LinuxQuestions.org
Share your knowledge at the LQ Wiki.
Go Back   LinuxQuestions.org > Forums > Linux Forums > Linux - Distributions > Slackware
User Name
Password
Slackware This Forum is for the discussion of Slackware Linux.

Notices


View Poll Results: wicd or networkmanager?
wicd 75 50.68%
networkmanager 81 54.73%
Multiple Choice Poll. Voters: 148. You may not vote on this poll

Reply
  Search this Thread
Old 04-19-2013, 10:43 AM   #1
JWJones
Senior Member
 
Registered: Jun 2009
Posts: 1,444

Rep: Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709
Question wicd vs. networkmanager


Which do you choose, and why?

I've always used networkmanager, because I've appreciated being able to connect to wireless networks directly from the nm-applet in the systray, without opening a window, such as with wicd.

But it seems to me that most Slackers (and some others) prefer wicd. Is it mostly a matter or wicd's relative light weight/lack of dependencies compared to networkmanager (Gnome, ugh)?
 
Old 04-19-2013, 11:13 AM   #2
ozar
Member
 
Registered: May 2004
Location: USA
Distribution: Arch Linux
Posts: 415

Rep: Reputation: 85
I've used both but prefer wicd because it's lighterweight and seems simpler to me.
 
Old 04-19-2013, 11:15 AM   #3
H_TeXMeX_H
LQ Guru
 
Registered: Oct 2005
Location: $RANDOM
Distribution: slackware64
Posts: 12,928
Blog Entries: 2

Rep: Reputation: 1301Reputation: 1301Reputation: 1301Reputation: 1301Reputation: 1301Reputation: 1301Reputation: 1301Reputation: 1301Reputation: 1301Reputation: 1301
Well, I've used both. Originally I preferred wicd, but after some buggy UI changes I now prefer network manager.
 
Old 04-19-2013, 11:16 AM   #4
onebuck
Moderator
 
Registered: Jan 2005
Location: Central Florida 20 minutes from Disney World
Distribution: SlackwareŽ
Posts: 13,976
Blog Entries: 46

Rep: Reputation: 3202Reputation: 3202Reputation: 3202Reputation: 3202Reputation: 3202Reputation: 3202Reputation: 3202Reputation: 3202Reputation: 3202Reputation: 3202Reputation: 3202
Member Response

Hi,

I use 'wicd' via ''wicd-curses' when on console'cli' or 'wicd Network Manager' when using KDE.

No issues to date. I did try '/etc/rc.d/rc.networkmanager' with KDE NetworkManager via 'nm-applet' but '/etc/rc.d/rc.wicd' for 'wicd' seems better to me using applet. Just personal taste & opinion.

I experieced more errors using '/etc/rc.d/rc.networkmanager'. No errors to date using 'wicd'.
 
4 members found this post helpful.
Old 04-19-2013, 12:08 PM   #5
vdemuth
Member
 
Registered: Oct 2003
Location: West Midlands, UK
Distribution: Slackware 14 (Server),OpenSuse 13.2 (Laptop & Desktop),, OpenSuse 13.2 on the wifes lappy
Posts: 781

Rep: Reputation: 98
I use both depending on circumstances. Mostly to do with 3G dongles being recognised and usable with NM. But on the whole, it seems that Wicd is just more stable and reliable.

A PITA having to swap about, so the sooner Wicd gets 3G support the sooner I can ditch Nm.
 
Old 04-19-2013, 12:20 PM   #6
JWJones
Senior Member
 
Registered: Jun 2009
Posts: 1,444

Original Poster
Rep: Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709
Quote:
Originally Posted by vdemuth View Post
A PITA having to swap about, so the sooner Wicd gets 3G support the sooner I can ditch Nm.
I believe I read somewhere that this is planned for wicd 2.0.

Edit: No, it was VPN support:

https://answers.launchpad.net/wicd/+faq/1867

Aha! Edit, again: 3G support is also slated for wicd 2.0:

https://answers.launchpad.net/wicd/+faq/1866

Last edited by JWJones; 04-19-2013 at 02:47 PM. Reason: Added link to 3G support info
 
1 members found this post helpful.
Old 04-19-2013, 03:06 PM   #7
cynwulf
Senior Member
 
Registered: Apr 2005
Posts: 2,727

Rep: Reputation: 2368Reputation: 2368Reputation: 2368Reputation: 2368Reputation: 2368Reputation: 2368Reputation: 2368Reputation: 2368Reputation: 2368Reputation: 2368Reputation: 2368
I've had no problems with either - but run wicd (with fluxbox).
 
Old 04-19-2013, 04:26 PM   #8
GazL
LQ Veteran
 
Registered: May 2008
Posts: 7,150

Rep: Reputation: 5306Reputation: 5306Reputation: 5306Reputation: 5306Reputation: 5306Reputation: 5306Reputation: 5306Reputation: 5306Reputation: 5306Reputation: 5306Reputation: 5306
I use raw wpa_supplicant and dhclient - but I'm weird like that.
 
