Concerning speed:

I actually originally installed KDE before Debian, but then uninstalled KDE because I thought Debian was so much better (and better includes speed).

And this was after qole's first Easy-Debian release, not this highly refined version now.

Personally, I think Iceweasel is crap speed-wise on a tablet. I never use it; for browsing Epiphany[-gecko or -webkit] or Midori work for me.

Also, I try to stay away from OOo for the same reason; in fact, I usually only use it for reading and editing advanced spreadsheets (it has the best Excel compatibility...).

As for application-launch-feedback, I look to the cpu taskbar applet