Visit my blog for the full article: https://dbouley.vivaldi.net/2022/01/15/alt-linux-and-window-maker/
It’s been a couple weeks since I’ve returned to ALT Linux and Window Maker as my desktop. How’s it going? To be completely honest with you, it’s been very enjoyable.
I find it interesting to see how my habits change over time, and how convenience can sometimes cause me to forget about certain things. And it’s not like the things I’ve forgotten are unpleasant or anything like that. I suppose it’s just because the conveniences can just make me lazy in a certain way and become the easier path to take.
This recent rediscovery of Window Maker, which I chose to use with my new install of ALT Linux is a very good example. For many years now, the Trinity Desktop Environment has been my desktop interface of choice. It performs well on my aged netbooks and provides many conveniences that makes it very easy to get on with my every-day computing needs. But, there’s a price to pay for these conveniences and an added level of complexity that can get in the way sometimes. The thing is, however, is that I’ve been using TDE for so long I’ve forgotten about the control (and responsibility) that I used to have over my computer because I took these conveniences for granted. I got lazy.
By choosing to “take a step back” (as some people probably think) and going back to Window Maker, I’m starting to clear the cobwebs from my mind, which were spun by convenience, and re-awakening the knowledge I gained many years ago. I see it like this: using desktop environments (like TDE, XFCE, Mate, Gnome, and KDE) is like going to the grocery store and buying a gourmet frozen pizza for dinner. It’s already made for you, all the ingredients have been selected, arranged and cooked for you. All you need to do is get it home and reheat.
Using a window manager (like Window Maker, IceWM, or Fluxbox) is more like going to the grocery store, but rather than buying frozen pizza, you go to the produce and deli departments and choose your own ingredients. Then you take them all home, make a crust, add your toppings, then slide it into the oven to cook. Using the command line is one step further. Rather than going to the grocery store for the ingredients on your pizza, you grow them all yourself in your own back yard.
These last couple of weeks with Window Maker has reminded me at how much I actually enjoy taking the time and effort to pick out my own produce and don’t even mind spending some time in the garden, if you take my meaning.
