> An Electron powered status bar?

Chromium and Javascript to run a status bar? A panel is a relatively simple program; it shouldn't be using more than ~1MB of memory (maybe more with large icons). Using Chromium adds many useless layers of abstraction (e.g. HTML, JS engine) and wastes an incredible amount of memory.

You're right and the memory use of KDE, GNOME, XFCE is unjustifiable. Even sway (the i3-inspired Wayland compositor) uses a lot of money for a simple tiling compositor that doesn't have fancy "bling". It's three times the memory use as xmonad and xmobar, but maybe it's an architectural issue with wayland. I mean, Weston isn't light-weight either.

Wayland compositors must also do (some) actions that were previously handled by X server. Ergo your comparison is a bit unfair, you should try comparing sway vs i3 + Xorg.

That's what I suspected by saying "maybe it's an architectural issue with wayland".

More of an architectural goal than an architectural issue.

Give lxde a shot then.

I never felt comfortable with desktop envs, going back to KDE1 in the 90s. Used FVWM, Enlightenment, WindowMaker, LarsWM, Ion, WMI, DWM, spectrwm, Xmonad, sway, Weston, but never a desktop env due to missing flexibility and harder and harder config portability. My FVWM config still works, but GTK3 and GNOME configs are highly unlikely to work the same after 12 months.

Hey I hear you. I would say lxde is like e16 except less fancy looking.

VERY basic. like, you get to write a script to bind the print screen key to take a screenshot.

I don't use a DE, for much the same reasons you name, but I do use several pieces of LXDE, as they are generally built configurably and work well outside of the DE.

My status bar would use 1MB of memory if it had a 900 KB animated gif clock.

next: an electron powered mouse pointer.

There's Electron-powered terminal emulators, so we're already there.

I wouldn't use it myself, but I guess the justification is that you have the full power of a web page, crammed into a widget bar, and there are many frontend devs who are most familiar with HTML+CSS+JS. Again, I wouldn't use it, and agree it's a bad idea as long as browser engines are monstrosities.

The programming and styling like a web page might be it and maybe it's also easier to consume random web feeds.