Linux Mint 21.2 is out now as the latest distribution built on top of Ubuntu, coming with various careful improvements to the base software included.
Available with Cinnamon 5.8 / MATE 1.26 / Xfce 4.18, a Linux kernel 5.15 and an Ubuntu 22.04 package base with a plan to receive security updates until 2027. Until 2024 they will continue to use the same Ubuntu package base, so upgrades will be "trivial" to do.
While it may not seem like the most exciting release, that mostly describes what Linux Mint do. They're not aiming to be the flashiest around as their aim is just to have a good desktop Linux distribution for everyone. For a quick highlight of some of what's improved in this release:
- Touchpad improvements for login screen.
- Multiple keyboard layouts for the login screen.
- Keyboard navigation improvements for the login screen.
- Wayland session support on the login screen.
- Software Manager got a UI refresh.
- The Pix photo app got a big upgrade rebased on gThumb 3.12.2. This includes:
- Better performance, faster image loading, faster navigation
- Support for AVIF/HEIF and JXL formats
- Improved support for GIF, RAW and TIFF images
- Improved zoom controls
- + lots more
- Artwork and theme improvements. Like Cinnamon 5.8 having a whole new desktop styling system.
- XDG Desktop Portal support to XApp to provide better compatibility with Flatpaks and GNOME apps.
- Dark Mode global setting.
- Gesture support for window management, workspace management, tiling and media controls.
- Nemo file manager features multi-threaded thumbnails.
See more on the Linux Mint website.
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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dziadulewicz Jul 17, 2023
A big hand to Ubuntu also: Linux Mint is based on Ubuntu LTS and Mint uses Ubuntu's software repositories without any compensation 
2 Likes, Who?
Splendid!I'll update my rig when I can....
Last edited by Solarwing on 17 July 2023 at 3:23 pm UTC
Last edited by Solarwing on 17 July 2023 at 3:23 pm UTC
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vengador4201 Jul 17, 2023
Quoting: dziadulewiczA big hand to Ubuntu also: Linux Mint is based on Ubuntu LTS and Mint uses Ubuntu's software repositories without any compensation
And Ubuntu uses Debian's repositories, though I don't know for sure that it's "without compensation". That's kinda how open source software works.
5 Likes, Who?
QuoteUntil 2024 they will continue to use the same Ubuntu package base, so upgrades will be "trivial" to do.Not a Mint user, but just curious what will happen after this?
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Quoting: PenglingMint jumps on the next Ubuntu LTS base. Nothing dramatic.QuoteUntil 2024 they will continue to use the same Ubuntu package base, so upgrades will be "trivial" to do.Not a Mint user, but just curious what will happen after this?
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Quoting: tuubiMint jumps on the next Ubuntu LTS base. Nothing dramatic.Ohh! Thanks!
I totally misunderstood, and misread it as meaning that they'd be migrating away from using Ubuntu as a base entirely! 
Last edited by Pengling on 17 July 2023 at 3:08 pm UTC
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Quoting: PenglingUnless something unexpected happens they'll just release the new Mint using 24.04 as a new base, like they do every new LTS. Last time they released an application that did most of the upgrade from 20 to 21 automatically so that's probably what will happen when it's time to upgrade from 21 to 22.QuoteUntil 2024 they will continue to use the same Ubuntu package base, so upgrades will be "trivial" to do.Not a Mint user, but just curious what will happen after this?
If that wasn't possible Linux Mint Debian Edition exists for a reason, and Debian recently got a lot better so it probably wouldn't be a very noticeable change for many Mint users.
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So I've been using Linux Mint *Cinnamon Edition* for well over a year now, coming from Arch with Gnome. In terms of file operations etc., I probably use the terminal for ~98% of everything that I do. When it comes to desktop/GUI stuff, Linux Mint Cinnamon is a super polished/consistent/intuitive experience that doesn't get in your way with a bunch of flashy/unnecessary bloat or poorly implemented UX/UI paradigms. Even though I wish that they would move away from leaning on Ubuntu for the base, due to some of the less open practices Canonical are engaged in regarding snaps etc., having that widely supported infrastructure is ultimately beneficial to users on many levels. Luckily they even address the snap issue by disabling snaps by default and are instead embracing the universally inclusive flatpak architecture in addition to tried and true apt repositories. Of course, you can take this all with a grain of salt because it's personal opinion, blah blah blah. =]
I've been kickin' around in Linux since 1999 starting with Red Hat 6/Corel Linux, then Slackware, then Debian, then Ubuntu, Arch, Elementary OS, Arch again, and now Linux Mint. I've used kde/gnome/xfce/enlightenment/openbox/icewm/pantheon/gnustep and many others.
I feel like I finally found in Mint and Cinnamon a great balance between having a really good/nice, stable end-user experience for daily computing needs while still retaining the power and versatility that Linux provides.
