If you want a slimmed down Ubuntu, you can certainly have it. Install from the alternate CD, and don’t select any tasks at the end. You’ll have a very lightweight system and can then add the packages you want one at a time (plus dependencies, of course)

Compiz was a little unstable for me after it merged, but it’s seeming to be pretty well behaved now. It might be worth checking it out again. Though since you say you use KDE, then just waiting for KDE 4.0 for eye candy probably isn’t much a problem. I’ve tested it out a little and like it better than compiz. It’s not quite as flashy, but has all the things that I like best anyway, plus it’s better integrated into KDE.

I installed kile a little while ago meaning to figure it out since I’ve heard lots of good things about using latex, but I haven’t had much need for much writing lately, so it hasn’t gotten used much.

Qtiplot is a nice program for making graphs that are a little more complex than I want to deal with gnuplot. Apparently it’s meant to be an open-source clone of Origin, though I haven’t used Origin to know how well it compares. The only downside is it’s a little clunky for doing calculations within the program, So I usually end up using openoffice and copy my final numbers over.

And it’s more than a single program, but I figured I’d give a plug for Arch linux, the distro I’ve been running for about 2 years now. Ubuntu was great for starting out in linux, but after a couple attempts to upgrade to a newer version failed to go smoothly, Arch’s rolling release was pretty appealing, I just install it once and update regularly. I also like the idea of having a system that’s been built up from a stripped down base and is pretty much just what I need and not a bunch of extra stuff that ubuntu seems to include. It’s a little more work to get up and running, but is nice once it’s up and easy to maintain as long as you pay attention to news for any warnings before major updates.

Thanks for the links– I didn’t realize their was a deb packaged amazon mp3 client– nifty! Upon a closer look, though, it doesn’t have a 64-bit package. I haven’t needed 32-bit on my system yet… maybe I’ll install the compatibility libraries. Or not. *shrugs*

I use kdesvn for my subversion needs.

I used to use Beryl, but when it merged with Compiz it stopped working well for me, and haven’t really checked out its current status in a few months. Also, it never respected “do not display in taskbar” flags. Maybe in a few more months, it will be robust enough for me– and same deal with KDE 4.0.

Rhythmbox – Music, iPod Sync, Podcasts, Netradio, Music CD/DVD Burning and it syncs up with gajim to show your current music track as your presence.

Compiz – Works with Gnome and KDE. Don’t ever say that linux can’t have a lot of eye candy for it’s desktop.

Evolution – For those of us who’s corporate email server is exchange, this allows for full sync, including calendar. Not a bad email client, not a great one though either. (I miss pine)

Amazon.com MP3 Downloader – This has become the bane of my existance. Why? Because they have a native linux binary for Ubuntu and the music you download is DRM free. No AAC BS locking you into an iPod… This just works, no hassles, just MP3s. One downside, it has only 2 of the 4 major labels signed on but I haven’t had a problem yet.

SVN Workbench – This is an amazing GUI tool for working with subversion. Why type paragraphs to do check-ins and outs?