Why openSUSE went for KDE

Usually, the major Linux desktop distributors offer both the major Linux desktop interfaces-KDE and GNOME. Some, like Canonical divide it into two separate distributions, Ubuntu for GNOME and Kubuntu for KDE, but they seldom offer a default choice. OpenSUSE. however, is taking that plunge and it's decided on KDE.

It wasn't an easy choice. As openSUSE Product Manager, Michael Löffler, explained in an e-mail to the openSUSE community, "The default desktop is an issue that many openSUSE users and contributors are passionate about."

He's got that right. I think that Linux attracts people who want the most control possible of their operating system and the idea of there being any default choice, no matter how good, rubs them the wrong way. The mere fact that there are dozens of Linux desktop distributions and several programs like SUSE Studio, which lets you easily roll your own distribution.

Knowing all that the openSUSE leadership bravely decided to "default [to] the radio button to KDE in the DVD installer. Therefore, with openSUSE 11.2 release, the KDE desktop will be installed if the user accepts the default setting. Users can also choose the GNOME desktop at this stage."

Löffler added, "We want to make clear that both desktops are considered equal citizens within the openSUSE Project, and this will not have any impact on the quality of the GNOME desktop within openSUSE. GNOME will continue to be offered as a top-level installation choice, and we will continue to strive to provide the best GNOME and KDE desktop experience."

It all sounds so rational. But, I've already heard from people screaming about how openSUSE has BETRAYED the GNOME community. Oh please. Get a grip.

I asked Joe 'Zonker' Brockmeier, openSUSE's community manager, about what's really going on and this is what he told me: "It's really, super-important to understand what the decision means. It means that the project will be opting to make default choice on a menu where no default choice was specified before. We're not going KDE-only or switching our focus to KDE specifically. So when people say things like 'openSUSE chooses KDE,' they're really making a very broad overstatement"

OK, so why did openSUSE do it? "The rationale for the decision is that 1) having a default is better usability than not having a default because new users may prefer to have a recommendation, and 2) since the majority of openSUSE users state a preference for KDE, it's best to set that as default."

I'll add to this that historically there's been a lot of overlap between openSUSE and KDE developers. In other words, openSUSE programmers tend to run KDE and a goodly number of KDE programmers use openSUSE for their Linux platform.

Brockmeier continued, "We're still supporting GNOME, we're still standing by the two-desktop policy of offering the best GNOME and KDE implementations that we can, and this should not dissuade people who enjoy GNOME from using openSUSE."

"People are very passionate about their desktop environment, Brockmeier added, "So this was a very lively discussion within the project. Overall, however, I think it went pretty well. I know some folks will be unhappy with the outcome, but the plus side is this demonstrates that the community is being heard when it comes to issues related to the project's direction."

So, starting with openSUSE 11.2, which is due out in November, users of this distribution will default to KDE 4.3. You can, of course, get an early look at openSUSE 11.2 today. OpenSUSE 11.2 Milestone 6, equivalent to a late beta, is available now.