Simply put:

X is basically an implementation to allow the display of high resolution
graphics on your screen, or over a network.

While applications can be written for X directly, this is difficult and time
consuming, since everything has to be written from scratch. Toolkits simplify
this development, by providing reusable components which can be incorporated
into an application. With toolkits, developers don't have to worry about mundane
things like scrollbars and buttons, and can instead focus on coding their own
application. Toolkits also allow apps to be easily built in a consistent
fashion. In other words, toolkits provide a consistent framework upon which to
develop. Motif was the original X toolkit, and can be seen in CDE, Nedit and
Netscape. GTK+ is the most widely-used toolkit, and forms the base of GNOME and
The GIMP. QT is another popular toolkit, and is used in KDE and Opera.

Window managers (WMs), at their simplest level, manage window frames, allowing
you to deal with multiple applications on a desktop. The application inside the
windows can be built from one of many toolkits. Blackbox and PWM are examples of
simple window managers. Over the years, many window managers have increased in
complexity, adding features like applets, docks, taskbars, multiple desktops and
pagers.

Enlightenment is poised to take the next step, and become a desktop shell. This
is essentially a feature-packed WM, often with its own file manager. XFce and
ROX are current examples of this.

Desktop Environments, like CDE, GNOME and KDE, are the next level up. These
provide not only a work environment consisting of a file manager and other apps,
but also a development environment building upon the underlying toolkit. GNOME
and KDE have official window managers (Sawfish and KWM, respectively), which are
integrated into the environment to provide a 'seamless' experience. In both
cases, the underlying WM can be changed, and GNOME goes as far as providing an
open WM spec, and features a Control Centre applet to help you select a WM.
GNOME's default WM in the 1.0 days was Enlightenment, and many people still use
it with GNOME. Since GNOME 1.2, the official WM has been Sawfish. Other GNOME
compatible WMs include WindowMaker and IceWM.


On Wed, 31 Oct 2001 10:16:09 -0800 (PST), Paul Schwebel <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
wrote:
> Thank you! I've been wanting to know the relationship
> between GTK+ themes and window manager themes.
> 
> That brings up one more thing I'd like to understand:
> 
> I know what a window manager is, and how it works with
> X to manage desktop graphics. Where to the desktop
> environments fit into this (GNOME Desktop, CDE and
> KDE, for example)?
> 
> Thanks,
> -Paul "he can be taught!" Schwebel
> 
> --- Sridhar Dhanapalan <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> > GTK+ handles what is _inside_ the windows (buttons,
> > scrollbars, etc.), also
> > known as widgets. Enlightenment handles the window
> > frames, including the title
> > bars. Each has its own theming system, and so to
> > have a uniform look you need to
> > use similar GTK+ and Enlightenment themes.
> > 
> > 
> > On Wed, 31 Oct 2001 10:22:29 +0200, "Robert MacLean"
> > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> > > okay i'm not following. under gnome i have a theme
> > selected (which
> > > changes the widgets etc... very nice, but not
> > aqua)
> > > so when i try enlighenment (by itself or as gnomes
> > wm) i use the aqua
> > > enlightenment theme.
> > > now it appears to use the gnome theme for the
> > windows and the aqua
> > > theme for the title bars.
> > > 
> > > are you saying i need to find the gnome aqua theme
> > to get the windows
> > > right as well?
> > >
> > > ___________________________________________
> > > Robert MacLean
> > > ----- Original Message -----
> > > From: "Sridhar Dhanapalan"
> > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> > > To: "Robert MacLean" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; "Mandrake
> > Newbie List"
> > > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> > > Sent: Wednesday, October 31, 2001 10:16 AM
> > > Subject: Re: [newbie] cool looking themes don't
> > work (GNOME,
> > > Enlightenment, M8.1)
> > > 
> > > 
> > > > On Wed, 31 Oct 2001 10:03:35 +0200, "Robert
> > MacLean"
> > > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> > > > > Hi
> > > > >
> > > > > My problem is that I can't get themes to work
> > the way they should
> > > in
> > > > > Enlightenment.
> > > > > I select a theme (i'm trying to get aqua to
> > work) but all it does
> > > is
> > > > > change enlightenment's menu, and the title
> > bars. In the screen
> > > shots
> > > > > it changes the windows as well. Any idea how
> > to get it to change
> > > the
> > > > > windows as well?
> > > >
> > > > I think you may be confusing GTK+ themes with
> > Enlightenment themes.
> > > Both are
> > > > separate, and are installed independently.

-- 
Sridhar Dhanapalan

"I've always liked penguins, and when I was in Canberra a few years ago we went
to the local zoo with Andrew Tridgell (of samba fame). There they had a
ferocious penguin that bit me and infected me with a little known disease called
penguinitis. Penguinitis makes you stay awake at nights just thinking about
penguins and feeling great love towards them. So when Linux needed a mascot, the
first thing that came into my mind was this picture of the majestic penguin, and
the rest is history." -- Linus Torvalds

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