Posted on Monday 23rd of April 2007 at 13:09 in Linux

Review of Linux Mint Bianca KDE Edition - Ubuntu derivative

With all the hype surrounding Ubuntu at the moment I think it's important not to overlook the other recent releases. One of these is Linux Mint Bianca: KDE Edition.

Linux Mint is a derivative of Ubuntu with a goal of providing a more complete out of the box experience by including browser plugins, media codecs, DVD playback support, Java and some other stuff too. It claims to be compatible with Ubuntu and it's software repositories so let's see what Mint is all about.

Out of the box?
I find it strange that Mint intends on offering a more complete out of the box solution than Ubuntu - from which this is based. While this has been more true in previous releases of Ubuntu (with things like EasyUbuntu used to increase immediate functionality), Feisty Fawn has shown itself to be more than capable on a fresh install... So already I'm doubting whether Mint has a worthwhile objective or not.

What I'm looking for
All I'm doing is evaluating how easy the distro performs a few basic tasks that I consider fundamental for "normal" use (I'm looking into how I review distros again so this is subject to become more in-depth later). The distro needs to network to my current setup, obtain a media file (normally an episode of Family Guy), play it without issue, allow for full web browsing, offer easy access to common applications. The review must also be written, formatted and published from within the review environment.

Reviewing Linux Mint Bianca: KDE Edition

I chose to look at the KDE edition over the other current releases through personal preference but I shall continue comparisons to other distros irrespective of their environments.

Aesthetics
Let me start shallow to begin with; it's a nice looking distro but not quite to everyone's taste. It's using the "Vista-esque" theme as default which is a nice touch because I actually quite like how Vista presents the minimise/maximise/close buttons. So it looks quite nice, implementing a minty-green theme.

linux mint desktop

The menu contains more than the average, which is a decision I'm not sure I like - I prefer the normal KDE application menu being present than needing to use the menu for everything. All in all though, it looks alright (and being KDE you can modify it to your hearts content).

Let's connect to my network and grab something to play
As with all the other reviews it's important to grab a video file from my current setup and play it. Once again it was simply a matter of opening an "explorer" window and opting for a "network". Selecting "Samba share" gives you the option of selecting which Windows shared network to connect to. Once again I connected to "badger" (my home network) and navigated to my supply of Family Guy.

Playing an episode of Family Guy
The result of executing the file I copied from my NTFS shared system was excellent. Opting to play the file resulted in "Kaffeine" playing the episode without delay. Clearly Mint has a comprehensive set of Codecs preloaded - which is good.

family guy playing

Brief conclusions
It's alright. I can't say that I like it more than Ubuntu, Kubuntu, SimplyMepis or PCLinuxOS but it's a perfectly decent distro. I find provided applications a slightly "odd" decision, lacking some familiar faces that I'd expect from a KDE environment but that doesn't really matter for new users. There are plenty of entertainment/media applications available and everything seems to work once again. "Adept" replaces the familar Synaptic (as far as I can tell) which isn't an issue as the two behave largely the same.

It's ok but I can't say it excells because I think it's window for success closed the moment Feisty was released. Preloaded codecs aren't any real advantage over a system that downloads them on demand. It just doesn't seem to sit together quite right either; there's just something awkward about how it feels while using it.

It's good and everything I've tried just works but I see no advantage using this over (K)Ubuntu. It just doesn't seem to offer any more than Feisty has been able to deliver and that's the danger of developing a derivative of the most popular "usable" distro around. I'd bet the development team for Ubuntu is bigger and therefore able to cover more ground quickly.

So finally
It's good, I just don't think it has a real application anymore. Ubuntu Feisty Fawn just manages so much and has such a loyal following that it's hard to accept a derivative that doesn't surpass it's parent in any obvious way.

It doesn't grab me and while it IS an excellent release I don't think it has enough appeal to dent the market in the same way Ubuntu or PCLOS can.

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Comments

Showing most recent 20 of 28 comments [View all comments]

I don’t know anything about any Linux distro so can’t make comparisons. I’m a Windows user looking to change OSs.
But I can say that at the moment I have Ubuntu Hardy Heron (just installed) & am having a devil of a task getting internet connection via my dial-up modem. No out of the box functionality here I’m afraid. So that sort of functionality is what’s important to me in the initial set up process & you may want to consider it as an issue in future blogs.

Clive

I don’t like Ubuntu or its derivatives much, but Mint and Suse are the only distros that have consistently installed with the correct proprietary wireless drivers or hardware specific firmware for my laptops out of the box.

