Because the UI is similar to windows, so it will feel more familiar to (ex-)windows users
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djsaskdja@reddthat.com 2 months agoWhy do people keep recommending Mint as a starter distro? Maybe if your computer is a toaster, but it lacks tons of modern features. Seems like a one way track to people thinking Linux sucks. Fedora KDE edition is a way better beginner distro for a halfway decent PC.
Krzd@lemmy.world 2 months ago
todd_bonzalez@lemm.ee 2 months ago
The UI is similar to Windows.
Which UI? Linux Mint comes in three flavors: Cinnamon, XFCE, and MATE.
Nobody has suggested a specific flavor, and those desktop environments vary quite a bit.
Krzd@lemmy.world 2 months ago
True, I meant cinnamon, which (IIRC) was the default/suggested to you when you went to the website.
todd_bonzalez@lemm.ee 2 months ago
It isn’t default or suggested. It says that it is the “most popular”, but my point is that if you’re making a beginner choose a desktop environment before they even install Linux, you’re setting them up to be overwhelmed.
djsaskdja@reddthat.com 2 months ago
KDE is closer to the modern Windows UI than Cinnamon. Cinnamon looks like Windows XP which nobody has used in like a decade. It’s not a familiar UI anymore.
FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 2 months ago
I use Mint and I like it. It does everything I need it to do.
What keeps people away from Linux, or at least it helped keep me away, were people arguing with each other about distros like a mini-OS war within the OS wars and it makes the whole thing sound like it’s a lot more trouble than it’s worth.
Most people’s computers are “toasters” because most people’s computers are used for things like web browsing, word processing and maybe a few games. They don’t need the modern features, they need something that works better than a Chromebook and isn’t super bloated.
todd_bonzalez@lemm.ee 2 months ago
Do you know what also keeps people away from Linux? Being told that Linux Mint is a good distro for beginners, and then going to the Linux Mint website and finding that there are three different flavors, Cinnamon, XFCE, and MATE, and not knowing what any of that means because you’re a beginner. Beginners don’t benefit from incomplete information that requires prior knowledge, and every time I see “use Linux Mint” without any clarification on Desktop Environments, I see a jerk who doesn’t know what “beginner” means.
dukethorion@lemmy.world 2 months ago
As someone who did exactly this, the differences are spelled out pretty clearly for “Linux beginners”. System reqs and included features all there to read…
PepperoniNipple@lemmynsfw.com 2 months ago
The average person does not read or understands instructions of any kind related to PCs. This is something tech-savy people suck so hard at: having patience for those people. You expect them to be like you or a certain way that is not possible for them or simply won’t ever happen, and you get mad or blame them for it, instead of offering the solution they need, which is a more intuitive software design