The Linux Mint team has outlined their plans for the next version of Linux Mint Debian Edition (LMDE), as well as shed light on their Wayland and Ubuntu plans.

Linux Mint is one of the most popular Linux desktop distros and WPN’s top recommendation for businesses and individuals looking to make the switch from Windows or macOS. The distro’s main edition is based on Ubuntu LTS releases, but the project has maintained a Debian-based edition as a fallback plan if basing off of Ubuntu ever becomes u# Linux Mint Team Outlines Plan for LMDE 6, Wayland, and Ubuntu

The Linux Mint team have outlined their plans the next version of Linux Mint Debian Edition (LMDE), as well as shed light on their Wayland and Ubuntu plans.

Linux Mint is one of the most popular Linux desktop distros, and WPN’s top recommendation for businesses and individuals looking to make the switch from Windows or macOS. The distro’s main edition is based on Ubuntu LTS releases, but the project has maintained a Debian based edition as a fallback plan if basing off of Ubuntu ever becomes untenable.

In a blog post, project lead Clément (Clem) Lefèbvre outlines the company’s plan for LMDE 6:

Work started on LMDE 6. The upcoming version of our Debian-based distribution will be codenamed “Faye.” It will come with all the features and changes introduced in Linux Mint 21.2. There is no ETA for its release. Once everything is ready we’ll take the opportunity to work on additional features and see how much we want to further reduce the gap in functionality between Linux Mint and LMDE.

Clem says the team will begin investigating a potential switch to Wayland:

We also want to spend time on studying the pros and cons of Wayland and to assess the work needed in its potential adoption.

Wayland is a window display protocol and successor to X11. Currently, only Gnome and KDE offer full Wayland support. While the protocol does offer some advantages over X11, it also has a number of rough edges that can interfere with some workflows. As a result, the Linux Mint team has been taking a cautious approach to Wayland, but it’s good to see progress in that direction.

Given some of Ubuntu’s controversial choices over the last couple of years, there has been a vocal minority pushing for the Linux Mint team to make LMDE the flagship edition.

Clem also acknowledged the fact that Ubuntu continues to make controversial decisions and says the team will look at the next Ubuntu LTS release to evaluate its suitability for Linux Mint 22 and beyond:

Last but not least we’re keeping an eye on Ubuntu, their increased focus on Snap, the quality of their 24.04 package base and what this means for us going forward.

Linux Mint has a well-earned reputation as one of those distros that “just works.” Much of that can be credited to Clem and the team’s steady guidance and measured decision-making. It’s good to see that measured approach is continuing.ntenable.

In a blog post, project lead Clément (Clem) Lefèbvre outlines the company’s plan for LMDE 6:

Work started on LMDE 6. The upcoming version of our Debian-based distribution will be codenamed “Faye”. It will come with all the features and changes introduced in Linux Mint 21.2. There is no ETA for its release. Once everything is ready we’ll take the opportunity to work on additional features and see how much we want to further reduce the gap in functionality between Linux Mint and LMDE.

Clem says the team will begin investigating a potential switch to Wayland:

We also want to spend time on studying the pros and cons of Wayland and to assess the work needed in its potential adoption.

Wayland is a window display protocol and successor to X11. Currently, only Gnome and KDE offer full Wayland support. While the protocol does offer some advantages over X11, it also has a number of rough edges that can interfere with some workflows. As a result, the Linux Mint team have been taking a cautious approach to Wayland, but it’s good to see progress in that direction.

Given some of Ubuntu’s controversial choices over the last couple of years, there has been a vocal minority pushing for the Linux Mint team to make LMDE the flagship edition.

Clem also acknowledged the fact that Ubuntu continues to make controversial decisions, and says the team will look at the next Ubuntu LTS release to evaluate its suitability for Linux Mint 22 and beyond:

Last but not least we’re keeping an eye on Ubuntu, their increased focus on Snap, the quality of their 24.04 package base and what this means for us going forward.

Linux Mint has a well-earned reputation as one of those distros that “just works.” Much of that can be credited to Clem and the team’s steady guidance and measured decision-making. It’s good to see the measured approach is continuing.

Clem himself emphasized this in his closing statement of the blog:

Don’t panic, don’t lobby for rushed decisions based on fears or passion, we know who we are and we know what we’re doing.