From: ronb02NOSPAM@gmail.com   
      
   On 2026-01-30, CrudeSausage  wrote:   
   > 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.   
      
   That would bother me. I always set new Windows to be centered. And I just   
   expect them to retain their last size. But I understand it takes a while to   
   build this stuff from scratch.   
      
   --   
   "Not just insane... Trump insane."   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)