[9][10][11] Linux Mint has its own desktop environment, called Cinnamon,[b] although it also offers Xfce and MATE as alternatives by default.

Linux Mint began in 2006 with a beta release, 1.0, code-named 'Ada',[13] based on Kubuntu and using its KDE interface.

This made the two systems' bases almost identical, guaranteeing full compatibility between them, rather than requiring Mint to be a fork.

[15] It was announced on May 27, 2015, that the Linux Mint team would no longer support the original rolling release version of LMDE after January 1, 2016.

[20] In 2014 the successor to 17 Qiana was announced to be 17.1 Rebecca; the development team said that from a technical point of view Linux Mint was no longer tied to the Ubuntu schedule, so it could be released at any time, although the six-month cycle provided rhythm, leading to a late November 2014 target.

[22][23] Linux Mint immediately took its server offline and implemented enhanced security configurations for their website and forum.

Before version 18, some proprietary software, such as device drivers, Adobe Flash Player and codecs for MP3 and DVD-Video playback, were bundled with the OS.

[11] Linux Mint comes bundled with a wide range of application software, including LibreOffice, Firefox, Thunderbird, HexChat, Pidgin, Transmission, and VLC media player.

The default Linux Mint desktop environments, Cinnamon and MATE, support many languages.

This image ships with newer components such as the kernel to be able to support the most modern hardware chipsets and devices.

[46] LMDE was originally based directly on Debian's Testing branch, but it was designed to provide the same functionality and look and feel as the Ubuntu-based editions.

[47] Installing an Update Pack allowed the user to keep LMDE 1 current without having to reinstall the system every six months, as with standard Mint.

It received automatic updates to the latest versions of MintTools and the installed desktop environment before they were released into the main Mint edition.

[56] Individual users and companies using the operating system act as donors,[57] sponsors[58] and partners[59] of the distribution.

[60] The community of Linux Mint users use Launchpad to participate in the translation of the operating system and in reporting bugs.

], the Linux Mint team released the X-Apps,[68] a collection of applications that aims to work across different GTK-based desktop environments such as but not limited to Cinnamon, Budgie, Unity, MATE, and XFCE; most of these applications have a traditional user interface (UI), for example, using a menu bar instead of a header-bar.

It's easy to learn (even if you've never used Linux before), powerful, and with its traditional windows, icons, menus, and pointers (WIMP) interface, it's simple to use.

Steven Vaughan-Nichol, senior contributing editor at ZD Net praised Mint's propensity to remain the same in terms of functionality.

[85] The Register points to the fact that unverified Flatpak packages are now off by default and users need to explicitly enable the option to make them visible.