I use linux mint 13 cinnamon(1.6.7). I want to install plasma - desktop (kde through synaptic). I don't want to destroy cinnamon desktop env. I just add another kde env.
but when i try to install plasma desktop it install few file and upgrade almost 17 file,
I am very concern about these upgraded file. is it destroy my cinnamon?

is there any other way without destroy my cinnamon?

plz help? I want to use both.

n things:
1) you should be able to have any number of separate desktop environments installed
2) it would help if you listed the 17 files to be upgraded
3) the 17 packages are they from a diff. repo then the cinnamon packages? are cinnamon pkgs in their own repo?
4) as this is a distro specific question it might best be asked on Mint's forum
5) even if, and it shouldn't, it causes issues you should be be able to force a re-install of cinnamon

what is the diff between plasma desktop and kde-plasma desktop. can both work with cinnamon separately.

I assume you are referring to package names in the repo

The easiest way to understand would be to look at the contents of both packages, you'll see, at least in Kubuntu (which Mint is based on) that kde-plasma-desktop contains 2 files - the change log and the copyright. Fyi different distro's package KDE differently.

what do you mean by "work with"?

kde-plasma desktop (98 mb) and plasma desktop(93 mb).
I want to use both (cinnamon + kde) env.

but i am concern about kdm and mdm. how can both work together.
some one told me if I choose kdm then it destroy my cinnamon.
I use synaptic.

the Mint sw portal describes the KDE one as being minimal, and I would guess this means the minimal apps and libs needed to run KDE whereas the other would have more apps and functionality and thus take more disk space - q's like this are really best answered on Mint's forums

MDM and KDE (as well as GDM and LDM) all basically serve the same purpose and can not be run together, you need to select one to use. As to KDM killing Cinnamon I can see no reason why it would but again this is probably best asked on Mint's forums as Cinnamon and MDM are Mint products. PS - don't believe everything someone tells you, of course if large numbers of people tell you then it's best to listen

u mean i can install mate, kde, cinnamon, xfce4 and all other without effecting one another. at the time of login i can choose any one.
if I am wrong plz. point out.

yes that's the way it's supposed to work, the ___DM (display manager) at login time offers the selection of any of the installed desktop environments. The desktop environment selection should be under the "session" or "session type" menu

which one i should install plasma desktop and kde-plasma desktop.
accordin to synaptic:
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
KDE Plasma Desktop and minimal set of applications

KDE is the powerful, integrated, and easy-to-use Free Software desktop
platform and suite of applications.

This metapackage pulls in the core modules released with the KDE Software
Compilation including the basic KDE Plasma Desktop, minimal set of basic
applications (browser, file manager, text editor, system settings, panel,
etc.), important libraries and data.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Plasma Desktop
Provides the environment for running and managing applications and integrating
interaction of applications. It is designed as generic environment for all
kinds of desktop applications, not only applications built on the KDE Platform.
It integrates best with applications following the standards used by the KDE
Platform.

This package is part of the KDE base workspace module.

I would install the larger of the 2 as it would have more of the apps, so kde-plasma-desktop. Of course there may be additional KDE apps and enhancements available in the repos you might wish to try later

I'd assume that kde-plasma-desktop is a meta package to install a basic set of KDE apps, and will pull in the plasma-desktop package anyways.

Breaking a desktop environment by installing another one is extremely unlikely, you should be able to select which one you want to use at the login screen.