Tux Machines

Review: MX Linux 23

Posted by Rianne Schestowitz on Aug 14, 2023

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MX Linux does a great job of presenting the user with all the benefits of Debian's Stable branch (long-term support, stable packages, large repositories of software, and great hardware support) while improving on the experience. On top of Debian's solid base, MX has added a faster, more user friendly system installer, enough applications to cover a wide range of use cases without overly crowding the application menu, and provided lots of friendly tools and documentation.

Not many Linux distributions provide great documentation and fewer include their documentation on the install media. This alone makes MX Linux stand out. The MX Tools though are what really make this distribution shine. There is a lot of useful functionality packed into the MX Tools collection, particularly the custom package installer which works across multiple repositories (including backports) and portable packages (Flatpaks).

Not only did MX Linux work well with my hardware, it worked quickly, was stable, and I can't think of a single time I saw an error message during my trial. A lot of this smooth running was probably a credit to MX's parent, Debian, but MX also ships with a lot of custom tools and they all worked well for me too.

Some people might find the vertical desktop panel unusual. Personally, I like it as it reduces my mouse movement, especially if I switch window buttons to the left side of the windows. People who don't like the panel placement can move it to a more conventional horizontal orientation with a couple of mouse clicks.

I'm of the opinion MX Linux is one of the most capable, friendly, reliable desktop distributions currently available. It runs on a wide range of hardware, from older computers to more modern machines. It offers an experience which improves from its parent on multiple fronts without introducing any problems. Some of the tools and the installer might be a little overwhelming for a complete Linux newcomer, I'm not sure I'd say MX Linux is an ideal first distribution. However, I would recommend it for most people for just about any desktop experience.

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