I'm a Windows/Linux user. I feel like something like Linux Mint is very much polished. My complain is the lack of main apps: adobe suite and visual studio in my case.

I agree that Mint is very much polished but I actually started recommending Elementary over it just because of well it looks, it's quite subjective.

Adobe suite and VS are also the sole reason I have a Windows dual boot set up. Hopefully in the future but I honestly doubt it.

Looks are pretty silly and irrelevant for most power users. I run Ubuntu with the i3 tiling window manager, which doesn't even have a desktop. Having a desktop is another thing that's pretty much irrelevant, given the way i3 works. I would never sacrifice the functionality I really like just to get something that's supposedly "prettier".

Looks are extremely important for everyone. i3, however, is an example of something that looks good. For bad, see https://www.gnome-look.org/p/1013849/, https://www.gnome-look.org/p/1013788/, https://www.gnome-look.org/p/1013780/.

There are different kinds of users. No need to call something silly and irrelevant just because it doesn't fit your preferences and priorities.

For example, one of the first things I check when trying out a new Linux distro is whether I can tweak the font rendering exactly the way I like. If this takes more than a few minutes, or if Firefox and LibreOffice don't pick up my tweaks consistently, that distro is out. I don't care what other awesome features it has. If I'm going to be looking at it for 10 hours a day, it had better not hurt my eyes. I would never sacrifice visual comfort just to get something that's supposedly "more functional". But that's just me. Other people will have other priorities.

How do you tweak the font of the entire environment?

In most desktop environments, you can change the system font, font size, subpixel rendering options, etc. in the "Settings" (or equivalent) menu.

Usability is important. Basically every X.org distro ever supports your i3 power user setup. A much smaller number of distros are aimed exclusively at making Linux easier for average users.

I just don't understand that argument, on two fronts: First, Elementary looks almost exactly like a stock Fedora Gnome desktop (slightly clunkier, actually, in terms of window decorations and the settings panels)...so, how is it uniquely pretty in the Linux world? Second, I consider recent Gnome on Fedora to be comparable to Windows and mac OS (preferable, even, IMHO).

Linux from several vendors has been pretty for years. Being pretty, or historic lack thereof, clearly isn't the thing keeping Windows and mac OS users from switching in droves.

> First, Elementary looks almost exactly like a stock Fedora Gnome desktop (slightly clunkier, actually, in terms of window decorations and the settings panels)...so, how is it uniquely pretty in the Linux world?

Maybe this will save someone else some googling:

elementary OS 0.4 Beta Screenshots http://www.distroscreens.com/2016/06/elementary-os-04-loki-b...

Fedora 24 Screenshots http://www.distroscreens.com/2016/06/fedora-24-workstation-s...

Fedora 25 Alpha Screenshots http://www.distroscreens.com/2016/09/fedora-25-alpha-screens...