LinuxQuestions.org - Debian minimal install LXDE or Openbox

- Debian (https://www.linuxquestions.org/questions/debian-26/)

- - Debian minimal install LXDE or Openbox (https://www.linuxquestions.org/questions/debian-26/debian-minimal-install-lxde-or-openbox-4175507485/)

Debian minimal install LXDE or Openbox

Hi,

I am currently running Debian Wheezy with XFCE installed from a Debian Live ISO

I am thinking of replacing this with a minimal install and adding LXDE or alternatively no DE but using Openbox window manager (as done in Crunchbang). I am trying to get as light as I can but without losing too much functionality . I am going to follow the instructions here //http://l3net.wordpress.com/2013/04/30/lightweight-debian-lxde-desktop-from-scratch/

Does anyone have any advice as to which option might be better ? Pros/ cons etc

Eireannach

If you want to have that full DE experience, then go for LXDE.

When I want light, I go OpenBox. You don't get all that call DE stuff like a main menu and a task bar, but that's not really a deal breaker for me. The OpenBox menu is a right click on the desktop (sure, if you have windows minimized, that may be a problem but a keybinding could fix that), and as far as switching windows, IMHO Alt=Tab is faster than using a task bar. If you need the notification area and such, you could probably do them as well without a panel as well.

The laptop I did this on still sits on the shelf. Not touched for months. It was done more as a self teaching experiment than as a working install environment.

I still use the M/C shop Computer though. I got rid of lXpanels on it though and went back to straight fluxbox on it with KDE-Lite as a alternative Desktop environment to boot into via Slim Login Manager.

It took me some troubleshooting to get LXDE the way I wanted it. I pretty much took that trail alone without help.

http://forum.lxde.org/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=31202

A AntiX core install is like a Debian net install. In practice and uses Debian repos.

You don't need to start over from scratch. You can simply:

Code:

apt-get install lxde

or:

Code:

apt-get install openbox

Now you can choose LXDE or Openbox from your login screen. :)

If you want to go even lighter than LXDE or Openbox, you might consider one of the LinuxBBQ releases. "Cream" was just released, featuring 76 window managers (and it still fits on a CD!).

I personally would just go for Openbox, then pick from LXDE what you might need to get a better experience (themeswitcher, power-manager, ...).
But it depends highly on how you use your system and how you define lightweight. For example, if you use Vim or Gvim asd texteditor you don't have a need for LXDE's text editor, if you use Xterm or Urxvt for terminal emulation you won't need LXDE's LXTerm, ... . Not installing that software will make your system smaller on the disk, but will have no advantage in memory usage, since software that doesn't run doesn't need resources.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eireannach (Post 5185072)

If you really want a mininal install, use debootstrap with the --variant=minbase option. I was able to get a Debian install with Fluxbox and some other basic tools under 275MiB.

Quote:

Originally Posted by snowpine (Post 5185134)

You don't need to start over from scratch. You can simply:

Code:

apt-get install lxde

or:

Code:

apt-get install openbox

Now you can choose LXDE or Openbox from your login screen. :)

This is not needed. Lxde is based on OpenBox. Install Lxde and you will have the choice of Lxde or OpenBox at login in the sessions list already.

The meta package for OpenBox is pretty plane.

I personally have used the Debian version of Lxde, pretty much as it comes from the Lxde folks. May be better now but I prefer OpenBox with the Tint2 panel.

Tint2 is kind of a pain to set up until you find the tools.

Be sure to install the debian menu package as this will save you from having to edit the OB menu. This is not hard to do but if you have not used OB before it may leave a bad taste.

OB is a vastly under rated and under used system. I prefer Xfce myself but if they get as crazed as, for instance, KDE has always been and Gnome has become, I will have OB on in a hurry.

A good place to see a very nice OTB OpenBox install is to get a CD from Manjaro (Arch based). They configure a very nice OpenBox and you can see the tools they provide for it and Tint2. These are native tools to both of them.

Lxde is a nice attempt to build a DE out of OpenBox. Comes across, to me, as simply a bloated OpenBox.

Quote:

Originally Posted by widget (Post 5185329)

OB is a vastly under rated and under used system. I prefer Xfce myself but if they get as crazed as, for instance, KDE has always been and Gnome has become, I will have OB on in a hurry.

