i3
best tiling on X
this post was submitted on 28 Mar 2025
111 points (89.4% liked)
Linux
52891 readers
262 users here now
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
Rules
- Posts must be relevant to operating systems running the Linux kernel. GNU/Linux or otherwise.
- No misinformation
- No NSFW content
- No hate speech, bigotry, etc
Related Communities
Community icon by Alpár-Etele Méder, licensed under CC BY 3.0
founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS
I am absolutely with you about i3. Simply great (there is also dwm or qtile)! But it is a WM, not a DE, what OP asked about.
load more comments
(4 replies)
Flip a coin between cinnamon and plasma
I'll stay on XFCE until I die ... or until my Hyprland config is finished. Whichever comes first.
I've been using Mate ever since Gnome-2 transitioned to Gnome-3 and I didn't like the transition. I like a clean screen with simple menus, Plasma is just way too cluttered for me.
i3
Not a DE, but I've been using sway for around 5 years now, and I have no intention of moving away from it unless something really bad happens. I love using it, and it's been behaving perfectly all tgis time.
Well, it's gotta be a tiling system. And a good one. At this point I can't function in a non-tiling environment. Specifically a manual tiler with an auto-tile a la i3 w/ i3-alternating-layout or a dynamic tiler that still let's you break stuff (doesn't really exist).
It's just a better way to use a computer, and I can't go back. It's so much nicer. I would stop using a computer before I go back to dragging windows around.
And that rules out most DEs. It rules out Mac OS and Windows, as well, but at least on Windows I can almost get by with Fancy WM. It's "okay."
And speaking of just getting by, that's Polonium with KDE. KDE is pretty good as an "environment," but it doesn't have a tiler that meets my needs, or at least I thought it didn't until recently. Then I discovered Polonium. It works pretty well. Used it for several months (and still do on one machine). It's very bare bones tho, and is hard to configure the handful of floating windows I do want like popups. So KDE is just scraping by.
GNOME on the other hand has the excellent Pop Shell 2. But well, GNOME is GNOME. It's buggy when you try to use it a different way than intended. God forbid I want Qt, Gtk2, Gtk3, Gtk4, and libadwaita apps to all look nice on my system! It's clunky, but the tiling is excellent at least.
Now you mention XFCE. So what about that? You could use i3 as the WM for Xfce. I used i3 for years and years and years as my WM and know how to build a DE around it. Why not use Xfce + i3?
Well, the thing is X11 is as good as dead, and while XFCE now supports Wayland, you can't use a tiling system with the Wayland version of XFCE.
So what does that leave me?
Nothing. At least for a full on DE, which is what you asked.
There is not a single (pre-made) Desktop Environment that suits my needs. Not a one. Either it doesn't support good tiling, is too rigid, or hasn't switched to Wayland.
My only options are:
- Roll my own DE built around Hyprland/Sway, and since I'm on nvidia, those aren't fantastic options (albeit Hyprland works a lot better on Nvidia these days), and that's what I'm using.
- Deal with the slight annoyance of the under-implemented Polonium in KDE
Right now I'm on Hyprland. May go back to KDE bc multi monitor is being weird on Hyprland rn.
My one hope is that COSMIC polishes itself up and gets to its first real release.
KDE since 2002. KDE 4 lyfe.
I settled on herbstluft in I think around 2015 and 10 years later have still never felt the need to migrate anywhere else.
I did about a year ago give up lightDM for emptty, but that doesn't really count.
Gnome but thats because im a big time laptop user. The way i use my laptops works really well on gnome. I hide the top bar, and have whatever im doing taking up the entire screen, and then just use gestures to navigate it. Side to side 3 finger swipe switches desktops, 3 finger swipe up takes you to task view, and with the small screen id hate to have some sort of taskbar.
If i was using a mouse i would probably want something more windows-esque in its design which i think KDE does better. So for a desktop id probably go with that.
load more comments
(5 replies)
fvwm :)
Cinnamon, that's what I'm used to
I’d probably pick KDE. I use Gnome on almost every machine, but Gnome makes weird decisions, and I assume one day I won’t like one of them. KDE always seems to get better and add more options. I can make KDE work like practically any other DE, including Gnome.
Ran KDE then Gnome a long time ago. Now it's openbox wm.
Switched from i3 to sway to hyland. I like the virtual desktop setup and noiseless facing interaction.