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Introduction

Update Pack 6 was released as the “latest” update pack today.  If you’re not using Linux Mint Debian, please ignore this post.

If you experience issues or if you’re going through the update at the moment, don’t hesitate to connect to the IRC chatroom (irc.spotchat.org, #linuxmint-debian)

How to upgrade

1. Make sure your mirror is up-to-date

It is not safe to upgrade any package unless your mirror points to UP6

Here is the current status of the LMDE mirrors:

  • UP6:
    • http://debian.linuxmint.com/
    • http://mirror.rts-informatique.fr/linuxmint/debian/
    • http://debian.lth.se/lmde/
    • http://www.mirrorservice.org/sites/debian.linuxmint.com/debian/
    • http://lmde-mirror.gwendallebihan.net/
    • http://lmde-mirror-fr-1.wedrop.it/
    • http://tux.rainside.sk/mint/debian/
    • http://mirror.internode.on.net/pub/linuxmint-debian/
    • http://mirror.metrocast.net/linuxmint-debian/

To select another mirror:

  • Make sure “mint-debian-mirrors” is installed
  • Open a terminal and run the following command: mint-choose-debian-mirror

2. Check your APT sources

  1. In the Update Manager, click on the “Update Pack Info” button
  2. Make sure “Your system configuration” shows up as green and doesn’t show any warnings or errors.
  3. If you see a warning or an error, follow the instructions given and repeat the process until they’re gone.

3. Read about the Update Pack

In the “Update Pack Info” window of the Update Manager, make sure to read all the information related to Update Pack 6. Some of it might be irrelevant to you, but it will only take you a minute and it might save you hours.

4. Upgrade the packages

When you’re ready and you know all that there is to know, press the “Install Updates” button.

During the update you’ll be asked a few things. One is quite important.. the new kernel will ask you where to install Grub. Answer with the location of your current Grub menu (which on most systems is “/dev/sda“).

FAQ

Will LMDE get new ISO images with Update Pack 6?

Yes, we’re planning to release LMDE Update Pack 6 for the following editions in January 2013:

  • Cinnamon
  • MATE

by ·95 Comments

Introduction

The most significant improvements in Nadia are being backported to Maya.

Among other things, this gives Linux Mint 13 LTS users access to the following packages:

  • MDM 1.0.7
  • Cinnamon 1.6.7 (with Nemo 1.1.2 and Muffin 1.1.2)
  • MATE 1.4

How to

To enable the backports in Linux Mint 13, follow the steps below:

1. Open the “Software Sources” tool from “Menu -> Preferences -> Software Sources”
2. Click on the “Backported packages (backports)” checkbox as illustrated in the picture below

3. Launch the “Update Manager” from “Menu->Administration->Update Manager”
4. Select all level 1 and level 2 updates
5. Click on “Install Updates”

Once you’re finished installing the updates, restart your computer.

Enjoy 😉

FAQ

– Why isn’t this happening automatically via the “main” components of the repositories?

It’s an opt-in. Some people are interested in getting the latest features (and they can follow the easy steps described above). Others prefer not to change what already works. By using the backports component of the repositories, which are disabled by default, people have the choice to upgrade these components or to keep them from being upgraded.

As with every upgrade and new version of software, there is a risk of regression. These upgrades have been thoroughly tested in Nadia and are known to work in Maya, but the decision to stick with the current versions or to upgrade to the newer ones is entirely yours. Note that both versions are available in the Linux Mint 13 repositories (via main and backports) and that although the process is a bit tedious, it is possible to downgrade all or some packages back to their original versions.

– Will these backports also find their way into LMDE?

Yes, they should do so in the coming days. Unlike Linux Mint 13 though, the upgrade in LMDE will be automatic since LMDE isn’t a frozen but a semi-rolling distribution.

by ·341 Comments

The team is proud to announce the release of Linux Mint 14 “Nadia”.

Linux Mint 14 Nadia

For the first time since Linux Mint 11, the development team was able to capitalize on upstream technology which works and fits its goals. After 6 months of incremental development, Linux Mint 14 features an impressive list of improvements, increased stability and a refined desktop experience. We’re very proud of MATE, Cinnamon, MDM and all the components used in this release, and we’re very excited to show you how they all fit together in Linux Mint 14.

New features at a glance:

For a complete overview and to see screenshots of the new features, visit: “What’s new in Linux Mint 14“.

Important info:

  • PAE required for 32-bit ISOs
  • Moonlight
  • mint4win
  • Desktop icons in Cinnamon
  • CD images
  • GnomePPP and local repository

Make sure to read the “Release Notes” to be aware of important info or known issues related to this release.

System requirements:

  • a 32-bit PAE-enabled x86 processor or a 64-bit x86 processor (Linux Mint 64-bit requires a 64-bit processor. Linux Mint 32-bit works on both PAE 32-bit processors and 64-bit processors).
  • 512 MB RAM (1GB recommended for a comfortable usage).
  • 5 GB of disk space
  • Graphics card capable of 800×600 resolution
  • CD/DVD drive or USB port

Upgrade instructions:

  • To upgrade from a previous version of Linux Mint follow these instructions.
  • To upgrade from the RC release, simply apply any level 1 and 2 updates (if any) available in the Update Manager.

Download:

Md5 sum:

  • MATE 32-bit: 9793c1e9c443241d156aace0446894dd
  • MATE 64-bit: 25277a6e655b638ae20e54249a6edf14
  • Cinnamon 32-bit: 2165308eaf7b14ae75369ffaaffafe07
  • Cinnamon 64-bit: 1b103578411b421cc012cddf3253e32c

Torrents:

HTTP Mirrors for the MATE 32-bit DVD ISO:

HTTP Mirrors for the MATE 64-bit DVD ISO:

HTTP Mirrors for the Cinnamon 32-bit DVD ISO:

HTTP Mirrors for the Cinnamon 64-bit DVD ISO:

Alternative downloads:

No-codecs images:

Distributors and magazines in Japan, USA and countries where distributing media codecs is problematic can use the “No Codecs” ISO images. These images are available for both the MATE and Cinnamon editions, in 32-bit and 64-bit at the following address:

http://www.linuxmint.com/release.php?id=19

OEM images:

Manufacturers can pre-install Linux Mint on their computers using the OEM installation images. These images will be made available next week, for both the MATE and Cinnamon edition in 64-bit at the following address:

http://www.linuxmint.com/release.php?id=19

700MB CD images:

Because of the size of the content, and the fact that a vast majority of systems nowadays can either boot from DVDs or from USB, Linux Mint no longer provides images which fit in 700MB CDs. It is however possible and easy to to modify ISO images. By removing packages such as Java, Mono, LibreOffice, Gimp..etc.. Linux Mint ISOs can be made to fit within 700MB. For instructions on how to remaster the Linux Mint ISOs, please read the following tutorial:

http://community.linuxmint.com/tutorial/view/918

Enjoy!

We look forward to receiving your feedback. Thank you for using Linux Mint and have a lot of fun with this new release!