Black Flickering Beyond 60Hz on HDR OLED with Manjaro KDE

I’m experiencing an issue with black flickering whenever I go beyond 60Hz on my HDR OLED screen using Manjaro. The flickering happens across multiple window managers (KDE Plasma, XFCE, etc.) and is persistent with different settings and configurations. However, I don’t encounter this problem when using Windows, where I can run the monitor at 240Hz without issues. On Manjaro, the refresh rate seems to be limited to 144Hz, even though the monitor and hardware support 240Hz.

some info:

inxi --full --admin --filter --width                                                           ✔ 
System:
  Kernel: 6.11.2-4-MANJARO arch: x86_64 bits: 64 compiler: gcc v: 14.2.1
    clocksource: tsc avail: hpet,acpi_pm
    parameters: BOOT_IMAGE=/boot/vmlinuz-6.11-x86_64
    root=UUID=03c5722f-62d8-490f-9575-e89e8a635c5b rw quiet splash
    udev.log_priority=3
  Desktop: KDE Plasma v: 6.1.5 tk: Qt v: N/A info: frameworks v: 6.6.0
    wm: kwin_x11 tools: avail: xfce4-screensaver vt: 2 dm: SDDM Distro: Manjaro
    base: Arch Linux
Machine:
  Type: Desktop System: ASUS product: N/A v: N/A serial: <superuser required>
  Mobo: ASUSTeK model: ROG STRIX Z390-F GAMING v: Rev 1.xx
    serial: <superuser required> part-nu: ASUS_MB_CNL uuid: <superuser required>
    UEFI: American Megatrends v: 1903 date: 07/08/2021
CPU:
  Info: model: Intel Core i7-8700K bits: 64 type: MT MCP arch: Coffee Lake
    gen: core 8 level: v3 note: check built: 2018 process: Intel 14nm family: 6
    model-id: 0x9E (158) stepping: 0xA (10) microcode: 0xF8
  Topology: cpus: 1x dies: 1 clusters: 6 cores: 6 threads: 12 tpc: 2
    smt: enabled cache: L1: 384 KiB desc: d-6x32 KiB; i-6x32 KiB L2: 1.5 MiB
    desc: 6x256 KiB L3: 12 MiB desc: 1x12 MiB
  Speed (MHz): avg: 799 min/max: 800/4700 scaling: driver: intel_pstate
    governor: powersave cores: 1: 799 2: 799 3: 799 4: 799 5: 799 6: 799 7: 799
    8: 799 9: 799 10: 799 11: 799 12: 799 bogomips: 88824
  Flags: avx avx2 ht lm nx pae sse sse2 sse3 sse4_1 sse4_2 ssse3 vmx
  Vulnerabilities:
  Type: gather_data_sampling mitigation: Microcode
  Type: itlb_multihit status: KVM: VMX disabled
  Type: l1tf mitigation: PTE Inversion; VMX: conditional cache flushes, SMT
    vulnerable
  Type: mds mitigation: Clear CPU buffers; SMT vulnerable
  Type: meltdown mitigation: PTI
  Type: mmio_stale_data mitigation: Clear CPU buffers; SMT vulnerable
  Type: reg_file_data_sampling status: Not affected
  Type: retbleed mitigation: IBRS
  Type: spec_rstack_overflow status: Not affected
  Type: spec_store_bypass mitigation: Speculative Store Bypass disabled via
    prctl
  Type: spectre_v1 mitigation: usercopy/swapgs barriers and __user pointer
    sanitization
  Type: spectre_v2 mitigation: IBRS; IBPB: conditional; STIBP: conditional;
    RSB filling; PBRSB-eIBRS: Not affected; BHI: Not affected
  Type: srbds mitigation: Microcode
  Type: tsx_async_abort mitigation: TSX disabled
Graphics:
  Device-1: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD/ATI] Navi 21 [Radeon RX 6900 XT]
    vendor: Tul / PowerColor driver: amdgpu v: kernel arch: RDNA-2 code: Navi-2x
    process: TSMC n7 (7nm) built: 2020-22 pcie: gen: 4 speed: 16 GT/s lanes: 16
    ports: active: HDMI-A-1 empty: DP-1, DP-2, DP-3, Writeback-1
    bus-ID: 03:00.0 chip-ID: 1002:73af class-ID: 0300
  Display: x11 server: X.Org v: 21.1.13 with: Xwayland v: 24.1.2
    compositor: kwin_x11 driver: X: loaded: amdgpu dri: radeonsi gpu: amdgpu
    display-ID: :0 screens: 1
  Screen-1: 0 s-res: 2560x1440 s-dpi: 96 s-size: 676x380mm (26.61x14.96")
    s-diag: 775mm (30.53")
  Monitor-1: HDMI-A-1 mapped: HDMI-A-0 model: LG (GoldStar) ULTRAGEAR+
    serial: <filter> built: 2023 res: 2560x1440 dpi: 110 gamma: 1.2
    size: 590x333mm (23.23x13.11") diag: 677mm (26.7") ratio: 16:9 modes:
    max: 3840x2160 min: 640x480
  API: EGL v: 1.5 hw: drv: amd radeonsi platforms: device: 0 drv: radeonsi
