MATE

MATE is a classic, lightweight desktop environment that continues the GNOME 2 legacy. It offers a traditional and intuitive interface while providing modern functionality and performance.

MATE Alternatives Visit Website

License: Open Source

Categories:

Desktop Environment Operating System Component

Available for:

Linux BSD

About MATE

MATE is a fork of the now-discontinued GNOME 2 desktop environment, aiming to preserve its classic and familiar interface while integrating modern technologies and features. It provides a complete desktop experience for Linux and other Unix-like operating systems, offering a robust and stable environment for daily use.

Key aspects of the MATE desktop include:

Traditional Interface: MATE recreates the look and feel of GNOME 2, with a two-panel layout (top and bottom) providing quick access to applications, system status, and notifications. This design is comfortable and familiar to long-time Linux users.
Lightweight Performance: One of MATE's strengths is its efficiency. It is designed to be resource-friendly, making it an excellent choice for older hardware or systems where performance is critical.
Modular Architecture: MATE is built on a modular system, allowing users to customize and extend its functionality. Individual components can be replaced or enhanced to suit specific needs.
Extensibility: The desktop environment supports various extensions and plugins that can add new features, modify behavior, or enhance the visual appearance.
Included Applications: MATE comes with a suite of core applications, such as a file manager (Caja), text editor (Pluma), PDF viewer (Atril), and image viewer (Eye of MATE), providing essential tools out-of-the-box.
Active Development: Despite being a fork of an older code base, MATE is actively maintained and developed, ensuring compatibility with modern libraries and addressing security vulnerabilities.

MATE is a popular choice for users who prefer a straightforward and efficient desktop environment without the visual complexity or resource demands of some modern alternatives. Its focus on usability and performance makes it suitable for a wide range of systems and user preferences.

Pros & Cons

Pros

Highly lightweight and performs well on older hardware.
Offers a traditional and familiar user interface (GNOME 2).
Stable and reliable.
Active development and supportive community.
Includes a set of essential core applications.
Customizable layout and functionality.

Cons

Visuals may appear dated compared to modern desktop environments.
Extension ecosystem is less extensive than some popular alternatives.
May require some user effort to customize initially.
Requires familiarity with the Unix-like operating system it runs on.

What Makes MATE Stand Out

Resurrection of GNOME 2

Provides a familiar and beloved user experience for those who preferred the classic GNOME 2 interface.

Resource Efficiency

One of the most lightweight and performant desktop environments available, ideal for resource-constrained systems.

Stability and Reliability

Benefits from the well-tested GNOME 2 codebase, leading to a stable and reliable desktop experience.

What can MATE do?

Extensible By Plugins/extensions

A vast library of add-ons allows users to enhance functionality, block ads, improve productivity, an...

Customizable

Customize the user interface, toolbars, and shortcuts to match personal preferences.

Lightweight

Designed to consume minimal system resources, making it fast and efficient on various computer confi...

Modular System

Built on a modular architecture with themes and plugins allowing for flexible expansion and modifica...

Optimal Performance

Engineered for fast loading and rendering of PDF documents, even large and complex ones.

Desktop Environment

Provides a complete graphical interface for interacting with the operating system, including a deskt...

Review

MATE Desktop Environment Review

The MATE Desktop Environment stands out as a notable fork of the classic GNOME 2, aiming to continue its legacy in a modern context. For users who value a traditional desktop layout, efficiency, and stability, MATE presents a compelling option. This review examines its key aspects, performance, usability, and overall effectiveness.

Usability and Interface

One of MATE's immediate strengths is its adherence to the familiar GNOME 2 interface. The two-panel system—a top panel for applications, places, and system controls, and a bottom panel for the window list and workspace switcher—provides an instantly recognizable and intuitive workflow. This layout is highly effective for multitasking and offers quick access to frequently used functions.

Navigation within MATE is straightforward. The main menu (often referred to as the 'MATE Menu' or 'Applications Menu') organizes installed software logically. The 'Places' menu offers quick access to common directories and connected devices. The muscle memory developed with GNOME 2 is directly transferable, making MATE an excellent choice for returning users or those seeking a classic desktop metaphor.

Customization options, while perhaps not as extensive as some highly modular environments, are sufficient for most users. Panels can be adjusted, applets added or removed, and themes can be applied to alter the visual appearance. The inclusion of tools like MATE Tweak further simplifies many customization tasks.

Performance

Performance is where MATE truly shines, especially on hardware that might struggle with more resource-intensive desktop environments. Its lightweight nature translates to faster boot times, snappier application launching, and a generally more responsive user experience. Even with multiple applications open, MATE maintains a low memory footprint and CPU utilization, making it ideal for older computers, virtual machines, or systems where energy efficiency is a concern.

The core MATE applications, such as Caja (file manager) and Pluma (text editor), are efficient and quick to load. This focus on performance is a core tenet of the project and is evident throughout the user experience.

Features and Ecosystem

MATE comes bundled with a core set of applications that cover essential desktop tasks:

Caja: A robust and functional file manager.
Pluma: A simple yet capable text editor.
Atril: A document viewer for PDFs and other formats.
Eye of MATE: An image viewer.
Engrampa: An archive manager.

These applications are well-integrated into the desktop environment and contribute to a cohesive user experience. Being a fork of a mature project, MATE benefits from a large number of existing applications and libraries designed for the GNOME 2 era, many of which continue to work seamlessly.

The extensibility through applets and extensions, though sometimes less modern in appearance compared to newer interfaces, allows users to add specific functionalities to the panels, such as weather widgets, system monitors, or custom launchers.

Development and Community

Despite its origins, MATE is an actively developed project. The team behind MATE consistently releases updates, bringing bug fixes, security patches, and compatibility improvements with newer libraries and technologies. This ensures that MATE remains a viable and secure desktop environment in the current computing landscape.

The MATE community is dedicated and supportive. Users can find help and resources through forums, documentation, and distribution-specific channels that include MATE as a primary or alternative desktop option.

Conclusion

MATE is an excellent desktop environment for users who appreciate the simplicity, efficiency, and familiarity of the classic GNOME 2 interface. Its lightweight design makes it a strong contender for older hardware or resource-conscious systems. While it may lack some of the cutting-edge visual effects or deeply integrated features of newer desktop environments, its stability, performance, and traditional workflow provide a highly productive environment for everyday computing. For those seeking a reliable, fast, and user-friendly desktop that gets out of the way and lets you work, MATE is a highly recommended choice.