On the DVD

Fedora 24 Workstation (64-bit)

Fedora is a Red Hat sponsored Linux with a global community of users and developers. The default desktop is Gnome, which has been updated to v3.20. Desktop users will notice better integration of Qt applications and upgrades to Firefox 45, LibreOffice v5.1, and NetworkManager 1.2. Thunderbird now includes the Lightning calendar and scheduling extension by default. Developers will be interested in upgrades to Python 3.5, Mono 4.2, Ruby 2.3, glibc 2.23, and GCC 6. Fedora 24 has two new applications for the BBC micro:bit: Mu, a Python editor for writing code, and uFlash (micro flash), a utility that flashes programs onto the device.

Linux Mint 18 Cinnamon (32-bit)

This long-term support release (until 2021) with Cinnamon v3.0 is named "Sarah." The main window and Preferences window now use stack widgets and subtle animations, with better support for alternative themes. Update Manager also received a number of improvements, both visual and under the hood, and update policy concepts of regressions, stability, and security are explained. The X-Apps project properly integrates a number of Gnome applications for the Gtk desktop environment, providing the same set of core applications across desktops.