In fact, I've been testing all kinds of distributions since the release of UM 24.04, but it's the constant I'm looking for, and that makes it difficult. If a distribution changes its mind out of the blue and decides to be Gnome that's a no-go. There are rarely nice looking distributions out there not to mention if they have what I need to work with.
I think have been using Linux now since 2009. I started with Ubuntu. After 10.03 came Gnome 3, which I donât like at all. Eventually, I switched to Mint Mate, which I am still using. And I canât help but noticing a steady decline in its quality. There are always rather annoying bugs, some reappearing every now and then, like Xviewer (fork of Eye of Gnome) not interpolating images when zooming in or out.
And then there is â in my eyes â a problem with the developersâ mindset. Example: Progress concerning the toolbar? ¡ Issue #466 ¡ linuxmint/xreader ¡ GitHub
Regarding this missing feature from Gnome 2 they remain silent (supposing they understand it by now): Open folder in new window from browser window in spatial mode doesnât work ¡ Issue #601 ¡ mate-desktop/caja ¡ GitHub
There is a very mysterious bug: Applet icons sometimes appearing in double (sorry, new users can only post two links; see âŚ/mate-desktop/mate-panel/issues/1424 on github.***/âŚ) âThis is another very old mate-panel issue inherited from GNOME 2. Nobody has ever found the cause of it.â I never had that bug before I reported it, not even under Gnome 2.
Under Mint 19 there was a bug that often caused a windowâs title bar to suddenly have a random offset to the right relativ to the mouse pointer, when dragging the window from the right to the left monitor. Difficult to describe. A very annoying bug.
For me, one reason for using Linux instead of Windows is the quality. It is getting harder and harder to see that advantage with Mate. Mate could and should be much better than it is. I donât know if there arenât enough developers, but some things like not offering options in toolbars, just because why not, canât really be about that. With Gnome 2 there is missing one very important and very big piece of desktop environment culture, and Mate isnât really filling that gap, sadly.
There are indeed not enough developers.
Besides that:
Ubuntu-MATE does not develop the MATE-Desktop.
It only integrates the MATE-Desktop in the Ubuntu Distribution.
Below is the link to the place where the MATE-Desktop is developed and also the only place to do feature requests that are MATE-Desktop specific:
You can help the developers there
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Hello Newhere
You might want to try MX Linux [https://mxlinux.org/], supported by the videos here [https://www.youtube.com/@runwiththedolphin/videos].
Also, if you just look at the MX Linux specific videos on this channel [https://www.youtube.com/@linuxforseniors/videos] you will find many useful tips.
A tip of my own - the program "Catfish" is a very useful way to find files on you system if you are not sure if or where you have a file (any kind of file) on your system.
I have changed to MX Linux (Xfce) as my usual distribution. My requirements and preferences are not necessarily yours.
Wimpy has devoted much of his private time to get Ubuntu-Mate to the position it is in today. However, my understanding is that (understandably) he has other matters on which he chooses to focus these days. That's normal. We all change, circumstances change. Thank you to Wimpy and all those who have in any way contributed to Ubuntu-Mate along the way. 
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I have to say that I tried different distros in the last days to see how they work and with the official release of LM22, I'm not better off but even worse.
At least, I got my most used programs installed in UM24.04.
I noticed that the games have been removed. I must be the only one who still loves to play Aisleriot and Mahjongg.
I will ask the Help section how to get PulseAudio replaced.
Summery: UM24.04 is still better and almost the same compare to how other distributions have changed or are not workable. Better walking with one leg, then no legs at all 
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I have no knowledge if MX Linux, so after reading your post, I clicked the link to learn a little bit. I see that MX Linux does not have a MATE spin. I'm wondering why you recommended it on a post devoted to MATE?
I first learned about MATE on Linux Mint and liked the simple, familiar desktop. When Ubuntu developed their own MATE spin, I adopted that as my full time Linux system.
I don't perceive that MATE is stagnating. Rather, MATE was designed to carry on the familiar GNOME 2 desktop. Since that desktop stopped evolving when GNOME 2 itself was superceded, I'm not expecting to see major changes in MATE. Really, that is one of its major features.
Now, that doesn't mean that development on MATE completely stops. And it hasn't. Work is underway to get MATE working on Wayland. But as far as MATE completely changing the way the desktop looks or works, I don't anticipate that ever happening. To me, that's a good thing, and the main reason I've selected it as my desktop of choice.
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guyr,
I completely agree. Work will continue on MATE to keep the infrastructure technology up to date and what have you, but if I wanted a fresh, new, exciting, paradigm-busting desktop there are plenty to choose from. I use MATE because it is the way it is, and I would be saddened if they felt some need to 'modernize' it.
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I have no mission to convince anyone to use any particular desktop; one of the benefits of Linux is the wide variety of choice, so everyone can pick what works best for themselves. I've standardized on MATE for myself because I like the simplicity and ease of use.
