
Mint 18.2: Still the best Linux desktop - CrankyBear
http://www.zdnet.com/article/mint-18-2-still-the-best-linux-desktop/
======
Mikeb85
I've never understood the love for Mint. All it is is Ubuntu with a Gnome 2
style desktop and things already configured for Linux newbies. I installed it
long ago and it was way buggier than Ubuntu.

Right now on openSUSE Tumbleweed with Gnome Shell, couldn't be happier. And if
I were to give a vote for most 'desktop ready' system, I'd go with Fedora (the
only thing I dislike about openSUSE is how PackageKit and YAST are always
fighting over updates and stuff, they need to just get rid of one, but then
again the thing I love about openSUSE is YAST).

~~~
teilo
The problem I have with Mint is that a dist-upgrade is not possible. You can
try it, and break everything in the process. They officially recommend a clean
wipe and install. Or at least this was the case a few releases ago.

~~~
CrankyBear
That's no longer the case, you can dist-upgrade to 18.2 from 18.1 or 18.0.
See: [http://blog.linuxmint.com/?p=3306](http://blog.linuxmint.com/?p=3306)
for the how-to.

~~~
teilo
Good! Let's hope they make this possible for major releases as well.

------
RaleyField
> I've been using Linux Mint for years now as my main desktop.

It's amazing considering he signed himself under article reporting Mint
containing malware.[1] Fool me once..

[1] [http://www.zdnet.com/article/has-your-linux-mint-desktop-
bee...](http://www.zdnet.com/article/has-your-linux-mint-desktop-been-hacked/)

EDIT:

I dug a few more.

[http://www.infoworld.com/article/2703044/does-linux-mint-
nee...](http://www.infoworld.com/article/2703044/does-linux-mint-need-better-
security.html)

[https://www.reddit.com/r/linux/comments/1osyn5/linux_mint_cr...](https://www.reddit.com/r/linux/comments/1osyn5/linux_mint_creator_clement_lefebvre_responds_to/)

Just stay away from this train wreck of mismanagement.

------
sandGorgon
The desktop that has the maximum number of core developers - including kernel,
desktop, ux and userland is Fedora. And it shows.

~~~
old-gregg
Meh... and this army of developers still hasn't figured out how to ship a
distro with a proper font rendering. Having to do [1] is insane. And every
time you bring this up, there's always "looks fine to me" or "a matter of
taste" argument. Nope it's not.

[1]
[https://www.reddit.com/r/Fedora/comments/5ea3bx/font_renderi...](https://www.reddit.com/r/Fedora/comments/5ea3bx/font_rendering_in_fedora_25/)

~~~
vetinari
I understand your frustration, but the difference between freetype and
freetype-freeworld is exactly one define:

FT_CONFIG_OPTION_SUBPIXEL_RENDERING

I'm sure you know why Fedora didn't enable that. It's not because they
wouldn't want it.

~~~
MisterKent
Sorry, I don't know why. Care to explain?

~~~
schoen
Apparently
[https://freetype.org/patents.html](https://freetype.org/patents.html)

~~~
ZenoArrow
Didn't know about that. Thanks for the link.

When is the last of the ClearType patents due to expire? Is the patent expiry
date based on the Publication date/Filing date/Priority date + a fixed number
of years?

~~~
schoen
I didn't know about this before myself, so I'm afraid I'm not in a position to
help clarify your questions.

------
dunpeal
For an experienced Ubuntu user, who knows how to configure their system to
their liking, including switching the DE if desired - what exactly would be
the benefits of migrating to Mint?

~~~
dnautics
Not having to do all that....

