

if your existing systems runs to your satisfaction then continue to use it and wait for the 1.2 patch that will back port some of these changes.

There is also some major changes in this release, some changes will be back ported to 1.1, some won’t. There are many little changes throughout the system to just give it a smoother and more refined feel. MakuluLinux Cinnamon 2.0 (MCDE) is a continuation of the first release, 2.0 focus on updating, polishing, refining and fixing issues reported in the previous release. You can get more information from the MakuluLinux site: Makulu is, in my opinion, worth trying just because it is marching to the beat of its own drum and doing a pretty good job of being a general purpose desktop operating system too. I am a little surprised a 64-bit build is not available, but for now a 32-bit build with PAE will probably suit the needs of most people. It is a platform that is both fairly stable (thanks to its Debian base) and experimental. It is a distribution which bucks current trends in visual themes, in default applications and in focus. Makulu is, in my opinion, an unusual creation. It is a philosophy that may disappoint proponents of free software, but I have to admit it seems a practical path, one which is likely to attract people transitioning from Windows to Linux.

I suppose what really stands out about Makulu is it is an open source operating system that does not shy away from including proprietary applications when the developers feel those are the right tools for the job. The theme, with its focus on rich, 3-D icons, is also strange, but a welcome breath of fresh air when compared against the stark utility of GNOME or the flat, washed out look of recent KDE releases. Likewise, the focus on gaming (providing Steam and PlayOnLinux) is an interesting choice. It's not a bad choice necessarily, just uncommon. For example, offering us WPS over LibreOffice is an unusual choice for an open source operating system. I was a little surprised at some of the choices offered. Plus users have access to a huge supply of software in the Debian repositories.

Multimedia is well supported and the operating system (when run on a physical machine) performed well. Users are given a modern, feature rich desktop (Cinnamon), a lot of useful software, including VLC, the WPS suite, a rich settings panel and easy to use backup utility. I think it is easy to get excited about Makulu as the distribution offers a lot.
