The MATE and Cinnamon flavors have been released

Nov 28, 2014 12:38 GMT  ·  By

The Linux Mint 17.1 "Rebecca" MATE distribution has been made available and the ISO images can be downloaded from the officials servers. Just like the Cinnamon flavor, the MATE edition is quite heavy on the new features.

The first two Linux Mint editions for any new versions are always Cinnamon and MATE. They both provide a similar kind of desktop and they both address the same kind of audience.

Despite having some design similarities, the two versions are quite different. In fact, the MATE flavor seems to be a little bit lighter, but many of the improvements that were just made are shared with the Cinnamon one.

Next to Cinnamon, this is the most downloaded Linux Mint flavor, so there are many users who have been waiting for the official release of their favorite.

If you already have a previous RC version, you only have to install the right package from the Update Manager, which should be a pretty easy thing to do.

Users should be thankful for the Linux Mint 17.1 release

The MATE edition of Linux Mint 17.1 shares some of the features with its Cinnamon counterpart, but that is not unusual. They both have the same base and most of the core packages are the same, with very few exceptions.

"Linux Mint 17.1 is a long term support release which will be supported until 2019. It comes with updated software and brings refinements and many new features to make your desktop even more comfortable to use," reads the Linux Mint website.

One of the most interesting additions for the MATE flavor is the default Compiz support, which wasn't available before. "Linux Mint 17.1 MATE Edition comes with two window managers installed and configured by default: Marco (MATE's very own window manager, simple, fast and very stable) and Compiz (an advanced compositing window manager which can do wonders if your hardware supports it). Among the various window managers available for Linux, Compiz is certainly the most impressive when it comes to desktop effects. There's nothing quite like a rotating cube to catch everybody's attention," is also noted on the website.

Also, the Update Manager has been improved, the Language settings have been refined, the Login Window Preferences has been redesigned, the search command has been improved, and the artwork has seen some changes.

Check the official website for more details about this release. The announcements have not been published just yet, but it's only a matter of time. The ISO images have been made available, and that's what's the most important. You can download Linux Mint 17 "Rebecca" MATE right now from Softpedia.

Linux Mint 17.1 "Rebecca" MATE (11 Images)

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