Will Linux Ubuntu be preloaded?


Affable Acheron
Artful Achilles
Chirpy Calypso
Chiefly Cragus ;)
Classy Cronus
Hungry Helios
Happy Hyperion
Intrepid Icarus
Masculine Morpheus
Peppy Pandarus :) First release!
Pokey Pandion
Perky Perseus
Pesky Prometheus :p
Zesty Zephyrus

:D


(They're not all gods, but they're all Greek figures.)
 
If I have the choice (read: If we have a real x server), I will definitely use XFCE. I heavily prefer it to the *boxes, which are the other major option being suggested here. I agree that it would be a very good idea to start with a server install of ubuntu (or debian, it doesn't matter to me), and add essential packages to that. I have done exactly that, twice, with very ancient computers.

I currently have a Xubuntu-like (a server install with XFCE on top) running on a pentium II at 266mHz with 96 Mb of ram. It runs very well (much better than windows 98 ran) on that computer, both as a server and as a basic web browsing and document editor (I gave it to my father).

I also experimented with debian on a Pentium 166, with 64 Mb of ram. The computer only had a 2 gig hard drive, so I had to carefully select the distro and packages just to get it to fit! That computer couldn't handle XFCE, but IceWM worked as well as could be expected. Web browsing was a pain, but at least it could run firefox 2!

The point is, the pandora should most definitely run _real_ window managers and distros, with little to no noticeable speed differences from a modern desktop or laptop.
 
Well you know one of the wonders of Linux is choice. Why not setup XFCE as the default window manager but also install Openbox by default? Openbox is very small, and our real limitations are RAM and processing power, not storage space (a rather complete Linux install easily fits on as small as a 1GB card after all). With a proper display manager like XDM or GDM, it would be rather easy to just set up XFCE as default but also include Openbox so you could quickly switch to your favorite, without having to go through and install the packages yourself.

I definitely think XFCE for casual users and Openbox for power use would be a killer combination.
 
Good idea. Why argue when you can have both?

One important thing that matters to me with regard to this is speed of launching programs. I don't want it to take more than a few seconds to start a web browser, and generally less than a second to launch and emulator. The whole point is convenience. If I want to do something that takes power and time, I can pull out my laptop. The Pandora is for those times when you just need something, now.
 
sHARD said:
I definitely think XFCE for casual users and Openbox for power use would be a killer combination.
Click to expand...
+1

In my laptop I only use a customized openbox, with xfce panels :) Fills all my needs
 
openbox is more themeable that xfce i think the buttons can be moved around on the windows to where ever you like and there are several themes with large buttons

the main issue with openbox is the menu

I would like to hear from craigix if gmenu can render to the root window which would basically create a hybrid simple/power interface with windows and an awesome launcher

thunar is MUCH heavier than rox ... and i have ran it on slower boxes more laggy but mostly the ram usage is just higher and it is prone to crashing if some of its default icons are missing
 
cb88 said:
I would like to hear from craigix if gmenu can render to the root window which would basically create a hybrid simple/power interface with windows and an awesome launcher

thunar is MUCH heavier than rox ... and i have ran it on slower boxes more laggy but mostly the ram usage is just higher and it is prone to crashing if some of its default icons are missing
Click to expand...

Well one nice thing about XFCE is that its not that hard to integrate alternative utilities. I never liked Thunar myself, who says we need to use it?

I agree that gmenu integration would be great, but at the same time I'd like to have a full window manager that feels like a real computer. I'm not quite sure how to strike the balance, any ideas? All I can gander are three Xsessions: XFCE, Openbox, and Gmenu + whatever minimal window manager. Feels like too many options to maintain for a small team...
 
When you guys are talking about different versions of linux and packages and all that I have no clue about what any of you are talking about (which is a big hint: I have never used linux). I think that the default installation should be a much more user-friendly version.
 
@sHARd you should really try installing the ROX desktop it is just awesome even works with compiz on x86

the only issue i have with rox on debian is that it is hard to install but after you get it going (prolly easier to install straight from the ROX website since installing roxapps with the debian packaged one breaks stuff)

rox has most of the functionality offered by xfce in a more lightweight package

as far as maintaining the packages being a burden I don't see it as a problem once they are setup you really don't need to do much constant maintainance

http://roscidus.com/desktop/HelpInstalling

distro with rox as the desktop:
http://debian.tu-bs.de/project/cpx-mini/index.html


@Username the GUIs we are talking about are all pretty user friendly it is more a matter of would you rather have the more standard XFCE and withstand some bloat and lag or would you rather have openbox + ROX + the XDG menu launcher app (no you can't identify it with one name but what is the difference in functionality really?)
 
Username said:
When you guys are talking about different versions of linux and packages and all that I have no clue about what any of you are talking about (which is a big hint: I have never used linux). I think that the default installation should be a much more user-friendly version.
Click to expand...

I wondered about that myself. Although I've used Debian quite a bit, my experience with other distros has been quite limited. :huh: Not everyone here is a Linux guru!

