Not the OP but I use all the programs full screen / maximized. I change windows with alt+tab or maybe I reach down to the dock to select the app icon quicker. I only see my wallpaper when changing workspaces, because the animation shows it a split second. I do use the command line but it's not the only way to not show the wallpaper. This is true whether I'm on Linux or macOS.
Also me but on Windows 10. I only see the wall paper just after I've booted the machine and within a few seconds at least one window is maximised (typically a tabbed browser), started from the task bar. alt+tab after that
