# Introduction

What is &tde;?

&tde; is the Trinity Desktop Environment. The project was initiated by Matthias Ettrich in 1996 and originally called the K Desktop Environment. The aim of the &tde; project is to connect the power of the &UNIX; operating systems with the comfort of a modern user interface.

For additional information about &tde;, check the Trinity web site at About Trinity

On which platforms can I expect &tde; to work?

&tde; is a Desktop Environment for all flavors of &UNIX; systems. While most &tde; developers use &Linux; based systems, &tde; should run on a wide range of systems. You might need to tweak the source code a bit to get &tde; to compile on different variant of &UNIX; systems, or when not using the &GNU; development tools, in particular the &gcc; compiler.

Why should I use TDE?

TDE provides a traditional computer desktop that is snappy and responsive. A project goal is to provide a highly customizable desktop without forcing any particular feature or effect on users. TDE comes with many software tools to provide a productive and enjoyable computer desktop system.

Is &tde; a window manager?

No, &tde; is not a window manager. While &tde; includes a sophisticated window manager (&twin;), &tde; is much more, providing a full integrated desktop environment. &tde; includes a web browser, a file manager, a window manager, a help system, a configuration system, many tools and utilities, and many applications, including but not limited to mail and news clients, drawing programs, a PDF and a &DVI; viewer and so forth.

Is &tde; a CDE, &Windows; or &Mac; OS clone?

&tde; is not a clone. Specifically &tde; is not a Common Desktop Environment (CDE) or &Windows; clone. While developers have and will continue to glean the best features from existing desktop environments, &tde; is a unique environment that has and will continue to go its own way.

On what platform is TDE based?

TDE uses C++ and the &Qt; C++ crossplatform toolkit. The TDE development team now maintains the Qt3 toolkit, renamed TQt3.

Is &tde; free software?

Yes, &tde; is free software according to the &GNU; General Public License. All &tde; libraries are available under the LGPL making commercial software development for the &tde; desktop possible, but all &tde; applications are licensed under the GPL.

&tde; uses the &Qt; C++ crossplatform toolkit, which, since version 2.2, is released under the GPL.

Both &tde; and &Qt; can be made available on &CD-ROM; free of charge. No runtime fees of any kind are incurred.

Why the rebranding and renaming efforts? Why not continue calling the software KDE?

The "KDE" name, various logos, and related efforts are trademarked by the KDE Foundation. Since the Trinity project is not affiliated with the KDE Foundation, legally we can't use their trademarks.

Why the change in version numbers?

Trinity evolved from the last KDE 3.5 release, 3.5.10. Subsequent Trinity releases followed that numbering scheme. Release R14.0.0 marks a turning point in Trinity history because a great deal of the code infrastructure was changed. While those changes do not effect the usability or look-and-feel of the desktop that users enjoy, Trinity developers believe a change in the version scheme distinguishes when those changes occurred. An original project goal by users was to retain the flavor of the original KDE 3.5 desktop. That goal remains intact. To reflect that original goal, the last number in the original version scheme is retained in the new version scheme but is now the primary version number. While the infrastructure has changed, the desktop itself remains the same as the original KDE 3.5. This new version scheme indicates a modest divergence from the original KDE 3.5 series and that Trinity is now its own desktop environment. The new version scheme reminds users that Trinity retains the original KDE 3.5 design, but is moving forward as a separate desktop project.

How is Trinity different from KDE4?

Both desktop environments share common roots to KDE 3.5.10, which was the last official release of KDE in the 3.x series. Many KDE developers wanted to break from that code chain and tool sets to start afresh. Thus was born KDE4. In addition to moving to the Qt4 tool set, the KDE developers revamped the underlying KDE code set.

KDE4 and Trinity have different philosophies about work flow preferences. KDE4 developers want to support certain work flow concepts and techniques. Trinity developers want to maintain a "traditional" desktop environment.

For example, KDE4 offers the following tools:

- Semantic desktop through Nepomuk

- PIM (Personal Information Management) data caching through Akonadi

- Desktop file searching through Strigi

- Activities, a computer desktop metaphor for managing tasks and activities

Whereas TDE offers the following:

- Desktop search through the locate:/ tdeio-slave

- Integrated PIM suite with plugins

- Related task management using multiple desktops

The KDE developers support alternate desktop interfaces, such as those used with netbooks, tablets, and smart phones. TDE provides a single interface that is optimized for the mouse/keyboard HCI (Human-computer interaction) model.

Both desktop environments provide an excellent choice for various work flows but differ in approach. Trinity leans toward user expectations of how desktop environments have functioned traditionally. There is a sense of familiarity with that environment many people like. Similarly other users prefer the work flow features offered by KDE4 because those features match their expectations of how they want their computer to behave. The difference between the two environments does not mean one is better, buggier, or slower -- mdash; only that they are different and appeal to different types of people. Although sharing a common heritage, both desktops appeal to different groups of people. As always with free/libre software, there is a choice.