PCLinuxOS and Mepis both make installing wireless drivers fairly easily, but you need to find the right Windows driver and then install it yourself. On the other hand, Mint did it without a hitch -- Sony laptop keys support, proprietary ATI driver, and the notorious Linksys WPC54GS PCMCIA wireless card (there are multiple threads in the Ubuntu forums on how to get this card working).

I’ve been pretty happy with it.

CD Moore

My friend tried Linux Mint and loved it until she had problems. She tried to get help from the forum there and they caused her computer to crash. She tried again and got the same person who turned out to be a moderator. This person was very rude and treated her very badly. She got so upset she went back to Windows. Looking around on that forum I found that this person likes to scream at people. This one person he screamed at was really bad and then locked the page. If you want help I wouldn’t use that forum or use another Linux program. Linux Mint looks pretty good but they need to get rid of some of the hired help.

Paula

I like Mint 3.1. I think it’s one of the greatest distributions out there. It’s easy to set up and beautiful to look at. Like with all linux operating systems there are some tweaking that needs to be none. I’ve used Mepis 6.5 and it’s pretty good also. I’ve had problems with Ubuntu don’t know why but I did.

Jim

Linux Mint is not a better choice. Newbies should use PCLinuxOS 2007, it is versatile, usable and stable. It’s light years ahead of Mint.

sudhansu sekhar

@xmido

I think this is an answer of my question and means: Yes!

Janko Weber

linux mint 3.0 uses ubuntu feisty fawn. its is nice, its optimized and everything works immediately without setting up codecs and apps (u can do that in ubuntu but it takes time and some knowledge). ur not missing anything from ubuntu because it is still a ubuntu. (not a replacement)

xmido

Is Linux Mint Bianca a time limited demo version?
Now it is not possible to boot this distribution on my computer!

I tried mint about a month or so ago, and had problems with mad wifi, which is not a problem in k-u-buntu, it didn’t even see it. I assume that there is at least no mad wifi-hal. I will try this newer version and get back to you. I love elive but it is always in bata, and by the time is in stable release gnome and kde will most likely look better, but it sure looks nice on the play-station.

jimslinux

@Seopher

With regards to Mint missing out to the new things in Feisty, I take a different angle. I think that the new things that are in Feisty are because of the clone-stros and the nifty things like restricted drivers, flash, java, media codecs, Google Earth, etc that were left out of Dapper and Edgy. This is a GOOD thing if my take is true. Canonical apparently did the licensing homework to get these included and may be able to setup a thing with Fluendo for legal codecs. That is progress and what we are all eagerly awaiting.

Schotty

Have anybody noticed this? I found it to be common in Mint KDE and Mepis 6.5. Windows streaming media would not play in Firefox, but it would do just fine in konqueror. Example sites: cnn.com, nhl.com

That actually why I’d like Mint and other distros that provide codes out of box. Is is not difficult to install those (I am a noob, so it should not be). But if it does not work: did I do it wrong? Is it a software issue? Does noob need to be bothered with that?

JamesL

Because I have yet to get the Ubuntu Fiesty live CD to boot, and Linux Mint booted without issue, I have to give the advantage to Mint right now. I even tried Ubuntu CE Fiesty, and its live CD failed to boot!

Mint does appeal to a certain taste though -- which happens to be my taste. I have never liked Gnome, and I downloaded the Gnome version to try out b/c I was so impressed.

the_traveler

I have Kubuntu 7.04 and it seems to hide things in different places to previous distros - after a few hours of reading up on it I just went to Add/Remove programs and installed the restricted extras. Everything seems to work fine.

Jim Porter

can’t say I agree with the kubuntu praise/propaganda. PCLOS .93 was better, but with TR3 of 2007, open office spellchecker doesn’t work, and it seems it will be a while before it is as stable as .93. Which is why I have been exploring mint.

Some people (dell people usually, or perhaps former red hat people) love ubuntu, they want ot be loyal to one distro, while others are willing to keep an open mind while testing out other distros. I for one think that ubuntu blows after having PCLOS for a year and everytime a new version of Ubuntu comes out I try it and still come back to the conclusion that it blows.

Go mint, go PCLOS.

