Comparison table of the different Editions

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ThisisnotNam

Comparison table of the different Editions

Post by ThisisnotNam »

I am a newbie an a bit reluctant to ask as this is possibly a stupid question. But i was wondering where I can find a sort of comparison table to clearly identify the differences between all these "Editions" you have.

I have read the official Linux Mint guide, but is says something like "in case you don't know which edition to choose, just pick MATE", which is great, but I like to know a bit more in dept why I should choose MATE then, and what the specific differences are. My older brother advised me to use the KDE edition as newbie but I can't remember his reason. I can't get to figure this out.

A few pointers would be great. Thanks a stack for your time.

UPDATE: I have a 64 bit type system, packed with 4 Gb RAM
Last edited by LockBot on Wed Dec 28, 2022 7:16 am, edited 2 times in total.
Reason: Topic automatically closed 6 months after creation. New replies are no longer allowed.
computerbob

Re: Comparison table of the different Editions

Post by computerbob »

When I started out, I had no idea what distro to use. I suppose I stumbled on distrowatch.com and looked at the most popular. So at least you're the right place.
1st you need to know if your running 32bit hardware or 64bit
Depending on the hardware you have you make a choice.
Try all of them. They're free :lol:

If you've got a fairly new computer, Mint16 Cinnamon64 is probably the one.
If it's a 10 yr old box with little resources, try the 32bit Xfce.
If it's real real old, then there is puppy and damn small (not from Mint of course)
passerby

Re: Comparison table of the different Editions

Post by passerby »

There's no comparison table that I'm aware of. The only way you'll get a real idea of the differences is by running each desktop environment, or at least watching videos and reading reviews on them.
MATE, KDE, Cinnamon, XFCE, they're all desktop environments. They vary in regards to the default software installed on your system, the look & feel of your desktop, the customizability, resource usage, visual effects... everything that composes your user experience.

XFCE: lightweight, fast, ideal for old computers, very customizable
MATE: similar to XFCE, but not as customizable, considered better out of the box by some (easier transition from Windows)
Cinnamon: graphics intensive, requires 3D acceleration to work properly, more modern and "pretty" than the first two, developed much more actively, not as customizable

You could always just install one edition and then install the other desktop environments and test each out. (though the last I heard Cinnamon and KDE don't play nice together)
If you grabbed the MATE edition, then installed the necessary Cinnamon and XFCE packages, you could choose between the three at login and play to your heart's content.
ThisisnotNam

Re: Comparison table of the different Editions

Post by ThisisnotNam »

computerbob wrote:When I started out, I had no idea what distro to use. I suppose I stumbled on distrowatch.com and looked at the most popular. So at least you're the right place.
1st you need to know if your running 32bit hardware or 64bit
Depending on the hardware you have you make a choice.
Try all of them. They're free :lol:

If you've got a fairly new computer, Mint16 Cinnamon64 is probably the one.
If it's a 10 yr old box with little resources, try the 32bit Xfce.
If it's real real old, then there is puppy and damn small (not from Mint of course)

Thanks for your input! Unfortunately, time is not on my side. Highly appreciated though!
ThisisnotNam

Re: Comparison table of the different Editions

Post by ThisisnotNam »

passerby wrote:There's no comparison table that I'm aware of. The only way you'll get a real idea of the differences is by running each desktop environment, or at least watching videos and reading reviews on them.
MATE, KDE, Cinnamon, XFCE, they're all desktop environments. They vary in regards to the default software installed on your system, the look & feel of your desktop, the customizability, resource usage, visual effects... everything that composes your user experience.

XFCE: lightweight, fast, ideal for old computers, very customizable
MATE: similar to XFCE, but not as customizable, considered better out of the box by some (easier transition from Windows)
Cinnamon: graphics intensive, requires 3D acceleration to work properly, more modern and "pretty" than the first two, developed much more actively, not as customizable

You could always just install one edition and then install the other desktop environments and test each out. (though the last I heard Cinnamon and KDE don't play nice together)
If you grabbed the MATE edition, then installed the necessary Cinnamon and XFCE packages, you could choose between the three at login and play to your heart's content.
\

Thanks, your info is valuable to me! At least it gives me an edge. I think I might start out with MATE and take it from there. Thanks again. Have a nice day.
jo12

Re: Comparison table of the different Editions

Post by jo12 »

Another noob here :-)

Toshiba Sateliite U300
i Gig Ram
Dual core 1.7 CPUs
Atheros wifi
32 bits

(past win 3.1 0 - Vista -most years on XP)
New to linux -

As an FYI I am pretty much a minimalist-task oriented user and don't go for the bells and whistles just clean function. I do some multimedia but not in a heavy way. I use the internet a LOT for various th
ings including Netflix. :-) (so far not a go in Mint)
For me optimum use of system resources with the programs I want is what I need because of my limited 1 G Ram.
Must be USB compatible.

