If Linux Mint disappeared tomorrow, what would you use?

[Robin]

It seems like the newer releases work better on newer machines. My old hand-me-down runs just fine on Mint Xfce, but if it disappeared I would look for something with a much different release cycle and much longer support. CentOS looks like an interesting second choice if Mint/Ubuntu disappeared.

-R

[cra1g321]

im always distro-hopping between mint and ubuntu. So i would go back to ubuntu if mint disappeared.

im near sure centOS is a server OS

[nono]

If Mint disappeared Pinguy would be my first choice, second is Ubuntu.

[msuggs]

Maybe I'd turn a bit radical and try the chakra-projects kde based release (when it its new package base is completed). I'm not a kde fan but I'm fascinated by what they are doing at the moment

Failing that I might just turf out my pc's and buy more macs

[linuxviolin]

im near sure centOS is a server OS

Well, yes and no, not just that. It works quite well as a desktop.

I can comfortably use mandriva family and open solaris. One thing that I haven't managed to get working is Fedora. I know it's easy for those who have it. For me not yet easy.

You can "comfortably use" OpenSolaris and not Fedora? Hmm, I would have thought Fedora was "easier" however.

[tdockery97]

Of all that I have tried, Mint is my favorite. If I couldn't use Mint my second favorite is PCLinuxOS because I prefer Synaptic over the other distro's software managers. Just a personal preference. At least we have choice. Some of the lesser informed Windows users if asked this question would probably think they would just have to quit using their pc.

[rivenathos]

Since I already mostly run with Debian, I would probably switch my Mint machines over to Lenny or Squeeze. Though, Ubuntu is not a bad choice, depending on your hardware. Debian/Ubuntu/Mint are so closely related that switching between any of them would not be much of a stretch.

I have run with PCLinuxOS before, so that could be an option. I prefer the GNOME version, which sadly is not as popular in PCLOS-land.

[Theologian]

Unfortunately, LinuxMint HAS disappeared - from my system, at least.
I know not whence the problem arose, but no longer having read/write/execute access to my external drives has forced me to use other systems.
As the problem is the same in Ubuntu, I can only guess that there's an inherent fault: ext4fs? kernel? security update? Who knows?
It's a great pity, because I'd been happily using LM9 for a few months.

Still, there are dozens of other Linuces out there: surely ONE of them must be stable!

[isadora]

Strange enough, some same question was launched in the Mandriva-forum.
There i answered i probably would use Fedora13/Suse11.3/Mint or PCLOS.

My first choice of distro's remains Mandriva, 2010.1 is really delicious.
I was also very much surprised by the latest Suse, but whatever the choice, nothing beats the Mandriva Control Centre.
Especially the way it manages software installation and updates is just so user-friendly.

Mint and Suse are both installed in a virtual machine, and i take a look at them occasionally.

[ej64]

Peppermint would stay as my primary system, Sidux would stay as my secondary.

Isn't Peppermint a forked Mint? In the first place you'ld have to look out for a new basis ...

My choice would be the new upcoming CrunchBang 10 which now is a Debian squeeze based or Elementary OS for it's sooo nice ...

[Robin]

Has anyone ever run PureOS or PureOSLight? They're Debian-based, KDE and Xfce respectively. From what I have read on their web site it seems to be just Debian but with an easier installer, a desktop environment, and a few selected applications. It took forever to get Debian to recognize and work on my hardware (Ubuntu and Mint have always done so right out of the box)... so I wonder if this one would have the same trouble as Debian did on my machine.

I think I prefer a Debian base (choose a distro, choose a repository!), but I fear that my poor old 'puter won't be able to handle the upcoming releases of Xubuntu/Mint Xfce, which seem to do fine on the newer hardware. I'm in no position to buy a new 'puter... Karmic/Helena ran sweetly on this machine, but applications in Lucid/Isadora are alot slower to load and alot less responsive. I fear that Karmic/Helena is the last version of Xubuntu/Mint I'll be able to use on this machine, and that when support for them ends, I'll have to look elsewhere unless, by some happy circumstance, I can get a new 'puter!

