Ubuntu Mate 20.04(ubuntu-mate.org)
ubuntu-mate.org
Ubuntu Mate 20.04
https://ubuntu-mate.org/blog/ubuntu-mate-focal-fossa-release-notes/
65 comments
I moved away from Gnome to KDE for several years after Gnome 3 came out. Try as I might, I just couldn't get into other desktop environments (KDE, XFCE, LXDE, I tried quite a few). A few years ago I switched back to Mate and haven't considered leaving. It provides the functionality I need while staying out of my way, which is more or less the reason I can't move away from text editors despite their complete lack of coolness.
One thing I do not like about Ubuntu anymore is its embrace of snap packages. It just updates on its own. This has created surprises where a package or program just suddenly stops working correctly. Because I did not manually update it I have no idea what happened that could cause it. https://askubuntu.com/questions/1131182/how-can-i-disable-au...
To me Snap was a bad choice.
I used to run Gentoo but it started to lack in documentation maintenance and I became tired of spending so much time solving problems. Full disk encryption was a bit of a chore to setup on Gentoo and even then I was not sure I was doing it in a reliable way which required more testing. On Ubuntu it was just a few clicks.
To me Snap was a bad choice.
I used to run Gentoo but it started to lack in documentation maintenance and I became tired of spending so much time solving problems. Full disk encryption was a bit of a chore to setup on Gentoo and even then I was not sure I was doing it in a reliable way which required more testing. On Ubuntu it was just a few clicks.
I've found that simply uninstalling 'snapd' solves that problem.
Complete instructions: https://www.kevin-custer.com/blog/disabling-snaps-in-ubuntu-...
Complete instructions: https://www.kevin-custer.com/blog/disabling-snaps-in-ubuntu-...
Just finished moving from Lubuntu (LXDE) to Mate. I loved LXDE and still think it is the best balance between no-nonsense "stay out of your way", almost all the stuff works and tweak your preferences. Sadly, that project is dead and has been replaced by the arguably better LXQt.
I don't think LXQt has reached the same maturity as LXDE just yet, but surely will eventually.
Left with the task of choosing a new daily OS, I played around with Lubuntu and LXQt, i3, XFCE, Mate and reviewed some others including the interesting NixOS.
Ended up choosing Ubuntu Mate because even though it's a heavyweight, I feel it has made a lot of right choices and works great. Even detects external monitors on plug/unplug.
If Pop!_OS was out already, I would have considered that, but so far Mate is really good.
I don't think LXQt has reached the same maturity as LXDE just yet, but surely will eventually.
Left with the task of choosing a new daily OS, I played around with Lubuntu and LXQt, i3, XFCE, Mate and reviewed some others including the interesting NixOS.
Ended up choosing Ubuntu Mate because even though it's a heavyweight, I feel it has made a lot of right choices and works great. Even detects external monitors on plug/unplug.
If Pop!_OS was out already, I would have considered that, but so far Mate is really good.
> Even detects external monitors on plug/unplug.
I can already hear all the Windows/MacOS folks' giggles on this one!
I can already hear all the Windows/MacOS folks' giggles on this one!
To be fair, I mentioned that because that's one of the biggest dealbreaker features today in many distributions (I think.)
I think there are few specific pain points in linux that always get brought up. Other than that, desktop linux is truly great.
- Suspend/Hibernate on lid/close open. (Never had trouble with this on my hardware.)
- Detecting, handling, plug/unplug external monitors. (everyone seems to come up with their own way to handle this)
- Discrete graphics switching/drivers.
- Package management. (Too many different standards, and non-truly rolling release)
My biggest beef with most distros is that every time a project reaches maturity, the rug gets pulled from under it and a brand new X (heh) is the next goal.
I've experienced this twice. Ubuntu 10.10 was peak Ubuntu for me. And Lubuntu 18.04LTS was peak Lubuntu. Both times, everything changed for the next release.
There are reasons to start from scratch, and I'm not qualified enough to comment on the decisions made by these projects, but they killed the distro for me at those two times.
I think there are few specific pain points in linux that always get brought up. Other than that, desktop linux is truly great.
- Suspend/Hibernate on lid/close open. (Never had trouble with this on my hardware.)
- Detecting, handling, plug/unplug external monitors. (everyone seems to come up with their own way to handle this)
- Discrete graphics switching/drivers.
- Package management. (Too many different standards, and non-truly rolling release)
My biggest beef with most distros is that every time a project reaches maturity, the rug gets pulled from under it and a brand new X (heh) is the next goal.
I've experienced this twice. Ubuntu 10.10 was peak Ubuntu for me. And Lubuntu 18.04LTS was peak Lubuntu. Both times, everything changed for the next release.
There are reasons to start from scratch, and I'm not qualified enough to comment on the decisions made by these projects, but they killed the distro for me at those two times.
