1

I don't know if this is the right place to ask this question, there may also be duplicates,
I just want to ask:
Which will be the best DE for: Pentium 4 3.6 GHz (2007), 1GB DDR2 RAM, Intel 915G chipset.
Basically I am limited in terms of graphics capabilities by that chipset.
So, could you recommend a light weight DE to go with Ubuntu?

1

4 Answers 4

4

KDE

KDE, which is awesome, doesn't have lightweight support. But alternatively, it has a "low-fat" mode, with a support link here. Be careful when install KDE from another Ubuntu system too, because there are dependencies problem (I had it)

Install KDE, if you don't care of the dependencies problem: sudo apt-get install kubuntu-desktop

MATE

MATE is a GNOME 2 flashback, of the Ubuntu 10 or 11 times.

Bare package installation: sudo apt-get install mate-desktop-environment-core

Full package installation: sudo apt-get install mate-desktop-environment

LXDE

LXDE is your right choice, because it is for old computers, at least 5 years old. You still got your goods, but lower graphics. Once more, I recommend you to use this.

Install it by using: sudo apt-get install lubuntu-desktop or just install Lubuntu.

4
  • You should change the question to "Best DE for old computers"
    – Peter Lac
    May 7, 2016 at 15:03
  • That KDE link is from 2011 (with 2012 updates) and mostly outdated. While Plasma 5 will indeed run on the system, I expect other light environments (lxde, xfce, openbox) to perform better. 1GB of RAM is plenty for most DEs, but will be highly limited in browser usage (browser tabs use a ton of ram). Be sure to take precautions against this, for example using extensions that suspend unused tabs.
    – AF7
    May 8, 2016 at 6:45
  • @AF7 And maybe not. I tested it on my old teacher's PC and it tooked like FOREVER!. What I think about KDE is bad with dependencies problem. I would highly recommend LXDE, XFCE. By the way, Openbox is literally not a DE. It just an window manager.
    – Peter Lac
    May 9, 2016 at 8:17
  • KDE is not light compared to the default Unity
    – user47206
    Jun 2, 2016 at 18:06
2

I installed Mate in a netbook with atom and 1Gb RAM. It works fine for normal use (web, music, light office). Don't have experience in Lubuntu.

0

On an older PC one should consider using "light" desktops like LXDE, Xfce, Mate, or, even lighter, Openbox or Fluxbox.

But as far as old computers go, the desktop is not the only thing to be considered: maybe equally important is the kernel and Ubuntu version. Therefore, use one of the above desktops but stick to the old still supported LTS (14.04 at the time of the question).

0

Personally, I used IceWM with the SLiM X11 display manager on a thin client and the whole stack hardly allocated more than 32MB of RAM.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .