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Your modern Linux desktop is too busy: Why I went back to basics with MATE
Quoting: Why MATE is the best Linux desktop environment for retro computing enthusiasts —
When GNOME decided to radically reinvent the desktop paradigm with GNOME 3 in 2011, the Linux community split. Many people weren’t ready to abandon the menu-and-panel workflow they had mastered over years of use. MATE emerged from that moment as a direct continuation of the GNOME 2 codebase. If you used Ubuntu between 2004 and 2011, firing up MATE today triggers instant recognition—the panels, the menu structure, the applet system—everything works exactly as you remember.
That said, MATE isn’t just inspired by GNOME 2—it literally is GNOME 2, forked and actively maintained. The developers continue to update dependencies, patch security vulnerabilities, and ensure compatibility with modern Linux systems. There’s support for HiDPI scaling on high-resolution displays. The file manager handles modern filesystems and network protocols without issue. Also, at the time of writing, Wayland support is in development, ensuring MATE won’t be left behind as the Linux ecosystem gradually moves away from X11.