We don't listen to those people. Seriously. Of Windows, MacOS and Linux, nobody other than a fanboy would say any of them get everything right.
To be honest most Linux folks giggle on this one as well, it's been more than 12 years that hotplugging screens is not an issue.
I remember having it with vanilla Ubuntu when I started using Linux in 2008/9.
I remember having it with vanilla Ubuntu when I started using Linux in 2008/9.
Funnily enough, the other topic on the front page (Xubuntu 20.04) has the top voted comment discussing the state of external displays.
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22963765
To be fair, as I've mentioned in another comment, I was not strictly talking about hotplugging alone. Detection of external displays hasn't been the issue, usability in some form or another has.
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22963765
To be fair, as I've mentioned in another comment, I was not strictly talking about hotplugging alone. Detection of external displays hasn't been the issue, usability in some form or another has.
After living a year or so with Windows, two monitors and a KVM switch for one of those monitors. It ain't there yet. It does detect it but it'll just throw your stuff all over the place.
MacOS has been incredibly solid on that note.
MacOS has been incredibly solid on that note.
Pop prompted me to upgrade from 19.10 about 10 days ago and has been running perfectly on 20.04 since.
Heavy? It runs reasonably well on a raspberry pi 3. Not sure why anyone would be using less than that as a desktop in this day and age.
For a smaller embedded headless device, ssh in via terminal.
For a smaller embedded headless device, ssh in via terminal.
> Even detects external monitors on plug/unplug.
Are you completely sure this is a strictly MATE feature? I had this feature in the past, where I think I was already on XFCE 18.04.
Are you completely sure this is a strictly MATE feature? I had this feature in the past, where I think I was already on XFCE 18.04.
It is not strictly a Mate feature, but I thought it was worth mentioning.
Also, I should have been more specific, I'm not just referring to monitor detection but also combining/switching between them without any issues in various use cases.
Also, I should have been more specific, I'm not just referring to monitor detection but also combining/switching between them without any issues in various use cases.
The number of emojis in that text is appalling.
Hacker News: where we pine for expressive, DIY web of the 90s/00s but pour scorn on anyone adding character to their projects today.
I'm okay with expressive but all the emojis made it a little hard to read. Maybe don't inject them into the middle of phrases.
Good use of emoji
> the Ubuntu MATE 19.10 interim release is our most actively used interim release to date! :champagne:
> Recognising that we’re on to a good thing, :thumbsup: we’ve repeated this trick
> Thank you! Thank you all for getting out there and making a difference! :green_heart:
Annoying use of emoji
> That was a hugely successful :tada: initiative
> with developers to highlight :flashlight: where attention was needed.
edit: apparently hacker news strips out emojis
Good use of emoji
> the Ubuntu MATE 19.10 interim release is our most actively used interim release to date! :champagne:
> Recognising that we’re on to a good thing, :thumbsup: we’ve repeated this trick
> Thank you! Thank you all for getting out there and making a difference! :green_heart:
Annoying use of emoji
> That was a hugely successful :tada: initiative
> with developers to highlight :flashlight: where attention was needed.
edit: apparently hacker news strips out emojis
The fact that they are rendered as text provides a good rule of thumb for when they are appropriate :
1. Can you read your sentence without reading the emoji text and it makes sense?
2. Can you read your sentence with the emoji text and it still makes sense (and it means the same thing, with emphasis added)?
If the answer to both questions is YES, then using the emoji is OK.
1. Can you read your sentence without reading the emoji text and it makes sense?
2. Can you read your sentence with the emoji text and it still makes sense (and it means the same thing, with emphasis added)?
If the answer to both questions is YES, then using the emoji is OK.
Emoji copypastas are old and hardly original anymore.
it's the modern equivalent of blink and animated gifs everywhere on the page on personal websites of the 2000. In a few years this emoji abuse will be mocked by everybody.
Every time I'm tempted to use an emoji I ask myself, "what would Herman Melville do?"
Someone gave that question a lot of thought: http://czyborra.com/unicode/emojidick.pdf
Emojis? I wish that was the problem. I really have an issue reading the article without focusing on how terrible the font is, it's like each word is punching my eyes.
It makes sense that they'd use the Ubuntu font, but at least for me it's terrible for reading. All the emoji were a problem though, and the bold typeface.
Is there a bookmarklet around that would remove them?
It's absurd, but absurd isn't automatically a bad choice. If it's intentionally making a loud point of "don't take this too seriously, this is not formal" I'm all about this. This as informal is silly. This as anti-formal is great.
My first instinct reading this comment was that you were being old and cranky. Get off my internet, young'ns!
Well, after clicking through to the article... I'm sorry for doubting you. This text almost could have been mistaken for an emoji copypasta.
Well, after clicking through to the article... I'm sorry for doubting you. This text almost could have been mistaken for an emoji copypasta.
Is this the HN equivalent of being a grammar nazi?
