Beryl: 3D desktop for Linux

Beryl is a desktop that is gaining a lot of attention in the Linux community.


It offers a lot of dramatic features, which according to some, make Vista and OS X look old-fashioned. Here is a link to a preview/review, with an excerpt:

Preview of Beryl 0.2.0

Beryl is simply creating some of the most exciting and innovative work on any computing platform. Amazingly, Beryl came into existence only 6 months or so ago. The Beryl project originally forked from the Compiz 3d desktop group around September of 2006. At the time I had a hard time understanding why we needed another 3d desktop project, but now that I have had a chance to watch Beryl develop, their decision makes a whole lot of sense. As nice as Compiz is, Beryl is the group that is really pushing the envelope of what a next generation desktop should be like. A new version, Beryl 0.2.0, will be released shortly and I spent time the last week testing out Beryl 0.2.0 RC2 on Kubuntu’s Edgy Eft. The improvements found in 0.2.0 are simply amazing. Improvments in usability features, improvements in the pure 3d eye candy, and even the Beryl Settings Manager has been improved (the layout has become much more logically laid out). As you read through this preview of Beryl 0.2.0 and see some of the screenshots, I think you will get a firm grasp on how impressive Beryl can be. Basically, Beryl makes OS X and Vista look old and antiquated. [...]

(bold emphasis mine) Click on the link for more information and lots more screenshots.



I've been playing with Beryl, as it came with a beta version of PCLinuxOS that I have been using. It's interesting, and not quite as taxing on my system resources as I thought it would be.



Still, I'm not sure how actually USEFUL it is. I don't see that it would necessarily help me use my computer more efficiently. It's interesting, but not necessary. At least that is my opinion thus far. I haven't used it extensively. It will be interesting to see how it evolves. Will this or something like it become the new "standard"?

If you want to see Beryl in action, check out these links at Youtube:

Beryl Demo

This is just one Youtube video that shows off some of Beryl's features. Many more videos demonstrating Beryl can be found here.


Related Link:

Desktop of the Future?
A previous post about another 3D desktop project.