friendica.eskimo.com
If this question was asked before, I apologize in advance for the redundancy.
I recently switched from Windows to Ubuntu on my laptop. Still getting the hang of Ubuntu, but I see a lot of comments on different posts in which a majority of them point to using Mint instead.
Would the best recommendation, be to switch to Mint from Ubuntu?
It's like a favourite drink, there's no correct choice.
I quite like xubuntu. I know that linus tech tips recommended mint to people coming from windows.
Many have a live USB option, that's great for trying them out.
If you're already using Ubuntu, I don't think it's worth it. They're fairly similar. Then again, I didn't even get to install Ubuntu in the first place, the installer kept crashing.
Unless the laptop is a potato and you don't have a better computer, you can try Mint, or any other distro in a VM to see for yourself.
And welcome to Linux. If someone recommends you Arch Linux, Gentoo or LFS as other newbie-friendly option, it's a joke.
Stay with ubuntu unless you have an issue with ubuntu itself, because the grass isn't greener on the other side despite what some people might say. The only real difference that you'll find are different default settings/programs and the time it takes for a software update to reach your final linux install.
Some distros like Ubuntu prefer slightly older versions that have been proven to be stable/bug free while others like Arch mostly go for the newest everything where available, at the cost of stability. If you like something a little bit more balanced, you have Fedora (which is my preference).
The beauty of Linux is that most software will work no matter the distribution you use. If the reason you want to use Linux Mint instead of regular Ubuntu is the desktop environment, you can at any time install the Cinammon desktop (the one used by Mint), here's an article that guides you through the process: itsfoss.com/install-cinnamon-o…
Tutorial with screenshots to show you how to install Cinnamon desktop environment on Ubuntu.Abhishek Prakash (It's FOSS)
I switched from Windows to Mint.
Best thing I ever did for myself as It's extremely user friendly.
Is it the best choice for you? That depends on what you're looking for in Linux.
Personally I was just fed up with Microsoft and all the corporate shenanigans. But I'm too old and dumb to learn how to properly utilize Linux (not gonna kid myself on that front), and Mint has proven a great "Baby's First Linux" for me.
If you've just installed Ubuntu, stick with it for a bit. Get things set up the way you like them. Make a mess if you must. But don't switch because someone on the internet said one is better than the other. Lots of the Linux sites are just content farms (that 9to5 site) and copy other sites and then people read those and they suggest what they read.
Mint does have some bespoke tools that users like, but those tools can be installed on other distros.
Anyway. First, play around, make a mess, clean it up, get used to it. Then figure out how to backup the configs before you reinstall a new distro.
Other beginner distros are Zorin and Elementary.
I'm a Debian user myself, but I've been around and have tried many different distros, WMs, DEs, etc. over the past 19 years. Keep messing around and you'll find your comfort zone.
Welcome to... being a normal Linux user
Switching distro is something every user does, thinks about doing, then does it again.
It's normal. You just discovered a new way of using your computer, and opened a ton of possibilities in front of you, from customising your current install to the death thanks to the choice in desktops and display managers to just slap an entirely different distribution on your machine. A ton of possibles.
Try them out! There's Live USB for about every one out there, but my favorite way is to dual-boot and see fully how the install process turns out, how the software management works, how updates occurs etc.
You'll notice a lot is the same, a lot is different, and most any feature from a distro can be slapped on another!
To give you a taste, try openSUSE Tumbleweed - not because I think you should switch to Tumbleweed over Ubuntu, but because it's quite different in a few key points, and I believe it is interesting for you: there's this Rollback backup feature, a beautiful and quite simple installer, a polished user interface, a different software format, and a powerful admin tool.
Have fun with your hardware. Now backup your files and go crazy! So many out there!
(I started with Ubuntu)
I also love Tumbleweed and rock it as my daily driver!
To complement this point, OP, you can also get that sweet rollback functionality in any distro! Usually the easiest way is selecting BTRFS as your file system on install, and installing a software called "TimeShift" that will manage snapshots for you.
