Clement Lefebvre (Mint) not offering Unity. Compares it to Enlightment or Fluxbox.

[sffvba[e0rt]

Most people went to mint because they hate Unity.

Exactly. Mint is considered an alternative for those that don't like Unity. If I liked Unity, why would I want to install Mint? If I tried and didn't like Unity, why would I want Mint to offer Unity?

I feel statements like this sells Linux Mint short of what it was and still is. A while before Unity came along Linux Mint differentiated themselves as a very good distro and already garnered a big following.

"Most people..." isn't true as "most people" still use Ubuntu and I am sure "most people" using Linux Mint at the moment was using it before and not despite of Unity.

So if I am one of those users that feels that the "Mint way" is the way for me and I also enjoy the Unity desktop I would also wish to have it. Best of both worlds.

I suspect that very soon Clement Lefebvre will find that the desktop that has the most in common with Fluxbox and/or Enlightenment is going to be a DE called Cinnamon...


404

[forrestcupp]

I agree with not found that Mint was around way before Unity. Mint is not about Unity at all. But for some people it is becoming about Unity. Mint has always been a good alternative to Ubuntu, even in the Gnome 2 days.

But it's all about the change in paradigm (I really hate that word). Mint used to be about the UI and about the codecs. Now that Ubuntu has a checkbox in the installation to automatically install the codecs, that part of Mint isn't as relevant as it used to be. So now it's shifting more toward the UI, which is why there is a big Exodus from Unity. But I wouldn't say the majority of Mint users are there because they are Unity haters, by any means.

[user1397]

I would go ahead and venture to say that mint's popularity is but a speck compared to ubuntu's. This is of course with no specific factual evidence, but c'mon let's be real guys. We all know distrowatch stats mean nothing, remember the old PClinuxOS craze a couple of years ago?

I know some of you are going to say "what you're saying is not what this thread is all about" but I'll say to them "yea, but I wanted to say it anyway".

[craig10x]

I think i recall reading somewhere that linux mint has about 1/2 million users (globally) where as ubuntu has closer to something like 200 million users (again, globally)...so as popular as mint is (as an alternate to ubuntu) ubuntu is still huge in comparison (as far as the amount of users)...

[malspa]

In the Ubuntu-based Mint version, which is the main Mint version, couldn't someone simply install Unity from the Ubuntu repos?

[Dry Lips]

in the ubuntu-based mint version, which is the main mint version, couldn't someone simply install unity from the ubuntu repos?

+1!

[Roasted]

by all means I'm clinging to my useable computer, just like I'm clinging to my car with a steering wheel on the left, and the gas under my right foot.

lol??

[MisterGaribaldi]

Sounds to me like it's the Unity fanboys here with sour grapes. Awwwwwww...

[Version Dependency]

In the Ubuntu-based Mint version, which is the main Mint version, couldn't someone simply install Unity from the Ubuntu repos?

You can but it breaks the Gnome 3//Cinnamon sessions. Not sure why this is the case in Mint and not Ubuntu.

[snowpine]

Apparently those of us that actually use Unity are so insignificant as to not even matter to the Mint team. Clem comes out and says that Fluxbox has more demand than Unity (really?). It's laughable that distros like OpenSUSE and Arch have folks maintaining Unity and Mint (an Ubuntu derivative) is pretending it doesn't exist.

Clem is not "pretending [Unity] doesn't exist" because he just gave an interview about it (which you quoted).

Did you contact Clem personally and "demand" Unity? If not then how can you disagree with his statement "So far there's been no demand for Unity"?

I interpreted the quoted article exactly opposite of your interpretation. To me he appears to be saying "we will gladly offer a Unity spin if there is enough demand for it."

(As pointed out above, all Mint users are free to install Unity from the repos. The only thing that Mint is "not offering" is a Live CD with Unity as the default desktop environment. Oh the drama!)