What the Linux Mint developers have pulled off is nothing short of astounding

2 years ago 279

Jack Wallen's eyes person yet been opened to however genuinely awesome Linux Mint is. Read connected to find retired wherefore helium believes the developers person perfected the desktop operating system.

Image: Linux Mint

I'm going to confess here, I've not erstwhile utilized Linux Mint arsenic my go-to operating system. It's not the organisation itself, due to the fact that that has ever impressed me. My occupation has ever been the default desktop environment, Cinnamon. Why? My penchant tends to thin toward the much modern interfaces (which is wherefore I'm loving Pop!_OS COSMIC truthful much).

However, the latest iteration of Linux Mint has maine earnestly rethinking that stance. Let maine explain.

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Of each the years I've been utilizing Linux (since '97), I've been reasonably vocal astir the operating strategy being a large platform. And successful the past 10 years, I've been adamant that Linux is the cleanable operating strategy for the mean user. And to this day, I inactive clasp accelerated to that claim, arsenic Linux is much stable, much reliable, and much unafraid than immoderate operating strategy connected the market. So, believing the operating strategy is susceptible of gathering and exceeding the needs of the mean idiosyncratic hasn't been the problem. The superior contented centers astir which organisation was champion suited for the mean user. And, to beryllium perfectly honest, that question focused much connected what desktop situation was perfect for newcomers to Linux.

When the developers of Linux Mint released 20.02, I did my accustomed of downloading the ISO and spinning up a virtual instrumentality successful VirtualBox. I kicked disconnected the installation and stepped retired of the country for nary much than 5 minutes. When I returned, the installation was implicit and asking for a reboot.

Upon rebooting I logged successful and then, to my surprise, sat and stared astatine the desktop—or, much to the point, the Welcome app. I'd seen Welcome apps connected Linux for years, truthful wherefore did I find myself staring astatine this one? It wasn't similar the Mint developers had added a diagnostic that knocked my socks close disconnected my feet and done my shoes. I couldn't rather enactment my digit connected it, but determination was thing going on. This was the Cinnamon desktop, truthful it was each instantly familiar. In fact, determination was not 1 happening to the interface that sidetracked me.

Panel. Check.
Icons. Check.
Menu. Check.
System tray. Check.

The aforesaid ol' aforesaid ol' we've been dealing with for decades... astir arsenic if the Mint developers said to themselves, "We're sticking with what works, nary substance what modern absorption each different organisation goes."

After a speedy circuit of the desktop, I recovered myself thinking, "Blah, blah, blah... aforesaid arsenic it ever was." But portion I was utilizing Mint 20.2, I noticed thing special—the show was good, similar ridiculously so. It was arsenic though idiosyncratic had switched desktop environments connected maine portion I'd stepped distant from my desk. Instead of Cinnamon, this had to beryllium 1 of the galore lightweight environments available. But no, it was inactive Cinnamon. And past I started poking astir the settings and recovered a caller Memory bounds diagnostic (Figure A), that allowed you to alteration Cinnamon to restart erstwhile it was utilizing excessively overmuch memory.

Figure A

Once you alteration the representation limit, you tin specify some the bounds and the frequence check. With the enactment the developers person enactment into 20.2, Linux Mint mightiness good beryllium 1 of the champion performing operating systems connected the market.

But the amusive doesn't extremity there. Oh no. There's different diagnostic that mightiness not beryllium good with the aged guard, but it's 1 each different idiosyncratic astir apt needs. Linux Mint has taken a bold measurement guardant with updates. Don't worry, the developers haven't decided to spell the Windows way and unit updates connected users. But with Linux Mint 20.2, the update notification strategy volition pass users however acold down they are with updates. That reminder volition support popping up until the idiosyncratic applies the updates.

According to the developers, "This caller notification diagnostic was designed to adhd comfortableness to the idiosyncratic experience, not region any, truthful making definite it was a bully summation and not an annoying distraction was key. The mode this is handled successful different operating systems, specified arsenic Windows oregon Mac for instance, was an illustration Linux Mint did not privation to follow."

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This is an important caller feature, arsenic the developers of Mint discovered that users were ignoring updates, thereby leaving their systems vulnerable. The mode the Mint developers person handled this is particularly important for new-to-Linux users, who aren't rather arsenic acquainted with however important strategy updates tin be. It's a gentle nudge to alteration a less-than-ideal behaviour connected the portion of end-users.

There are plentifulness of different improvements to the desktop, galore of which won't person astir the interaction connected the mean user. To find retired what each has been added and improved to 20.2 (Uma), marque definite to work the official merchandise notes.

The large takeaway from this acquisition is that Linux Mint 20.2 shrugs speech each uncertainty that Linux is acceptable for the masses, and it does truthful with ease. I've ne'er felt truthful powerfully astir a Linux organisation being perfectly suited for the masses similar this. And though I won't beryllium switching to Linux Mint (because, again, COSMIC is my jam), I yet person changed my tune that the azygous champion operating strategy for the mean idiosyncratic is this. Linux Mint.

Kudos to the Linux Mint developers, what you've pulled disconnected is thing abbreviated of astounding.