Is Mint still the best user-friendly desktop?

Nevakonaza · 5 Feb 2023 at 18:12

emu said:

That's beutiful, what version of Linux is that?

Also is pretty much all Linux versions spyware/telemetry free or do some distros sneak some in?
I no longer have a gaming system so immediately getting away from window's and installing Linux on my Nuc, but don't know what version of Linux to go with yet, I have had a play with Linux mint and lubuntu and liked both

jon86 · 5 Feb 2023 at 21:02

I use Kubuntu as my home laptop OS. I personally prefer KDE's Plasma UI to Gnome, and Ubuntu has the benefit of allowingnme to install proprietary IBM ThinkPad drivers, which I think really do help the computer.

The only snap that I run is Firefox, as I believe that that's the official distribution mechanism supported by Mozilla (on Ubuntu) now.

PIPPI · 6 Feb 2023 at 08:13

I recently tried Ubuntu for a few weeks on a cheapo Lenovo laptop with an athlon silver chip and found it ran quite a bit slower than windows 11 sadly

glenimp617 · 6 Feb 2023 at 12:49

I've had to (again) admit defeat with linux. Lost count now lol

That said, I've got ubuntu server minimal running on a beelink mini pc for pi-hole and plex, and that's awesome

Does mint support 150% dpi scaling? and does it work properly? Trying so hard to leave windows

Infidelus · 6 Feb 2023 at 20:11

Mint does support fractional scaling to 150%, though I've never changed mine from the standard setting so can't comment on any benefit it has. Being lazy so only linking the first result: https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2022/07/linux-mint-21-download-and-new-features

Ad_Augendae · 7 Feb 2023 at 14:01

They seem to have lost steam... Ubuntu was a far better choice for me this time around, pretty slick these days.

Infidelus · 7 Feb 2023 at 18:23

I like Ubuntu as a server but can't stand Ubuntu's standard DE nor the (aparently closed source) snap implementation and I don't have to deal with it in Linux Mint as it's removed by default, though you can reinstall it if you want. Contrary to that I really like the Cinnamon DE and monthly updates from Clem that are very open and honest. Just my personal opinion and I don't expect everyone to agree

.

Ad_Augendae · 9 Feb 2023 at 12:14

Infidelus said:
I like Ubuntu as a server but can't stand Ubuntu's standard DE nor the (aparently closed source) snap implementation and I don't have to deal with it in Linux Mint as it's removed by default, though you can reinstall it if you want. Contrary to that I really like the Cinnamon DE and monthly updates from Clem that are very open and honest. Just my personal opinion and I don't expect everyone to agree .

I mostly use Ubuntu via WSL on windows, but for a Laptop, Mint wasn't useable as a daily vs Ubuntu. It would be a strange world if we did all agree!

glenimp617 · 10 Feb 2023 at 20:00

Just installed latest cinnamon. Like ubuntu, doesn't work with fractional scaling.
Tried on two different laptops and a VM. Just has a meltdown, looks weird, then crashes.

That's me done with linux desktop another year (stick to cli linux, it's what you're good at).

Buffalo2102 · 10 Feb 2023 at 22:46

If fractional scaling is important to you then a KDE desktop environment is the best bet currently. Scaling is available between 100% and 300% in 6.25% increments.

AB9IL · 13 Mar 2023 at 17:02

Is there a reason to prefer fractional scaling over adjusting the display dpi setting? I use either xrandr or modify my xserver config for that; never bothered to touch the scaling setting.

Venali · 11 Apr 2023 at 06:35

There are a lot of user-friendly distros. Mint is what my dad uses, but his needs are nothing more than web browsing for the most part. I think the most important thing about a distro being user-friendly has little to do with the actual distro itself. The community and how easy it is to search up common issues a person might find are just as important.

Empirical · 4 May 2023 at 21:50

If you like Mint and its Cinnamon desktop but are looking for a fresher underlying distro then Fedora has a Cinnamon spin i.e. a version of Fedora with Cinnamon as the desktop environment. There is also a KDE plasma spin and KDE is a Windows-like desktop that is very customizable and has some Windows style themes

Moley · 4 May 2023 at 23:03

I bought myself a 2nd hand Dell XPS 13 developer edition from t'bay specifically so I could have a dedicated Linux laptop. I'm running Kubuntu latest build and it's very nice.

ic1male · 13 May 2023 at 19:11

I very much value Explaining Computers Christopher Barnatt's opinion and he is a big evangelist of Linux Mint

Cromulent · 13 May 2023 at 19:47

OpenSUSE Tumbleweed is by far my favourite distro for ease of use and for performing more complex tasks. It has all the advantages of Arch Linux with pretty much no downsides.

Mesai · 13 May 2023 at 19:49

Fedora, Mint and Tumbleweed are all top tier distros. I expect PopOS to be up there once their DE is done.

Phar · 9 Jun 2023 at 17:16

ZorinOS is very good as a user friendly distro.

wiiija · 10 Jun 2023 at 15:59

My go to is Pop!_OS and I'm looking forward to the new DE, I'm actually using the beta of Deepin 23 at the moment, it has a few bugs but certainly looks pretty if nothing else

Cromulent · 10 Jun 2023 at 17:02

wiiija said:
My go to is Pop!_OS and I'm looking forward to the new DE, I'm actually using the beta of Deepin 23 at the moment, it has a few bugs but certainly looks pretty if nothing else

That looks awesome.