I wouldn't migrate to it just to migrate. Migrate to it when you would have
migrated anyway.

~~~
dunpeal
> Not having to do all that...

I maintain a script that configures a pristine installation of Xubuntu to my
exact preferences.

Migrating to Mint wouldn't save me the trouble of writing / updating the
script. While I'm sure Mint works out of the box (IMHO, so does Ubuntu), it
won't bundle the exact shortcuts and settings tailored to my workflow.

I don't even need to switch desktop, I just use Xubuntu that runs XFCE out of
the box (and kindly discards the Canonical commercial / user-intelligence
"features"). Not sure why a programmer would need anything more than XFCE as
their DE, but you can also get an Ubuntu "flavour" (i.e. edition) for any of
the popular DEs, including Mate.

> Migrate to it when you would have migrated anyway.

Indeed, I suppose Mint would be at the top of my alternative list if I
absolutely had to get off Ubuntu for any reason (which seems implausible).
Otherwise, seems like it's a more newbie-friendly (and somewhat bloated)
rendition of Ubuntu.

------
jcoffland
There is very little difference between Mint and straight Debian. I prefer
Debian because it's more stable and has a continuous rolling release cycle.

Ubuntu pissed a lot of people of when they forced Unity down our throats. This
is why many moved to Mint in the first place.

~~~
rlpb
...when they forced Unity down our throats.

Alternative desktop environments such as Xubuntu, Lubuntu and Kubuntu have
always been available on Ubuntu. Unity was never forced down anyone's throat;
it was made the default; that's all.

------
leeoniya
Manjaro (Arch) w/xfce is pretty great, too.

[https://manjaro.org/](https://manjaro.org/)

~~~
interfixus
It is indeed. It finally made a Debian defector out of me.

~~~
jnbiche
Eh, I don't know. I like Arch but it can be a lot of work. For my main dev
machine, I use Ubuntu to just get shit done, particularly given the fact that
many open source projects have a Debian package if not an Ubuntu PPA.

Arch did make me a bit more open-minded about systemd. I still think it's a
bad move architecturally, but it does make a lot of things more convenient.

------
stryk
I remember reading (this was around when version 17 launched) about a couple
serious issues people had with Mint. Have these been fixed/addressed?: 1) the
mixing and/or renaming of Ubuntu and Debian packages - resulting in the
maintainers just blacklisting upstream packages when something breaks because
of this (even security updates! which, if I remember correctly, were set to
'optional' by default which is just stupid) 2) Mint, at least at the time,
didn't publish any CVEs (what the hell is with that? seems nutty)

~~~
jethro_tell
what about the time that they published ISOs with a back door for a while?
That was a classic, aslo handled really well as I'm sure you can imagine.

------
pjmlp
Not really, I am pretty happy with Ubuntu in what concerns using GNU/Linux.

No longer have any patience to play around with distributions.

------
bitL
Some issues with 18.2:

\- Nemo has huge issues handling icon spacing in HiDPI mode; this is a major
regression and the reason I only upgraded one of my computers to 18.2 until
this is resolved

\- Cinnamon still freezes/stops responding/windows disappear with alpha barely
above 0 on Intel HD either randomly or when switching to another logged in
user

------
Lagged2Death
_Mint 18.2 ran like a champ on my work desktop. This is an older Dell XPS
8300. It has a 3.4GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor, 8GBs of RAM, and an
AMD /ATI Radeon HD 5770 graphics card._

This fellow has a very different idea of what an "older" computer is than I
do.

------
shady-lady
No, it's not.

Used it for years due to the hype. Switched to Fedora & Gnome - delighted ever
since

------
thisisadumb
Arch Linux is best Linux!

------
grey-sunshine
Is this for real? Do people really use Mint?

~~~
dnautics
Mint's pretty great. I use it because it's basically a lightweight Ubuntu.

~~~
eklavya
What does it remove from ubuntu?

~~~
dnautics
I don't know, and TBH I don't care, it just seems like the mint ui is more
responsive, and it feels more intuitive to me (but that's likely a personal
preference)

------
neverminder
Best distro is the one people complain most about because they use it most.
That would be vanilla Ubuntu. Also you have to appreciate the irony now that
they are returning to Gnome there are people out there unhappy about that just
as there were people unhappy about switch to Unity.

