KDE Plasma 6 Linux Desktop

KDE Plasma 6 Linux desktop environment review and demo using the KDE Neon Linux distribution. KDE Plasma 6 was released on February 28th 2024, as detailed on the KDE website here: kde.org/announcements/megarel...
My Krita video is here:
• Krita Free Paint Program
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Chapters:
00:40 KDE & Plasma 6
03:04 A MegaRelease
10:37 Task Switcher
12:39 Virtual Workspaces
14:32 Familiar Themes
16:06 Beauty & Control
#Plasma6 #KDE #Linux #ExplainingComputers

[@wernerviehhauser94]

I still remember KDE when it was still WIP, a memory hog and frowned upon for being based on "the evil" QT. Damn, it has come a really long way since then.

[@H.e.I.m.D.a.L.L]

Yeah true, but this version is surprisingly light at a cold boot even with few widgets like clock and system info and 2 bottom and top panels running its only at 663MB RAM usage.

[@dfbess]

Same I remember it was always to heavy for my old crappy machines i used for Linux.. Now i have 2 good computers but I'm too lazy to be bothered to try KDE now lol

[@tonysheerness2427]

It might have been slow but Liked their apps.

[@wernerviehhauser94]

@@H.e.I.m.D.a.L.L noticed that when I fixed a 10yo NUC and only openSuSE (with SuSE typical preference for KDE) got audio over hdmi working. I am thinking about going back to SuSE (first distro I installed myself was 5.3), but lazyness and lack of time still stop me.

[@JohnDoe4321]

@@H.e.I.m.D.a.L.Lsaid: "surprisingly light ... at 663MB RAM usage" I don't know whether to laugh or cry. 🤣😢

[@Daniel-wn5ye]

KDE Plasma 6 is the best desktop environment for Linux! And KDE is a great non-profit organization! I wish more people would donate to it.

[@JureRepinc]

It is not just the best on GNU/Linux. It is also the best of any on other operating systems. So the best in general.

[@totallyuselessvideoz]

it's crap, non-utilitarian made. Pure bs

[@Daniel-wn5ye]

@@JureRepinc True, it even manages to surpass my beloved Windows 7, even though it doesn't look as good was Windows 7.

[@AbsurdScandal]

​@@Daniel-wn5ye How does it compare to Linux Mint?

[@toucan221]

after watching this, I'm sure more people will take to this OS, as you say, it would nice if more people would donate, and I Will donate once I put this on one of my machines.

[@retropcscotland4645]

I love linux. Always changing and evolving without forced apps and spyware.

[@rightpowered]

*systemd* *pulseaudio* *canonical*

[@vendetta.02]

​​​@@rightpoweredaverage conspiracy theorist not even greedy canonical is forced on you because you can just simply not use ubuntu and use a different distro lol nobody uses pulseaudio anymore systemd is fully FOSS, nobody forces you to use it, it's just the default because its simply the best init system and low-level system suite for linux, everyone uses it because it's the best and most featureful and most maintained and most secure, dont spread lies and FUD about systemd thank you. there is no "systemd conspiracy" LOL

[@mgord9518]

​@@rightpoweredNeither SystemD nor Pulse are forced, they're just commonly adopted (and Pulse is on the fast track of getting replaced with Pipewire on most distros). You're perfectly free to use a distro that uses an alternative init system, or even one you've made yourself. You can also use raw ALSA, which sucks and is why Pulse (and Pipewire) exist in the first place Even Cononical, who pushes hard for things like Snap are not forced, Flatpak and other solutions are easily accessible from the official repos.

[@Steve25g]

@@vendetta.02 Ever tested a non systemd system lately ? Please tell me, why a non systemd system i did test, on same hardware, boots way faster, and shuts down way faster too, then a light os, with same xfce, with systemd ? Do you actually know, the pressure that is passed down some time ago, to all change to systemd ? No conspiracy here

[@Racistobama]

Or stability, or major applications, or end-user friendliness..

[@nategraham4027]

Thanks for the thorough review, Christopher! I'm glad you had a good time with our work.

