ivanovnegro wrote: ↑1. Dec 2021, 20:19
I am not sure about Xfce 4.14 but I guess Slackware 15 will come with 4.16 and as far as I know it works well apart from using a bit more resources because it is based on Gtk3 but I would not speak of it as a "Totgeburt". I only can remember that 4.14 was buggier compared to 4.12 and 4.16.
Though I will miss 4.12 because in my book it runs better (as in lighter) than the newer versions and does not use Gnome's client side decorations apart from Thunar crashing when renaming files.
4.14, 4.16 ...it doesn't matter. Each new version is more broken than the previous. Lighter is not so much of an issue. 250 or 350 MB RAM for a WM makes a little difference today, when even a $400 ~ 600 laptops come with 8 GB RAM.
The issue is that it is technically broken. Now, if you see it in a typical 'Linux fanboy/~girl' manner, and if you say 'I can fix it', then you missed the point.
There are some 1.5 billion PC users out there, and 99.99 percent of them do not know or do not even care about 'DE', or 'WM', or even 'operating system'. People use computer as a tool, and they do not work with operating systems, but with applications. Those people are the measure -- not you. People from 9 to 90+ use the computers, and they have different customization needs, because they use all different kinds of screens, from 1366 x 768, up to 8K, and because many people have eyesight problems. Not many old people can live with 28 Px tall task bar ...
Let's say, I install someone something Xfce ... Manjaro, Mint, MX ... you name it. Let's see what happens if a user requires 48 Px toolbar ...
https://ibb.co/565bk2J
https://ibb.co/SRqcsJf
https://ibb.co/Yt8yhB1
Now, if you carefully examine those screenshots, and look at the conjunction between the icons on the toolbar and different settings, then you should see what is the issue. If you can't see the issue, and if you just see it as 'but I can fix it', then no matter how much I write, it won't help. Arguments can't help against the selfishness and belief. The fact that I can fix it for myself is irrelevant for the product quality and its suitability for the masses.
Kinda, you need a car, go to 'supercarmarket', pick up some $50'000 middle class thing, bring it home, and then START FIXING IT, so you could use it ...
As someone who loved Xfce and hated KDE/QT, it hurts me to say: *stay (far, far, far ...) away from Xfce and Mate and use Gnome (41), KDE or IceWM. Only with the last three, one can get proper results, suitable for most people. It doesn't help that I even exactly know why Xfce is in such a poor state -- it doesn't make it any better.
* Where 'stay away' doesn't relate to a one single person, who's gonna take Xfce and fix it for itself, out of boredom and nerdy fiddling need, but where 'stay away' relates to 'I am trying to produce a polished distro'.