No one should complain about Ubuntu clones. Shuttleworth would be shite without debian.

starburyfan

I think that you may be missing several points and making an unfair comparison.
Not long after Ubuntu 6.10 was released Mint 2.2 came out and I found it to be far superior to Ubuntu. Not just because of the "out of the box" experience, but because of the overall performance.
Mint 2.2 loads faster than Ubuntu 6.10.
Mint 2.2 is much more stable on all of my laptops and desktops than Ubuntu 6.10.
Mint 2.2 installs much faster and with never any hassles on all of my machines.
But the biggest difference that I have found and the reason that it is on all my machines now is the performance and stability after the (hard drive) install. There really is no comparison between two.
I really like Ubuntu, but Mint is a much better Ubuntu...
Based on the vast improvements of Mint 2.2 over Ubuntu 6.10(which it is based on), what leads you to the assumsion that Mint 3.0 won’t be equally improved over Ubuntu 7.04(which it will be based on).
Why don’t you at least wait for Mint 3.0 to be release and see what it actually provides before you write it off. You are comparing last years Mint to this years Ubuntu. And, if you think that flash players and codecs are the only differences in these two distrobutions, then obviously you have a very limited knowledge of Mint.

I’m sorry if that last sentence sounded a little harsh. I did not mean it personally. I was just trying to make a point.

In truth, I have enjoyed and appreciated your reviews and look forward to many more in the future.

Thanks,
wb

Welkiner

Mint was originally released with Gnome - KDE Mint is a recent update.

As someone else mentioned, the Gnome version of Mint is a bit more "complete" with it’s mintMenu and mintConfig which are both very nice additions.

May I suggest you try the Gnome edition, purely to experience the more "complete" Mint before writing it off as a nothing-great-about-it clone of *buntu :)

fukawi2

I never really undestood this thing with codecs that some people seems to be so obsessed with. I mean, of course I do install codecs but not the win32 binary ones and the process is so simple that puzzles me whenever I see people complaining about it.

FFMPEG has implemented most codecs in its OSS package to the point that I have yet to step on a media file that will refuse to play and it was just an apt-get away. And I have a HUGE collection of anime and movies encoded in several codecs and different containers so I should know.

DeadFish Man

Feisty offers great help on installing some codecs and support for DVD-playback. Click on a file and a dialogue will prompt you for installing hte missing pieces. But Ubuntu lacks the support for encrypted DVDs or certain codecs like WMA, WMV and the like. And due to copyright and patent issues Ubuntu will not offer those in the foreseeable future. These you need to install separately, the official way being to add the medibuntu-repositories.

So if you want real "out-of-the-box"-support for all this, you need to use LinuxMint or another similar distro. So here you the very worthwhile objective. As a plus, the LinuxMint-devs also develop new apps to lower the threshold for new Linux-users even further.

Sokraates

My experiences with converting Windows users to Linux biases me to the "works out of the box" Ubuntu derivatives like Mint and Freespire (claims it will be). Enthusiasts like myself will patiently troubleshoot, while so-called newbies tend to get frustrated very quickly when all the different media they are accustomed to viewing do not work right away and instead pop up "You do not have the codec installed" messages. I am sticking with Ubuntu derivatives because of the popularity and brain share (and increasing usability) that Ubuntu is garnering. I have had some frustrating experiences after upgrading to Ubuntu 7.04 in regards to codecs. Ubuntu is obviously getting better all the time. Anyways, Mint, SimplyMepis, Freespire, Pioneer, and other Ubuntu derivatives have their place in the Ubuntu community and should not be ignored.

By the way, I have used PCLinuxOS and they are not popular by accident. Kudos to Texstar for a great distro. Because of my bias to Ubuntu, I would prefer if he switched to Ubuntu as his base from Mandriva. But like I said, I am biased in favor of Ubuntu.

Charles Witt - San Antonio, TX

Look for the nest release of Ubuntu (Gutsy Gibbon) to have a similar out-of-the-box experience to Mint as far as mutlimedia and non-free software included is concerned. At least this is what I have gathered from reading the ubuntu forums and reading Mark’s blog.

I used to LOVE PCLOS. It’s taken so long for the newest release to come out that I was itching for something new. I don’t need the absolute latest and greatest, but it is nice to at least stay a little bit more up to date. I love what Texstar has done but I question whether he can sustain the popularity with the lack of a release schedule, and I really do think this new version is taking a lot out of him, not to mention the hosting nightmares they’ve been having. I also am a little leary of RPM’s again because of the deal with MS/Novell. I know it’s pretty much FUD on my part, but I’ve always had a spot in my heart for Debian. Ubuntu just seems to work for me.

I agree, with the advent of Fiesty and with Gutsy looking like it’s going to take things further, Mint is kinda done.

slayerboy

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Review of Linux Mint Bianca KDE Edition - Ubuntu derivative

Reviewing Linux Mint Bianca: KDE Edition