    device: 1 drv: swrast gbm: drv: kms_swrast surfaceless: drv: radeonsi x11:
    drv: radeonsi inactive: wayland
  API: OpenGL v: 4.6 compat-v: 4.5 vendor: amd mesa v: 24.2.4-arch1.0.1
    glx-v: 1.4 direct-render: yes renderer: AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT (radeonsi
    navi21 LLVM 18.1.8 DRM 3.59 6.11.2-4-MANJARO) device-ID: 1002:73af
    memory: 15.62 GiB unified: no
  API: Vulkan v: 1.3.295 layers: 1 device: 0 type: discrete-gpu
    name: AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT driver: amd v: 2024.Q3.2 (LLPC)
    device-ID: 1002:73af surfaces: xcb,xlib
Audio:
  Device-1: Intel Cannon Lake PCH cAVS vendor: ASUSTeK driver: snd_hda_intel
    v: kernel alternate: snd_soc_skl, snd_soc_avs, snd_sof_pci_intel_cnl
    bus-ID: 00:1f.3 chip-ID: 8086:a348 class-ID: 0403
  Device-2: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD/ATI] Navi 21/23 HDMI/DP Audio
    driver: snd_hda_intel v: kernel pcie: gen: 4 speed: 16 GT/s lanes: 16
    bus-ID: 03:00.1 chip-ID: 1002:ab28 class-ID: 0403
  API: ALSA v: k6.11.2-4-MANJARO status: kernel-api with: aoss
    type: oss-emulator tools: alsactl,alsamixer,amixer
  Server-1: JACK v: 1.9.22 status: off tools: N/A
  Server-2: PipeWire v: 1.2.5 status: active with: 1: pipewire-pulse
    status: active 2: wireplumber status: active 3: pipewire-alsa type: plugin
    tools: pactl,pw-cat,pw-cli,wpctl
Network:
  Device-1: Intel Ethernet I219-V vendor: ASUSTeK driver: e1000e v: kernel
    port: N/A bus-ID: 00:1f.6 chip-ID: 8086:15bc class-ID: 0200
  IF: eno1 state: up speed: 1000 Mbps duplex: full mac: <filter>
  Info: services: NetworkManager,systemd-timesyncd
Drives:
  Local Storage: total: 1.38 TiB used: 16.48 GiB (1.2%)
  SMART Message: Required tool smartctl not installed. Check --recommends
  ID-1: /dev/sda maj-min: 8:0 vendor: Samsung model: SSD 860 EVO 500GB
    size: 465.76 GiB block-size: physical: 512 B logical: 512 B speed: 6.0 Gb/s
    tech: SSD serial: <filter> fw-rev: 4B6Q scheme: GPT
  ID-2: /dev/sdb maj-min: 8:16 vendor: Samsung model: SSD 870 QVO 1TB
    size: 931.51 GiB block-size: physical: 512 B logical: 512 B speed: 6.0 Gb/s
    tech: SSD serial: <filter> fw-rev: 2B6Q scheme: GPT
  ID-3: /dev/sdc maj-min: 8:32 vendor: SanDisk model: Cruzer Blade
    size: 14.61 GiB block-size: physical: 512 B logical: 512 B type: USB rev: 2.0
    spd: 480 Mb/s lanes: 1 mode: 2.0 tech: N/A serial: <filter> fw-rev: 1.00
    scheme: MBR
Partition:
  ID-1: / raw-size: 465.46 GiB size: 457.09 GiB (98.20%) used: 16.46 GiB (3.6%)
    fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda2 maj-min: 8:2
  ID-2: /boot/efi raw-size: 300 MiB size: 299.4 MiB (99.80%)
    used: 25.9 MiB (8.6%) fs: vfat dev: /dev/sda1 maj-min: 8:1
Swap:
  Alert: No swap data was found.
Sensors:
  System Temperatures: cpu: 36.0 C mobo: N/A gpu: amdgpu temp: 48.0 C
    mem: 46.0 C
  Fan Speeds (rpm): cpu: 0 gpu: amdgpu fan: 0
Info:
  Memory: total: 16 GiB available: 15.53 GiB used: 2.97 GiB (19.1%)
  Processes: 307 Power: uptime: 9m states: freeze,mem,disk suspend: deep
    avail: s2idle wakeups: 0 hibernate: platform avail: shutdown, reboot,
    suspend, test_resume image: 6.19 GiB services: org_kde_powerdevil,
    power-profiles-daemon, upowerd Init: systemd v: 256 default: graphical
    tool: systemctl
  Packages: pm: pacman pkgs: 1323 libs: 377 tools: pamac,yay pm: flatpak
    pkgs: 0 Compilers: gcc: 14.2.1 Shell: Zsh v: 5.9 default: Bash v: 5.2.37
    running-in: konsole inxi: 3.3.36
 1386.050] (II) AMDGPU(0): EDID vendor "GSM", prod id 23603
[ 1386.050] (II) AMDGPU(0): Using hsync ranges from config file
[ 1386.050] (II) AMDGPU(0): Using vrefresh ranges from config file
[ 1386.050] (II) AMDGPU(0): Printing DDC gathered Modelines:
[ 1386.050] (II) AMDGPU(0): Modeline "2560x1440"x0.0  241.50  2560 2608 2640 2720  1440 1443 1448 1481 +hsync -vsync (88.8 kHz e)
[ 1386.051] (--) AMDGPU(0): HDMI max TMDS frequency 340000KHz
 