I'm curious what you mean by your quote above. If you like MATE and would prefer to stick with it, I've upgraded to 24.04 in a VM, and I see nothing different there on the desktop. Before I upgrade all my other (boot) systems to 24.04, I'm following the recommendation to wait for the point-1 release this fall. If you want to identify what caused "all this Gnome 3 stuff", I'm willing to assist if I can.
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I am as adamant as @david_barker that the two-panel configuration (one top, one bottom) is the reason I am with UbuntuMATE now since it emerged from the MetaCity split from Gnome.
I'm with @guiverc in term of how I migrate from release to release.
Having said that, and seen all that the above, along with @Bernie, @Entomologo, @bornagainpenguin, @ironfoot, @tkn, @guyr, @Newhere, have each said, I have to ask myself:
Have any visionaries considered merging the teams from each of Mint and UbuntuMATE to build a stronger, more capable team that could still offer a unified, dual-DM offering and come out the better for it?
Maybe I just don't know enough to know better than to ask that question.
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Ubuntu MATE is an official flavor of Ubuntu which means all code needs to be done in Ubuntu repositories, with [official] builds done on launchpad by Ubuntu infrastructure.
People are welcome to work in many teams; I see myself here as a Ubuntu person (more than a Ubuntu MATE person), but I've a number of hats which include other flavors too; plus other Ubuntu teams.
There are of course benefits to being a Ubuntu MATE official flavor, as Martin Wimpress [@Wimpy] has blogged/talked about when Ubuntu-MATE reached official status (if you can't recall this; I'll provide Ubuntu MATE Remix is seeking official flavor status as a date to one part of the process) though I probably recall most from interviews on Ubuntu Podcasts (before he joined that team) & elsewhere; but Linux Mint devs may still not want that, as all Ubuntu flavors need to remain in sync etc; as flavors are part of the larger Ubuntu family.
When working on the MATE desktop, work is done upstream of the Ubuntu-MATE project though, and Ubuntu-MATE/Ubuntu (or Linux Mint) isn't involved anyway; the work being done by MATE Desktop contributors.
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Thanks, @guiverc, for emphasizing this. Ubuntu, Mint and any other distro that provides the MATE desktop, are distributors of it, and not the authors. See the post above by @tkn for a link to the actual development location if anyone wants to discuss with the developers or contribute.
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Let me say that the LM22Beta was like UM24.04 and had the same Brisk menu, App Store etc. I didn't know that they are going to release the official version the very next day. That's why I said, I would continue with UM24.04 next year.
I downloaded the official LM22 Mate over the weekend and I was really surprised to see that they had kept the Mate menu. How they do it, I don't care.
I tried Ubuntu 24.04, too. Honestly, it took me two days to find out that the Power off button is now the Battery icon. That is NOT a simple design flaw. That was done with purpose, and you can't even change these menus.
I wasn't able to run my favourite browser and I couldn't install so many programs because the Ubuntu team had decided that it's too dangerous for me.
On the other side, these guys who made the Brisk menu strongly believe that everybody only switched to Linux because they loved Windows 7.
Windows 7 was a total rubbish system and ugly on top of it.
This took me no more than 5 minutes: I installed the Arc theme, downloaded my icons, my favourite browser and arranged it as it should be.
LM22 will be my next version in April 2025. And I will have support until 2029, which means hopefully less danger from getting that Brisk menu. The only issue I found was that Rhythmbox crashes the system in Virtualbox. I hope that will change until next year.
I am not sure what you mean about the 'danger' of being stuck with Brisk menu and all the rest. I myself am no fan of the Brisk menu, and the first thing I do on any MATE distro that defaults to it is remove it and replace it with Classic Menu. This is as easy and straightforward on UM 24.04 as it has ever been. I am really not understanding your issue here.
I'm not interested in Classic Menu, doesn't fit my purpose. It's the same with Finder Menu in macOS.
If you test several distributions, you will find out they all switched to Brisk Menu more or less.
Hello @Newhere,
I read the postings a few times, and I am still not clear on which is your stance regarding Brisk:
You want it?
You don't want it?
You mentioned that "most" distros you looked at seem to have adopted that, but you don't say that it is what you want!
And if you don't want it, what "menu/utility" are you looking for?
@ericmarceau No, I do not want to have that Brisk Menu.
- It is ugly, someone tried to copy the layout from Windows 7
- The "Favourites" are a joke because you can't go straight diagonal directly from the Menu to a program
- it has got a habit of crashing.
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Ubuntu Mate offer three menus, Brisk, Compact and Classic. As far as I know that is two more options than MS or Apple.
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I don't need macOS or Windows, I've got now with LinuxMint what I want: the Mate menu.
Which is the classic menu, which is easily available on UM.
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