Love Mate as it is one of the closest to the consistent user interface days of Windows 2000. Fewer WTFs/minute. There is a good dark theme as well, required.
One reason I use it over say XCFE, is that it still has the Locations timezone/day/night map that is perfect for working across timezones. No one else seems to have it, and that is why I stay:
https://askubuntu.com/questions/312634/how-do-i-get-the-good...
One reason I use it over say XCFE, is that it still has the Locations timezone/day/night map that is perfect for working across timezones. No one else seems to have it, and that is why I stay:
https://askubuntu.com/questions/312634/how-do-i-get-the-good...
IMO XFCE is a solid point above Mate for win2k feel and low WTF rate.
It's my last GUIlty pleasure :)
It's my last GUIlty pleasure :)
It doesn’t have the timezone thing or a good dark theme, last I checked.
Yeah those are fair points but there's something in Mate that feels like a cloak.. while XFCE seems quite closer to the look and feel that I miss.
It reminds me of the Win2k installers, I really like it. Just feels unfinished, as Mate does too.
I'm confused, what feels unfinished ?
I do have a thing for win2k era installers too.. even though I can't deny unattended package install ala linux (now chocolate and similar on windows) is amazing ofc.
I do have a thing for win2k era installers too.. even though I can't deny unattended package install ala linux (now chocolate and similar on windows) is amazing ofc.
Is GNOME the only desktop environment going forward with wayland at this point? Wayland has been the only way I can enjoy tear-free, config-tweak-free video on Linux for the past few years, and that leaves me stuck with either GNOME or something like Sway. Mate would be a great middle ground but I don't want to have to mess with compositors again.
KDE is still pushing ahead with Wayland. I just fixed my screen tearing on x11 Kubuntu yesterday though, it was just one command to enable Optimus synchronization. (I know, that's a config tweak). I haven't tried Kde Wayland.
KDE is working on it too. I'm not sure if it is considered ready but there are a number of developers using KDE on Wayland, and have been for years. Getting all the bugs out is hard.
Well, GNOME people came up with it, others - especially the smaller desktops/WMs who do not exactly have RedHat money behind them - didn't really ask for it.
In any case, it certainly isn't config-free but it should be an one time thing only and then you should be able to have tear-free video playback on Linux under Xorg just fine. It is really up to your video player to do it though. Personally i do not remember having issues with VLC using either AMD or Nvidia GPUs.
In any case, it certainly isn't config-free but it should be an one time thing only and then you should be able to have tear-free video playback on Linux under Xorg just fine. It is really up to your video player to do it though. Personally i do not remember having issues with VLC using either AMD or Nvidia GPUs.
It seems like GNOME, KDE and Sway are the only serious wayland options.
The article states that the window manager eliminates tearing. Haven't tested it yet myself.
Mate is moving in this direction too via Mir, I have no idea where they are though.
> We have given MATE Optimus an update. MATE Optimus adds support for NVIDIA On-Demand and will now prompt users to log out when switching the GPU’s profile.
I wonder if this will actually work. It seems like, in version 18.04 of *buntu, there was a pretty major regression which required a reboot in order to turn on or off the dGPU and save power in Optimus laptops, when previously it only required a logout. Kind of a pain in the ass for my Dell XPS 15 9570 which seems to take a long time to reboot.
I wonder if this will actually work. It seems like, in version 18.04 of *buntu, there was a pretty major regression which required a reboot in order to turn on or off the dGPU and save power in Optimus laptops, when previously it only required a logout. Kind of a pain in the ass for my Dell XPS 15 9570 which seems to take a long time to reboot.
I hope someone with context on this issue sees your comment and can confirm if this contains an actual, working, on-demand GPU scheduler. If it does I'll be switching immediately.
I know it's a dark theme and not a true 'dark mode', but it really bugs me how many of the screen elements are still light gray.
I agree. I think it just looks bad.
What are you referring to?
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Mate is my favorite desktop environment, might have to install this on a spare desktop I got lying around.
Does anyone have recommendations for a cheap laptop for playing around with Ubuntu? Will use it for light programming, poking around. Wifi needs to work reliably. I can work around all other quirks.
Cheap reconditioned lenovo thinkpad wolud be my recommendation
Used Thinkpads are cheap, durable and well supported.
Linux will also work well on other brands, it's just that with many cheap laptop manufacturers the hardware has a tendency to fall apart after a few years of use.
Thinkpads (T-Series) just don't do that.
it depends on where you live. Find Asus/Lenovo/Dell
Do any of the Ubuntu flavors support fractional scaling without big performance hits? That’s really my last remaining gripe with Linux on the desktop.
Nice! I think this is what I've been using on AWS Workspaces. It's not so bad.
Can anyone comment on the telemetry capabilities of modern Ubuntu?
I really wish Ubuntu Mate would come out for the RasPi 4.