4 ms·

Ask HN: How do I transition into i3/ awesome from Gnome?

11 points by yewenjie 8y ago

deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
Topgamer7 8y ago
Are you asking how to install it? Or how to become adept at it?
- yewenjie 8y ago
  The latter. Every time I install i3, I like the flexibility it offers for first few minutes, and then suddenly I find myself unable to do some old thing which is very easy to do in GNOME, and then get frustrated and revert back. Also, the documentations are very long and complicated for a relatively new GNU/Linux user like me.
  - switch007 8y ago
    Well, don't give up. Like anything in life! Arch wiki is useful. Also https://faq.i3wm.org https://faq.i3wm.org and https://www.reddit.com/r/i3wm/ https://www.reddit.com/r/i3wm/
prolikewh0a 8y ago
In what way? Dive right in. Set your own shortcuts, and just use it. It's not terribly different, you're just not dragging windows around and everything is fully maximized unless you use some sort of gaps system. Check the i3 documentation, reddit i3 forums, and also /r/unixporn can be useful for finding things that will assist you with tiling wm's.
simon_acca 8y ago
Kickstart your configuration by looking around on github for other users' dotfiles, everybody needs to do some common things after all, like opening programs, changing volume, brightness, suspending, etc. My dotfiles repo is private but here is mine: https://gist.github.com/simonacca/425dad70526bcfd9c6af7ed5f4679c61 https://gist.github.com/simonacca/425dad70526bcfd9c6af7ed5f4...
wilsonnb3 8y ago
In my opinion, as someone who used i3 exclusively for years but switched back to Gnome, don't bother. You're not actually going to be more productive with a different window manager. You may feel more productive, but it's highly unlikely that how quickly you switch between windows is an actual bottleneck in your life.
- bitshepherd 8y ago
  As a former devout Fluxbox user, I concur with this comment. I use a pretty bog standard Gnome now. It's not really an active thought so much as something that Mostly Just Works. My productivity is about the same, since I use the same applications. The only thing I don't have is an incessant need to fiddle and tweak.

11 points by yewenjie 8y ago

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]

Topgamer7 8y ago

Are you asking how to install it? Or how to become adept at it?

yewenjie 8y ago
The latter. Every time I install i3, I like the flexibility it offers for first few minutes, and then suddenly I find myself unable to do some old thing which is very easy to do in GNOME, and then get frustrated and revert back. Also, the documentations are very long and complicated for a relatively new GNU/Linux user like me.
- switch007 8y ago
  Well, don't give up. Like anything in life! Arch wiki is useful. Also https://faq.i3wm.org https://faq.i3wm.org and https://www.reddit.com/r/i3wm/ https://www.reddit.com/r/i3wm/

prolikewh0a 8y ago

In what way? Dive right in. Set your own shortcuts, and just use it. It's not terribly different, you're just not dragging windows around and everything is fully maximized unless you use some sort of gaps system. Check the i3 documentation, reddit i3 forums, and also /r/unixporn can be useful for finding things that will assist you with tiling wm's.

simon_acca 8y ago

Kickstart your configuration by looking around on github for other users' dotfiles, everybody needs to do some common things after all, like opening programs, changing volume, brightness, suspending, etc. My dotfiles repo is private but here is mine: https://gist.github.com/simonacca/425dad70526bcfd9c6af7ed5f4679c61 https://gist.github.com/simonacca/425dad70526bcfd9c6af7ed5f4...

wilsonnb3 8y ago

In my opinion, as someone who used i3 exclusively for years but switched back to Gnome, don't bother. You're not actually going to be more productive with a different window manager. You may feel more productive, but it's highly unlikely that how quickly you switch between windows is an actual bottleneck in your life.

bitshepherd 8y ago
As a former devout Fluxbox user, I concur with this comment. I use a pretty bog standard Gnome now. It's not really an active thought so much as something that Mostly Just Works. My productivity is about the same, since I use the same applications. The only thing I don't have is an incessant need to fiddle and tweak.