Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

qtile VS Unity8

Compare qtile VS Unity8 and see what are their differences

qtile logo qtile

Qtile is a full-featured, hackable tiling window manager written in Python.

Unity8 logo Unity8

Mir compositor with Wayland apps support.
  • qtile Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-06-14
  • Unity8 Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-08-18

qtile features and specs

  • Highly Customizable
    Qtile is written in Python, which makes it highly customizable and easy to script. Users can define their own layouts, widgets, and keybindings.
  • Lightweight
    Qtile is designed to be minimalistic and lightweight, which helps in maintaining a low system resource footprint.
  • Active Community
    It has an active open-source community, which means regular updates, a wealth of shared configurations, and user-contributed extensions.
  • Flexibility
    Qtile allows dynamic management of windows, making it flexible for various workflows whether you prefer tiling, stacking, or floating window layouts.
  • Multi-Monitor Support
    It offers excellent support for multi-monitor setups, enabling independent workspaces on each screen.
  • Extensive Documentation
    Qtile provides comprehensive documentation that makes setup and customization more straightforward for both beginners and advanced users.

Possible disadvantages of qtile

  • Steep Learning Curve
    Due to its high degree of customization and flexibility, new users might find it difficult to get started compared to more traditional desktop environments.
  • Limited Out-of-the-Box Experience
    The default configuration is minimal, requiring users to spend time tweaking and configuring to meet their specific needs.
  • Dependency on Python
    Because itโ€™s based on Python, performance can be slower compared to window managers written in lower-level languages such as C.
  • Possible Bugs
    As with any open-source project, there can be occasional bugs or regressions in updates, especially considering the highly customizable nature of Qtile.

Unity8 features and specs

  • Convergence
    Unity8 is designed with convergence in mind, allowing a seamless experience across multiple device types like desktops, tablets, and phones.
  • Modern Interface
    The interface is modern and visually appealing, providing a fresh alternative to other desktop environments.
  • Community-Driven
    As part of the UBports project, Unity8 benefits from a community-driven development approach, making it responsive to user feedback.
  • Customization
    Users can customize the interface according to personal preferences, improving user experience and productivity.
  • Lightweight
    Unity8 is relatively lightweight compared to other desktop environments, which can help improve system performance on older hardware.

Possible disadvantages of Unity8

  • Limited Software Support
    Due to its niche status, Unity8 may not have as extensive software support as more mainstream environments like GNOME or KDE.
  • Development Pace
    As a community-driven project, the pace of development can be slower compared to commercially-backed alternatives.
  • Stability Issues
    Being under constant development, users may experience occasional stability issues or bugs.
  • Learning Curve
    Users who are accustomed to more traditional desktop environments might face a learning curve when transitioning to Unity8.
  • Limited Market Adoption
    Unity8 has limited adoption in the broader market, which can affect the availability of third-party applications and extensions.

Analysis of qtile

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Qtile is a good window manager, especially for users who prefer customization and scripting capabilities.

Why this product is good

  • Qtile is a highly configurable tiling window manager written in Python, which makes it attractive to those who are familiar with the language. It provides the flexibility to customize window layouts, key bindings, and startup behavior according to personal preferences. Additionally, its active community and comprehensive documentation make it easier for new users to get started.

Recommended for

    Qtile is recommended for Python programmers, Linux enthusiasts who enjoy customizing their desktop environment, and users looking for a keyboard-driven tiling window manager that can be extensively tailored to their workflow.

qtile videos

Obscure Window Manager Project - Qtile

More videos:

  • Review - I tried Qtile (a tiling window manager written in python)
  • Review - Qtile review

Unity8 videos

Unity8 Desktop Greeter Preview (Split Greeter)

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to qtile and Unity8)
Window Manager
88 88%
12% 12
Linux
80 80%
20% 20
Operating Systems
0 0%
100% 100
Utilities
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare qtile and Unity8

qtile Reviews

Top 13 Best Tiling Window Managers For Linux In 2022
Custom layouts, commands, and widgets are simple to create in Qtile. It may also be remotely scripted to create workspaces, update status bar widgets, and manipulate windows, among other things. It comes with extensive documentation in case you have any questions.
Source: www.hubtech.org
13 Best Tiling Window Managers for Linux
Qtile features easy to write custom layouts, commands, and widgets. It can also be scripted remotely in order to set up workspaces, update status bar widgets, manipulate windows, etc. It has comprehensive documentation in case you need clarification along the way.
Source: www.tecmint.com

Unity8 Reviews

We have no reviews of Unity8 yet.
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, qtile should be more popular than Unity8. It has been mentiond 6 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

qtile mentions (6)

  • Qtile Logs in to a Blank Screen
    Yes, all the dependencies listed in qtile.org are installed. Source: over 2 years ago
  • docs.qtile.org down? Any information to be found?
    I think yesterday qtile.org itself seemed to be working properly. Now it is also offline. Source: over 2 years ago
  • New to Linux and qtile, need help.
    Try python -m py_compile ~/.config/qtile/config.py first. You can find this from https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Qtile#Installation which you should be using as your main resource along with qtile.org. Source: almost 3 years ago
  • Free/Total Disk Space Widget?
    I was just curious if there is a Qtile widget that would show how much space I have left on my SSD. I looked through the Qtile widgets on qtile.org and couldn't seem to find anything like this which is actually kind of odd to me. Source: about 3 years ago
  • Issue with installing Qtile?
    I possess followed installation guide fromโ€โ€โ€Žโ€โ€โ€Žโ€โ€โ€Žโ€โ€โ€Žยญthe qtile.org. Error occurs when I type command startx. https://preview.redd.it/6x0qri1b4n361.png?width=801&format=png&auto=webp&s=bee71e4eb593c08b56f9fd07b30e9c9eca6fd00f. Source: almost 4 years ago
View more

Unity8 mentions (2)

  • What happened to lomiri
    Https://lomiri.com links to https://github.com/ubports/unity8 and this repository is accessible. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Any GNOME-like DEs without all the GNOME bs?
    Unity. Yes, it's still around (now going by "unity8" and maintained and developed by UBports now instead of Canonical but it's still the same DE we all know and hate er love). Obv not my cup of tea so I'm not very knowledgeable about it so could be way off but who knows, maybe we'll get a Unity lover here and they can chime in. github. Source: over 3 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing qtile and Unity8, you can also consider the following products

i3 - A dynamic tiling window manager designed for X11, inspired by wmii, and written in C.

Wayfire - Wayland compositor with 3d effects.

bspwm - A tiling window manager based on binary space partitioning

GNOME - An easy and elegant way to use your computer, GNOME is designed to put you in control and get things done.

dwm - dwm is a dynamic window manager for X. It manages windows in tiled, monocle and floating layouts. All of the layouts can be applied dynamically, optimising the environment for the application in use and the task performed.

Arcan - Game engine and multimedia framework and display server.