Kubuntu's KDE is very slow

[usr]

Kubuntu's KDE is very slow.

I tried Debian's KDE and is faster than Kubuntu's KDE.
In Ubuntu, GNOME is fast (like in Debian), but KDE is not fast in Kubuntu.

For example: Nautilus it's open at the moment, but Konqueror, no.

¿Any solution?
Thank you.

[Laur Mõtus (vprints)]

System is noticeably slower for me too from time to time. Couldn't figure out how to give details about it so didn't report it .

[Martin Böhm (martin.bohm)]

What part of Kubuntu's KDE do you consider slow? Is it the startup time of KDE as a whole, startup time of applications, or something else?

Which version of Kubuntu did you use for the tests? Which version of Debian did you use?

[usr (usrlp-deactivatedaccount-deactivatedaccount)]

Startup time of applications.
I used Kubuntu Dapper, Edgy, and Feisty for the tests.

[Dax Solomon Umaming (knightlust)]

Compared to Mepis and Mandriva (distros I've tried before using KDE 3.5), Kubuntu IS noticeably slower. I would like to confirm that KDE as a whole is indeed sluggish, from applications to bootup. I've been meaning to benchmark this before, but I just don't have enough time to install and test Kubuntu, Mepis, and Mandriva. Martin, we'd be more than happy to give you more information on this matter, but we need to know what you need from us or how we can optimize this.

[Martin Böhm (martin.bohm)]

If you want to produce useful information, we need to know:

 * whether Debian's KDE version was the same as the KDE version in Kubuntu. (and what release did you use)
 * whether you used the exact same hardware for the comparison
 * whether you modified your system or used a clean installation
 * how big the slowdown is - you can use a command-line tool such as "time" for the measurement

It is a tough job to find the causes of the slowdown and eliminate them, especially when compared with a completely different GNU/Linux distribution. It is also unfair to compare "source" distributions (such as Gentoo) with "binary" distributions like Ubuntu. The best GNU/Linux distribution you can compare Kubuntu with is Debian. Kubuntu shares a lot of code with Debian and therefore the developers can easier track what caused the slowdown.

[usr (usrlp-deactivatedaccount-deactivatedaccount)]

Test versions:
KDE 3.5.6 on Debian Etch and KDE 3.5.6 on Kubuntu Edgy Eft. The slow is startup time of applications. for example, the startup time of Firefox on Debian Etch (with KDE) and Firefox on Kubuntu Edgy Eft (in Debian starts very fast).

My hardware was the same for all tests.
I have seen slow Kubuntu (startup time of all applications) from the first time (compared with Debian). My first Kubuntu version was 6.06.1.

[Achim Bohnet (allee)]

Hi, slow startup reminds me of two thing

loop back device misconfigured. Compare localhost in /etc/hosts
in debian and kubuntu. Compare: ifconfig lo

memory pressure. Login into Debian KDE session. Open terminal
and check with 'free '. Same for Kubuntu.

 To compare startup times use, e.g. kate, digikam, gwenview or other
tools that do not make use of an internet connection to exclude
problems with network setup.

I've no debian desktop system running anymore, but back in dapper
times I do not remember speed diffs between debian and kubuntu
KDE.

Achim

[usr (usrlp-deactivatedaccount-deactivatedaccount)]

Sorry.
Test versions:
 KDE 3.5.5 (not 3.5.6) on Debian Etch and KDE 3.5.5 (not 3.5.6) on Kubuntu Edgy Eft.

[usr (usrlp-deactivatedaccount-deactivatedaccount)]

Sorry, I've no Debian desktop system running anymore too, and I can not make the tests.

Any person to make Alle's proprossament?

[Ryan Kavanagh (ryanakca)]

We are closing this bug report because it lacks the information we need to investigate the problem, as described in the previous comments. Please reopen it if you can give us the missing information, and don't hesitate to submit bug reports in the future. To reopen the bug report you can click on the current status, under the Status column, and change the Status back to "New". Thanks again!

[usr (usrlp-deactivatedaccount-deactivatedaccount)]

Ok, here I am with the information.
- Tested versions: Debian GNU/Linux 5.0 KDE (debian-500-i386-kde-CD-1.iso) and Kubuntu 8.04.2 (kubuntu-8.04.2-alternate-i386.iso).
- The same KDE version: 3.5.10.
- The exact same hardware for the comparison.
- Clean installation.
- Without network card.

I go to include the attachments, plase, wait.

[usr (usrlp-deactivatedaccount-deactivatedaccount)]

I'm sorry. I was trying to include the attachments, but I can not because the virtual machine with Debian does not allow it.

It is known that Kubuntu is slow, especially compared to Debian. I guess you not going to try to compare this two distros because you do not have sufficient resources to have Beta testers.

Debian is fast but isn't easy. Kubuntu is a more bit easy, but it's slow and it has many reported bugs that are not solved.
In these circumstances we can not recommend Kubuntu to our friends, and much less to businesses.

I think you can do things better, and Kubuntu has a good basis to be the best distribution (some examples:good package manager (APT, not Adept), the best Desktop Environment, and easy and integrated tools in System Settings).
I hope that in the future you will have the resources that Kubuntu deserves (the same as Ubuntu: LTS, the same features, etc): https://blueprints.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+spec/kubuntu-ubuntu-feature-parity

Until this changes, I feel compelled to recommend Ubuntu.

See you.

[Thomas Weissel (xapient)]

sidux vs kubuntu

both kde4.4.3 desktops on the very same system (hardware) - almost the same config.

sidux is much more responsive .. on my sdd, apps start almost immediately in sidux.. on kubuntu i see a bouncing cursor.. i found that very interesting because i can not think of any cause of this notice...