This is Linux Mint 3.0, codename Cassandra, based on Bianca and compatible with Ubuntu Feisty and its repositories.

What makes Cassandra ideal for the desktop?

• Out of the box multimedia support
• Microsoft Windows Integration (Dual-boot, NTFS read/write support, Migration Assistant)
• One-Click install system (Linux Mint Software Portal, mintInstall)
• Desktop features, Control Center, mintMenu
• 3D Effects (Compiz and Beryl on top of AIGLX)
• Great configuration tools
• Great selection of default applications (OpenOffice, Firefox, Thunderbird, Sunbird, Gimp, Pidgin, XChat, Amarok..etc)
• Solid package base (Google Earth, Picasa, Skype.. a lot of important software present in the repositories or in the Linux Mint Software Portal, compatibility with all Ubuntu Feisty repositories and most Debian packages)
• Solid code base (Debian distribution built on top of Ubuntu Edgy. Inherits all innovations put into Bianca and default configurations from Bea)

Important new features in Cassandra:

• The brand new "mintInstall" and the "Linux Mint Software Portal"
• Gnome 2.18 (speed improvements)
• Kernel 2.6.20 (better hardware support)
• Ubuntu Feisty innovations (restricted-manager, desktop-effects, windows migration assistant, avahi)
• OpenOffice 2.2 (complete suite)
• Thunderbird replaces Evolution as the default email reader
• Pidgin replaces Gaim as the default messenger
• Sunbird is now installed by default
• The Gimp is installed by default
• Gnome-control-center replaces mintConfig as the default control center application
• Both mintDisk (for internal drives) and NTFS-Config (for external drives) are present for NTFS support
• Support for Gnome Templates in mintDesktop
• mintInstall replaces gnome-app-install and the upcoming Click'n Run.
• Drag & Drop support in mintMenu with many other improvements
• Sun Java 6 replaces Sun Java 5
• Compiz, Beryl and Emerald installed by default
• New artwork