Just my two cents. *shrug*
Last edited by reedlove on 17 July 2023 at 3:53 pm UTC
I've been kickin' around in Linux since 1999 starting with Red Hat 6/Corel Linux, then Slackware, then Debian, then Ubuntu, Arch, Elementary OS, Arch again, and now Linux Mint. I've used kde/gnome/xfce/enlightenment/openbox/icewm/pantheon/gnustep and many others.
I feel like I finally found in Mint and Cinnamon a great balance between having a really good/nice, stable end-user experience for daily computing needs while still retaining the power and versatility that Linux provides.
Just my two cents. *shrug*
Last edited by reedlove on 17 July 2023 at 3:53 pm UTC
4 Likes, Who?
dziadulewicz Jul 17, 2023
Quoting: vengador4201Quoting: dziadulewiczA big hand to Ubuntu also: Linux Mint is based on Ubuntu LTS and Mint uses Ubuntu's software repositories without any compensation
And Ubuntu uses Debian's repositories, though I don't know for sure that it's "without compensation". That's kinda how open source software works.
I know how open source software way works, but is it not the case that Ubuntu has their own repositories, to which they put packages also from Debian's repositories for starters, but their own repositories are in own servers:
Main - Canonical-supported free and open-source software.
Universe - Community-maintained free and open-source software.
Restricted - Proprietary drivers for devices.
Multiverse - Software restricted by copyright or legal issues.
Because if they only just took advantage of Debian's repositories, they would end up with very old versions of software? Is it also not the case that Linux Mint just straight up uses Ubuntu's SERVERS (from where the users download from)?
2 Likes, Who?
dziadulewicz Jul 17, 2023
So it looks that the bulk of packages in a Linux Mint install come actually directly from Ubuntus repositories.
packages . linuxmint . com does not directly tie to Ubuntu but many packages could have been rebuilt from Ubuntu. Likewise, almost all of the packages in Ubuntu are rebuilt from Debian.
A count committed via the method described at Linuxuprising dot com some time back counted all packages including original versions and those higher in the updates, security and backports, no PPAs added, and both i386 and amd64 (the Linux Mint repositories come from packages. linuxmint dot com and http://packages . linuxmint dot com/ does not look like packages . ubuntu dot com/)
Linux Uprising ended up on numbers where 0.7% came from Mints repos, 99.3% from Ubuntu's. If this is true even to day, it is huge.
So this is why some say Linux Mint isn't a full true distribution, no matter how good or bad it works. Linux Mint relies on Ubuntu packages to make their system fundamentally work, right? This seems to have occasional consequences:
Linux Mint devs don't have upload privileges to Ubuntu repositories they rely on: they have to build packages themselves (costly resource wise to build, host etc.) They've chosen to rely on packages Ubuntu provides, and to add an extra layer on their system - runtime adjustments.
As a consequence of this is that often times possible extra security holes can get to be in Linux Mint's overall system, extra resources required by the extra layer of software.
When these problems occur? Whenever upstream (Ubuntu the upstream of Linux Mint) makes changes as Ubuntu doesn't consider the runtime adjustments in their testing, thus also a reliability issue can happen.
Or do i miss something fundamental? I mean, Linux Mint is great and all but that's the deal of it in practice it seems.
packages . linuxmint . com does not directly tie to Ubuntu but many packages could have been rebuilt from Ubuntu. Likewise, almost all of the packages in Ubuntu are rebuilt from Debian.
A count committed via the method described at Linuxuprising dot com some time back counted all packages including original versions and those higher in the updates, security and backports, no PPAs added, and both i386 and amd64 (the Linux Mint repositories come from packages. linuxmint dot com and http://packages . linuxmint dot com/ does not look like packages . ubuntu dot com/)
Linux Uprising ended up on numbers where 0.7% came from Mints repos, 99.3% from Ubuntu's. If this is true even to day, it is huge.
So this is why some say Linux Mint isn't a full true distribution, no matter how good or bad it works. Linux Mint relies on Ubuntu packages to make their system fundamentally work, right? This seems to have occasional consequences:
Linux Mint devs don't have upload privileges to Ubuntu repositories they rely on: they have to build packages themselves (costly resource wise to build, host etc.) They've chosen to rely on packages Ubuntu provides, and to add an extra layer on their system - runtime adjustments.
As a consequence of this is that often times possible extra security holes can get to be in Linux Mint's overall system, extra resources required by the extra layer of software.
When these problems occur? Whenever upstream (Ubuntu the upstream of Linux Mint) makes changes as Ubuntu doesn't consider the runtime adjustments in their testing, thus also a reliability issue can happen.
Or do i miss something fundamental? I mean, Linux Mint is great and all but that's the deal of it in practice it seems.
2 Likes, Who?
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