I just started using Linux a few days ago, and I am trying to set it up in a form that I like. What I am looking for is an interface that is intuitive to use and stylistically simple/ minimalistic. (I am ok with fancy graphics if they are useful, but "eye-candy" --which, I assume by definition, is just there to look pretty-- does not interest me.) I am somewhat overwhelmed by, and lost in, the wide array of choices available to me.
Currently, I am using SimplyMEPIS 6.5 with KDE. I have altered the themes and other settings, so my current set-up looks better (to me) than the defaults. I am still not satisfied, and I would like to modify things further, but I am not sure if it is simply a matter of adjusting the theme/ style, switching to a different window manager (e.g., IceWM or Fluxbox), switching to a different graphical display (e.g., GNOME), completely changing distributions (e.g., Ubuntu), or some combination of these.
My previous computer was a Powerbook G3, running MacOS 9. Part of the reason I never upgraded to OS X was because I did not like the look of it --bright translucent colors, big bouncing icons/ graphics, etc. Similarly, at my former job I was given a Dell computer running Windows XP. One of the first things I did was switch the appearance settings to "Windows Classic". With both computers, I almost always viewed the folders using some sort of list format, not the icons. (I have found themes/ styles designed to look like Windows XP and MacOS X on http://kde-look.org/ and http://themes.freshmeat.net/ , but they are not what I am looking for.)
My apologies if my description is too vague. It is difficult for me to put into words what I want. Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.
22 Oct 2007, 9:01 am