[@woodcat7180]

I remember playing with Compiz cube (on top of gnome) and other effects fifteen years ago. What a time to be alive that was. KDE is still the including kitchen sink solution as it was back then. Now with nice polish.

[@klaxoncow]

Wobbly windows. 'Nuff said.

[@RoboNuggie]

Very nice look around Chris... can't wait for it on FreeBSD. There was a warning "KDE advises extreme caution after theme wipes Linux user's files" going around... it will get fixed, but caution is advised...

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thanks for your support, and the caution.

[@DCM777.]

Only Global Themes and the faulty ones got removed by KDE.

[@jhonyortiz5]

On kde themes can execute scripts, a security risk the developers are aware of but won't do anything about at this time. There is a theme that would run the "rm -r /" command. This was not done intentionally but obviously it's still problematic. On a side note, it is crazy that themes can execute arbitrary commands. This seems like a huge issue that the developers should definitely focus on. EVERYONE uses or at least tries a few themes when using kde.

[@kek777pasj]

Notice for KDE 6 + Wayland + Nvidia + Firefox for kde neon users: you need fresh libnvidia-egl-wayland1 package, because Neon based on ubuntu 20.04 and it has older package version with issues. Otherwise, your Firefox will run in full software webrender mode (check via about:support page). And of course as usual you have to put nvidia-drm.modeset=1 into grub command boot options.

[@PaulFeakins]

Another incredible video, thank you Chris. I've loved KDE since I started using Linux over 20 years ago. My home and work PCs are Kubuntu and Neon respectively. I also prefer the "Large Icons" task switcher. KDE really is the best, as are your videos!

[@awesomearizona-dino]

Good Morning Chris. Thanks for this review. _Dino

[@deadly_carp]

Congratulations on passing 1 million subscribers !!!!!! :)

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thank you so much 😀

[@Alabaster335]

Love this channel, it's like a Techmoan's younger brother demonstrating computers. 😁

[@olias58]

I agree, every Sunday I look forward to the next video.

[@andresbravo2003]

Plasma 6 is the Mega Release, and I loved it. Cheers to the KDE team for doing it possible for freedom!

[@sbc_tinkerer]

I have always liked the Plasma desktop. So many ways to configure it. Something for everyone. Funny how the XP like theme is called eXPose. BTW, the "hamburger" menu is quite old dating back to 1981 where it was first seen on the Xerox Star Workstation.

[@CyborgZeta]

I've been a dedicated Plasma user for a few years now. It's just great.

[@ronaldmarshall5845]

As always Chris, you do a wonderful job! Great video!!!

[@chrisk28]

Finally, Kevin the Hamster gets the international recognition that he so richly deserves. Thank-you so much for mentioning him.

[@ExplainingComputers]

:)

[@AMDRADEONRUBY]

Good old KDE thanks for making a video about Kde plasma one of my favs Linux distribution

[@user-nq1ze4jt9m]

I installed Manjaro with plasma yesterday. I haven't used KDE in over 10 years and I'm very impressed with how much it's improved.

[@LIUXIN]

KDE is the first linux desktop environment I ever used. back in the 1999 on a bluepoint linux.

[@mikefinn2101]

Always some new to learn and enjoy. Thanks Chris for taking the time to teach us about new KDE Plasma.

[@chriholt]

Beautiful desktop environment!

[@metalheadmalta]

An absolutely charming distro and one which I will install for sure on one of my latitude notebooks... really really nice... Thanks for your excellent review. I'd also like to congratulate you on your ONE million subs, didn't have time to message you. So so happy for you! Been saying for years... a cuppa, biscuits, and an Explaining Computers video on a Sunday. The longer, the better!

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thanks for this, most appreciated. :)

[@ray73864]

Windows Vista debuted with a 'flip switch' task switcher feature. It wasn't the easiest to activate, but it worked quite nicely. Microsoft called it 'Flip 3D', you activated it using Windows Key + Tab instead of Alt + Tab. And even better, if you held down (I think from memory), Windows Key + Alt + Tab, it locked the Flip 3D task switcher open so that you could use the arrow keys to select which program you wanted :) That was 17yrs ago! My goodness how time flies.

