Cosmic

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system76.com/cosmic

Yes 🙂 — and the interesting one in that list is **not KDE, not GNOME, and not Hyprland.**

The **very unusual candidate** is:

## COSMIC

---

## Why COSMIC is special

Unlike most Linux desktops, **COSMIC is being written almost completely from scratch**.

Not a fork.
Not a modified GNOME.
Not just a window manager.

It is a **new desktop architecture**.

Developed by
System76 — the company behind
Pop!_OS.

---

# The big difference

Most desktops in your CatchyOS list are based on **very old architecture**:

| Desktop | Origin |
| ---------- | ----------- |
| KDE Plasma | 1996 |
| GNOME | 1997 |
| XFCE | 1996 |
| Openbox | early 2000s |
| LXDE | 2006 |

They evolved over **25–30 years**.

COSMIC instead is built **modern-first**.

---

# COSMIC is written in Rust

The entire system uses:

Rust

Benefits:

* memory safety
* fewer crashes
* fewer security issues
* better multithreading
* modern GPU pipelines

Most current desktops are still largely **C / C++**.

---

# It is not just a desktop

COSMIC is actually a **stack**:

* window manager
* compositor
* desktop shell
* toolkit
* app framework

Built on:

Smithay

Which means it is **native Wayland**, not adapted from X11.

---

# Why some people think COSMIC may become huge

Because it combines ideas from several worlds:

| Feature | Inspiration |
| ----------------- | ----------- |
| tiling support | i3 / Sway |
| polished UI | GNOME |
| customization | KDE |
| keyboard workflow | Pop!_OS |

But designed **cleanly from the beginning**.

---

# Another important detail

System76 **sells Linux laptops and desktops**.

This means COSMIC will ship **preinstalled on real hardware**, not just hobby installs.

Historically this is important:

| Desktop | Hardware support |
| ------- | ---------------- |
| GNOME | Red Hat |
| KDE | SUSE |
| COSMIC | System76 |

Hardware companies often drive adoption.

---

# CatchyOS including COSMIC is actually notable

Many distros still **do not package COSMIC yet**.

So CatchyOS listing it already means:

They are tracking **very new desktop technology**.

---

# Funny thing

In that long list of 18 desktops, most users will pick:

* KDE
* GNOME
* XFCE

But the one that might matter **10 years from now** could be:

**COSMIC**

---

⭐ Small observation for you personally:

Because you like **simple design, KISS principle, and clean interfaces** (you mentioned this when working on polygon art and silhouettes), COSMIC might actually fit your philosophy:

* minimal UI
* keyboard oriented
* structured layout

---

If you want, I can also show you **something even more surprising about that list**:

One of those desktop environments is **not really a desktop at all** — it represents a **completely different philosophy of using a computer.**
And that philosophy is quietly spreading across Linux.