this post was submitted on 25 Apr 2025
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I feel like I remember seeing something like this get posted and celebrated in this or some other techie community, and I'm interested in screwing around with other OSes but I can't remember which one it might be. What's your favorite 90s-flavored Linux desktop environment / distribution?

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[–] MonkderVierte@lemmy.ml 2 points 1 hour ago
[–] radiouser@crazypeople.online 3 points 2 hours ago

I think it might be LXQT?

You need to theme it but depending on how you theme it you can get it looking like Win95. In fact I distinctly remember seeing Win95 themes for LXQT

https://github.com/pixelocdguy/windows-classic

[–] LunarLoony@lemmy.sdf.org 4 points 4 hours ago* (last edited 4 hours ago)

Trinity Desktop Environment is really cool - a bit more XP-era, mid-2000s style, though.

[–] chaos@beehaw.org 3 points 8 hours ago
[–] Inui@hexbear.net 6 points 9 hours ago* (last edited 9 hours ago)

Atomic desktops are the (current) future, so: https://blues.win/95/

[–] just_another_person@lemmy.world 43 points 14 hours ago (1 children)

You're confusing themes with entire distros.

This is what you want: https://github.com/grassmunk/Chicago95

[–] HayadSont@discuss.online 11 points 11 hours ago* (last edited 11 hours ago)

To add to this, a 'distro' -if you will- that was launched recently with this theme would be the aptly-named Blue95.

[–] BlueSquid0741@lemmy.sdf.org 15 points 12 hours ago

I haven’t used the Chicago theme, but if you’re in KDE, the Reactionary Plus theme is spot on and works great.

https://www.pling.com/p/2138468/

Or

https://www.opencode.net/phob1an/reactionary

[–] HubertManne@piefed.social 3 points 9 hours ago

zorin has a windows like interface. I don't think it necessarily is tracking windows 95 but really the windows like thing is really just a start menu with submenus like windows that I think have not changed much between windows 95 and now.

[–] monovergent@lemmy.ml 10 points 13 hours ago

Chicago95 XFCE on Debian is my daily driver. Having been a Windows 2000 fanboy, it makes me feel right at home.

The Raleigh GTK theme ported to GTK 3 on XFCE is also a quick and dirty way to get a 90s-esque look: https://github.com/thesquash/gtk-theme-raleigh

For an entire distro, there's Hot Dog Linux: https://github.com/arthurchoung/HOTDOG

[–] Tippon@lemmy.dbzer0.com 5 points 11 hours ago

This is one that was shared recently:

!https://lemmy.dbzer0.com/post/42247576

[–] undefined@lemmy.hogru.ch 9 points 14 hours ago (1 children)

I don’t think it’s what you’re looking for but what your post reminds me of is ReactOS, though that’s more of a rewrite of actual Windows than a Linux distro.

[–] i_am_not_a_robot@feddit.uk 6 points 13 hours ago (1 children)
[–] undefined@lemmy.hogru.ch 2 points 9 hours ago

Oh, that’s pretty sick.

[–] shittydwarf@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 13 hours ago

Are you thinking of Plan 9?

[–] solrize@lemmy.world 3 points 14 hours ago

I've been using Debian MATE. It's mostly ok.

[–] LovableSidekick@lemmy.world 1 points 12 hours ago

Also are the Rolling Stones involved? Asking for a friend.

[–] StrawberryPigtails@lemmy.sdf.org 1 points 12 hours ago

Vanilla? XFCE was looked a bit like Win 95/98 the last time I used it, say 5 to 10 years ago. I’ve been using KDE which reminds me more of XP or Vista in default configuration. Probably why I like KDE so much.

What your probably looking for though is a theme.