Linux Mint

[SurfaceUnits]

Has anyone else used this distro before

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux_Mint

http://www.linuxmint.com/start/isadora/

[nrc]

Not me. Normally I stick with Fedora/RPM based distros. My Dell laptop came with Ubuntu, which is Debian based like Mint. I chose to keep it on there since Dell provides some drivers that are tough to get working in Fedora.

Looking at it as a non-Debian fan, the package management ecosystem and init utilities don't seem nearly as orderly and logical. Still, I was able to get my Ubuntu laptop into essentially the same configuration as my Fedora desktops within a week or so.

[SurfaceUnits]

Linux Mint 11 “Katya” released!
http://www.linuxmint.com/

http://www.linuxmint.com/pictures/screenshots/katya/thumb_katya.png (http://www.linuxmint.com/pictures/screenshots/katya/katya.png)

using the LiveCD, you can install Mint under Windows - Mint4Win, and it creates a boot point to use Mint

Plus you can use XpGnome - Make Linux Look like Windows XP or Win7
http://ubuntu.online02.com/node/14

[nrc]

World domination one device at a time. ;)

I'm happy to see a continued slow but steady growth in Linux use on all the web sites that I have statistics for. Between that and much stronger Mac growth, Windows mindshare is dropping at a pace that I don't think most people realize. Microsoft is still fat and happy because they're still selling a lot of copies of Windows. They don't recognize that more and more of those copies aren't being used or are being used less and less.

People don't want operating systems anymore. They want information appliances.

[Cam]

Plus you can use XpGnome - Make Linux Look like Windows XP or Win7
http://ubuntu.online02.com/node/14

Ummmm.... Now just why would you want to do that? :irked:

[SurfaceUnits]

Ummmm.... Now just why would you want to do that? :irked:

I think it has something to do with 99% of the human race knowing how to use Windows and the other 1% knows Gentoo

and a bunch of nobodies kicked M$'s ass to be able to do it
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_v._Lindows

[Cam]

Lindows was teh suck as a distro. But was pretty good as a pain in Gates and Balmers arse. :D

[SurfaceUnits]

So what is the general opinion of FreeBSD?

edit: found the answer

FreeBSD has been characterized as “the unknown giant among free operating systems” and is widely regarded as reliable and robust.

In a Netcraft survey published 1 March 2011, the top three most reliable Web hosting company sites for the month of February 2011 were all found to be running FreeBSD on their servers.

[SurfaceUnits]

XpGnome is awesome. You have to look really close to see that it isn't Windoze

I installed it on top of Mint 11 while cleaning root kit infections off a PeeCee $70.00 in my pocket

[Ankf00]

http://images.wikia.com/simpsons/images/6/6c/Benjamin,_Doug,_and_Gary.gif


:D

[SurfaceUnits]

http://yogeshg1987.in/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/circular_dependency.png

A day in the life of nrc - A.K.A. RPM hell

[nrc]

A day in the life of nrc - A.K.A. RPM hell

Bah! I haven' encountered a dependency problem like that for a long time. Yum generally sorts things out as well as APT these days.

I just did an update from Fedora 12 to Fedora 15 using the online upgrade process with no package problems whatsoever.

[SurfaceUnits]

so its almost like windows now

[nrc]

so its almost like windows now

Hardly. Everything worked after the upgrade. Last time I updated Grrl's Windows machine two versions (XP->7) it broke quite a bit of her stuff.

[SurfaceUnits]

Hardly. Everything worked after the upgrade. Last time I updated Grrl's Windows machine two versions (XP->7) it broke quite a bit of her stuff.

Did you use the XP-->Vista-->7 method?

[nrc]

Did you use the XP-->Vista-->7 method?

No, it was a fresh install with everything restored or reloaded. To be fair switching to 64bit was the biggest wrench in the works and that's a bit apples and oranges from my most recent upgrade. But at the same time as Grrl's upgrade I did a similar switch from Fedora 9 to Fedora 12 64bit with substantially fewer problems.

[SurfaceUnits]

so what do you use to recover your linux boot loader?

[nrc]

so what do you use to recover your linux boot loader?

Hmm. Haven't lost one in a while. I try to avoid installing Windows after Linux (or ever, really) which is the usual cause. When I do end up with a boot loader issue I just run a rescue boot disk and use GRUB.

[SurfaceUnits]

If you are looking for an OS to replace Windows Starter on your netbook/laptop, check out Fuduntu, a Fedora 14 remix (remaster) designed especially for Asus Eee (but you can of course use it on other netbooks and any laptop/desktop computer) and comes with some interesting performance tweaks by default. It was created by Fewt, the Jupiter (a hardware and power management applet for netbooks and Laptops) developer.

Among the tweaks you'll find in Fuduntu are:

Enabling OOo quickstart
Moving /tmp and /var/log to RAM disk
Setting swappiness to 10
Adding Jupiter for power savings
and others


Also, being designed for netbooks/laptops, Fuduntu comes with a default font size of 8. And of course, Jupiter comes installed by default along with some other applications such as Revelation (password manager), Tomboy, GIMP, Inkscape and VIM Enhanced.

[nrc]

Tomboy

One of the first things I do after an install or update is make sure that no Mono apps or dependencies have crept into my installation. Just say no to Microsoft IP.

[SurfaceUnits]

Mint taking over top spot


As they say, once you are on top, you can only go one way. After being (largely unopposed) the number one distribution in our page hit ranking statistics since April 2005, Ubuntu has finally been dethroned. Ironically, it's one of its many derivatives, Linux Mint, a distribution sometimes referred to as "Ubuntu done right", that assumed the top spot late last week. Why? Some DistroWatch readers have already started speculating about the reasons - the all-too-frequent radical changes, the controversial Unity desktop (see our opinion piece below), the increasing amount of unresolved bugs... Of course, this little piece of statistic doesn't mean that Linux Mint has suddenly more users than Ubuntu, far from it. But it does perhaps indicate the increasing dissatisfaction of users with Canonical's flagship product and a growing interest in an alternative, at least among those Linux users who frequent this website. And in many ways, Linux Mint is a perfect option - it's still more or less Ubuntu, but without the unpopular changes that have given many Ubuntu users nothing but frustration.


Fedora rising to #2 as a result of its latest release

[SurfaceUnits]

The much-awaited Linux Mint 12, code name "Lisa", has been released: "The team is proud to announce the release of Linux Mint 12 'Lisa'. Linux Mint 12 comes with a brand new desktop, built with GNOME 3 and MGSE (Mint GNOME Shell Extensions), a desktop layer on top of GNOME 3 that makes it possible for you to use GNOME 3 in a traditional way. You can disable all components within MGSE to get a pure GNOME 3 experience, or you can enable all of them to get a GNOME 3 desktop that is similar to what you've been using before. Of course you can also pick and only enable the components you like to design your own desktop. The main features in MGSE are: the bottom panel, the application menu, the window list, a task-centric desktop (i.e. you switch between windows, not applications), visible system tray icons. MGSE also includes additional extensions such as a media player indicator, and multiple enhancements to GNOME 3." Read the release announcement and visit the what's new page for further information.

http://blog.linuxmint.com/?p=1889

http://www.linuxmint.com/rel_lisa_whatsnew.php