# The Ubuntu Forum Community > Ubuntu Community Discussions > Ubuntu, Linux and OS Chat >  Ubuntu Unity 14.04 or Mint Cinnamon 17 ?

## Dr. McKay

I'm torn. Been doubting for months about which distro to use.
I said to myself I'd wait until Mint 17 came out to make a decision. But still, cannot decide.

Coming from a Mac background (15 years), Ubuntu would be the obvious choice since Unity borrows a lot of elements from Mac OS.
I've tried Mint Cinnamon as well, and it's very polished. I don't, however, like the default look since it looks too much like Windows. Of course, it's always possible to customize the desktop, add a dock etc.

On top of that, the Mint team has announced that every next new release of Mint would be based on Ubuntu 14.04 LTS, until 16.04 LTS comes out.
Ubuntu, however, will just continue to release new versions as usual.
In any case, Mint's decision is a big deal and it might even be the deal maker for me.
But I, surprisingly, like Unity better than Cinnamon. 
For sure, 14.04 is a solid base and there's support for years to come. But Mint might offer both a stable base AND new features with the upcoming releases of Mint 18, 19, 20 and 21.

The real question is : what will I be missing out on when I stick with Ubuntu 14.04 for two years ?

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## PondPuppy

I don't think you'll be missing out. I use Unity with CairoDock, which seems somewhat Mac-like to me. I also use Mint Cinnamon often, and like it a lot. But I come from Windows, so menu + taskbar seems natural. And I'm pretty slow to upgrade... if something works I tend to just go on using it.

If you want to update Ubuntu to the 6-month releases, then you would get new features there too. Might be exciting, as Canonical pushes forward! Or, as you mention, you could customize Mint to your taste with a more Mac-like GUI and follow their release cycle instead.

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## Dr. McKay

> I don't think you'll be missing out. I use Unity with CairoDock, which seems somewhat Mac-like to me. I also use Mint Cinnamon often, and like it a lot. But I come from Windows, so menu + taskbar seems natural. And I'm pretty slow to upgrade... if something works I tend to just go on using it.
> 
> If you want to update Ubuntu to the 6-month releases, then you would get new features there too. Might be exciting, as Canonical pushes forward! Or, as you mention, you could customize Mint to your taste with a more Mac-like GUI and follow their release cycle instead.


Well, upgrading every six months is not what I had in mind. I want to go for stability so an LTS version is the way to go.
My biggest concern is not getting the newest version of applications that I might need when I stick to Ubuntu 14.04. 
I think browsers are ok, although not being able to have the latest version of Chrome would be a deal breaker for me.

What I meant was, with Mint sticking to the same base, it will be very easy to upgrade to Mint 18, 19 etc. Not so with Ubuntu 14.04 because 14.10 and later versions will use a different base.
But to put it briefly : will I be able to use the lastest version of apps in, say 18 months ?  Will Steam, Chrome, LibreOffice etc keep updating to the latest versions on 14.04 until 16.04 comes out ?

And on a side note : you say you use Unity with cairodock, which sounds a bit too much of a good thing to me. I mean, two docks ?

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## PondPuppy

Maybe upgrading Mint from 17 to 18 would be easier than upgrading Ubuntu from 14.04 to 14.10. I can't say.

Don't Mint and Ubuntu use the same software repositories? So would any updated application be available to both Ubuntu and Mint at the same time? Again, just thinking out loud. 

Docks: Yeah, I like to auto-hide the Unity dock. CairoDock holds my most-used applications and a few gadgets. Heck, I end up having two application menus as well as the docks... Everyone develops their own ergonomics, I suppose. All good.

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## buzzingrobot

> The real question is : what will I be missing out on when I stick with Ubuntu 14.04 for two years ?


Well, if you stay on either Ubuntu 14.04 or Mint Cinnamon 17 for two years you'll be missing out on the same things.  Or not. Whatever updates Canonical brings to 14.04 will be available to Mint 17 users.

I spent many years with OS X and Linux together.  I still find that I'm most comfortable using a dock of some kind. In Cinnamon, the panel can be moved to the top, and a dock added, which provides a look familiar to OS X users.

Whether that would *function* in a familiar way depends on how someone used OS X.  I'm less fond of Cinnamon, even with a dock, because of the way it handles workspaces.  I typically open a number of applications on several workspaces, one app per workspace. I want to be able to move between those apps with a single mouse click. That's either the default behavior or easily configured behavior in many desktop environments. In stock Cinnamon, it is less convenient. Cinnamon provides a panel applet allowing switching between workspaces by number.  But, it lacks the pager other panel-based GUI's offer that indicates all open applications and allows one-click switching without needing to remember what is located on which workspace.

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## grahammechanical

The Mint developers can only claim that every new release will be built on Ubuntu 14.04 because Canonical is supporting 14.04 for the next 5 years. During the next two years 14.04 will get 5 point releases, which bring into 14.04 the latest Linux kernel support for newer hardware. If the new Mint releases are not going to be built on those 14.04 point releases then Mint is going to fall behind on hardware support. So, in this matter I do not see Mint having an advantage over Ubuntu.