-R

[OldManHook]

Here's to PCLinucOS,Mandriva maybe Ultimate 2.7
Theologian We Get It-Come on The big red signature-If you don't use mint anymore that's fine,but this is still a Mint forum.
Can the Moderator delete Signature's The big red one all over the Forum --As noted,We Get It
Robin heres to hoping you get that New 'puter ,Like your fresh take on things.
Let's Support Mint and hope it don't go away-That would be sad for the Linux World

[ej64]

Theologian We Get It-Come on The big red signature-If you don't use mint anymore that's fine,but this is still a Mint forum.
Can the Moderator delete Signature's The big red one all over the Forum --As noted,We Get It

Who cares? Who believes a Theologian anyway?

Linux is all about freedom, so just relax!

[linuxviolin]

it seems to be just Debian but with an easier installer, a desktop environment, and a few selected applications.

What is the problem with the Debian installer? You have a graphical installer now and it is not difficult... And for "a desktop environment, and a few selected applications", well, Debian also provides you that.

choose a distro, choose a repository!

You fear other distros don't provide you with the apps you use? Well, with a distro like Fedora for instance, I guess you risk not much... Even the apps found on the web often provide packages for Debian, sometimes also Ubuntu, and Red Hat, sometimes a generic for Red Hat, sometimes a specific: one for CentOS/Red Hat, one for Fedora like Opera or Bleachbit for instance... You have even some which provide just a rpm package.

[Robin]

What is the problem with the Debian installer? You have a graphical installer now and it is not difficult... And for "a desktop environment, and a few selected applications", well, Debian also provides you that.

I was actually all kindsa proud of myself a couple of months ago because I successfully installed Debian Squeeze/Xfce (the new installer is easy enough - netinstall) and finally got it to recognize and work on my hardware and had it all configured just the way I wanted it... but it took the better part of three weeks of Googling, trial-and-error, frustration, and learning a few new curse words to finally get it done... and what I ended up with after all that, was something very close to Xubuntu! And I was like, Why the heck did I put myself through all that!? It lasted until an update killed the audio, and rather than skip school and endure God-only-knows-what to get it working again, I wiped it away and put Xubuntu on.

Yes, I learned a few things. But to be blunt, I don't care to ever go through that again. I also have a severe bandwidth restriction on this satellite internet service - an allotment I exceeded and got slowed down to 1/6th of dialup speed for about two weeks afterwards - which prevents me from attempting another netinstall.

It's so much nicer for a geek-challenged kid like me to rely on the wonderful folks from Ubuntu, Mint, Mepis, PureOS, etc to "tame" Debian for me. If not for them, alot of people like me would never have access to Debian's awesomeness! And even though I succeeded that one time (bragging rights?), I'm not up to it anymore and frankly have lost interest in tinkering with the OS. I just want to run applications, not the OS. Too much else going on in my little life right now.

I'll save up for a new 'puter and hope I have enough to get one by the time support for Linux Mint 8 runs out. And I much prefer a Debian base since it's what I'm used to and alot more familiar with.

Y'know what would be awesome, is if I could install Linux Mint 8 Xfce and then change the repositories to Debian Testing - and have a "rolling release Mint!" But I'm told that it wouldn't work, because of incompatibility between Ubuntu and Debian.

-R

[bobcollard]

Definitely not Ubuntu, or any *buntu. I came back to Mint because I like it. What I had before was Sabayon 5.3 XFCE AMD64 and it worked out of the box on my system. That particular spin has few applications, you have to set it up your way and I loved that idea. I could do it again in less than an afternoon using their Entropy Package Manager and the Terminal.

[linuxviolin]

Robin, if really "it took the better part of three weeks of Googling, trial-and-error, frustration, and learning a few new curse words to finally get it done", we can understand you would prefer to avoid doing this "experience" another time... Personally, I have installed Debian, Stable and Testing, on two PCs here, even several times, in few minutes with no problems. You have some exotic hardware for having such problems?

It lasted until an update killed the audio

Hey, it was Squeeze, Testing... what did you expect more? Yes, rolling releases break sometimes... And some want Mint be a rolling release? Ok, but wait for the same "problem(s)"...

[Theologian]

RAINBOW FORTH with a Python desktop.

(This seems to be turning into a Debian discussion: New post, perhaps?)

[bobcollard]

RAINBOW FORTH with a Python desktop.

(This seems to be turning into a Debian discussion: New post, perhaps?)

Uh, Sabayon is Gentoo, not Debian.

[ruel24]

My main distro is PCLinuxOS, with either a Mandriva or Linux Mint side install to play with. Right now, I'm using Mandriva with a Linux Mint install on another partition. To me, these are easily the 3 best distros out.