Desktops:
I have enjoyed Gnome 2.x for years, and still use it. It's interface feels clean to use, cohesive, and easy to configure. I can build the panels into exactly what I want, and style them exactly the way I like, with no fuss. The desktop feels like an elegant and "one piece" workplace, from the panels to the windows.
When I used Gnome 3, none of the above was true. More clicks to do the same actions, a disconnected feeling between the dash, window UI elements, and even the desktop in the default configuration, and I was not able to configure much of anything out of the box. A small "editor" application allowed a few UI changes, but the vast majority of the UI was set in concrete. Unfortunately for me, I did not like that default design
I've used KDE 3.5, and my issue there was that the environment felt like it was made of hundreds of obviously separate parts. That, and I never had any success getting GTK applications to look good at all under Qt. There were some fixes, but I still felt that my favorite GTK applications were among the most ugly GUI under Qt that I have ever seen.
Have yet to use KDE4. I never did invest the time after my experiences with KDE 3.5.
XFCE 4.6 was very comfortable and like Gnome 2.x, straight forward and configurable. It was not nearly as full featured. Last XFCE I used was 4.6, which had no support for network access through the file manager. Apparently the latest XFCE 4.8 now includes this. Given this one feature, I would be generally happy with XFCE as my primary desktop environment. I do recall some downsides, in particular the unrefined editing process for the XFCE menu (at least as of 4.6), and due to the smaller user base, a lack of some software that Gnome or KDE enjoys, such as the great integration between Seahorse (GNUPG encryption) and gedit. In fact I think I had to use the terminal to encrypt and decrypt my files under XFCE 4.6, at least on that configuration.
Applications:
Mozilla SeaMonkey Suite for browser, mail, and contacts. Audacity for audio editing. Brasero is a fast and easy part of archiving my home movies on video DVD. Gotta love gedit too, tabbed interface, Seahorse GNUPG integration, and configurable styles.
I read no Linux blogs or forums unless I need to know something to solve a problem.
Running openSUSE 11.4 here, because it'll let me keep my Gnome 2.x desktop and favorite apps with support for a while longer. As the distro comes to EOS, I'll consider where I'll go. Right now it seems likely something with XFCE on top, maybe openSUSE. It's been a good package. If I choose to try KDE 4.x, I'd have a few choices including Mepis, which also was very good while I ran it.
