From: crude@sausa.ge   
      
   On Fri, 30 Jan 2026 08:13:07 -0000 (UTC), RonB wrote:   
      
   > On 2026-01-28, CrudeSausage  wrote:   
   >> On 28 Jan 2026 20:00:10 GMT, rbowman wrote:   
   >>   
   >>> On 28 Jan 2026 13:52:47 GMT, CrudeSausage wrote:   
   >>>   
   >>>> On 28 Jan 2026 02:54:49 GMT, rbowman wrote:   
   >>>>   
   >>>>> On 27 Jan 2026 22:29:00 GMT, CrudeSausage wrote:   
   >>>>>   
   >>>>>> The numbers don't lie. Ubuntu was the catalyst for a great number   
   >>>>>> of people giving Linux a chance and the free CDs weren't the only   
   >>>>>> reason.   
   >>>>>> Unlike most Linux distributions, both the installer and the   
   >>>>>> installed product worked as they should and it made Linux easy for   
   >>>>>> most people.   
   >>>>>> That's not to say Debian and others weren't easy enough _before_   
   >>>>>> Ubuntu's release, but Ubuntu finally attracted the mainstream users   
   >>>>>> who weren't as dedicated as we all were to getting the operating   
   >>>>>> system working for us.   
   >>>>>   
   >>>>> Leading to the Year of the Linux Desktop, right? You may have a   
   >>>>> better chance of witnessing the second coming.   
   >>>>   
   >>>> It wasn't the second coming, but suddenly Linux was an operating   
   >>>> system which could appeal to regular people as much as the geeks.   
   >>>   
   >>> Distrowatch's methodology is shaky but assuming page hits have some   
   >>> correlation to usage, as expected Ubunutu hits the list in 2005. By   
   >>> 2011, a derivative, Mint, was topping the charts. However the page   
   >>> hits on all distros had increased.   
   >>   
   >> Hence, what I was saying about Ubuntu being the catalyst. I don't know   
   >> why Mint needed to be created in 2011, but I imagine it was because the   
   >> community was offended by Mir or Unity. In Mir's case, Canonical was   
   >> actually trying to fix a problem, so I'm a little surprised that the   
   >> community were against it. Similarly, there was nothing wrong with   
   >> Unity. If people didn't want to use it, they could go ahead and install   
   >> a different desktop environment.   
   >   
   > The first version of Linux Mint came out in 2006. linuxmint.com has been   
   > active since December, 2000. Clément Lefèbvre would post reviews of   
   > Linux distributions on his site before developing his own distribution.   
   > I guess he saw something he thought he could improve. The first version   
   > of Linux Mint was based off Kubuntu (KDE Ubuntu). So Linux Mint predated   
   > Unity. But apparently, by the time Unity had come out, Linux Mint was   
   > known as a decent alternative and Unity gave its surge in popularity.   
      
   I just learned something about Mint. It's actually funny that such an   
   influential distribution could have started as a website where Linux was   
   being reviewed. Meanwhile, Zorin OS is also a distribution that came from   
   two brothers thinking it would be neat to modify Linux to look like   
   something that is more familiar to computer users. I guess that's the   
   magic of Linux, the fact that it is so accessible to the most regular of   
   people.   
      
   >>> Recently MX Linux was the leader but was replaced by CachyOS in 2025.   
   >>> That's why I take the rankings with a big grain of salt. Are people   
   >>> really using CachyOS or are the page hits "what the hell is CachyOS?'   
   >>>   
   >>> Maybe Ubunutu attracted more attention. 2005 was still Windows XP   
   >>> which wasn't alienating people. Was it just the free CDs?   
   >>   
   >> I've seen lots of distributions come and go. At this point, I'm content   
   >> to choose either a distribution that is immensely popular like Mint, or   
   >> one backed by a company like Pop_OS!. Both are good, but I see more   
   >> promise with Pop_OS! because System76 is going in its own direction and   
   >> doing what's best for productive users, not trying to please everyone   
   >> at once. The keyboard shortcuts enabled by default in Pop_OS! are kind   
   >> of neat (ex:   
   >> Super+T to open a terminal, Super+b to open the default browser,   
   >> Super+m to maximize the current window, etc.), but it's still not great   
   >> with quick changes to external monitors.   
   >   
   > I'll try Pop_OS! again in a few months. My first trial of Cosmic was   
   > okay, but my impression was that it's still in "beta." Besides I'm so   
   > used to Linux Mint I don't see ever moving away from it.   
      
   And there is truly no reason to. I like Pop_OS! simply because of Cosmic,   
   and because I know System76 is invested in making it as solid as possible.   
   The desktop environment gets updates frequently, and I notice that small   
   things have already improved from the first edition (the minimizing   
   animations in particular). I imagine that it will not only be solid but   
   gorgeous by next year.   
      
   Of course, I'm still waiting for them to implement remember window sizes   
   and positions into the environment. You don't realize how useful that   
   feature is until you no longer have it.   
      
      
      
   --   
   CrudeSausage   
   John 14:6   
   Isaiah 48:16   
   Pop_OS!   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)