Linux Mint Debian Edition (LMDE) 5 'Elsie' BETA now available for download

Debian is a great Linux distribution in its own right, but also, it serves as a base for many other operating systems. For instance, two of the best Linux distros, Ubuntu and deepin, are based on Debian.

Linux Mint is a popular operating system based on Ubuntu, but did you know there is actually a lesser-known variant of the operating system based on Debian? It's true! The unimaginatively named "Linux Mint Debian Edition" (aka LMDE) cuts out the Ubuntu middleman and is based on Debian directly.

ALSO READ: Linux Mint Debian Edition (LMDE) 4 ditches Mozilla Firefox ESR web browser

Why do we need two versions of Linux Mint? Well, you can think of LMDE as sort of a contingency plan -- it primarily exists in case Ubuntu ever goes away. Consider it a back-up base, if you will. With that said, some people actually prefer LMDE, and they use it regularly instead of vanilla Mint.

Today, LMDE 5 Beta sees release. This operating system is named "Elsie," because E is the fifth letter in the alphabet, and the developers always use female names. LMDE 5 is based on Debian Bullseye, comes with Linux kernel 5.10, and uses the superb Cinnamon 5.2 desktop environment.

The release notes for Linux Mint Debian Edition 5 "Elsie" are rather sparse, but you can read them here. There isn't much to get excited about -- the notes are largely a listing of known issues. If you are interested in testing LMDE 5 -- and experience bugs -- you can download it here now. There are both 32-bit and 64-bit ISOs available.