BTRFS can be complicated, but basically, it allows remembering the changes in files, without needing to copy the ENTIRE file. This saves a ton of space. (You don't need to get into the weeds deep diving if you don't want to. Snapshots are great, everything else is great, as long as you aren't doing crazy specific RAID setups or something lol)
Otherwise, on EXT4 for insurance, your rollbacks would just literally be copied files, which can eat your storage fast. :)
Tumbleweed is known for rolling (heh!) this in quite smoothly by default, but this is just an example how any distro can be tweaked how you like! (Highly recommend setting up Timeshift on ANY install.)
I absolutely second the advice in this comment: Try some live USBs or virtual machines and just play around for what feels right. Distro hopping can be lots of fun, but you'll find one that "feels like home."
:)
I agree with most folks here that usability-wise, both are truly fine! Mainly I think philosophy is where Mint might have an edge here.
Ubuntu, run by a corpo named Canonical, has had some controversial decisions in the past, such as inserting amazon ads into the system's search feature, or "opt out" analytics being default, and lately, a system called "snap."
Snap is controversial because it has a closed source backend, but effectively works just like its open-source counterpart, the "flatpak." It's packaged so the software has everything it needs to run.
Some people say they work great, others hate them, but Ubuntu doesn't make it very easy for you to have a choice in the matter.
If you don't like the idea of snaps, it's a bit of a pain to get rid of it. And otherwise, Ubuntu will sneakily use it as the default way to install most software. Philosophically, this can feel a lot like why people left Windows behind!
Long term, that's why I favor and recommend Mint to most newcomers: It doesn't play those games, sometimes the drivers work even better, the community is fantastic, and the vast knowledge that works on Ubuntu should work on Mint too.
So that's mainly where the difference will lie.
Either way, I wouldn't sweat it too much while you're learning, as long as it does what you want! And purple-orange is pretty snazzy. ;)
Mint just feels a little "cleaner" in my humble opinion. Most software you'd want the latest of, like GIMP or Discord, will be found as a Flatpak in Mint's app store.
Hope this helps you get a clearer view!
snap is easily excised, snap list, snap remove (everything in list0, apt remove snapd, only thing of importance is Ubuntu's introduction box and firefox, firefox can be installed directly from mozilla's repo. In my view the introductory box has zero value so no reason to install it.
What you are referring to as the system search isn't, it's only part of the default desktop. If you use anything but gnome you'll never see it.
Still getting the hang of Ubuntu, but I see a lot of comments on different posts in which a majority of them point to using Mint instead.
Ubuntu should be okay; it's not necessarily a bad pick. However, the community has been upset with some of its past decisions and (more recently) the implementation of its vision, i.e. their enforcement of Snaps. This has eventually led to our current situation in which it has become popular to hate on Ubuntu.
Would the best recommendation, be to switch to Mint from Ubuntu?
Personally, I've stopped recommending beginners to Ubuntu. This is primarily for how the above mentioned enforcement has lead to ~~broken~~ unintuitive interactions. However, if you've already started using it and are content with what you have, then the negative sentiment by itself shouldn't warrant a switch.
Though, granted, (I think) most Linux users have indulged in distro hopping; some have even made it their hobbies. So you shouldn't feel bad about switching either. Though I implore you to practice best practices while at it:
- Keep using your home base until you're certain of the switch.
- Don't nuke your home base to experience another distro. Make ample use of live USBs, VMs and dual booting instead.
- Try to understand the difference between the fundaments and the auxiliary when experiencing new distros; i.e., what is and isn't possible for you to import to your home base without outright switching.
with Mint when the next release you are more likely than not going to have to re-install
First time hearing this. Got anything to back that up?
Important elaboration. Much appreciated.
I'm mostly oblivious of what's required to run an ISP. But you mentioned servers yourself. Do you install Linux Mint on your servers?
Also, I experienced better driver support with Mint than with Ubuntu, so it also worked better out of the box.
Though that may (no longer) be an issue for OP.