A Review of the LXDE Desktop for Linux

In the world of Linux desktops LXDE is a relative newcomer. The LXDE desktop made its debut in 2006. Despite its young age, LXDE is now featured in a number of Linux distributions. These include U-Lite, Lubuntu (upcoming), Arch Linux, Knoppix 6.0, and several others. Most of these Linux distributions focus on being able to run on smaller and lesser powered PCs and appliances.

The LXDE desktop is built using the Gtk tool set. Hong Jen Yee created first PCManFM, a fast and efficient file system manager that forms the core of the LXDE Desktop. Since the creation of PCManFM, the LXDE desktop has grown in functionality.

I decided to take LXDE for a spin on an old laptop, with only 256 MB of system memory. This computer uses a vanilla install of Ubuntu. The Xubuntu (Xfce) desktop is also installed on this machine. I primarily use Xubuntu with this laptop since it is considered a lighter desktop than GNOME.

Installing LXDE is easy with the latest Ubuntu distributions. In Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala, all you need to do is type:

sudo apt-get install lxde

The LXDE desktop is now a part of the standard Ubuntu repositories so there are no other hoops to jump through. When the apt-get software completes its installation log out of the computer. The login prompt will show that the LXDE desktop is available in the desktop switcher. My install took about 10 minutes.

When compared to the Xubuntu (Xfce), LXDE was indeed much faster on this little laptop. It took half the time to log into the computer with LXDE. The panel, its applets, and desktop icons came up in a flash. Navigating through the menus, and running some applications was noticeably faster.

Here is a list of applications that come installed with the LXDE desktop:

PCManFM - a file manager with many features. PCManFM includes tabbed file browsing, drop and drag, etc. PCManFM uses less memory and processing power when compared to both the Nautilus and Thunar file managers, which are used in more common desktop environments like GNOME and Xfce.

Leafpad - a simple text editor. Similar to Notepad in Microsoft Windows

LXterminal - basically the same as the xterm

LXMusic - a lightweight music and mp3 player.

LxPanel - The desktop panel. Similar to your task bar found on Microsoft Windows. Allows you to access menus, place widgets, and notification areas on a panel. I found the LXPanel customizer is more intuitive over the Gnome Panel and KDE Panel. You can add items to the panel by accessing installed program on the menus.

LXLauncher - application launcher

Beside the applications, the LXDE desktop offers a new set of themes and wallpapers. The flow and operation of moving windows, customizing and configuring the desktop was very smooth and polished. Overall, the LXDE desktop gets very high marks for usability and operation. The LXDE desktop has found a home on my little memory starved laptop.