Why my favorite Linux distro is slowing down - and I'm thrilled about it

Linux Mint plans to slow its release cadence while continuing to support X11 alongside experimental Wayland, including a rewritten Cinnamon screensaver for full Wayland compatibility; the next release is expected shortly after Ubuntu 26.04. The project is centralizing user management with a new Administration Tool (mintsysadm) that enables features like post-install home directory encryption and improved avatar handling, and it reports record community donations that fund its independent direction. Mint also upgraded forum infrastructure to counter heavy AI-bot traffic, reflecting its user-first, conservative approach to changes and technology adoption.