It all comes down to a matter of taste. With Ubuntu if you want stability you install an LTS release. If you want new features, then you install an interim release. Keep in mind that Ubuntu 16.04 will be built on a very different code base to the present 14.04 code base. To start with, 16.04 will be running on Mir and have Unity 8. What will the Mint developers do then? Choices will have to be made and some developers may no longer be able to claim that their distribution is built on Ubuntu if they do not accept Mir. It will also mean a lot more work for them.

Regards.

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## Dr. McKay

> Will Steam, Chrome, LibreOffice etc keep updating to the latest versions on 14.04 until 16.04 comes out ?


... is what matters, really. 
So, will they ?

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## craig10x

If you use the actual Google Chrome as i do, Google puts a ppa in your software sources, so you always get the latest Chrome as soon as it is released...
Libre Office gets updates through Canonical i believe....not sure about steam, though...
I think also Pidgin messenger, but i don't think you get new versions of vlc and rhythmbox for example...depends on the program...some we do...some we don't....

I used Mac for about a year before discovering Linux and i love Ubuntu with Unity because it IS very mac like...i would stick with Ubuntu w/unity...
I was on Linux mint for a few years when ubuntu had it's old 2 panel and fan out apps style menu...because i preferred mint's slab menu and lower panel over that...
Once Ubuntu got unity i was back in a FLASH  :Wink:

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## LastDino

I never used Mac but hell, I love all the versions of Ubuntu (with the exception of Lubuntu). And like Craig10x mentioned, Chrome adds PPA in resource list and you get those updates irrespective of which OS you end up with out of the two in question. 

If stability is in question, I would pick Ubuntu LTS any day if I was in your place. But do that after 14.04.1 is out just to be more sure.

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## Dr. McKay

I've got both a desktop and a laptop. I just installed Ubuntu 14.04 on the laptop so let's see how it goes  :Smile:

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## PondPuppy

Sounds like fun. On my netbook I have both Ubuntu 14.04 and Mint, and I tend to bounce back and forth. It's a good way to find out what really suits best.

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## kevdog

Got a few computer running Ubuntu LTS around however they are usually servers and so a lot of desktop applications I don't use on them or very rarely.  On my main laptop I'm using Arch.  Gosh darn I really forgot about the problems with old packages not being routinely updated.  It seems like I'm pulling a new kernel in Arch about once a week, and Chrome and Firefox-nightly are updated through the AUR when-ever I once.  I guess there is something to be said for a rolling release distro.  Speaking of rolling release, wasn't there rumors Ubuntu was eventually going to go to this type of model?

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## craig10x

@kevdog: they were considering it but the developers had changed their mind it seems...although in more recent times, Mark Shuttleworth did announce that when convergence took place (probably by 15.10 or 16.04) he had hopes to make the 6 month versions into a sort of semi-rolling release with a stable core that would get newer apps and stuff when they are ready...

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## Bucky Ball

Ubuntu 14.04 LTS with the Cinnamon desktop environment?

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## monkeybrain20122

> Will Steam, Chrome, LibreOffice etc keep updating to the latest versions on 14.04 until 16.04 comes out ?


Chrome is updated by google. Libreoffice has a ppa https://launchpad.net/~libreoffice/+archive/ppa  Steam I don't know, but there is probably a repo or ppa.

Anyhow, I never wait for Ubuntu releases to update my software, there are many ppas  offering the latest and greatest and you can also compile.  Whatever the nay sayers say about ppas, If I rely on distro upgrade for new software I would go Debian.  :Smile: 

I am still on 13.10, but almost everything is more up to date than stock 14.04 and it is more stable and less buggy than 14.04. I use a number of ppas and compile a few things.

Worst thing that can happen with ppa is that it screws up your system so badly that you have to re-install the OS, but that almost never happens unless you play with bleeding edge graphic drivers and mess it up so badly that even ppa-purge cannot fix it. But then to get the latest foo through OS upgrade would be fulfilling this worst case  scenario every 6 months(re-install entire system), and you don't even get the newest because of repo freeze.

P.S. Ubuntu's point releases only upgrade kernel and the graphic stack, so if hardware and graphics are already working there is no point unless you upgrade your hardware as well. Other software doesn't get upgraded. If you install Ubuntu 12.0.4.4 today you still get LibreOffice 3.x and gimp 2.6 etc.. They say it is for 'stability' (why not go Debian if I want that kind of fossil stability??)

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## PondPuppy

> Ubuntu's point releases only upgrade kernel and the graphic stack, so if hardware and graphics are already working there is no point unless you upgrade your hardware as well.


Ah, I didn't know that. Thanks.

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## Dr. McKay

Have wiped Windows from my desktop as well and installed Ubuntu 14.04. Both my machines are now singing the same tune  :Biggrin: 
So far, so good...

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## nderic77

I am using Ubuntu 14.04 with Cinnamon as my desktop environment. Best of both worlds, IMHO. Also, I use Docky for quick access to running programs [strike](though cannot seem to permanently pin programs to it in the current release)[/strike]. *Edit to add: I figured out how to permanently pin some programs - by right-clicking on them in Docky.* My only complaint is that I have to enter my password twice when returning from a locked screen - it seems once for Cinnamon and once for either Ubuntu or Unity.