[@aliasname5518]

Much love for KDE, they are awesome!

[@klaxoncow]

Again, your videos help me to see when my laptop screen needs a cleaning. As I prefer a dark theme, so I don't always notice the odd mark. But then, watching your videos in full screen, with those bright white transition screens, it all becomes readily apparent when it needs a bit of a wipe down.

[@ExplainingComputers]

:)

[@qwertybg333]

Always pretty interesting content, thank you!

[@perrymcclusky4695]

Fascinating distro. Looking forward to your next video!

[@brianwood5220]

Great video, Chris. Lots of interesting info to try out. Thanks for sharing.

[@KinksKomments]

wow that is nice! Good video as usual Chris, thanks again.

[@waynebickell1793]

It was a bit buggy when my KDE Neon install was first updated but after a couple of updates it's running as smooth as silk!

[@meowcula]

the compiz cube is a classic. I doubt many actually use it in their day-to-day, but it's a bit of nostalgia we're all happy to see there.

[@pww4293]

I just remember the time when Linux users bragging the ability to create many desktop compositing shenanigans during Windows Vista era.

[@Colin_Ames]

A great introduction to this latest version. Thanks!

[@OleMose]

All my computers use KDE Plasma (Kubuntu), and has done so for 3-4 years now. The current version I use is 5.24.7. I also use an addon "Latte-Dock", to provide better task bars. It complicates things a bit. With the new version it seem like i don't need to do that any more. As other mention, there was a time, where KDE was considered a heavy system compared to Gnome. I just think, they were out to early with the rigth way of doing things. The computers (spinning disks, slow ram, 1-2 core etc.) just weren't fast enough then. Today i enjoy as you describe, the many possible features without the need to install any extras. With ver. 6. i probably will be able to use a 100% clean KDE Plasma. Thank you for showing this.

[@indrajitg]

If I had to choose one word to describe the new KDE Plasma desktop, then that would be "neat"! Thanks for the tour through the wonderful desktop.

[@squidgyrock]

Hey Chris, get yourself a Steam Deck, it’s the best Linux box out there for the price. I use mine docked to a monitor, it’s a flawless experience and powerful enough for Kdenlive, Blender etc 👍

[@Praxibetel-Ix]

I want to second this so bad but I know that prices start at almost $400 (if we exclude the models that are getting 'phased out') and of course you gotta have a Steam account to buy one.

[@Broken_robot1986]

Damn dude, I might have to try this out. Thanks for the nice demo.

[@dfbess]

Another great video Chris!

[@Richardj410]

Just when I was getting ready to install this you come out with a video. Thanks.

[@ExplainingComputers]

:)

[@ReptilianLaserbeam]

just when I was planning in going back to Linux on my personal machine! thanks for the video

[@toucan221]

This is Excellent, I shall include this on my future list of OS that I want to use, Thanks for a very good review

[@AndreasElf]

Microsoft should take notes. I really like the GUI in this.

[@ConfuSomu]

Great video as always! I also love KDE Plasma, but I am still on Plasma 5 for the time being, as I was waiting until a few more bugs are fixed. Upgrades can be exciting, but there might be a few things to manually solve afterwards, especially with the transition to Wayland (which seems to be way better now with fractional scaling support and ICC colour profiles). I might upgrade this weekend!

[@paulo.galvao]

The cube is a nostalgic good thing

[@dougr.8653]

Good morning, gentlemen. A nice Sunday to all of you. 👍

[@treyquattro]

what about female-identified and non-binary persons?

[@jozsefizsak]

Thanks for that exploration. I have it but haven't played around with settings.

[@dang48]

As always, informative and enjoyable. One small problem though is that knowing myself, I won't get much work done because I'll be playing with all the settings.😆

[@gloiloidn5752]

New Linux Distros are always exciting! There are so many varieties and one differs from another in so many ways, plus the huge customisation abilities. I haven't heard about KDE's distro before but I like this distro now. Great video!

