Friday, May 16, 2008

Linux Mint 5.0 beta

Elyssa 5 beta is out, the Mint distro based on Ubuntu 8 Hardy Heron, and I have to say it gets slicker with every release. I still recommend switching the default font from Verdana clone Sans to DejaVu Sans Condensed, but overall it has a very "comfy" feel and so far I'd consider it pretty usable. If you've got friends curious about Linux who don't want to spend the time installing all the nonfree software and codecs, or you just don't want to spend time making Ubuntu not look like rotting vegetation, Mint is worth the try.

Adobe AIR is finally available for Linux as a beta, and it installed in Mint easily. Regrettably websites with AIR apps may tell you that your platform isn't supported, but downloading and double-clicking the AIR file directly will work.