I'm bit of a Luddite myself.
My slogan would be:
'Try Ubuntu Mate, it doesn't suck like Windoze or standard Ubuntu. '
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Wooow I really like this one quite a bit!
Also - the term "window-shoppers" is a very nifty term and fits the description so well - I can literally imagine them casually browsing distros like that 
I am glad I made my points in such a way to be interpreted as valid, you have interpreted my thoughts to the T so to speak, thank you for understanding ! You should link it maybe on the "Wishlist" forum so that it gets tracked down maybe, I don't know if it would make it more visible
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Hahaha I am thinking the same thing and feel the same but a part of me wants to keep the idea civil and be a bit more gallant about the phrasing since I believe we don't need to bash others to promote ours
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Actually I meant it as a joke. I was going to put that in there, but figured people would know. No I see Windows users knocking Linux all the time and truthfully don't understand why if they like Windows they read and comment on Linux. Since leaving Windows I have never went on a Windows site and disparaged Windows.
As for Ubuntu it is the core of Ubuntu Mate, it is gnome 3 I am not found of as a desktop.
I just don't care. I also always say use what you like and what works for you.
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Interesting discussion! I wonder if the mods might want to move the "catch phrase" discussion as it's quite far from what the OP was asking.
Ubuntu MATE has a prominent phrase on it's website:
"For a retrospective future"
And it has a good description in the "In a nutshell..." paragraph. Together it's saying we can combine the best of the old and new, i.e. have a traditional and intuitive desktop (which are the adjectives MATE website) while still having updated features and modern hardware support - which is a focus of Ubuntu (from Ubuntu desktop's website: "The secure, modern operating system used by millions")
As for how to sum that up and how that could aid promotion amongst potential users and developers - I'm not even close to an expert!
The tapering of development is tricky. I'm looking from the outside, so I could be completely wrong but...
... Wayland looks like it has probably consumed a lot of oxygen (see the roadmap). There's some progress on migrating to a new build system. Maybe this unlocks something in the future, but for now, it's totally invisible to the user.
There's not that many developers out there that are going to be strong enough with, say, glib, and the surrounding components of a desktop; so if these technical transitions are taking up resources, there's just not going to be much movement elsewhere that a user will see (e.g. bug fixes, updating features, etc).
I don't know if end-users can do much; it's really up to those developers to strengthen and encourage collaborators - and hopefully start to deliver more user-visible updates to (Ubuntu) MATE.
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Yeah Wayland is something that really takes up a lot of time and space in the discussions I hear and also seems to me to be the only critique of MATE as a DE on youtube I could find - I like to watch some DE comparisons and I get surprised by how many times MATE just isn't even mentioned and a bit sad since I think that it gets overlooked by people and also a little side-note it seems that most of Wayland support testing is finished but Meson support is still ongoing based off of information provided here: Wayland and Meson | MATEwiki - and that is truly excellent news!
I am no media nor advertisement expert but I don't need to be to see that there is something missing to put a clearer emphasis on how different Ubuntu MATE is compared to base Ubuntu or Ubuntu Cinnamon for example and that is something that maybe shouldn't be overlooked coming from the outside perspective
Also a thing to consider as well and that I see mentioned from time to time is that Caja is a superior file manager to Nautilus and that should be a little bit more accentuated in my humble opinion as it something often considered when MATE comes to mind but makes a big difference in swaying some potential users down the line and it also supports the idea of "no-nonsense" OS Ubuntu MATE is in general
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One of the problems Ubuntu Mate has is how much attention Mint gets for 'new users' which also offers the Mate desktop along with Cinnamon and Xfce. Having used both there isn't a lot of difference the user will see, most difference is 'under the hood".
Having used both extensively I still choose Ubuntu Mate. Ayatana indicators all work, and Ubuntu Mate has a much superior forum. So many beginner questions go unanswered and the forum is so large much gets lost.
It is currently Tue May 20, 2025 5:33 am
It is why you see so many Mate users from other OS's or even users of other OS's come here to ask questions. I don't see Mint as very helpful to a new user. Everyone's question get answered here. Maybe it doesn't always get solved but the person always get help.