My only other issue relates to "Secure Boot". Thus far, I am only able to boot into Ubuntu after first booting Winblows 8.1, then clicking through "recovery options" to get to reboot into Ubuntu. Grrrrrrr.

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## Mike_Walsh

Hi.

I agree with Last Dino on this one. I too, like ALL of the different flavours of Linux (and I've probably tried 10 or 12 over the last few months.)

I'm an ex-XP user, who was looking for something that would be a useful, stable replacement for MyCrudSoft's aging (but much-loved) product. I have a few friends who've been using various Linux distros for some years now, and I've observed, with interest, the development of the different types over time, and quite admired them. So when it came to a choice of my own, well.....I was ready for a change, and unlike many Windows stalwarts, jumped feet-first into the Linux ocean, and had no intention of looking back.

Sure, I initially missed certain Windows apps, but there is such a wealth of available software in the repositories, that you would be hard pushed NOT to find something that does the same job.....and in quite a few cases, a BETTER one.

You could, of course, do as I have done....and install both Trusty Tahr AND Mint 17 Cinnamon in a dual-boot config. (Sounds like PondPuppy's had the same idea; good man!) I have an elderly Compaq Presario desktop PC (though 'high-spec' when it was new); it uses the AMD Athlon 64, which was the first commercially successful 64-bit processor on the market. It was stifled for years with a 32-bit version of XP, so naturally, I've installed the 64-bit versions; and they FLY!

I also have a venerable Dell laptop, which is even older (12 years old, though to be honest, it's a 'brick'.....weighs a TON!), upon which I've installed Lubuntu 14.04, since the lightweight setup suits the Dell better. It works WAY faster than it ever did under Windows, and it's also cured a problem I had where plugging anything into the USB ports would cause it to crash! And to top it all off, I've installed Puppy Linux 'Precise Puppy' 5.7.1 to a 32 Gb SanDisk flashdrive, which I enjoy playing with from time to time. Since it's 32-bit, it will run on both Compaq AND Dell, so, I can't really lose; I've got the best of both worlds.

Why limit yourself to just one distro? If I can install two distros on a PC THAT old, you shouldn't have any problem doing the same (unless your machine is considerably older, of course). That way, you can have the benefits of both O/Ss, and in my case, I've determined that with all the programs I use (I'm a keen photographer and graphical artist, so I like using both Blender AND The Gimp, as well as Darktable and LibreCAD), some work more to my liking on one O/S, some work more favourably on the other.....so I've split the programs up between the two! That way, I don't get 'fed-up' with either of them; variety is, after all, the spice of life.

There is , of couse, the option mentioned by nderic77; Ubuntu with Cinnamon. All depends on whether you're more used to Windows or Mac OS X. Choices, choices.....

That, of course, is the beauty of Linux; there are SO many options to choose from, so MANY possible combinations. One O/S, a different DE, a file-manager of your choice, media-players by the dozen, browsers by the handful; it's a geek's paradise! (No insult intended to ANYONE by that last remark... :Wink: )

Good luck with whichever you decide to go for; they are both very easy to use, and both are LTS releases, which means they're stable.....which, to me, at least, is the most important thing. All depends on whether you want reliablity, or you want cutting-edge stuff; the choice is yours...

Have fun.

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## smirnich

I would go for Unity because Cinnamon wastes too much space with the title and menu bars. If you have a high resolution display that shouldn't be an issue though.

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## hbutt875

I am a big fan of Unty.Gnome classic,Cinammon and MATE etc look  like Windows XP.I switched to Ubuntu 12.04 about a year ago.after using  ubuntu I just love unity. Then I reinstall Windows 7 later (for games).  About a month ago I decided to try ubuntu 10.04.. When I install ubuntu  10.04 I hate it. After 2 days I upgrade to 12.04 for unity. just love  unity.

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## ansari.ibrahim1

> If you use the actual Google Chrome as i do, Google puts a PPA in your software sources, so you always get the latest Chrome as soon as it is released...


Well Ubuntu's version of apt checks if the package version is for trusty or utopic or saucy or whatever. So does mint apt, which checks for ubuntu codenames too (they didn't change apt). If it is not for that version of ubuntu it checks for another version of the package. If it does not find one, it checks for a version for previous release and installs that and if it doesn't find, it just goes on. But if it finds a generic version, it will download the generic version instead. If Google uses this 'support indicator', then you may not find the latest version for your OS. Luckily they don't follow this rule so it will download the latest version, they use generic packages.

I find myself working with Linux Mint in my virtual machine. I used Ubuntu but now it's interface broken. It's installed physically in a dual boot with windows. But I broke it so I'm waiting for 14.10 then i'll re-install Ubuntu and use it.  :Very Happy:  Why I chose Mint as a temporary solution is cause I am only using 17, then I am going back to my physical installation, re-installing it with 14.10.

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## ansari.ibrahim1

Yep. I hate my temporary replacement.

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