Linux Perfection

The concept of perfection is often associated with the idea of adding more features, but what if perfection is actually about removing the unnecessary, as the French author Antoine de Saint-Exupéry once said. This idea led me to explore a minimal Linux desktop with just the Openbox window manager.

The choice of using a window manager instead of a full desktop environment was driven by the desire to understand the benefits of minimalism in computing.

One of the questions I had was whether I could give up my traditional desktop environment and adapt to a more minimalist approach.

Growing up with desktop environments, I had to consider whether my habits would be compatible with a window manager like Openbox.

My experience with Unix-like systems and command-line work made me wonder if a bare window manager could meet my needs, especially since I rely heavily on graphical programs like web browsers.

I decided to test Openbox on its own to see how it would perform without the additional features of a full desktop environment.

Having previously tried other window managers like FluxBox, I chose Openbox for this project, acknowledging that the experience would be similar across different window managers.

Openbox is widely supported and available on almost every distribution, making it a suitable choice for my experiment, especially given my familiarity with lightweight desktops like LXDE and Xfce.

Installing Openbox was the first step in my exploration of a minimal Linux desktop.

The installation process on Debian was straightforward, thanks to the efficiency of the package manager.

After installing Openbox, selecting it as my session from the login screen was all it took to start using it.

sudo apt install openbox

The process of setting up Openbox was relatively simple, with the most notable step being the selection of the window manager from the login screen options.

Customizing the desktop, starting with setting the wallpaper, was my next task.

Using the xsetroot command was the solution to changing the desktop background, as Openbox does not include a built-in utility for this purpose.

Upon logging in to Openbox for the first time, I noticed that the background was the same as the login screen, prompting me to find a way to change it.

The minimalist nature of Openbox means that configuration is often done through text files, which can be less intuitive for users accustomed to graphical interfaces.

The xsetroot command, used to set the root window in X11, was the tool I needed to change the desktop background, distinguishing it from the root account in Linux.

I opted to set the desktop background to a solid color, using a hex code found on a color selection website, which could be applied using the xsetroot command.

The xsetroot command accepts hex codes for setting colors, similar to those used in HTML and CSS coding.

xsetroot -solid "#6e7e9c#"

To make the background change persistent, I had to add the xsetroot command to Openbox's autostart file, ensuring the command runs every time Openbox starts.

Openbox reads the .config/openbox/autostart file at startup, allowing for the execution of commands like the one for setting the desktop background.

Editing the autostart file with my preferred text editor, I added the xsetroot command to ensure the background would be set correctly each time I logged in.

vim ~/.config/openbox/autostart

Adding an ampersand to the end of the command in the autostart file was necessary to run it in the background, preventing it from blocking the system.

xsetroot -solid "#6e7e9c#" &

This step ensured that the command would execute without interrupting the normal functioning of Openbox.

Using applications in Openbox works similarly to other desktop environments, with the added simplicity of a minimalist approach.

With my background set, I could comfortably use Openbox, accessing common programs through the right-click menu, which updates dynamically with newly installed applications.

Installing additional applications, such as a solitaire game, was straightforward and made them immediately available in the menu.

sudo apt install pysolfc

The dynamic menu update feature of Debian ensured that newly installed applications, like the solitaire game, were instantly accessible.

Openbox allowed me to run default Debian applications, including Firefox and LibreOffice, without any issues.

Launching applications from the command line was also possible, providing an alternative method for starting programs like Firefox.

firefox &

Using the ampersand when launching applications from the command line ensured that the shell remained available for further commands.

The experience of using Openbox was notably different from traditional desktop environments, offering a refreshing minimalism.

The simplicity of Openbox made it surprisingly comfortable to use, especially with the addition of a panel for managing minimized applications and system locks.

Customizing Openbox to fit my needs, such as adding a panel, was essential for creating a functional and comfortable working environment.

Exploring the capabilities and limitations of a minimal desktop environment like Openbox was an enlightening experience.

The speed and efficiency of a minimal environment, particularly in virtual machines, were significant advantages that I appreciated during my experiment with Openbox.

• Linux
• Linux & macOS Terminal
• Open Source

• Linux and macOS Terminal
• Open Source
• Desktop