It's loosely inspired by dwm in that it uses a similar configuration file and keybinding system.
On a technical level, howm uses xcb- a more modern and efficient X protocol binding. dwm uses xlib.
From a user's perspective, howm has multiple modes for manipulating different kinds of windows as well as operators, motions and counts. This means that multiple windows can have the same operation performed upon them. For example (assuming that the correct modifier keys are being pressed) pressing "q4w" will lead to 4 windows being closed.
howm also has some features that dwm only provides as patches, such as useless gaps and a grid layout.
For God's sake. I don't care a dime about fancy UIs. I mean, I really, really, really don't care. I want a robust and reliable system that doesn't change all the time for no good reason. I want a worthy Outlook alternative. Outlook is much more than just an email client. Kontact, Evolution and Thunderbird+Lightning just aren't good enough (they're simply full of bugs and I've tried all 3 of them). Why waste all those manhours in useless ice candy and not improve those instead?
Neither do I. I love the fact that, after years of wasting pixels on 3D effects and shadows, we're moving beyond that. This release of KDE seems to be a step in that direction.
