Kubuntu 9.10 = WOW

[dustyjamessutton]

All I have to say about Kubuntu 9.10 with KDE 4.3.2 is..... WOW. I thought the latest Gnome was a step up from everything else. I guess I haven't used KDE since I used Mandrake Linux back when I was in college. It has come a long way, and surpasses Mac OS X in my own opinion. Considering Kubuntu is identical to Ubuntu under the hood, I will migrate to Kubuntu from Ubuntu. I have Ubuntu installed on my system and just installed the KDE libraries alongside the Gnome libraries, so I can use either/or. I ditched windows a few months ago, and I don't want to shell out a bunch of money for windows 7. And I'm not really a gamer anymore, so that doesn't bother me. Anyway, I thought I might encourage some of you linux users out there to give the new KDE a try.

[grantmeaname]

I'll keep that in mind when I'm forced to reinstall Ubuntu after installing windows next week. Definitely worth a look into, thanks!

[just brew it!]

I played around with KDE several months ago, and was somewhat underwhelmed. But it has been common knowledge that KDE 4.x wasn't ready for prime time when it was originally released. Sounds like it is finally maturing nicely.

I should probably give it a try again.

BTW, for anyone who has already installed the standard Ubuntu distro, you don't need to do a full reinstall from Kubuntu media to switch desktops. Just install the "kubuntu-desktop" package on top of what you've already got, and it should allow you to choose between GNOME and KDE at the login screen.

(There's also the minimalist Xfce desktop if you want to go the other direction and use something really lightweight. The "xubuntu-desktop" package can be installed to enable it.)

[bitvector]

I played around with KDE several months ago, and was somewhat underwhelmed.

If you primarily experienced KDE on Kubuntu, that could also be part of the issue. Ubuntu tended to treat the KDE version as a second-class citizen; in most releases it's just not as well-put-together as well as the Gnome version. Several die-hard KDE fans I know defected from Ubuntu for that reason.

[PRIME1]

I have been using KDE for 10 years or so. I have always preferred it to Gnome. First on Redhat, then Fedora, Mandrake and now Kubuntu.

[Blazex]

it seemed to run better than 4.2(and all other 4.x before that) did but for some reason my kwin cept crashing every time i logged into kubuntu, so i just decided to remove it, and audio for kde programs was basically not working, was kinda lame.
so for now just running back on ubuntu 9.10, some weird problem with my vid card drivers going on so i may try out opensuse for the new kde version.
it was a nice update though

[dustyjamessutton]

I've been dissappointed with video acceleration in Ubuntu/Kubuntu lately with my HD 4770. However, a little bit of tinkering I realized I could do things a little differently. I downloaded the ATI proprietary drivers, instead of just installing the ones Ubuntu recommends. I had to go a custom package build with the terminal for my specific flavor of Linux. After it was done compiling the packages, I installed each one individually and video acceleration in DVD's and Flash Player now work great, even in 1080p HD via YouTube! I have also installed Oblivion and am still ironing some of the bugs out of Wine. I'm beginning to wonder if I need windows anymore, since I'm not much of a gamer anyway. Webcam works, Pertelian LCD display works, high-def audio via fiber optics works, now I just wish my Epson printer would work perfectly. It's an Epson Artisan 700, and photos just don't come out right. But I can use Windows in VirtualBox for that. So far I am very pleased with the Ubuntu/Kubuntu distributions. I'm fairly adept when it comes to the DOS command line, now I just need to learn linux commands, and I might be daring enough to try *gasp* Gentoo!