82 LXF260 March 2020 http://www.linuxformat.comHOTPICKS
hese days there are very few Linux
distributions that support the legacy KDE 4
desktop. Despite that, there is a vibrant
community that looks even further into the depth of
time and supports development of the yet older KDE 3
branch under the name of Trinity, or TDE for short. This
is a stunning example of a project that’s managed to
successfully resurrect the historic software and breathe
new life into it. Lately there was the new Trinity 14.0.7
release with lots of goodness, plus a generous selection
of ready-to-use packages for many mainstream Linux
distros, so it is easy to give it a try.
Essentially, TDE is KDE 3 updated to work with
modern Linux apps and services. It retains all the
benefits of its parent – speed, a low-resource footprint,
impressive selection of settings and things you can
change or tune (spoiler: almost anything), plus it
eliminates bottlenecks that an older desktop would
cause if used nowadays: the inability to mount drives,
outdated certificates, broken IM protocol support, no
PulseAudio integration, etc. TDE fixes all these points,
and in version 14.0.7 it even brings back the AIM and
MSN support in Kopete.
We had a great time working with TDE. It felt very
snappy, very smooth and fun, and not flat or boring.
Unlike MATE, where Gnome 2 parts were renamed en
masse, TDE kept any original names whenever possible,
so that we have Konqueror for file and web browsing,
Kview for opening images, Kate for a text editor, and so
on. The TDE installation usually resides in /opt or
somewhere else outside /usr, so the desktop can
co-exist with newer KDE and Plasma.
If you have low-end hardware, TDE can give it a new
lease of life. The desktop is insanely fast and beautiful
without any effects, CPU-heavy indexers or other
background processes. Most components and apps
open with one second or less, even on a slow PC, and
most of them are useful – like KMail 1.9, which can
successfully manage modern Gmail mailboxes.Alexander Tolstoy
humbly thinks that he has
visited most of the nooks
and crannies of the
internet and knows where
the best OSS picks are!HotPicks
THE BEST NEW OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE ON THE PLANET
DESKTOP ENVIRONMENT
What’s where in Trinity...
‘Crystal’ icons and ‘Keramik’ style are here to stay. No material design detected!T
(^1)
The main panel
Icons, launchers and the taskbar strip is
called Kicker here, and it is highly customisable,
just like almost everything in TDE!
(^2)
The ‘Start’ menu
A built-in search tool and an auto-
updated list of recently used apps.
(^3)
Trinity Control Center
Provides a lot more things than the
modern ‘systemsettings5’. Customisation rocks!
(^4)
Konquer your desktop and the web
Konqueror is the integrated suite for file
and web browsing. Depending on what you
need, it launches with different layouts.
(^5)
The desktop
Place files and shortcuts here. Rearrange
all the items the way you need them using the
right-click menu.
Trinit y
Version: Trinity
Web: http://trinitydesktop.org
Tr i n i t y MusicBrainz Picard Veusz Reiser5
QtHashSum NodeTube Tangram Bonsai
Qtfm Marble Marcher The House
1
3
4
5
2
82 LXF260 March 2020 http://www.linuxformat.com
hesedaysthereareveryfewLinux
distributionsthatsupportthelegacyKDE 4
desktop.Despitethat,thereisa vibrant
communitythatlooksevenfurtherintothedepthof
timeandsupportsdevelopmentoftheyetolderKDE 3
branchunderthenameofTrinity,orTDEforshort.This
isa stunningexampleofa projectthat’smanagedto
successfullyresurrectthehistoricsoftwareandbreathe
newlifeintoit.LatelytherewasthenewTrinity14.0.7
releasewithlotsofgoodness,plusa generousselection
ofready-to-usepackagesformanymainstreamLinux
distros, so it is easy to give it a try.
Essentially, TDE is KDE 3 updated to work with
modern Linux apps and services. It retains all the
benefits of its parent – speed, a low-resource footprint,
impressive selection of settings and things you can
change or tune (spoiler: almost anything), plus it
eliminates bottlenecks that an older desktop would
cause if used nowadays: the inability to mount drives,
outdated certificates, broken IM protocol support, no
PulseAudio integration, etc. TDE fixes all these points,
and in version 14.0.7 it even brings back the AIM and
MSN support in Kopete.
We had a great time working with TDE. It felt very
snappy, very smooth and fun, and not flat or boring.
Unlike MATE, where Gnome 2 parts were renamed en
masse, TDE kept any original names whenever possible,
so that we have Konqueror for file and web browsing,
Kview for opening images, Kate for a text editor, and so
on. The TDE installation usually resides in /opt or
somewhere else outside /usr, so the desktop can
co-exist with newer KDE and Plasma.
If you have low-end hardware, TDE can give it a new
lease of life. The desktop is insanely fast and beautiful
without any effects, CPU-heavy indexers or other
background processes. Most components and apps
open with one second or less, even on a slow PC, and
most of them are useful – like KMail 1.9, which can
successfully manage modern Gmail mailboxes.
Alexander Tolstoy
humbly thinks that he has
visited most of the nooks
and crannies of the
internet and knows where
the best OSS picks are!
HotPicks
THE BEST NEW OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE ON THE PLANET
DESKTOPENVIRONMENT
What’s where in Trinity...
‘Crystal’ icons and ‘Keramik’ style are here to stay. No material design detected!
T
(^1)
The main panel
Icons, launchers and the taskbar strip is
called Kicker here, and it is highly customisable,
justlikealmosteverythinginTDE!
2
The ‘Start’ menu
A built-in search tool and an auto-
updatedlistofrecentlyusedapps.
(^3)
Trinity Control Center
Provides a lot more things than the
modern ‘systemsettings5’. Customisation rocks!
(^4)
Konquer your desktop and the web
Konqueror is the integrated suite for file
and web browsing. Depending on what you
need,it launcheswithdifferentlayouts.
(^5)
The desktop
Place files and shortcuts here. Rearrange
all the items the way you need them using the
right-click menu.
Trinit y
Version: Trinity
Web: http://trinitydesktop.org
Tr i n i t y MusicBrainzPicard Veusz Reiser5
QtHashSum NodeTube Tangram Bonsai
Qtfm Marble Marcher The House
1
3
4
5
2