Corel Linux first launched in 1999, from the same company that at the time owned the WordPerfect word processing software. While it was made to compete with Microsoft's Windows it quickly died off.
The blend between blur and transparency that Windows uses is a bit special, you can’t really get it on Linux I think. I use Blur My Shell for some cheap fancy effects, but it’s nothing close to the shades Microsoft came up with.
I still prefer Aero over its replacement, but I can see the appeal. Gnome and KDE just don’t seem to have a distinctive GUI blur effect the same way Windows has (or Apple macOS/iOS has, for that matter).
Windows 11, in terms of design changes, seems to draw inspiration from KDE and Gnome.
The Win11 start menu changed and looks more like the KDE Plasma one, albeit centred like the Gnome app grid.
They’ve switched to rounded corners, like Gnome.
They now use dots to denote pages, like Gnome does all throughout their system.
To me, the overall system in Win11 seems like it’s been made more like KDE, but the smaller nuances seem more Gnome-inspired.
Microsoft is no stranger to copying Linux DEs, remember KDE Plasma’s motto in 2017? “Simple by default. Powerful when needed.”
Compare that to Microsoft’s totally not stolen tagline they used to promote 11: “Simple by default. Powerful by choice.”
Lol, I use GNOME daily, and I didn’t notice the inspiration until now. I think Windows 11 uses a lot more transparency and blur than KDE or GNOME.
The blend between blur and transparency that Windows uses is a bit special, you can’t really get it on Linux I think. I use Blur My Shell for some cheap fancy effects, but it’s nothing close to the shades Microsoft came up with.
I still prefer Aero over its replacement, but I can see the appeal. Gnome and KDE just don’t seem to have a distinctive GUI blur effect the same way Windows has (or Apple macOS/iOS has, for that matter).
You can add more transparency in KDE. Just not sure it’s that needed - I find Windows 11s level of transparency a bit distracting.