To use the latest version or stick with the old vesion?

[glas]

I've been using Linux Mint as my main desktop operating system since version 2.1 (Bea). I have upgrqaded my version to the latest offerings from Mint experiencing many improvements (like wireless networking and compiz-fusion) and some losses (the decent and stable version of Kompozer will no longer functioned after Mint 5).

I have discovered some versions just seem to work better than others on specific hardware. 9 and 10 work great for me on a variety of hardware. I found 11 buggy and there were some issues with 12 too but I can't remember the details right now. I have tried the Debian editions, and Mint 13 Mate (which works great apart from compiz-fusion).

So I'm always torn, should I upgrade to then latest version or should I stick with a version that works best for me and I have configured just as I like it - even though it is labelled as 'obsolete' and its support, short-term or long-term, has run out?

I currently using Mint 10 to write about this post (Obsolete since April 2012). Is this going to cause me problems in the future? Should I disable the update manager and 'freeze' the system in its current state? Or should I accept a more recent version that still has support (even if it means loosing some features and capability)?

Pentium Dual Core E5800 @ 3.20 GHz
RAM 4022 MB
Linux Mint 10
Gnome 2.32.0

[nunol]

Issues with obsolete editions:
- security bugs that are common knowledge are not fixed and could be exploited, sometimes with only a few clicks.
- no programs updates (bug fix, new features, new standards support, etc).
- no more new hardware support.
- the repos may close.

If you are happy with the obsolete Mint edition despite the above mentioned issues, then it's OK to use it. I would advise you to stick with LTS releases because they last longer, Mint 9 LTS is supported until April 2013 and Mint 13 LTS until 2017.

I would not use obsolete editions to to home banking or other activities where security is important but you could use a second more secure OS to do that (LiveCD/DVD/USB, dualboot, etc).

[xenopeek]

nunol's answer sums it up I think. Adding one detail to that, "the repos may close"; this will actually happen. Meaning there will come a time where you won't be able to install any new programs from the repositories (with Software Manager, Synaptic, apt-get, aptitude, or other package management program).

I'd recommend making an effort to upgrade to Linux Mint 13, and you can stay with that for 5 years without worry. Often recommended to dual-boot. So keep your current installation of Linux Mint 10, and install the new version of Linux Mint alongside it in dual-boot. That way, you can always go back to your old installation to check on how you configured something in the past and you can also use it as a rescue installation for when you run into problems with your new version of Linux Mint.