sudo dmesg |grep -i amdgpu
[    3.703840] [drm] amdgpu kernel modesetting enabled.
[    3.703983] amdgpu: Virtual CRAT table created for CPU
[    3.703992] amdgpu: Topology: Add CPU node
[    3.704071] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: enabling device (0006 -> 0007)
[    3.707131] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: Fetched VBIOS from VFCT
[    3.707134] amdgpu: ATOM BIOS: 113-D41213-XTXH
[    3.754144] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: vgaarb: deactivate vga console
[    3.754147] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: Trusted Memory Zone (TMZ) feature disabled as experimental (default)
[    3.754165] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: MEM ECC is not presented.
[    3.754166] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: SRAM ECC is not presented.
[    3.754178] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: VRAM: 16368M 0x0000008000000000 - 0x00000083FEFFFFFF (16368M used)
[    3.754180] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: GART: 512M 0x0000000000000000 - 0x000000001FFFFFFF
[    3.754318] [drm] amdgpu: 16368M of VRAM memory ready
[    3.754320] [drm] amdgpu: 7952M of GTT memory ready.
[    5.074836] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: STB initialized to 2048 entries
[    5.141220] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: reserve 0xa00000 from 0x83fd000000 for PSP TMR
[    5.289604] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: SECUREDISPLAY: securedisplay ta ucode is not available
[    5.289632] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: smu driver if version = 0x00000040, smu fw if version = 0x00000041, smu fw program = 0, version = 0x003a5a00 (58.90.0)
[    5.289645] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: SMU driver if version not matched
[    5.289678] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: use vbios provided pptable
[    5.363436] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: SMU is initialized successfully!
[    5.506207] amdgpu: HMM registered 16368MB device memory
[    5.507457] kfd kfd: amdgpu: Allocated 3969056 bytes on gart
[    5.507466] kfd kfd: amdgpu: Total number of KFD nodes to be created: 1
[    5.507629] amdgpu: Virtual CRAT table created for GPU
[    5.508208] amdgpu: Topology: Add dGPU node [0x73af:0x1002]
[    5.508209] kfd kfd: amdgpu: added device 1002:73af
[    5.508233] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: SE 4, SH per SE 2, CU per SH 10, active_cu_number 80
[    5.508236] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring gfx_0.0.0 uses VM inv eng 0 on hub 0
[    5.508237] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring gfx_0.1.0 uses VM inv eng 1 on hub 0
[    5.508238] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring comp_1.0.0 uses VM inv eng 4 on hub 0
[    5.508239] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring comp_1.1.0 uses VM inv eng 5 on hub 0
[    5.508240] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring comp_1.2.0 uses VM inv eng 6 on hub 0
[    5.508241] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring comp_1.3.0 uses VM inv eng 7 on hub 0
[    5.508242] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring comp_1.0.1 uses VM inv eng 8 on hub 0
[    5.508242] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring comp_1.1.1 uses VM inv eng 9 on hub 0
[    5.508243] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring comp_1.2.1 uses VM inv eng 10 on hub 0
[    5.508244] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring comp_1.3.1 uses VM inv eng 11 on hub 0
[    5.508245] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring kiq_0.2.1.0 uses VM inv eng 12 on hub 0
[    5.508246] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring sdma0 uses VM inv eng 13 on hub 0
[    5.508247] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring sdma1 uses VM inv eng 14 on hub 0
[    5.508248] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring sdma2 uses VM inv eng 15 on hub 0
[    5.508249] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring sdma3 uses VM inv eng 16 on hub 0
[    5.508249] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring vcn_dec_0 uses VM inv eng 0 on hub 8
[    5.508250] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring vcn_enc_0.0 uses VM inv eng 1 on hub 8
[    5.508251] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring vcn_enc_0.1 uses VM inv eng 4 on hub 8
[    5.508252] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring vcn_dec_1 uses VM inv eng 5 on hub 8
[    5.508253] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring vcn_enc_1.0 uses VM inv eng 6 on hub 8
[    5.508254] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring vcn_enc_1.1 uses VM inv eng 7 on hub 8
[    5.508255] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: ring jpeg_dec uses VM inv eng 8 on hub 8
[    5.510473] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: amdgpu: Using BACO for runtime pm
[    5.511097] [drm] Initialized amdgpu 3.59.0 for 0000:03:00.0 on minor 1
[    5.525319] fbcon: amdgpudrmfb (fb0) is primary device
[    5.525322] amdgpu 0000:03:00.0: [drm] fb0: amdgpudrmfb frame buffer device
[    6.926690] snd_hda_intel 0000:03:00.1: bound 0000:03:00.0 (ops amdgpu_dm_audio_component_bind_ops [amdgpu])