And nothing stops you from using the two together, for the time being. I used to use OB on top of XFCE at work on a P4, very nice experience.

Quote:

Originally Posted by widget (Post 5185329)

Lxde is a nice attempt to build a DE out of OpenBox. Comes across, to me, as simply a bloated OpenBox.

Precisely. LXDE is little more than Openbox with a panel and desktop icons.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Randicus Draco Albus (Post 5185418)

Precisely. LXDE is little more than Openbox with a panel and desktop icons.

To be fair, LXDE is much more than just a panel and icons:

Code:

Components



    Core desktop components

        PCManFM, a fast and lightweight file manager with features like Drag & Drop support, tabbed browsing (Similar to Firefox), Built-in file searching utility, fast load of large directories, File association support (Default application), Thumbnail for image files, bookmarks support, correct handling of non-UTF-8 encoded filenames and more. It's based on libfm.

        libfm, A glib/gio-based library providing some file management utilities and related-widgets missing in gtk+/glib. This is the core of PCManFM. The library is desktop independent (not LXDE specific) and has clean API. It can be used to develop other applications requiring file management functionality. For example, you can create your own file manager with facilities provided by libfm.

        LXLauncher, an easy-mode application launcher for small screens

        LXPanel, desktop panel. The panel can generate a menu for installed applications automatically from *.desktop files. It can be configured from GUI preference dialog, and there is no need to edit config files. The component provides a "Run" dialog with autocompletion.

        LXSession, a session manager, is used to automatically start a set of applications and set up a working desktop environment. Moreover, the session manager is able to remember the applications in use when a user logs out and to restart them the next time the user logs in.

        LXSession Edit, an edit manager for session management. The window manager in use in LXDE can be changed, the tool offers the ability to turn on disabled applications.

        Openbox, a window manager and obconf

        libmenu-cache a library used to loading freedesktop.org spec complaint desktop menu. It creates some on-disk caches to speed up loading.

        LXMenu Data, a collection of files, intended to adapt LXDE menus to the freedesktop.org menu specification. The data can be used in conjunction with libmenu-cache.



    Accessories

        Leafpad, a text editor

        Xarchiver, archiving

        GPicView, a fast and intuitive image viewer.

        LXTerminal, a terminal emulator

        LXMusic, a minimalist xmms2-based music player

        LXFind, a search program

        Galculator, a lightweight yet powerful calculator



    System Tools

        LXTask, a task manager and system monitor

        LXDM, a lightweight display manager used for logging in



    Configuration Tools

        LXAppearance, a theme switcher. You can change the theme, icons, and fonts used by applications easily.

        LXRandr, a screen manager. Manages screen resolution and external monitors.

        LXShortCut, an easy way to edit application shortcuts

        LXInput, a config tool to configure your keyboard and mouse under LXDE

        LXDE Common, the default settings configuration file for integrating the different components of LXDE. LXDE Common manages the system behavior and functions to integrate icons and artwork.

http://wiki.lxde.org/en/Main_Page

With the switch to LXQt it will become components that are now missing, like lxqt-powermanagement (which by the way works fine without LXQt). LXDE/LXQt is indeed a fully blown DE, not just a WM with panels.

Most of the accessories will be added to a WM by a user. Most people will add things like image viewer, editor and audio player. Who would not install a terminal? Although every OS, no matter how minimal, will include one.

Nothing special in the system tools

"Core components." Again most Openbox users will install a panel and file manager, so nothing special there.

In conclusion; other than a few extra themes provided by LXAppearance, LXDE does not have much more than a stand alone Openbox. All they did was create a new panel and add desktop icons, which anyone can do.

So all the applications written by them are not more than a panel an desktop icons because the user has options to add something else to a WM? In that view DEs simply don't exist, even KDE has nothing that couldn't be done by a third parts app. Sorry, but I don't buy that.

Quote:

Originally Posted by widget (Post 5185329)

This is not needed. Lxde is based on OpenBox. Install Lxde and you will have the choice of Lxde or OpenBox at login in the sessions list already.

I gave the OP both commands so they can choose. Apologies for not explicitly mentioning that "LXDE is based on Openbox, so it is redundant to install Openbox if you already have LXDE." :)