[@danielhalachev4714]

KDE Neon is not a new distribution, it has existed for years. KDE isn't new either. It has existed ever since the early 2000s.

[@gloiloidn5752]

@@danielhalachev4714 If it was Kali Linux instead of Neon, I think I'd have told the same thing. What I meant was, seeing new distros in this channel, not new distros in existence.

[@danielhalachev4714]

@@gloiloidn5752 Oh, sorry, I thought you meant "new" as in newly established.

[@Hyper5nic]

This is one of your best videos and I enjoyed the very useful information and tour of the new KDE Plasma desktop! Thank you very much Chris!

[@ExplainingComputers]

Thanks for watching! :)

[@icf6770]

clicked liked button even before watching the video hehe coz i know it's gonna be fresh, informative, meaty and no unnecessary histrionics from hosts. very good as usual.

[@Robbie-mw5uu]

I exclusively watch for histrionics

[@danielsnyder6900]

I have been using KDE Plasma, not 6, for some time now. I dev code using VSC and Arduino IDE, in my retirement. I installed KDE on a HP Z600 with a Quadro K5000. One might be surprised how responsive this system is compared to the win world offerings. Great video, proves there is hope for life after 2025 with Win10.

[@Robbie-mw5uu]

homie my local dmv still uses windows xp, windows 10 aint goin no where lmao

[@t.v.9696]

I've always had a soft spot for KDE 😊. Neon sound really fancy to me. Thanks for the review, Chris 😉👍!

[@yaroslav7328]

Thanks for another great video. And despite I am a die-hard GNOME user, I always love to see like other Linux-related desktop environments keep improving!

[@PhilAug-zo2ed]

Excellent vidéo ... as usual !😊

[@PhilAug-zo2ed]

👍👍👍

[@theodorstravels]

I've been using plasma 5. something for like half an year now and been pleased with that. Might look in to the newer version at some point. It looked rather polished.

[@skelious]

Thank you for this review, simple and to the point. I can't believe the cube is back lol. Personally i like to use it on my second computer but not on my main i prefer the large icon navigation for that one.

[@spikekent]

Like you, I love a good level of customization Chris, this looks fantastic. Thanks for another great insightful video.

[@pauljahshan1138]

Great video, thanks!

[@gwgux]

Plasma 6 is great. Been using it since almost day one. It's snappy and responsive, works great on Wayland, and has been very stable for me. I'm very happy with Plasma 6. When the regular release distros move to it, I think a lot of people are going to be very happy with it.

[@jimcabezola3051]

Oh, my! I've already tried a KDE Neon install last week! Can't believe I'd done that...for once...BEFORE one of your excellent reports. It's fun to follow right along with you! Take care and much aloha to you.

[@ExplainingComputers]

:)

[@asiano3385]

My most favorite desktop enviroment combined with bare Arch and/or Manjaro linux distro (both Arch based) Easy to use when transitioning from Windows.

[@user-qn2ow9yt1y]

I've been using Plasma 5.24 on Mint and am looking forward to 6 being available soon. Certainly my favourite desktop in Linux and your review/guide was excellent.

[@ShinyHelmet]

How is Plasma on Mint? I've avoided it as it's not an official desktop on that distro, but might give it a try if everything works well.

[@user-qn2ow9yt1y]

I have not encountered any problems yet that are specific to Plasma, but I can't guarantee how it may run with different hardware. I found the experience so much better than Cinammon. @@ShinyHelmet

[@Max15691]

Is the eXpose theme available in plasma 5? I'm a new linux user, using Mint with plasma 5, and I love the Windows XP-like theme.

[@user-qn2ow9yt1y]

@@Max15691 Hi Max, yes, I have just checked and can see that it is.

[@MrMorokiatt]

Thanks... I followed you because of my Pi experiences, and now I have a x86 PC and run Neon on it. Im liking it a lot.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Great to hear!

[@tonysheerness2427]

Sometimes too much choice is not good as you spend your time just playing with all the settings.

