Debian Live MATE is a 100% free product, a collection of two Live DVD ISO images that promise to offer you a traditional, classic desktop environment built around the MATE project created by the Linux Mint developers and derived from the acclaimed Debian GNU/Linux operating system.
Supports 32-bit and 64-bit computers, boot options
The MATE edition of the Debian GNU/Linux Live project is currently distributed as Live DVD ISO images, one for each of the supported hardware architectures, 32-bit and 64-bit. Each ISO image comes with the same boot screen that allows users to start the live session with standard options or in safe graphics mode.
Additionally, the Live DVDs will allow you to install the Debian GNU/Linux operating system with MATE as the default desktop environment using either the command-line or graphical installers. The Advanced Options section of the boot menu gives you access to the Hardware Detection Tool (HDT) and Memory Diagnostic Tool (memtest86+).
A pure MATE desktop experience
The Debian Live MATE project provides you with a pure MATE desktop experience, as everything is exactly how its creators designed it. There’s no custom theme or layout. You get that old-school look and feel of the GNOME 2 desktop environment with a two-panel layout.
While the top panel contains the Application’s Menu, system tray area, and the integrated calendar, the bottom panel includes the workspace switcher, task manager, and the “Show Desktop” button. Of course, everything is customizable, so you can freely remove one or both panels, or place them elsewhere, as well as to remove or add applets.
Offers a minimal collection of software and applications
The software collection offered by the Debian Live MATE project is minimal, which means that you only get a web browser (Iceweasel), an image viewer (Eye of MATE), a simple text editor (pluma), an archive manager (Engrampa), as well as a document viewer (Atril).
Moreover, the Live DVDs also include the entire LibreOffice office suite (Base, Calc, Draw, Impress, Math, Writer), the Orca screen reader and magnifier, Caja file manager, GNOME’s Baobab (Disk Usage Analyzer) tool, and Synaptic Package Manager.
