A few days ago, DeviceGuru posted a suggestion for Ubuntu (or an open letter to Mark Shuttleworth as DeviceGuru calls it.) The basic idea is that the various Ubuntus (Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Xubuntu, etc.) should all use the name Ubuntu something edition. The idea is great in theory, but I see a few problems with the names DeviceGuru suggested. The biggest problem is they sound like Vista’s version scheme where they are all basically the same except some features are removed from the less expensive ones. This can be fixed by making the name clearly show why you would want that edition, not some other. Here are the names DeviceGuru suggested and my thoughts on them:

(DeviceGuru’s names are in bold.)

Ubuntu GNOME Edition This should just be called “Ubuntu.” Shuttleworth or whoever made the decision already decided that GNOME will be the default desktop environment, there is not need to confuse things. (In fairness to DeviceGuru, he did say aka Ubuntu, so we may be in agreement on this point.)

Ubuntu KDE Edition The problem with this is that the letters k, d, and e mean nothing to most people. How would you know if you want the g, n, o, m, e or the k, d, e or the x, f, c, e edition? I am not really sure what this one should be called, but perhaps something like “Ubuntu Alternate Interface Edition”? That is a terrible name, but at least it sort of makes sense.

Ubuntu XFCE Edition See “Ubuntu KDE Edition.” The problem here is exactly the same. One possibility is to name it something like “Ubuntu Light Edition,” but to someone coming from the Vista world that would probably mean a less-expensive version that has so many features stripped out you might as well just use a previous version of Windows. Possibly Light Edition could be used if there was a sentence of explanation attached, or something like “Ubuntu for Old Computers.” Again, that is a terrible name, but it makes sense.

Ubuntu Educational Edition Once again this could be confusing for someone used to the world of proprietary software. Often companies will sell a special “Educational Edition” that costs less but cannot be used for commercial work. Something like “Ubuntu School Edition” or “Ubuntu Learning Edition” might work but again I don’t really like how either of them sound and School Edition could still be interpreted as an “Educational Edition.”

Overall, I support the idea of changing the names of the various Ubuntus, but they should all make sense to anyone no matter what their experience level is.

Also, I have to point out that this is a perfect example of how open-source works. Someone posts a suggestion and people think it is good so it gets attention.