Quick to answer questions about finding your way around Linux Mint as a new user.
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As I understand it, Mint Helena is essentially Ubuntu Karmic but with some extra features and art work. I like what I have seen so far and want to try at least some of it.
Is it possible to start with Mint without re-installing completely? Do Helena and Karmic share the main Ubuntu repositories and is there some extra Mint repository I should add?
Thanks
Last edited by LockBot on Wed Dec 28, 2022 7:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason:Topic automatically closed 6 months after creation. New replies are no longer allowed.
Hm... I suppose it WOULD be possible to add the Mint Helena repositories and just improvise from there - getting the extra utilities and said artwork - but I'll be a three-headed monkey before I see anyone recommending that course of action.
If you're skilled enough with Linux/APT, I think you can work it out yourself by some searching, but you should know that Synaptic in Mint doesn't behave in quite the same way as Ubuntu's version. You won't get a clean, nice, and supportable Mint-installation this way.
RavanH wrote:Is it possible to start with Mint without re-installing completely? Do Helena and Karmic share the main Ubuntu repositories and is there some extra Mint repository I should add?
As silentwarrior said, you can add the mint tools and repos to karmic, but the result would NOT be mint as there are many other customizations.
[Edit] your original post and add [SOLVED] once your question is resolved.
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I'm a new user, so no expert, but here's what I would do.
I would set up Linux Mint on a separate partition and then at startup just boot from either Ubuntu or Mint, and then tweak/play with Mint until you get it doing everything need/want. That way you can keep Ubuntu intact and not risk conflicts. This assumes enough room on the HD or a second or external drive with room for another install.
Judging by the negative responses: "Me thinks, 'tis better to stay away from them repositories! ...arrr..."
@conslie, while I don't have too much room left on my HDD, your suggestion will most likely be the next thing I do after successfully booting a live cd... thanks!
RavanH, if your disk space is tight you may want to post a thread asking for advice on how to step through the installation's disk repartitioning process. Guessing that you might have some Windows partition on your machine, run the de-fragmenting utility within Windows first, and that step will allow you to shrink that partition during the install. Similarly, if you've given Ubuntu a lot more disk space that it is using, it can also be made smaller freeing up more space for Mint. If you happen to have a /swap partition outside of /, it will be available and used by both Mint and Ubuntu, whichever is running.
That being said about what is possible, I also managed to wreck a previous install of Mint by doing something while messing with partitions that I thought, wrongly, might be a good idea. So, if you want to be careful, ask for advice before playing with re-partitioning, or if you are willing to rebuild from zero with only a working BIOS an a LiveCD or two and to risk encountering a few bruises/learning experiences, just playing around is another option. That was my route, but the machine had no data of any value on it beyond a few abandoned or bollixed up experiments with Mint, and I enjoy learning that way.
