This article is about the operating system and user interface schema. For desktop computing in general, see desktop computer.
In computing, a desktop environment (DE) is an implementation of the desktop metaphor made of a bundle of programs running on top of a computer operating system that share a common graphical user interface (GUI), sometimes described as a graphical shell. The desktop environment was seen mostly on personal computers until the rise of mobile computing. Desktop GUIs help the user to easily access and edit files, while they usually do not provide access to all of the features found in the underlying operating system. Instead, the traditional command-line interface (CLI) is still used when full control over the operating system is required.
A desktop environment typically consists of icons, windows, toolbars, folders, wallpapers and desktop widgets (see Elements of graphical user interfaces and WIMP). A GUI might also provide drag and drop functionality and other features that make the desktop metaphor more complete. A desktop environment aims to be an intuitive way for the user to interact with the computer using concepts which are similar to those used when interacting with the physical world, such as buttons and windows.
While the term desktop environment originally described a style of user interfaces following the desktop metaphor, it has also come to describe the programs that realize the metaphor itself.[1] This usage has been popularized by projects such as the Common Desktop Environment, KDE, and
GNOME.
^"Window managers and desktop environments – Linux 101". clemsonlinux.org. Archived from the original on 2008-07-04.
and 21 Related for: Desktop environment information
In computing, a desktopenvironment (DE) is an implementation of the desktop metaphor made of a bundle of programs running on top of a computer operating...
The Common DesktopEnvironment (CDE) is a desktopenvironment for Unix and OpenVMS, based on the Motif widget toolkit. It was part of the UNIX 98 Workstation...
originally an acronym for GNU Network Object Model Environment, is a free and open-source desktopenvironment for Linux and other Unix-like operating systems...
The Trinity DesktopEnvironment (TDE) is a complete software desktopenvironment designed for Linux and Unix-like operating systems, intended for computer...
wordplay on the existing Common DesktopEnvironment, available for Unix systems. CDE was an X11-based user environment jointly developed by HP, IBM, and...
K DesktopEnvironment 3 is the third series of releases of the K DesktopEnvironment (after that called KDE Software Compilation). There are six major...
A desktopenvironment is a collection of software designed to give functionality and a certain look and feel to an operating system. This article applies...
K DesktopEnvironment 1 was the inaugural series of releases of the K DesktopEnvironment. There were two major releases in this series. The development...
SUSE Linux Enterprise. Desktop Linux distributions include a windowing system such as X11 or Wayland and a desktopenvironment such as GNOME or KDE Plasma...
Desktop virtualization is a software technology that separates the desktopenvironment and associated application software from the physical client device...
details for a program in a desktopenvironment Remote desktop software, software that provides remote access to a computer's desktop Client (computing), sometimes...
K DesktopEnvironment 2 was the second series of releases of the K DesktopEnvironment. There were three major releases in this series. K Desktop Environment...
and Hiweed Linux) is a Linux distribution. It features the Deepin DesktopEnvironment (DDE), built on Qt and available for a variety of distributions....
open-source software. Ubuntu is officially released in multiple editions: Desktop, Server, and Core for Internet of things devices and robots. The operating...
LXDE (abbreviation for Lightweight X11 DesktopEnvironment) is a free desktopenvironment with comparatively low resource requirements. This makes it especially...
computing, the term remote desktop refers to a software- or operating system feature that allows a personal computer's desktopenvironment to be run remotely...
(pronounced as four individual letters) is a free and open-source desktopenvironment for Linux and other Unix-like operating systems. Xfce aims to be...
taskbars have no direct counterpart on a real-world desktop, though this may vary by environment and the function provided; for instance, a familiar wall...
It is designed for desktop PCs and larger laptops. In its default configuration it resembles KDesktop from K DesktopEnvironment 3, and Microsoft Windows...
paradigm, to describe ways in which the virtual space of a computer's desktopenvironment is expanded beyond the physical limits of the screen's display area...