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Is Linux Mint Debian or Ubuntu ?

Post by trexxon » Wed Jun 17, 2020 5:59 am

Hi guys,
I’m pretty new to linux, trying to learn stuff etc

I am thinking about installing linux mint to my parents pc cuz their old pc has windows xp, but if anything goes wrong i want to connect them remotely .

Thus I want to install TeamViewer but there is a problem, in the installation page of linux it has different setup links for different releases as shown below, also on other programs i can see these options = ubuntu,debian,redhat etc

my question is which 1 is linux mint equivalent ? if i want to download another app with same options which 1 should i choose ?

Last edited by LockBot on Wed Dec 28, 2022 7:16 am, edited 2 times in total.
Reason: Topic automatically closed 6 months after creation. New replies are no longer allowed.

iain_33 Level 3
Posts: 156 Joined: Sat Dec 22, 2018 11:29 am Location: UK

Re: Is Linux Mint Debian or Ubuntu ?

Post by iain_33 » Wed Jun 17, 2020 6:10 am

Mint is based on Ubuntu, which is based on Debian, so you’ll want the Debian/Ubuntu option. Once you’ve downloaded the .deb file, double-click it and it will install.

Re: Is Linux Mint Debian or Ubuntu ?

Post by ralplpcr » Wed Jun 17, 2020 7:03 am

Debian is the «root» distribution. It is built from scratch using the linux kernel.

Ubuntu based on Ubuntu. It takes Debian as the starting point, and enhances it. It is arguably one of the most popular of many linux distributions to build on the Debian base and create a new release with additional features.

Linux Mint (with the exception of LMDE editions*) do the same thing, except they use Ubuntu as the starting point. Mint tends to focus on stability, and hence versions are released slower than Ubuntu releases — — they are all built on the long-term support Ubuntu, rather than following Ubuntu’s 6 month update cycle.

I’d say that if there is a choice of selecting a .DEB either for Ubuntu or Debian, you should probably pick the Ubuntu version first. The Debian version would likely work, but the Ubuntu version is probably a better fit to support the additional customizations that Mint would inherit.

*LDME Mint is the exception to the rule. It is based directly on the Debian root distribution, and will not contain all the Ubuntu customizations. If you are running LDME, you should then select the Debian version.

Re: Is Linux Mint Debian or Ubuntu ?

Post by GS3 » Wed Jun 17, 2020 11:37 am

I used to use and like Teamviewer but they got very nasty about accusing users of commercial use and it finally became virtually unusable. I had to look for a replacement and found Anydesk which works just as well without the hassle. I highly recommend it.

And then I would recommend installing any software using Synaptic Package Manager. It has always worked well for me and it takes care of everything. For example, search for Anydesk and it will tell you if it is installed or not and you can mark it for installation. Works very well for me.

Please do not use animated GIFs in avatars because many of us find them distracting and obnoxious. Thank you.

Re: Is Linux Mint Debian or Ubuntu ?

Post by jonau01 » Wed Jun 17, 2020 12:25 pm

kc1di Level 17
Posts: 7896 Joined: Mon Sep 08, 2008 8:44 pm Location: Maine USA

Re: Is Linux Mint Debian or Ubuntu ?

Post by kc1di » Wed Jun 17, 2020 1:02 pm

Easy tips : https://easylinuxtipsproject.blogspot.com/ Pjotr’s Great Linux projects page.
Linux Mint Installation Guide: http://linuxmint-installation-guide.rea . en/latest/
Registered Linux User #462608

Re: Is Linux Mint Debian or Ubuntu ?

Post by trexxon » Thu Jun 18, 2020 9:29 am

Thanks everybody for explaining deeply what is what and what come from where really helped to understand .

Re: Is Linux Mint Debian or Ubuntu ?

Post by bmike1 » Thu Jun 18, 2020 5:21 pm

Re: Is Linux Mint Debian or Ubuntu ?

Post by greencloud » Mon Jun 22, 2020 5:16 am

Does it mean the Mint developers took a snapshot of Ubuntu and Debian code or something like that some 13 years ago and started their development from it?

Re: Is Linux Mint Debian or Ubuntu ?

Post by GS3 » Mon Jun 22, 2020 8:11 am

greencloud wrote: ⤴ Mon Jun 22, 2020 5:16 am Does it mean the Mint developers took a snapshot of Ubuntu and Debian code or something like that some 13 years ago and started their development from it?