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Yes exactly and I completely agree on Mint not being so good for a total beginner since the lack of help they provide on their official site and also on their official reddit domain as well - too many unanswered questions and some that only have one snarky reply that doesn't help but push away people
And about Mint MATE - I used it for years and now being on Ubuntu for almost a year I cannot think of anything it had better aside form Timeshift app being pre-installed - other than that Ayatana as you've mentioned sometimes didn't even work and at one time when I was on version 19.3 I couldn't even get my indicators for caps/num/scroll lock to work for some strange reason which was quite annoying since my laptop doesn't have any light indicator if the keys work or not
I think that this forum just works better for user experience since it has an "airy" feel to it - what I mean by that is that nothing seems like a clutter and seeing posts and reading through them feels like a breeze as opposed to Mint forums that seem to be too cluttered but in the same time the size of the letters is too small so I always had to zoom-in - the colour palette is the same but somehow this forum is built with more care for the end-user in mind which cannot be stated enough
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The one thing I saw in Mint that might appeal to more advanced users that always want the latest and greatest kernel was their hassle free kernel update in the update manager. I never used it as though I am a long time user but I am not a very advanced user. I prefer to always wait for the OS to update the kernel.
Years ago I got in some trouble updating to a different kernel with an independent software kernel chooser, never again after that my system never automatically installed the new kernel again. The choices were so many I had no idea what to install. Eventually I had to reinstall.
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Stephen, regarding the byline
I have always hated that. In my mind, the "retrospective" over-emphasizes the aspect of looking backward, when everyone knows that looking forward is the only true path to "Zen"! That is why my byline emphasized the "robustness" and "reliability" of the tech foundation.
If UbuntuMATE gives you those, there is nothing retrospective about the tech, it is unquestionably future-worthy!
At least, that is my very strong opinion (no need to be humble about it)! 
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Has anyone done a side-by-side comparison of the two and published the results to encourage people to "come do so window-shopping"?
We all know that when we do window-shopping, we always seem to notice something else, unexpectedly catching our interest, (heh! heh!).
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Well there isn't exactly many comparisons between Caja and Nautilus that correctly point out the differences - the best I could find was this video:
(Note that the microphone is on the louder end of the spectrum so if you listen with headphones be aware to tune it down a bit before you proceed - in comments section the author also states that she prefers the Caja based on the comparison so there is that)
Also - there is this site that does comparisons: https://www.slant.co/versus/7572/7573/~caja_vs_gnome-files-nautilus
Sadly I couldn't find exact list but I know that Caja can: Dual-Pane View; Tree View; "Open as Administrator" and many more for which I think you need to install extensions to get it going in Nautilus: https://www.reddit.com/r/linuxquestions/comments/12lo0p0/where_did_this_nautilus_feature_disappear_to/
This link provided the most info about lost features aside from the linked video since the video is a bit more detailed/critical especially from minute 28 circa
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4 posts were split to a new topic: Ubuntu MATE ou Ubuntu?
I would give you an answer if possible, but since you have neglected to define ābetterā, your question is not actually answerable.
What is better, concrete or Elmerās glue? It all depends on what you are building.
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More accurate than ā Which is Betterā is āWhatās the reason I use Ubuntu Mate 24.04.3ā; my most common imaging use is to bring back to life Senior Citizens (and some not quite senior but physical challenges) broken/obsolete/dead WindoZs Computers in our Local Nursing Home. The vast majority of the long term residents have no money, canāt afford a new laptop (nor repair/install), and Windows 11 wont run on their current laptops even if they could afford it.
Most of these folks use only a Browser to keep up with family (Facebook, Email, X, etc) so really donāt notice the OS is Linux. Most of the computers I image are old or VERY old.
I offer to āfryā their computer (wipe out all traces of MS WindoZe) and state Iāll ātry toā put another OS (linux) on it so they can surf the net; and they always say āyesā. I donāt offer to back up files but will if I find them - telling them only after rescue. So far over the last decade plus Iāve been successful on all.
WHY DO I USE MATE? All the following is obviously my opinion:
First: I find setup on many/most old computer effortless with Mate (I know - opinion, but Iām the lazy guy doing the work and want as little time investment as required to do a good job for these great folks).
Second: Ease of the Seniorās Use after I setup. I make Google their browsers home page if they donāt have a āhomeā. They tend not to even realize (or care) they're no longer on Windows.
Third: I use Ubuntu Mate because I find that after I give a Senior Their computer back they immediately recognize it responds and boots faster.
THATās my majority of reasons for using Mate for MOST computer I image.
BTW, Iām a senior - most of the āold folksā I assist are younger than me; I am MIGHTILY BLESSED.
How about you? What do you LIKE about Mate?
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This is an Ubuntu Mate forum. The answer should be obvious, Ubuntu Mate is Better!!!
It also has the better forum, as the members are willing to debate the two, and not just brag up what they use and trash the other OS. Choose wisely.
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May you be blessed for the work you do, which is truly the spirit of ubuntu:
"the belief in a universal bond of sharing that connects all humanity" (Wikipedia)
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