Can Linux Mint 10 replace Meerkat in situ?

[grikdog]

I just heard of Linux Mint. It may be what I need, but I need a couple of philosophy-type questions answered.

1. Should I regard Julia as a NEW upgrade, or can it install over my existing Meerkat?
2. My Dell Inspiron 1525 requires proprietary Dell WiFi driver (Broadcom, iirc). Does Julia keep that in place, so I don't have to reinstall it?
3. I'm only considering Julia because Ubuntu looks like it will be abandoning GNOME like an ugly girlfriend, and while I don't especially LIKE GNOME, I am married to it. It's what I understand (sort of). So, does Linux Mint slavishly follow everything Ubuntu does (Ubiquity, Wayland, etc.), or does it have it's own idea of What Users Want?

[tdockery97]

Mint uses Ubuntu as a base, but goes it's own way regarding desktop and many tools. Regarding Ubuntu and Gnome, Ubuntu 11.04 Natty still has the classic Gnome desktop as an alternative to Unity. They've updated Gnome from 2.30 to 2.32.

[jesica]

Mint is using all of it's own programs

when I install Ubuntu livecd I have to search for everything

The best bet is not to upgrade to a new version but rather to a fresh install