This is a couple months off the exact date, but I
thought it was notable regardless. On
May 17, 2012, Debian User Forums member “ulsigem” posted a sourceforge link
containing deb files for the new Cinnamon desktop environment. They were intended for use in the
then-upcoming Debian 7 Wheezy.
https://forums.debian.net/viewtopic.php?t=79690
Cinnamon, formerly known as Mint GNOME Shell
Extensions (MGSE), was released for Linux Mint on December 20, 2011. Clem described the project in this way: "There's
a new generation of desktops out there, including Gnome Shell and Unity. These
desktops are shiny, they look good and they're slowly gaining popularity.
They're based on new and exciting technologies but they also come with a
cost... they're re-inventing the way we use our computer. It's neither right or
wrong of course, but it will only appeal to a certain category of users.. and
there are a lot of people out there, myself included, who aren't convinced the
traditional desktops were bad and who are concerned about not having a choice
as more and more people switch towards these new technologies. With Cinnamon
we're jumping on these new technologies and we're able to provide something
that looks as modern as Unity and Shell, without reinventing the wheel when it
comes to user experience."
https://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.php?f=208&t=89411&start=20
I’d like to thank the Debian Cinnamon
maintainers, past and present, for keeping this efficient no-nonsense DE up and
running. In particular, the current
group including Fabio Fantoni, Joshua Peisach, Christoph Martin and those I may
have missed.