Do You Install KDE or GNOME?

Actually, that’s a trick question. You should install both. Even if you plan to use a different window manager or desktop environment (BlackBox, FVWM, etc.), it’s a good idea to install KDE and GNOME just because you never know when you’re going to run into an application that requires either package’s libraries. Some of my favorite apps require GTK+, and there are a handful that require KDE or at Qt.

It’s especially helpful if you’re in a hurry or are on a slow connection, as everything you need is already there. These are rather large packages, and it’s a pain waiting for all that data just to satisfy a dependency for a piece of software that’s only a couple meg.

For the same reason, it’s often a good idea to install Perl and Python from the start. You may never intend to code or develop in either yourself, but there are several packages that make use of them. SquirrelMail, for example, uses a Perl script for configuration, and if I recall correctly Kismet or a related package uses a Perl script for building and installation.

The extra time to install these packages from a distro CD is negligible, and most modern systems come with more than enough hard drive space. Leave off the games and applications if you desire, but definitely install the core packages and save yourself some headaches later.