, credible sources showing any meaningful difference between DEs when it comes to gaming performance.

I have noticed differences in Wayland vs x, depending on situation and game, and it's not always the same, and sometimes it would reverse in the same game on another day. I've been meaning to do some in-depth, objective data gathering on my systems, but I have no time to do this at present, so all I have is anecdotal evidence.

1 Like
4

I signed up to KDE Discuss, and my last post on their was that I was so annoyed about my latest experience with neonuser I was considering giving EndeavourOS a tryout ... and that did not work out well. I pointed the installer to install on the drive identified as Neon, and instead it wiped out my PCLOS Debian install instead (partly my fault, as I went against my own recommendations of disconnecting a drive while installing to another).

To me KDE Neon (neonuser) is bleeding edge, which means you will need to put up with potential loss of a working system, and repulsively with the last shenanigans your KDE Plasma desktop turning into a fully-fledged Ubuntu 24.04 with Gnome DE. What you need to be aware of is that Neon is a hybrid of Ubuntu and Debian repositories.

I find myself somewhat of a hypocrite; I didn't like Endeavour OS, based on Arch because it uses systemd, but I am quite happy to use Q4OS Plasma, which also uses systemd, and is a rolling release, currently based on Debian 12 'bookworm'.

I am not sure if Q4OS or PCLOS Debian will ever adopt KDE 6.0 or Wayland, for me stability is key.

For someone who is not an avid gamer, someone who wants a stable system with different Windows or Mac themes, then Q4OS is the one to choose as it is on kernel 6.1 and LibreOffice is at 7.4, but as most of you are aware by now my preferred Office Suite is SoftMaker Office.

On a side note I was helping a Zorin member to install their printer remotely, and whilst controlling their machine I went to the SoftMaker website and was horrified to see that people in the US would have to pay $299 for the 5 machine licence that cost me only £79!

PCLOS Debian is X11 based, has no systemd bloatware and comes with Pipewire instead of Pulse Audio. Even so, sound, if you have a surround sound system, you will be disappointed as Pipewire only delivers to the centre speakers (and even when ALSA has been installed, streaming from the web comes only from the centre speakers).

So ALSA still has a vital role when it comes to delivering sound, and the only audio player I recommend these days for such a system is Audacious which allows me to choose ALSA as the sound engine and then choose the 5.1 surround engine for the installed Audigy Rx soundcard.

Personally I detest Wayland; you can't have online video chat or record your desktop with Wayland. I will always be an X11 diehard.

5

Which version of Plasma does Kubuntu offer? I'm asking because version 6.4 is about to hit the street. So you have to decide static release distro or rolling release distro. There are pros and cons with both.

6

I don't know as it's been years since I installed Kubuntu. I've not had an issue (apart from the Chaac weather widget disappearing) with Q4OS rolling release, installed 5.6, now at 5.8. I'm avoiding 6.0 if possible. Hope they don't pull the plug on 5.xx.

Just to add that floating panel that @freshjeff mentioned elsewhere is in Q4OS as I installed it on youngest's machine, replicated Windows 11 look as it was dual-boot with Windows 11 but now can't which means planning a visit to circumvent TPM 2.0 module.

7

Kubuntu LTS 24.04= Plasma 5.17
Kubuntu 24.10 = Plasma 6.1
Kubuntu 25.04 = Plasma 6.3

1 Like
8

Kubuntu 24.04 LTS actually comes with 5.27.11 :wink:

Q4OS comes with 5.27.5

9

ah yes, thats something i forgot to mention. I'll want to stick with something that is debian based. I tested out EndeavorOS a while back, and i definitely want to keep using something that is debian/ubuntu based.

I'm going to look into Kubuntu and Tuxedo OS, hmmm... and possibly XFCE.

10

No, they have still X11 but because of the imense Progress in the Wayland Implementation in Plasma it changed to Wayland by Default - except on Fedora. Fedora kicked out the X11 Session in Plasma with Fedora 40 if I remember right.

Okay, so Rolling Release Distros and Fedora are no Option. Okay. There would be Kubuntu, but that has still an olde rPlasma Desktop because Plasma was ready too late for Kubuntu. but You coulduse the Kubuntu STS Version.

Tuxedo Os is a Possibility, too. But keep in Mind that this is made for the Tuxedo Computers. Don't understand me wrong: that doesn't mean that it will not work. But it couldbe that maybe some Tuxedo own tools maybe not work with Your Machine.