[@xellaz]

Great review to showcase how powerful and modern the KDE Plasma desktop environment is! KDE Plasma is simply the best DE for me. I like the amount of customization it offers. Making 'double-click' as the default to open things makes sense to me. Most of the time I simply want to select the file or folder and not open it. On a different note, I wish someone picks up to continue working on Latte Dock. I've tried the other docking apps like Cairo Dock and Plank but Latte Dock is still better. 😔

[@IEnjoyCreatingVideos]

Good video Chris! Thanks for sharing it with us💖😎👍JP

[@markweaver9648]

Really like the look of this one I like to tinker with the visuals which windows just doesn't offer. Another master class well done mate.

[@rbush2335]

I am currently using KDE Neon Plasma 6 on my laptop and pc. I have no complaints as it works well on both. This has replaced windows 11. All that user control is fantastic. The only item that I had to do a lot of searching for on line was how to get numlock to be on for the login screen. Found it, now everything is perfect.

[@PS_Tube]

Greetings! Great first intro to Plasma 6. And I must say, your choosing KDE Neon yo review plasma was hands down the best choice. Seems KDE is also phasing out X11.

[@OlivierGrasakaolo]

I am very happy indeed to see kube coming back to life !

[@GaryB007]

Really liking the new Kdenlive. Will be interested to see what you think.

[@heindijs]

I love KDE, especially for its customisability. I much prefer the Oxygen theme which was the default look in KDE 4, and thankfully you can easily install it on modern releases of KDE, something you sadly cannot do out of the box with Windows 11!

[@jasonwilson9446]

I have enjoyed KDE on Ubuntu Studio for several year and now that there is Wayland support it's just a dream to use. I've never been a big gnome fan; it's a little to cartoonish for my taste and I saw the floating dock to singular in functionality. I like a clean interface so I hide my dock and use gnome-pie to quick access my most used applications.

[@StephenSE9]

I have to say, Chris, I enjoyed this video as it was about KDE and can't wait for a future one on Kdenlive.

[@RealKamera]

Great vid, I learnt a couple of things as ever. I am a Neon user of 6 years, this upgrade did not work out for me on three PCs. I hope the F10 key can be easily reassigned to create a New Folder.

[@darknessnightfall]

As a windows user..this could convince me to have a test run one of these days. It looks friendly to try linux

[@Daniel-wn5ye]

As a longtime Windows 7 user, this is the desktop environment for Linux that I like the most.

[@Grandwigg]

I'm now looking forward to seeing if /when Manjaro updates to this. (It's probably gonna be a little while). But I'm glad KDE has grown to where it is now. I greatly enjoyed this video.

[@olias58]

KDE Neon has been my standard desktop for years because of the many options to customize. I like to use it with latte-dock.

[@eljuano28]

Hello, dear Chris. Always nice to see you here.

[@ExplainingComputers]

Greetings!

[@paulmilligan3007]

“just like you can’t in Windows” - just about sums up windows 😬

[@Robbie-mw5uu]

if ya'll learned how to use Windows you would how to use it. You people are so insufferable.

[@Praxibetel-Ix]

I love that there's so many customization options in KDE Plasma! Also, I can't help but think about how the fill width symbol in the panel settings looks a bit like a TIE fighter. Maybe it's just me. And hello to Mr. Scissors! I love you!! What a good pair of scissors. ❤

[@alanthornton3530]

I agree, may the force be with you on your side of the galaxy ;)

[@leetucker9938]

it looks really good

[@wclifton968gameplaystutorials]

In many KDE apps, there is an option to turn off the Hamburger menu and use a standard menu bar instead, but not every KDE application uses Hamburger menus just yet, with a change made for better usability on touch screen devices and for new users, many of which may be coming from UWP-based Windows applications or smartphones of which most now use Hamburger menus. Some of the applications which support this change between either Hamburger menus or menu bars include *Dolphin*, *Ark*, and *Okular* (File Manager, Archival tool, PDF/Document viewer) among other applications.

[@alanthornton3530]

Thanks Chris for showing us KDE Neon, It's a smart looking distro & seems to have come on in leaps & bounds, I like the ability to experiment & change the settings. Back in 2018 I tried running it in Virtualbox it didn't perform too well at all & just kept crashing, I never got to try it on my main system as a dual boot! Nice to see Krita & a new version of Kdenlive is available, maybe a subject for a future video. Take care & kind regards Alan :)

[@user-wm4oe4kk7t]

Thanks a lot for sharing!