Please do not use animated GIFs in avatars because many of us find them distracting and obnoxious. Thank you.

Re: Is Linux Mint Debian or Ubuntu ?

Post by greencloud » Mon Jun 22, 2020 9:01 am

greencloud wrote: ⤴ Mon Jun 22, 2020 5:16 am Does it mean the Mint developers took a snapshot of Ubuntu and Debian code or something like that some 13 years ago and started their development from it?

I know that that’s why I asked. Because in Wikipedia for Linux Mint it says, «Linux Mint is a community-driven Linux distribution based on Ubuntu or Debian» which is actually quite unclear. My first thought was they might have taken a snapshot of Debian code and based most of its features from Ubuntu. I’m just curious when they said Linux Mint is «based» on Ubuntu or Debian.

Re: Is Linux Mint Debian or Ubuntu ?

Post by bmike1 » Mon Jun 22, 2020 11:14 am

You can edit wikipedia. change «distribution based on Ubuntu or Debian» to «distribution based on Ubuntu which is based on Debian».

Re: Is Linux Mint Debian or Ubuntu ?

Post by greencloud » Mon Jun 22, 2020 12:08 pm

bmike1 wrote: ⤴ Mon Jun 22, 2020 11:14 am You can edit wikipedia. change «distribution based on Ubuntu or Debian» to «distribution based on Ubuntu which is based on Debian».

Hahaha, I actually thought of doing that. There’s actually a follow-up question with that and that’s, How much Ubuntu is there in Mint? I know this question will never be answered precisely as to how much but I just thought there’s no harm in trying

Re: Is Linux Mint Debian or Ubuntu ?

Post by zcot » Mon Jun 22, 2020 12:33 pm

From the wiki, «Linux Mint is a community-driven Linux distribution based on Ubuntu or Debian» is referring to the fact that there are 2 variations of Mint.

It was already mentioned above, but there should be a clear distinction of «Linux Mint» and «LMDE». Both are «Mint», and the first one is a fork of the Ubuntu distribution and the second is a fork from using the Debian distribution, -completely separate things here. Forget about saying «Ubuntu is based on Debian» for this discussion.

If you are running LMDE then you look for Debian instructions. LMDE means exactly «Linux Mint Debian Edition».

If you are using Linux Mint then you look for Ubuntu instructions when they are there(and they almost always are). There are plenty of places lately that are also showing «Mint» instructions, or just say «Ubuntu/Mint». This so-called «main», so-called «edition» is based on Ubuntu. If you hear or see mention of «Linux Mint» then you could be sure we’re talking about NOT the «LMDE» version.

Also, to further clarify, if you did want to edit the wiki to say «distribution based on Ubuntu which is based on Debian», then you are removing a very important part of the sentence. So, that’s not a good edit. To be more clear it would be something more in the line of «Linux Mint is a community-driven Linux distribution which offers 2 different editions which are based on Ubuntu or Debian respectively.»

Re: Is Linux Mint Debian or Ubuntu ?

Post by greencloud » Mon Jun 22, 2020 1:08 pm

zcot wrote: ⤴ Mon Jun 22, 2020 12:33 pm From the wiki, «Linux Mint is a community-driven Linux distribution based on Ubuntu or Debian» is referring to the fact that there are 2 variations of Mint.

It was already mentioned above, but there should be a clear distinction of «Linux Mint» and «LMDE». Both are «Mint», and the first one is a fork of the Ubuntu distribution and the second is a fork from using the Debian distribution, -completely separate things here. Forget about saying «Ubuntu is based on Debian» for this discussion.

If you are running LMDE then you look for Debian instructions. LMDE means exactly «Linux Mint Debian Edition».

If you are using Linux Mint then you look for Ubuntu instructions when they are there(and they almost always are). There are plenty of places lately that are also showing «Mint» instructions, or just say «Ubuntu/Mint». This so-called «main», so-called «edition» is based on Ubuntu. If you hear or see mention of «Linux Mint» then you could be sure we’re talking about NOT the «LMDE» version.

Also, to further clarify, if you did want to edit the wiki to say «distribution based on Ubuntu which is based on Debian», then you are removing a very important part of the sentence. So, that’s not a good edit. To be more clear it would be something more in the line of «Linux Mint is a community-driven Linux distribution which offers 2 different editions which are based on Ubuntu or Debian respectively.»

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