Then there would be KDE Neon. That is an up-to-date Plasma Desktop with Ubuntu LTS Base. But KDE seems to built a new System because there are not happy with the LTS Base because of the Dependencies. They create a KDE OS with an Arch Base.

If You are not in a Hurry, You could wait for Debian 13. That will bring Plasma 6.3.4 or 6.3.5 with it.

And then there is a Distro from what I've heard: Nitrux OS. It is debian-based but uses Liquorix Kernels. I'm not sure what Plasma Version they use. But have to say, that they don't use default Plasma Look; it is customized.

11

Debian 13 will be released any day now, probably in June/July. If you can wait, you will have something that meets all your requirements.

KDE Plasma will be available at version 6.3.5:

2 Likes
12

Running fedora kde 41 on my laptop and the x11 session is still available and works.

Though, I did upgrade from fedora 40, so I don't know if it'd be different in a fresh install of 41. But on 40 it was still available.

13

X11 is available, yes. But as far as I know, You had to install it. It should came with Wayland only and You would had to install X11 from the Repos. I've read that in Relation to the upcoming Kick-Out of the X11 Session in Fedora Gnome.

14

As someone who has had a fair bit of criticism (and praise) for Zorin OS (and also as someone who's distrohopped now and then over the past year after starting with Linux), my advice to you is to either stay with Zorin OS (which in itself is still reasonably customizable if you know what you're doing; don't forget about the different layouts Zorin offers users), or just go with Debian Trixie when it's released in full (which, as @zenzen pointed out, could be "any day now"), and go from there with the KDE version. I myself am looking forward to Trixie to see what it offers, but I'm content with Zorin OS, too. I'm looking forward to Zorin OS 18 Pro.

Part of why I suggested that you stay with Zorin (other than the fact that things work and that there are workarounds when need be, which I've relied on, like the XWayland-related edit I have to make in .desktop files to get X11 for a few specific applications I use) is that the developers listen and make changes for users' benefit. Sometimes the changes they make come quickly. I suggested that they incorporate centered windows, and boom; they did (within a short time). I did appreciate that very much. With burgeoning projects like KDE, changes don't always happen or come at all. Something to think about, I'd say. Good luck.

1 Like
15

:face_with_spiral_eyes:
Blimey @swarfendor437 and to lesser extent @Omnimaxus , It would aid readability if you inserted paragraph breaks in some of your posts here. e.g. post#4. Just sayin' Zab

3 Likes
16

Haha. Point taken. I'll make an edit right now.

2 Likes
17

Wall of text to exhausted the unwary travellers :smiley:

1 Like
18

I've tried Tuxedo OS on my previous computer. It worked great, except Wayland (same problems I experienced on Zorin, though I believe Tuxedo's done some significant updates since then) and as you mentioned, some Tuxedo specific tools. Nothing was an actual problem--what didn't work was stuff like hardware monitoring tools designed for specific hardware included in their PCs. Tuxedo has one other significant difference from Zorin, which is that they go farther to keep applications new, without constantly changing the underlying OS. Their words:

Over time, we started to question the purpose of version numbers in TUXEDO OS and what criteria we should base them on. TUXEDO OS uses a hybrid release model that combines elements of rolling and point releases. This means the system updates almost daily, keeping important applications always up-to-date. However, the underlying system, which is not visible or noticeable to the user, remains constant. Our own tools are also continuously developed.
In this semi-rolling model with a stable base, we now consider version numbers unnecessary and will therefore consciously stop using them in the future.

19

Tuxedo is in Germany, too. Nothing wrong with that, but they don't have a server in the United States (US). So updates and downloads from their repositories can take forever. I've told them this. They're aware. They said they'd put servers in the US.

20

oooo interesting, yeah im not in any hurry since everything works fine on KDE Plasma 5.25.

You do make a very reasonable point here. Zorin does work, and i don't really need all the extra customization, as long as the OS does what it is intended for. I'll have to think about that one, but i could probably consider to head back to gnome or just wait for a newer version of KDE Plasma to become available as a backport on Zorin.

Coming to think of it, it doesn't matter what OS i try out - i always seem to end up on where it all started, on Zorin OS :rofl:

Yeah exactly, this is the reason i want to keep my distance from an OS that targets specific hardware. Because there could be more issues down the road.

1 Like