So, are there any plans to reduce the bloat in KDE, maybe even make a lightweight version (like LXQt) that's suitable for older PCs with limited resources?
Correct me if I'm wrong, but this #OptGreen project isn't talking specifically about Plasma, is it? They don't mention Plasma anywhere on the page they linked.
In any case, that's irrelevant, also, I don't doubt that KDE can't run at all under the specs you mentioned - that's not the issue. The question is, how much free/usable RAM do you actually have on that machine - let's say with no apps open first, and with then check again with Konsole + Dolphin + KWrite/Kate open? And for fun, fire up Konqueror as well and check again.
You're arguing semantics and that's not the point I'm trying to argue here. Forget the term "Plasma". I don't really care about what the DE is branded as or what's in "Plasma" the software package. When I say "KDE", I mean the desktop + all the basic default/recommended apps that you'd see on a typical KDE installation, such as Dolphin, Konsole, Kate, Kalculator, Spectacle etc that's part of the KDE project. IDK whether the apps I've mentioned are considered part of "Plasma" or not, but again, that's not the point, I'm saying this is what I meant when I said "KDE" - and what most people would expect when they picture a "KDE" environment.
Anyways, I tested this myself on two identical VMs with 2GB RAM, one installed with Fedora 40 KDE, and another with Fedora 40 LXQt, both set to use X11 (because LXQt isn't Wayland ready yet), both updated and running the latest kernel 6.8.10-300.fc40. I logged into the DEs, opened only two terminal windows and nothing else, ran, and ran htop. The screenshot speaks for itself:
And when I tried disabling swap on both machines, the KDE machine was practically unusable, with only 53MB RAM remaining before it completely froze on me. Meanwhile, the LXQt one was still very much usable even without swap enabled.
I'd like to see you try running without swap and see how it fares. And if you think it's unfair disabling swap on a 2GB machine - try installing LXQt yourself, disable swap and see for yourself how much more usable it is compared to KDE.
And this is why I say KDE is bloated and not suitable for old machines.
Of the above, I calculated the usage of the top 10 processes specific to each respective DE, and you can see that KDE's memory usage is almost double that of LXQt. Had I counted all the DE-specific processes, it'd no doubt be a lot more than double.
I'm speaking relatively, in terms of an old PC with limited RAM and slow storage.
Here's an example of two identical VMs with 2GB RAM, one installed with Fedora 40 KDE, and another with Fedora 40 LXQt, both set to use X11 (because LXQt isn’t Wayland ready yet), both updated and running the latest kernel 6.8.10-300.fc40. I logged into the DEs, opened only two terminal windows and nothing else, ran, and ran htop.
Of the above, I calculated the usage of the top 10 processes specific to each respective DE, and you can see that KDE's memory usage is almost double that of LXQt. Had I counted all the DE-specific processes, it'd no doubt be a lot more than double.
I'm not moving any goalposts. You're the one arguing about the semantics around "Plasma", and I keep saying that's irrelevant.
Refer back to my original comment which was, and I quote:
So, are there any plans to reduce the bloat in KDE, maybe even make a lightweight version (like LXQt) that’s suitable for older PCs with limited resources?
To clarify, here I was:
Referring to KDE + default apps that are part of a typical KDE installation
Stating that a typical KDE installation is bloated compared to a typical lightweight DE like LXQt
Saying with the intention that the "bloat" is RELATIVE, with respect to a older PC with limited resources
The ENTIRE point of my argument was the KDE isn't really ideal RELATIVELY, for older PCs with limited resources, and I'm using LXQt here are a reference.
In a subsequent test, here's a direct apples-to-apples(ish) component comparison:
Component
Process_KDE
RAM_KDE
Process_LXQt
RAM_LXQt
WM
kwin_x11
99
openbox
18
Terminal
konsole
76
qterminal
75
File Manager
Dolphin
135
pcmanfm-qt
80
File Archiver
ark
122
Lxqt-archiver
73
Text Editor
kwrite
121
featherpad
73
Image Viewer
gwenview
129
lximage-qt
76
Document Viewer
okular
128
qpdfview-qt6
51
Total
810
446
plasmashell was sitting at 250MB btw in this instance btw.
The numbers speak for themselves - no one in their right minds would consider KDE (or plasmashell, since you want to be pedantic) to be "light", in RELATION to an older PC with limited resources - which btw, was the premise of my entire argument. Of course KDE or plasmashell might be considered "light" on a modern system, but not an old PC with 2GB RAM. Whether something is considered light or bloated is always relative, and in this instance, it's obvious to anyone that KDE/plasmashell isn't "light".
Well I haven't used Plasma Mobile or any of the apps you've mentioned, so it'd be nice to see what it all looks like! (and I don't have a device I can try it on either, unless I can get it working with Termux + Termux-X11?)
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I switched my non-techy Mum and Dad over to Linux over a decade ago (Xubuntu previously, now Zorin) and in all this time, I can count on one hand the number of times they called about an issue. The entire motivation to switch them over was because Windows was so unstable and would either tend to break after an update, or get infected by malware or something, and I got tired of being the IT guy for them and having to constantly fix it. I reasoned that Linux would be a good candidate for them because they have very simple requirements - they mainly just use a browser foe the most part, work with documents occasionally and do a printout once in a while, like for flight tickets and stuff. More than a decade later, my reasoning was proven right, and I’m glad it’s been working so well. Linux was the very definition of “just working”, at least for my parents.
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For such an old system, your DE matters more than anything. I’d recommend XFCE, or even LXQT. Definitely upgrade your RAM though, that’ll give it a nice boost - DDR3 should be pretty cheap now. Any cheap SSD should be a big improvement as well.
I’ve got Zorin installed on my mum’s PC (which is just as old as yours), and it works really well, even on a regular HDD.
I disagree, try running KDE on a 4th Gen i3 and compare it vs a modern system, the performance difference is pretty night-and-day. It’s not exactly unusable or anything, but it just doesn’t feel snappy and responsive, when compared to a lightweight DE on the same hardware.
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