Old 04-19-2013, 07:14 PM   #9
irgunII
Member
 
Registered: Jan 2012
Location: Directly above the center of the earth
Distribution: Slackware. There's something else?
Posts: 383

Rep: Reputation: 72
They both worked equally...but I cannot say they worked well, unless it was something else on my system causing problems.

No matter which I'd use, it seemed to randomly (length of time-wise) lose the connection to the router.

I use a dongle that's supported by linux kernel and have tried two different routers. I would sometimes stay connected for two and sometimes (rarely) three days, but more often than not I would lose connection in just a few hours and have to unplug the usb to the dongle and re-plug it in to get wicd or nm to even start up again as either would lock up solid.

The dongle is a tp-link wn-821n, and the routers were a tp-link wr-841n and a linksys E-2500.

Simply got so frustrated after a few months of this that I ordered some nice cat6 ethernet cable and haven't had a hiccup since, though I hate that I've now got a big ol' ugly length of cable running along the wall.

Hopefully either of them will work well/better for you.
 
Old 04-19-2013, 08:42 PM   #10
JWJones
Senior Member
 
Registered: Jun 2009
Posts: 1,444

Original Poster
Rep: Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709
Quote:
Originally Posted by irgunII View Post
Hopefully either of them will work well/better for you.
They both actually work just fine for me, I was just interested in hearing about the experiences/opinions of others on the matter. I do like that wicd is lighter and has less dependencies, but I also like the ease-of-use of NM.

Last edited by JWJones; 04-19-2013 at 08:49 PM.
 
Old 04-19-2013, 08:53 PM   #11
astrogeek
Moderator
 
Registered: Oct 2008
Distribution: Slackware [64]-X.{0|1|2|37|-current} ::12<=X<=15, FreeBSD_12{.0|.1}
Posts: 6,356
Blog Entries: 24

Rep: Reputation: 4292Reputation: 4292Reputation: 4292Reputation: 4292Reputation: 4292Reputation: 4292Reputation: 4292Reputation: 4292Reputation: 4292Reputation: 4292Reputation: 4292
wicd and fluxbox with no issues, but it is only on one system. I do not use wireless access at home and only use it occasionally when traveling with my laptop.

I have a newer desktop running -current with wifi hardware but have not yet configured the wifi. Maybe a weekend comparison test is in order...
 
Old 04-19-2013, 09:11 PM   #12
frankbell
LQ Guru
 
Registered: Jan 2006
Location: Virginia, USA
Distribution: Slackware, Ubuntu MATE, Mageia, and whatever VMs I happen to be playing with
Posts: 19,896
Blog Entries: 28

Rep: Reputation: 6347Reputation: 6347Reputation: 6347Reputation: 6347Reputation: 6347Reputation: 6347Reputation: 6347Reputation: 6347Reputation: 6347Reputation: 6347Reputation: 6347
I use wicd with Slackware and Fluxbox on two machines and have been quite happy with it. I prefer it to network manager.

For Fluxbox, I put wicd-client & in my .fluxbox/startup file so that the wicd client application starts when I startx.
 
Old 04-19-2013, 10:59 PM   #13
psionl0
Member
 
Registered: Jan 2011
Distribution: slackware_64 14.1
Posts: 722
Blog Entries: 2

Rep: Reputation: 125Reputation: 125
Where's the poll?

Network Manager for me.
 
Old 04-20-2013, 12:49 AM   #14
zakame
Member
 
Registered: Apr 2012
Location: Philippines
Distribution: Debian, Ubuntu, Slackware
Posts: 295

Rep: Reputation: 181Reputation: 181
NetworkManager, mainly because it is de facto. ModemManager was also a factor, but became less so when I started using my Android phone as a WiFi hotspot.
 
Old 04-20-2013, 08:46 AM   #15
JWJones
Senior Member
 
Registered: Jun 2009
Posts: 1,444

Original Poster
Rep: Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709Reputation: 709
Quote:
Originally Posted by psionl0 View Post
Where's the poll?

Network Manager for me.
Done and done! Vote on!
 
  


Reply


Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is Off
HTML code is Off



Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
What is the advantage (if any) of NetworkManager over wicd? BobNutfield Slackware 28 07-13-2012 06:24 AM
[SOLVED] NetworkManager lopid Slackware 8 05-13-2012 12:22 PM
NetworkManager dbswifty Linux - Newbie 6 08-23-2010 05:05 PM
networkmanager giraf Ubuntu 7 05-05-2010 04:22 PM
WICD tray icon says not connected, WICD manager says conneted to wired network?!?! intheshadows Linux - Newbie 1 12-24-2009 12:15 PM

LinuxQuestions.org > Forums > Linux Forums > Linux - Distributions > Slackware

All times are GMT -5. The time now is 11:48 AM.

Main Menu
Advertisement
My LQ
Write for LQ
LinuxQuestions.org is looking for people interested in writing Editorials, Articles, Reviews, and more. If you'd like to contribute content, let us know.
Main Menu
Syndicate
RSS1  Latest Threads
RSS1  LQ News
Twitter: @linuxquestions
Open Source Consulting | Domain Registration