[@eduardovillacis1049]

Curious that you name one of the workspaces as Kevin the Hamster. Here at work that is the name of our render farm.

[@KTHKUHNKK]

Hello Chris I'm glad to see you're still doing it explaining computers. Keith

[@ExplainingComputers]

Greetings Keith. I am still here!

[@KTHKUHNKK]

@@ExplainingComputers I am glad to hear that. Several times I have not gotten KZbins notifications

[@ahmad-murery]

This is a really nice desktop, I don't like the animated windows switcher and I like the simplicity of XP UI. Thanks Chris!

[@LaurieFloodTeacher]

I have Linux Mint Cinnamon dual booted with an older version of KDE Neon. I used Neon for a while and went back to Cinnamon, but I like it so well that I kept it on my system. Now, I will definitely have to upgrade it. Plasma looks absolutely great. It will be interesting to see how Wayland works with an eight-year-old laptop updated with an SSD. Thanks, Chris!

[@pnadk]

The Cube is back 🙂 I am waiting for Fedora 40 to be released and then I will be running KDE6.

[@John.0z]

Quite an interesting advance. Thank you for the overview Chris. Initially, I think I will try it via the Armbian build for a Raspberry Pi 5. 😁 One thing I find a Pi is particularly useful for is testing operating systems, and the Pi5 is fast enough to provide a genuinely meaningful desktop OS test.

[@StephenC050]

My gaming distro of choice jumped on KDE6 pretty quickly and I really love its new look and feel. Now waiting for Fedora 40, which I believe will have 6 in its KDE spin, for my laptop

[@Raftzard]

That windows xp in the end was a gem hahaha good times! Cheers!

[@dylanwilsonYT]

I always get excited when im using Linux, something I no longer get from windows unfortunately.

[@ExplainingComputers]

This I totally relate to. :)

[@keithwhite2986]

Of the fine selection of desktop environments available in Linux, KDE is my preference. I have Manjaro KDE currently running KDE Plasma 5.27 on a circa 2012 Toshiba NB-550D netbook with just 2GB of memory - despite its diminutive CPU power and memory KDE runs great! Looking forward to Plasma 6 becoming available when it is deemed stable.

[@lorderectus1849]

Chris wanted his neon Linux to glow in the dark!

[@LordWillyGee]

Okay Chris, it looks like you sold us a really great Linux OS again. I'm going to download it! With this dual drive HP DV7. I really do like my MS Windows 7 OS, But like the Linux OS also. I like exploring different Linux OS? Furthermore, I do feel that this KDE is worth looking into.

[@jeromeschwartz4778]

Same as me , I still love my windows 7 OS .. and I use Ubuntu on my older systems , plus I use other linux , like mint on usb drives ..

[@Daniel-wn5ye]

As a very long time Windows 7 user, I wholeheartedly recommend KDE Plasma! On Debian, but Plasma 6 will take some time until it will reach Debian.

[@LordWillyGee]

@@Daniel-wn5ye Thank, just download it run it on 2nd drive dual boot drives?

[@Daniel-wn5ye]

@@LordWillyGee Yes, you can run it on the 2nd drive or 2nd partition of the same drive. Just be careful how you install the OS to not delete important stuff for which you have no backup.

[@desktorp]

I'm a long time Xfce user, but if I couldn't use Xfce, I would happily choose KDE over Gnome without a second thought. I did use KDE for a while several years ago when I tried Kubuntu on a spare computer. It was a fine experience then and it still looks great today.

[@KanoTransformations]

Award winning pronunciations as well as perfect stops and starts.

[@Kw1161]

Thanks Chris for the update on KDE Plasma and giving Mr Scissors and Stanley their own desktop, but you left out Mr Phillips the Screwdriver..I guess he scratched your case…😮! Have a great week!

[@POGRetroModernGaming]

Thanks for share ❤😊