Welcome to an ongoing series here at Forbes that zeroes in on your very first experience with a desktop Linux operating system: the installer. This time around I’m checking out a distribution my community describes as “Debian done right.” And while not an accurate gauge of popularity, it’s consistently at the #1 spot on Distrowatch. I’m talking of course about MX Linux! So far, it’s making a quality first impression.
“But You’re A Noob” (The Template Intro And Disclaimer)
I’ve been using Linux for just over a year now, and don’t remotely consider myself an experienced expert. I may not seem like the ideal candidate to critically evaluate a Linux desktop OS installer. Then again, since beginning my regular Linux coverage I’ve been focused on relating to fellow beginners or people interested in making the jump from either Windows or macOS. And the first point of contact with any Linux distribution (beyond the website) is normally the installer. It’s where you start to fall in love or begin to pull your hair out in frustration.
Linux installers can be many things. Streamlined, elegant affairs taking mere minutes until you’re up and running. They can be satisfying challenges. In some cases they can be complete deal breakers based on your skill level. They are the doorway to what could be your next daily driver, or the on-ramp to a continuing search.
So in these reviews I’ll show you every single step the installer guides you through, and point out the thoughtful touches that make the experience better than most. Or the potential barriers that could stop you in your tracks.
Previous Installments:
- A Linux Noob Reviews The Pop!_OS Installer
- A Linux Noob Reviews The Deepin 15.8 Installer
- A Linux Noob Reviews The OpenSUSE Leap Installer
What Is MX Linux?
MX Linux is self-described as a “midweight” (it uses the lean Xfce desktop environment) OS that’s a cooperative venture between the antiX and former MEPIS communities. It’s also focused on stability, ease-of-use and touts excellent hardware recognition and a visually appealing out-of-box experience. It also contains a nice collection of tools to easily install Nvidia drivers and multimedia codecs, or customize a range of stuff like your grub (boot) menu and desktop theme.
It ships with a healthy but not bloated amount of pre-installed software including LibreOffice, VLC, Thunderbird and Firefox.
And it’s not leaving 32-bit users behind any time soon.
MX Linux 18.3: The Crucial Details
- Website: mxlinux.org
- Based on: Debian Stable 9.6 (the upcoming MX Linux 19 is based on Debian 10 and available for beta testing)
- Desktop Environment: Xfce
- Kernel: 4.19
- ISO Size: 1.5 GB
- Install speed: Fast
- Experience Level: Novice
The MX Linux 18.3 Installation Experience
It may not be as elegant or as flashy compared to the installers used by Deepin or Pop!_OS, but MX Linux makes things straightforward and inserts help text during each step.
The first two steps ask you to select your keyboard layout and then choose a target disk for installation. If you like pressing the easy button, MX Linux can automatically format and partition an entire disk for you. Alternately, you can hit the “Partition” option and use the fantastic GParted tool before proceeding.
(I tried various automatic and manual partitioning schemes on external and virtual machine drives and didn’t face any obstacles or weirdness.)
The next step is where I started warming up to this distribution.
The MX Linux installer tosses in a welcome surprise almost immediately which screams “hey, we respect your time.” Right after you’ve selected your target disk for installation, MX Linux is off and running, partitioning your disk and copying system files over. In fact, before I was finished taking screenshots of the next 3 steps (choosing where to install a bootloader, entering my computer name/domain and my user account information), the installer had paused and was patiently awaiting my input to proceed!
On the next screen you can enter your computer’s name, an optional domain and choose whether or not to install Samba for networking with Windows machines.
After that, you can set your region and language settings.
Welcome surprise #2 enters the picture here, as this screen also allows you to (optionally) deselect system services. Don’t need Bluetooth or printing support, for example? Don’t install ‘em!
Finally, the last step of the MX Linux installer has you choosing your user name, administrator password, and whether or not to login automatically. But do you notice the option at the bottom?
Another welcome feature: MX Linux expands the concept of a “persistent” Live USB by carrying over the changes you make before you even launch the installer onto the final installation. This is really handy if you change your keyboard layout, for example. It just reduces the number of tweaks you have to make again once you reach that first boot.
Speaking of persistence, there’s a robust tool within MX Linux that lets you easily create a Live USB you can carry from PC to PC, effectively giving you a portable operating system that doesn’t “reset” each time you use it. This comes with a wealth of standard and advanced options. You can dictate how much of the USB stick to use, change the size of the UEFI partition, disable automounting, and a number of other tweaks. If you have a second USB port available, you can even clone the existing Live USB environment you’re using.
Finally, I want to call out yet another pleasant surprise. During one installation, I chose Croatia as my region. When I booted into my freshly installed system, MX Linux asked me if I’d like to rename a variety of system folders using Croatian instead of English. The takeaway here is that it asked me, which I appreciate!
Final Thoughts
Overall, installing MX Linux is a piece of cake whether you’re doing it on a virtual machine or bare metal. And it’s one of the fastest installers I’ve used.
If I have one complaint, it’s simply that the installer itself looks dated. Dull grey color schemes feel like they’re from a different era. On the bright side, the contextual help text ensures that even new users won’t be left in the dark.
Also, MX Linux has made some refreshing tweaks to the default Xfce desktop environment, making it look more modern out of the gate.
This is actually my first brush with Debian in general, and I’m liking the out-of-box Xfce appearance. Beyond that, MX Linux looks to have a wonderful, centrally-located set of tools and tweaks that I find valuable. I also have no doubt it will feel snappy thanks to Xfce. So, I think my next step will be jumping aboard the MX Linux 19 Beta train and taking it for a proper test drive. Who’s with me?
Do you love Linux and the community creating it? Check out my new podcast Linux For Everyone!