I tried creating a /etc/X11/xorg.conf.d/20-amdgpu.conf file with the following lines:

Section "OutputClass"
    Identifier "AMD"
    MatchDriver "amdgpu"
    Driver "amdgpu"
    Option "TearFree" "true"
    Option "EnablePageFlip" "off"
EndSection

but this didn’t resolve the flickering… How can I fix the flickering issue and unlock the full 240Hz refresh rate?

I recall reading somewhere (when I was contemplating installing an additional DE) that having multiple DE’s installed can cause issues. How are you handling the differences in ~/xinitrc between launching KDE and XFCE sessions?
Line 12 of xinitrc differs between Plasma and XFCE:

  • KDE - DEFAULT_SESSION=startplasma-x11
  • XFCE - SESSION=${1:-xfce-session}

Regarding the KDE Plasma DE… Is your experience x11, or have you tried Wayland? If both, does the same issue occur within both session types?

Regarding X11… have you investigated xrandr to see what it thinks your monitor is capable of and/or using xrandr to set your desired monitor settings?

EDIT:
Also, I’ve recently discovered that power-profiles-daemon 0.23-1 (PPD) has an issue with limiting the GPU clock(s) in “Power Save” mode… likely not related to your specific issue, but you may want to consider downgrading to PPD 0.21-1

@lem0th

@Daniel-I hiighlights a valid concern when installing multiple DE’s to the same Manjaro instance.

It is sometimes recommended to create a new User account for each DE installed, to avoid complications such as the ~/xinitrc issue that he goes on to describe.