I tend to teak and trim down my systems to just what I use.

Right now I have Mint 16 XFCE which I like a lot. dual booting with K (KDE)ubuntu 12.10 (and XFCE alternate desktop)
I really like the KDE desktop and find it easy to navigatelwith though I am not proficicent yet with working with the software manager. like XFCE on Mint16.

I tried Mint 16 Cinnamon but found it a bit sluggish on this system. If it had been lighter I would have kept it.
Mint MATE..a total no go on this system..I made coffee, had a shower, walked the dog and it still would not load for an install.


I have tried
Ubuntu 13.10 - did not like $$ push and found it not very intuitive at all. but is easy to learn slow on this sytem.
Puppy-could not get wifi running and ran out of patience as that needs to be out of the box for me.
Peppermint 4 is nice. I liked it and may install once i decide on my main distro which I am leaning towards Mint 16 XFCE

Right now I am just checking if Mint 13 Maya the long term release might be the better option for me than a newer release.

I do agree that you need the experience of the different desktops. I am definitely coming to a preference for KDE/XFCE for this machine.
As I was exploring both a system and desktops, and it took me a bit to get the difference and how a desktop was attached to a distro, I went about it a certain way. ( But then I am someone that needs to dabble) and I am not sure for a noob if you know that you want Mint for sure to explore by installing the various desktops which really would be much simpler.

http://community.linuxmint.com/tutorial/view/1079
We are all so different in how we approach and do things and what are user profiles are.

jo
ps I made extra comments for other readers :)
an added note< the Mint Petra XFCE desktop is a big step above the Kubuntu 12.10 XFCE desktop.
Can't find the exact reference I read that got me trying it..I think it was on ZDnet)
Kubuntu is a little more snappy on my minimal system, but I have not finished tweaking yet and although a "tad" slower4 I find I do prefer the Mint 16 XFCE foa an overall friendlier more aesthetic expereince even though simple.
Last edited by jo12 on Mon Feb 24, 2014 4:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.
DrHu

Re: Comparison table of the different Editions

Post by DrHu »

Review sites often make some comparisons, or when they are doing a review compare to a previous version of the same OS
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compariso ... tributions
http://www.diffen.com/difference/Linux_Mint_vs_Ubuntu

http://www.tuxradar.com/content/linux-vs-windows-7
--the usual Linux vis-a-vis Windows is the usual comparison available

You could read the what's Linux Mint main pages: new section of each version you are interested in.
wheeledgoat

Re: Comparison table of the different Editions

Post by wheeledgoat »

I'm a relative linux noob myself, been running linux for about a year or so. I can relate to the frustration when reading "try them all!" but I've slowly been doing that myself and there's enough nuances and differences that no chart is going to be able to predict which will fit your needs & preferences best.

My experience:

Cinnamon - needs a reasonable computer to run, but looks great and is simple. IMO, it's for a recent windows convert and/or someone not necessarily very tech savvy

Mate - has an interface that makes old Gnome users comfy. Doesn't really tickle my fancy and despite lacking the reputation of a resource hog, was inexplicably laggy on my machine [that runs cinnamon and KDE just fine].

KDE - my fav so far. Been in love with it since I tried it. nice 'n polished, feature rich, and intuitive (to me). also needs a reasonable computer to run.

What's really cool is the *.iso you will download will create a bootable disc that you can just flat-out use. Settings and system changes you make won't be saved of course, but aside from that (and performance sacrifices as you wait for your optical drive to spinup to load what you just clicked on) there's no reason why you can't just perpetually run you computer just off the disc. I've been doing just that as I sort out a hard drive failure. The bootable DVD environment is an amazingly functional "limp mode"... great for trying them out!!
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