Basic configurations I do on my computers to get it up and running the way I like it
Main setup - GNOME
It's mostly default GNOME with few tweaks as possible. Despite what's said, I really like GNOME and I don't see any flaws on the design and it's been by far the most solid experience on any DE/WM I have ever used.
Laptop used for work here and there, usually when out in college - XFCE
Ricing KDE too much results in a terrible experience on my testings. The system starts to feel unresponsive and stuff tends to break. These are just my thoughts. (Yes, even using extensions on GNOME, or building a dozen extra programs for XFCE is just more stable.)
- Fedora/RHEL based system, I personally like Ultramarine Linux;
- GNOME/XFCE;
- Some patience.
This setup may be somewhat impractical, considering the heavy use of Extensions on GNOME and having to build the programs used for the XP interface for XFCE.
- Linux Kernel setup. Very important as it contains post-install configuration needed for my system to properly work.
- XFCE System setup.
- GNOME System setup.