Introduction Thread

Thoughts & Feedback
#1

So, how about a thread for new users to introduce themselves, build a community and get to know each other?

I’m Matt Kelley. By day I’m a mild-mannered operations manager for an electrical supply house in Panama City Beach, FL… All other times I’m a desktop linux user and open-source software enthusiast.

I run linux exclusively on my PC, and have for several years. I have a fondness for MATE and for the Ubuntu base, so seeing them both together is a beautiful thing.

@Wimpy If you’d rather start this thread and take first intro, please do. It’d only be fair with all the work you have put into this. Then I’ll kill this thread and repost in yours :smiley:

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New to Ubuntu Mate 16.04
#2

Why not…

I’m Chris Gardiner-Bill, a technical writer and developer by profession, working for an Australian financial data management company. I also moonlight as a novelist using the pen name, Chris Rosser.

I’ve used Gnu/Linux since 2005 in supporting roles but around the same time I switched to Mac OS X as my daily driver owing to the platform’s popularity in the publishing industry. I always maintained an interest in Linux though, in particular the Ubuntu family. I made the full-time switch to Linux in mid 2014 (for many, many reasons) and at time of writing, all my computers exclusively run Ubuntu Mate.

Ubuntu Mate is my distro of choice across all my computers because it respects the traditional desktop metaphor and it scales very well on the range of hardware I use.

I really enjoy being a member of the Ubuntu Mate community because of its enthusiasm, helpfulness and the lack of vitriol and flames that abound in other communities. I became a patreon because I felt that the project and the community was worthy of support and I’ll also endeavour to contribute with code and writing wherever I can.

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#3

My name is Steve Radonich IV and I’m 23 year old. I live in Akron OH, and work as a machinist at night. Durring the day I advocate FOSS specifically Linux. One of the big reasons why I enjoy Ubuntu MATE is that it feels like home. I use MATE in general because it runs on my Linux and BSD boxes and I love the traditional desktop paradigm.

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#4

Well, I guess it’s my turn. My name is Gerard Aalders and I live in Zaandam, a small town near Amsterdam in the Netherlands. I am a linux enthousiast and I got in contact with Ubuntu Mate (UM) when @wimpy talked about in in the Linux Action Show. I downloaded it and installed it, never looked back.

I was especially surprised when @wimpy added my simple wallpaper to the ISO. Thanks again, Martin.

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#5

Hello, my name is Beda Frey. I’m studying social work in Bern, Switzerland and I’m interested to IT as well, but my level come up to an advanced user. It was a long time my goal to switch from windows to gnu/linux finally. And at the right moment I discovered ubuntu mate. Ubuntu Mate is exactly what I have always imagined under a OS. It is very exciting for me, to be in this project from the beginning. I apologize for my bad english, but I’m going to learn - corrections so are welcome. :wink:

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#6

There’s absolutely no need to apologize for bad English. Hell, I’m American and can barely speak it myself :smiley:

I’ve got great respect for anyone that’s multi-lingual. My brain just doesn’t work that way.

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#7

Agreed, I have a great deal of respect for those of you who are comfortable enough to work in languages other than your native tongue. :smiley:

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#8

My name is Martin. I am a Open Source enthusiast and live in rural England with my wife and daughter. I made Ubuntu MATE :astonished:

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#9

I used to live in Bristol, Somerset, beautiful part of the world.

#10

Eyup folks. Steve Cook here migrating over from the Google group…:slight_smile:

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#11

No community without the standard introduction thread, I guess :smiley:

My name is Matteo. By day, I am (was/will be… it’s complicated, to say the least) a sysadmin for an Italian research institution, focusing on OpenStack operations and R&D. Off-duty, I’m a long-time Linux user and enthusiast.

My first interaction with MATE happened out of frustration with gnome-session-flashback on Ubuntu 14.04 and since then I never looked back. Even though I’m not much active on the development end of things, I tend to contribute small-time fixes to @wimpy’s mate-menu whenever possible.

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#12

Hi everyone, this is Paolo from Rome, Italy, I’m a cinematographer/filmaker and I’m a desktop linux user and open-source software lover since 2006, when I first loved Ubuntu as “Linux for Human Beings”. hehe. After a 4yrs Linux Mint’s experience, I’ve now found a safe harbour installing Ubuntu Mate on our 3 family PCs, and I’m really appreciating his essential simplicity and elegance. I also made a small donation and will hopefully become a (little) patreon.
I’m not a programmer/developer/whatever, just a straight user, but I really believe in free software usable by anyone: I try to support free software in different environments, i.e. I helped to introduce Linux desktops into the school where my wife is working in Rome, and I support friends who wants to switch to GNU-Linux, trying to help them as far as I can. My mother is 81 and happily surf the web and write e-mail on an Ubuntu box :grin: I’ll switch her to Mate soon…
I also ask to pardon my English that cannot be perfect, but I saw this is a openminded and colorful community… I also want to express gratitude to all the people working on Mate, you really are giving us a great experience and I can easily feel your passion behind it. Thank you, happy new year and… good job :wink:

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#13

My name is Michael Tunnell, aka RottNKorpse: producer for the Linux Action Show and Linux Unplugged. I’m from Alabama, USA.

I started with Linux in 1999 on Debian, it was a giant mess so I didn’t stay very long. I came back to Linux as a Dual-Booter in 2005 via Ubuntu and then finally as my permanent daily driver with Ubuntu 8.04.

I no longer use Ubuntu as my primary base but I still respect Ubuntu as a distro and the Ubuntu MATE team. I use Ubuntu MATE on some of my machines, especially the underpowered machines as it allows me to stretch them out and as an added bonus it gives me nostalgia for Ubuntu 8.04-10.10 . . . “the Good 'ol Days”.

I’ve contributed to Ubuntu MATE via the customized iconset for the 14.04 release and I hope to contribute more in the future.

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#14

@MichaelTunnell I was born and raised in Gilbertown, AL.

Not sure where you are, but I still pass through Mobile from time to time, when I go home to see my mom.

Living in PCB, FL is sort of like living in Alabama, but with more old people :smiley:

#15

Cool, I’m from Birmingham . . . about a 4-5 hour drive from Mobile.

#16

Very cool, just 18 hours flying from Amsterdam :slight_smile:

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#17

Ah, very cool. I have been through there a few times.

I’m a motorcycle enthusiast as well, and sometimes take trips up to Barber Motorsports Park, though it’s been a few years since I last made the trek to watch races and hit the museum. That’s a world class facility you guys have yourselves up there.

I also worked for a few years, down here in Panama City Beach, for a company called Lighting and Lamp (dba L&L Electrical Supply) that was based out of Birmingham.

#18

Hey there! I’m Tim Apple. I live in Northern Texas and work for a small IT shop as Project Manger. I’ve been a Linux user since around 1998. With a small stint on a mac in between. Right now I run Ubuntu 14.10 as my daily driver. I just threw Ubuntu Mate in a VM last night. There has been a lot of talk of it so I though I would check it out. So far I really like it. May even consider throwing it on as the Daily. We’ll see how it goes.

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#19

My name is Chris. I am an Operating Room Nurse in a metropolitan hospital. Years ago, I did tech support for Novell, was a CNE, network administrator, and was the de facto MIS manager for two HP3000 shops. I sampled many flavors of Linux including elementaryOS which is so buggy it drove me to UbuntuMATE which is nearly perfect IMHO. I look forward to see what amazing things the developers will come up with…

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#20

Thank goodness I’m not the only one. I found it as buggy as hell too but saying that to the elementaryOS faithful results in something akin to the end of The Wild Bunch.

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