Okay people I need help. I've researched a ton, but I can't really find a good answer. I'm trying to choose between Linux mint and Ubuntu. Now I know that there aren't any huge differences, but can you please help me, find out what would make you choose one over the other?

If you used windows before go with mint. 🙂

did you try both via usb thumbdrive?

TheTornJester

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Apr 28, 2016, 3:11 PM

Ubuntu.

Canonical do a great job at keeping it both stable and secure. They also try well to keep their Official packages as fresh as even Fedoras. They put back into Ubuntus development with the revenue they generate (I know that's an unfair test). They lay down their own infrastructure (that Mint relies on). They provide a go-to point for transitioning OS users and companies.

Mint.

It's the gate that ex-Windows users walk through and as such is the most welcoming to such persons (It's where I started). As much as I respect the absolute shit out of the Project (they work severely fucking hard), I've learned that there isn't much over their ascendant in terms of Distro. Mint don't lay down their own infrastructure. They piggy back on Ubuntu anyway. Share the same blobs, codecs and drivers (all the proprietary stuff). They don't bother releasing security advisories (because Canonical already do). They are further away from Ubuntu than Official Ubuntu flavours (I reckon they're Official for a reason). Mint are the reason why I developed a taste in Independent distros (Ubuntu, Fedora and OpenSUSE). The further you fork, the more you have to pick up the work.

@heyheni I have a fair amount of experience with both windows and Mac, and Linux on a raspi. So what I come from doesn't matter all that much, and yes I've tried both distros, but only for a couple hours each.

@skprog thank you, that actually makes a lot of sense

Mint.

True plug and play. Fucking reliable and user friendly. You can still hack around if you want, because well the Linux Kernel stays the same. And moreover Mint is developed independently from a cooperation.

None. Arch

Ubuntu or Arch.

Enough research. Experiment. Few hours not enough. Try to use few days for each doing your usual daily tasks. Then you will have your answer.

As you can see from above comments and your research, nobody can help with with this kind of thing. It's totally up to one's preference and only one knows that.