Generally, it is suggested to install only one DE (whichever was installed from the Manjaro ISO). Installing multiple DE’s like you have done can have undesirable consequences; especially with a rolling release model distribution such as Manjaro.

With multiple DE’s this may (technically) leave you in an unsupported state – a forum search should reveal the possible ramifications of this.

Having multiple DE’s can also make it next to impossible for others to successfully diagnose specific problems, not to mention finding actionable solutions.

Consider this as a simple FYI:smile_cat:

If you have the necessary knowledge to avoid these issues that most seem to face, then more power to you. :muscle:

If you don’t, then please reconsider your strategy.

Cheers.


Appendum:- If you’re using dual/multiple monitors;

I recall reading that using the same resolution on each monitor can have better results.

well, i installed XFCE just to check if the problem would continue to exist, i removed it and am on KDE

i tried X11 aswell as Wayland, everything above 60hz results in the black flickering, even if i set hz & resolution via xrandr, same as before.

xrandr thinks my display can only handle up to 143.99 in 1440p

xrandr                                                                                  ✔  4s  
Screen 0: minimum 320 x 200, current 2560 x 1440, maximum 16384 x 16384
DisplayPort-0 disconnected (normal left inverted right x axis y axis)
DisplayPort-1 disconnected (normal left inverted right x axis y axis)
DisplayPort-2 disconnected (normal left inverted right x axis y axis)
HDMI-A-0 connected primary 2560x1440+0+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 590mm x 333mm
   3840x2160     60.00    50.00    59.94    30.00    25.00    24.00    29.97    23.98  
   2560x1440    143.99   120.00    59.95* 
   1920x1080    120.00   119.88    60.00    60.00    50.00    59.94    30.00    24.00    29.97    23.98  
   1280x1024     75.02  
   1280x720      60.00    50.00    59.94  
   1024x768      60.00  
   800x600       60.32  
   720x576       50.00  
   720x480       60.00    59.94  
   640x480       60.00    59.94

So, to be clear; did you install the Manjaro XFCE edition, or did you add XFCE to your pre-existing conglomerate of installed DE’s?

Did the issue continue to exist?

Are you using multiple monitors?


I’m trying to extract information that might be useful to others wishing to help.

1 Like

I installed XFCE manually via pacman, the iso contained kde, the flickering occurred before I installed xfce, aswell as now

Im on an Single Monitor setup

EDIT;

i switched to Displayport and the flickering is gone, only with my HDMI connection there is black flickering. however, despite xrandr telling me it’s 240 hz, my monitor only shows 144hz.

DP is generally a better option, if it’s available (at least, that’s what I keep reading). I’m using HDMI with 1920x1080 @ 60 Hz, and have none of these issues.

I do see more threads with OLED monitor issues lately, but from what I remember, many problems were attributed to the monitor itself. Particularly the auto-switching feature (or whatever it may be called) available on some models.

You might also double check the power requirements of the monitor. For example, is your system PSU adequately powered to handle the OLED (in addition to the computer power requirements)?

2560x1440 @ 144 Hz is a fair compomise.
I would suggest take the win. :slight_smile:

If Xinit etc. have this kind of bug that prevents multiple DE:s installed, it should be treated like a bug and fixed. Since it has not been, it must not really be a problem, or it would break X11 spec.

There is nothing preventing installation of multiple DE’s.

However, the usual recommendation (for as long as I can recall) has been to create a separate user instance for each DE to avoid complications such as peviously mentioned.

That can work reasonably well, at face value, but considering each DE installs different software and has variable dependencies (some of which may be configured for a specific DE) then the complication mentioned earlier becomes obvious.

The ~/xinitrc issue mentioned by @Daniel-I is apparently one such example of complication.

If one knows what they are doing, perhaps even those complications may be worked around; if not, then it’s best to avoid the scenario (as I have done since learning the hard way many moons ago).

This is not a bug. It’s just common sense.

Specs are constantly being broken in some way, or bent, or misinterpreted. Nothing new there. :wink:

i would most certainly call it a bug if your program is unable to live side by side with alternatives and insists on being the only one. Only exceptions is like init system etc. that take on specialized role.

A Linux DE is much more than a single program; and each interacts differently in some way. Just because one can install multiple Desktop Environments does not infer than one should.

By your reasoning, one can install multiples of any software and if they cannot coexist, there must be a bug.

