[DONE] Logging in with a different desktop manager

[eldiener]

I notice when logging in that there is an icon which, when clicked, shows me a list of buttons for different desktop managers. Normally I have never paid attention to this list but when I normally login I am using KDE 4.10.5.

When I look at this list I notice a few curious things. '

First none of the buttons are checked. Should not the button which says KDE be checked since that is the desktop manager I normally run ?

Second I do not recall ever installing all the rest of these desktop managers. Are they really all installed with a typical installation of Mageia from the DVD ? If so is there a way of easily uninstalling those I have no interest in ?

Finally if I click on one of the desktop managers I assume that when I login I will be using that one. If I want to return to KDE do I just choose KDE as my desktop manager and, if so, will I be back, after logging in, to where I was when I login as I do now without any of the desktop managers showing as being chosen ?

[doktor5000]

It's not really called desktop manager but desktop environment

Behaviour is normally this: The last one which you logged into is the default, so if you don't manually choose any other, you will always log into the default again.
This is usually saved into ~/.dmrc and/or ~/.desktop
Yes they can be uninstalled, but if you can spare the disk space, better leave them in place in case something breaks and you need a fallback.
And yes, if you log out, then run another desktop, then log out again and back into the first desktop environment, it will be as you left it.

For a normal Mageia install from FreeDVD when choosing KDE you normally have IceWM (just a basic window manager, not a complete desktop environment) KDE and KDE failsafe and a separate failsafe one (only providing a terminal). What else do you have in the list?

[doktor5000]

OK. Desktop Environment.

I am seeing:

Default
Custom
GNOME
GnomeClassic
IceWM
KDE4
drak3d
Failsafe

I suppose I can try some of these and see what will happen. But I am surprised that none are checked, so I suppose checking one is only persistent for that particular login, and just serves to show the end-user which desktop environment he has manually chosen.

When I look at packages in MCC Install and Remove Software I can see a bunch of different categories under Graphical Desktop but there is no one-to-one correspondence with the menu items above. What I see there is:

Enlightenment
GNOME
Icewm
KDE
Other
Windowmaker
Xfce

Furthermore when I view just the metapackages under Graphical Desktop, which is how I imagine a particular desktop environment is installed, none are installed except task-kde4-minimal.

It does not seem that Mageia makes it either clear or easy how to install a desktop environment nor does it seem as if the desktop environments showing in the login screen actually corresponds to what is installed. Maybe there is more information on how to install/uninstall desktop environemnts under Mageia 3.

[doktor5000]

Please next time do not use fullquotes, but only use the Reply function. Greatly improves clarity and reading flow

But I am surprised that none are checked, so I suppose checking one is only persistent for that particular login, and just serves to show the end-user which desktop environment he has manually chosen.

What login manager do you use? KDM, GDM, LightDM? http://doc.mageia.org/mcc/3/en/content/drakedm.html can tell you
Not every login manager behaves or looks the same, so could be specific to the login manager you're currently using.

And as mentioned, selecting one manually will make that the default, i.e. the login manager will remember your choice for next login.

It does not seem that Mageia makes it either clear or easy how to install a desktop environment nor does it seem as if the desktop environments showing in the login screen actually corresponds to what is installed. Maybe there is more information on how to install/uninstall desktop environemnts under Mageia 3.

What is unclear or not easy about installing another desktop environment? What do you mean by "Maybe there is more information on how to install/uninstall desktop environemnts under Mageia 3"?

[eldiener]

The login manager is KDM.

As far as installing another desktop environment I had not found any explanation about doing this in Mageia 3. But then I discovered https://wiki.mageia.org/en/Desktop_environments . That explains it well. Still if a desktop environment has not been installed I think it is confusing to present its choice in the login screen. Of course this may just be a glitch in the KDM login manager.

Thanks for your help !

[doktor5000]

As far as installing another desktop environment I had not found any explanation about doing this in Mageia 3.

Well, you could have asked about that in the first place.

Please mark the thread accordingly by editing the topic of the first post and prefix it by [DONE], thanks