Hi, Loyal.
You are not a newbie. You are an experienced user of Linux Mint. What may be easy for you is not for a newbie.
You did not fully grasp the seriousness issue of upgrading versions. First off, I used to install Ubuntu from scratch, but have not for at least three versions now. I am an experienced user with a complex set-up. If it upgrades for me without a hitch then it will upgrade for almost anybody. You seldom read anything any more about an upgrade of one of the Ubuntu derivatives going awry. To edit sources lists as root and then going through an update and upgrade and crossing your fingers is way harder than clicking a button when it says there is a new version and giving your password at a prompt and crossing your fingers.
Yes there is LMDE (which is still experimental and so poorly supported that many users wondered if it still existed), but that will still mean some hassle for users. It will mean backing up and a fresh installation from scratch. It will also mean that you are no longer on Ubuntu's aggressive development cycle and are tied to Debian which is slower than slow. Mint will either have to pick up the slack or get used to being considered old. Also you will find the Debian community a little rough around the corners and definitely not newbie friendly.
Ubuntu is moving to QT5 (because of Ubuntu Touch) with Mir as its display server. These are radical choices. Not everybody is in agreement with them. Clem will have to decide what he is going to do. GNOME own which both Mate and Cinnamon are based is using GTK will be using Wayland as its display server. I think Canonical has made up its mind to differentiate itself and develop in-house to the degree that it is causing separation in the community and in derivatives. These are interesting times. In mentioning this I am looking forward to what may be coming for all, not just Mint.
My comments were not meant to criticize Mint and get users defensive. It was to give accurate information, and mention some things that are seldom discussed among Mint users. Mint is good, but there are a couple of caveats that users should keep in mind.
I am also critical of Ubuntu when it is needed. That have made some bad decisions in the past and continue to make some bad ones. I take them to task as well.
Mate is not the best DE for new users. It was created for users of the old GNOME 2.x because they did not want too give up and move to GNOME Shell. It has its roots in the past. It is not widely used outside of Mint and users will not get the help they may need. Cinnamon is better, IMO, but it may not be what is best for new users either.
I advised XFCE for many reasons, but mostly because it is more widely used across all distributions and help is easier to find. It has the benefit of being faster than anything based on GNOME Shell such as Mate or Cinnamon and Unity. It looks and feels more like Windows XP than Mint or Ubuntu.
Transitioning from Windows to Linux is tough enough. There are many things to learn. It is best to keep things as simple as possible. If you read my posting, you will see that I asked him to try several things. Mint may be good for you, but it may not be good for him. Linux is about choice. Give the information accurately and let users choose for themselves.
Nowhere did I mention what I am using or suggest that he use what I use.
Cheers,
Rot
__._,_.___
| Reply via web post | Reply to sender | Reply to group | Start a New Topic | Messages in this topic (23) |
To unsubscribe from this list, please email LINUX_Newbies-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com & you will be removed.
.
__,_._,___
No comments:
Post a Comment