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Where can I find a list of applications and other components of the operating system? (E.g., is the desktop environment KDE or GNOME? Where are the names of the applications menu, toolbar at the bottom of the screen, etc.?
It would help to have some sort of breakdown of all system components used, so it's easier to know if an app will work, like "made for KDE / Gnome" and what dependencies will be needed, etc.
Dan can answer with 100% perfection to your question. I am quoting from the link:
Our desktop environment and all its apps are built using Vala, GTK+, Clutter, Cairo, Granite and a number of other free libraries. All of our code is hosted on Launchpad.net, a free service for open source projects.
Quoting from wiki:
Pantheon Greeter: Session manager based on LightDM
Wingpanel: Top panel, similar in function to GNOME Shell's top panel
Slingshot: Application launcher located in WingPanel
Plank: Dock (upon which Docky is based)
Switchboard: Settings application (or control panel)
Midori: Web browser based on WebKitGTK+
Geary: Email client written in Vala
Maya: Desktop calendar
Noise: Audio player
Scratch: Simple text editor, comparable to gedit or leafpad
Pantheon Terminal: Terminal emulator
Pantheon Files (formerly called Marlin): File manager
Apps that are compatible with Ubuntu 14.04 LTS should work just as well on elementary OS Freya.
Recommended reading:
A better resource for the latest packages is elementary.io/open-source. It explains each of the components of the OS and how they work together. It also links to the technical repository for any aspect of the OS for your education. Enjoy!
In addition to the Open Source page that wolf mentioned, see the elementary metaproject in Launchpad for a list of the components built by the elementary OS developers.
