Mailing the story:
Linux Controversies of 2011: Linux Mint is the Most Popular Distro
The decline of Ubuntu and the corresponding rise of Linux Mint is one of the bigger Linux controversies of 2011. Ubuntu's introduction of Unity alienated a non-trivial portion of the Ubuntu user-base which then went looking for a new home – and found it in Linux Mint. How big was the exodus from Ubuntu to Mint?