By all means, put that theory to the test and report your findings for posterity. I’ll waste no more time with this.

That is all.

1 Like

I think your issue is that HDMI cables/connections have limited bandwidth… the newer spec’s are attempting to close the gap, but that’s down the road.

Take a look at a site like https://www.eaton.com/us/en-us/products/backup-power-ups-surge-it-power-distribution/backup-power-ups-it-power-distribution-resources/cpdi-vertical-marketing/hdmi-explained.html and you’ll see that even at the highest spec cable/port to date, the peak is like 4K @ 120hz.

Manjaro is suggesting 144hz likely because your driving it sub 4K… like 2.5K… there;s some available bandwith to push the FPS a little higher.

And I bet if you check you monitor box/manual… it will tell you that the 240 hz is only attainable on DP… not HDMI.

1440P @ 144hz is the best you’re gonna get on HDMI. If you want 240hz, DP is the only way to achieve it. And if DP eliminated the flicker, then there are 2 good reasons to stick with the DP cable.

EDIT:
Assuming the xrandr you shared was while plugged into HDMI, rerun it while plugged into DP and I think you’ll then find where 240hz is supported… an old memory tells me that (perhaps for older monitors) you may need to drop the resolution to something nearer to 1080P as well.

1 Like

why do you say such a thing when i laid out exceptions and even mentioned one of them in the exact message you quoted. In the very next sentence. It looks dishonest.

If you don’t have a technical limitation forcing your program to behave in a way that it cannot reasonably be expected to coexist with other programs performing the same role, then it is indeed a bug stemming from not knowing or not caring enough to do things properly.

The example i gave: init is special from the kernel’s POV so there can reasonably expected to be only one installed at a time (even when dynamic selection during boot could be implemented).

Now, a DE has no reason to work like this. In fact DE selection is implemented in pretty much all display managers, so it’s actually expected that you can have many installed at once. So it’s clear it’s a bug if one of them don’t play nice with the others.

The expectation is that any OS will have one (non-console) Display Environment (DE). By that reasoning it seems illogical to refer to it being a bug if two DE’s cannot coexist.

At the risk of repeating myself:

Any exceptions expressed or implied are irrelevant to the argument, as a DE is not just some app one might casually install.

Agree or disagree as much as you like. However, any suggestion of dishonesty will usually be met with extreme prejudice.

That is all.

I’d just like to add my tuppence* worth here.

With Desktop Environments, I am unsure there was ever an intention to make them “meld” with each other, which at least in some cases, is what the user is expecting.

  • Each Desktop Environment has a set of configuration files, which are used (and customized) for that particular DE.
  • Some of the DE configurations use the same naming convention/file-structure as others, leading to conflicts when mixed with settings from others. It’s not a bug, it’s just how they were intended to work.

I hope this helps.

*Old English way of saying 2p

2 Likes

so you are saying the display managers contain a bug that lets you choose between different DE:s? Remove that if it’s not a bug when a DE does not coexist properly with another DE.

The contortions people go through to justify lazy or incompetent coding…

There is indeed that, but also the issue with programs used across more than one DE such as a browser or email client, office suite etc. which may have been set to e.g. a theme on one DE, which isn’t compatible with another. This is probably beyond the programmers’ intended use case.

1 Like

i have never heard of program themes that are for only one DE. Anyway, that is not the kind of issue talked about here, no big deal if it would revert to default theme when switching DE. The topic would be more about something like “you have firefox installed, please remove it to install chromium”

While I think I understand where you are coming from, I have these considerations:

  • Many different programs can be run within a single OS/Desktop Environment, provided that they have their own unique settings (files).
  • Programs and the Desktop Manager (whatever you use) communicate with each other.
    → Desktop Environments themselves were never meant to co-exist with another DE in this way, as far as I know. They were never intended to communicate with an alternative DE for example to exchange settings, etc. .
2 Likes

If it was not supposed to work like that, then the display managers would not implement the feature to switch between DE:s. Of course it’s meant that you can use several side by side. And for those that won’t work, it’s a bug. I have many times during the years ran several, and it’s expected to work.

Even in theory the only reason for it not working would be that some configuration files are shared, and a DE uses non-standard entries that trip up others that follow standards. Which would be a bug.