I thought Debian was pretty user friendly when I first ran it. Ubuntu is supposedly easier, but I haven't used it much. I'll have to check it out again tonight.
 
cb88 said:
@sHARd you should really try installing the ROX desktop it is just awesome even works with compiz on x86

the only issue i have with rox on debian is that it is hard to install but after you get it going (prolly easier to install straight from the ROX website since installing roxapps with the debian packaged one breaks stuff)

rox has most of the functionality offered by xfce in a more lightweight package

as far as maintaining the packages being a burden I don't see it as a problem once they are setup you really don't need to do much constant maintainance

http://roscidus.com/desktop/HelpInstalling

distro with rox as the desktop:
http://debian.tu-bs.de/project/cpx-mini/index.html


@Username the GUIs we are talking about are all pretty user friendly it is more a matter of would you rather have the more standard XFCE and withstand some bloat and lag or would you rather have openbox + ROX + the XDG menu launcher app (no you can't identify it with one name but what is the difference in functionality really?)
Click to expand...

I might have to give it a try, but from the looks of it its missing the tiny bit of bloat that XFCE has which gives it the polish of a fully featured system, rather than a throwback to 90s Unix. I've used Openbox and various panel hybrids, as well as straight Fluxbox for a number of years before finally settling on Blackbox (development machines) and KDE (casual machines). I can tell you that while all are fully functional (and many very light, especially straight Openbox and Blackbox), there is an element of polish that I think new users would appriciate.

For most users its not a matter of the buttons all being there, its about the overall experience being streamlined and easy. In a way most handheld device users expect a Mac-like experience rather than Linux, of course most Pandora users are already a bit savvy, but I definately enjoy the it-just-works aspect which could be achieved here. I just feel like the users who want that are going to need something a bit more robust.
 
I recommend Icewm and roxfiler as the windows manager and interface.

The reason for IceWM is because it is lightweight in graphics, memory/cpu usage, has battery monitor and email watching built in and, a system tray. It is very fast and does not have a large footprint in any sense of the word. XFCE cannot boast that as it needs plugins for many of its features and is much heftier than IceWM.

IceWM can run beautifully on an old Pentium 75 mhz with 32mb of ram, and the pandora has 600 mhz and 128mb of ram. Roxfiler would be a great option of course to pair up with IceWM. I recommend looking at Absolute Linux for what this pair can do.

Another option to make the desktop lightweight is use JWM or Openbox (as was previously mentioned). Openbox is beautifully lightweight and cleaner than blackbox or fluxbox with more ability to configure and add panels and whatnot.

I vote for IceWM and my second is Openbox. Although gMenu would be a much smoother interface and more lightweight than any. I would pick a homebrew app over any other.

Noisome
 
For the window manager I'd suggest Matchbox. It's designed for handhelds (among other things). It's used by Maeomo, the OLPC, OpenMoko and others. Supposedly it's highly customizable.
 
The icewm menu is rather laggy though otherwise it is very nice

Edit: matchbox is far insufficient IMO.... and i have tried it would severly hamper my use of the pandora
 
Why has no one said "Panduntu"?

Pronounced - Pan Doon Too

I've used Mandriva, Red hat and ubuntu. I am, by far, a linux lightweight. From what I've seen, I like the Gnome interface, its just a bit bubbly for me. Speaking as a Windows administrator and owning a macbook, just a regular computer user! I think the biggest thing we need to be shooting for is for 60% performance, 40% Style.

I would also like to make it clear that I would like to be able to do some (semi)multi-tasking with the pandora, If I can. I have no problem using other software that completes the same task. Such as Abiword instead of Open Office. I really wish to treat my Pandora like a MID with Gaming controls.

Can anyone give some examples?

Like I saw mention of IceWM with roxfiler. Is there a Linux Distro that I can just download and run in a virtual machine to get an idea of what type of experience I am going to be having.

I am looking for distro's that make use of these different kinds of window managers.

Thanks
 
Just about any Linux distribution should allow you to install these window managers - you could try doing a minimal Ubuntu Server install and then fluxbox, blackbox or XFCE on top of that. IceWM and Enlightenment and the others should be available as well. There's also a minimal distro that uses JWM or Openbox, called SliTaz.
 
Enlightenment 17

I'd really like to see Enlightenment 17 on here. It's in constant dev, but raster does killer work and it's pretty darn reliable as well.

Really though Debian(based) with a lightweight manager (windowmaker, ion, ratpoison, matchbox) will be fine.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

N
Debian/ubuntu Programs?
Replies
9
Views
2K
lennaick
lennaick
A
Quick Question about a linux game
Replies
10
Views
1K
panik
panik
eomonkeyboi24
Question about porting
Replies
5
Views
1K
benjymous
benjymous
hch
Will Pandora Be Able To Run Debian?
Replies
13
Views
3K
hch
hch
paddy
Pandora Ubuntu Pabuntu
2
Replies
22
Views
3K
dflemstr
dflemstr
Back
Top