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How do Kubuntu, Xubuntu, and Edubuntu fit in?
In addition to the highly popular Ubuntu operating system, Canonical also sponsors several “official” derivatives of Ubuntu, aimed at different types of hardware, different user preferences, and different use cases.
- Ubuntu – The main OS that everything else is based on
- Ubuntu Server Edition – Ubuntu without any GUI (by default) and designed for use on servers
- Kubuntu – Ubuntu with the KDE desktop
- Edubuntu – Ubuntu with additional applications aimed at education
- Ubuntu MID Edition – Ubuntu with a customized interface and various other tweaks for mobile internet devices
- Ubuntu Netbook Remix – A customized version of Ubuntu MID Edition for Netbooks
(Please note, the omission of Xubuntu is not a mistake. Xubuntu, Mythbuntu, and Ubuntu Studio are not supported derivatives.)
Ubuntu Logo
The list above includes every one of the Ubuntu derivatives that Canonical sponsors (at least all the onces I am aware of). In bold are the terms used to differentiate each variation from Ubuntu. The problem is that three different methods are used (edition, remix, and prefixes [ku- and edu-]) with no clear distinction. Why isn’t Ubuntu Server Edition called Serbuntu?
The Remixes
According to Ubuntu’s Trademark Policy:
We recognise and encourage the concept of a “remix.” Remixes are derived versions of Ubuntu, and it is intended that any software and hardware certifications will apply to a Remix… These changes can include configuration changes through the existing Ubuntu configuration management tools, changes to artwork and graphical themes and some variance in package selection.
According to this excerpt, the term remix applies to a distribution that incorporates only minor changes from one of the other official derivatives. This explains the choice of remix in Ubuntu Netbook Remix, as UNR is closely related to Ubuntu MID Edition.
Edubuntu Logo
Prefixes vs. Edition
Each derivative’s page on the Ubuntu website reveals a pattern between prefixes and edition.
Kubuntu is an official derivative of Ubuntu using the KDE environment instead of GNOME.
Edubuntu is a officially supported derivative of Ubuntu that is customised for Education use.
Both Kubuntu and Edubuntu are apparently considered derivatives, while Ubuntu Server Edition and Ubuntu MID Edition are considered part of Ubuntu.
Kubuntu Logo
Huh, why?
After a fair amount of digging, it is possible to make sense of all the names and terminology, but it certainly isn’t easy to understand.
Understanding how each bit of terminology is currently used, how could the naming scheme be simplified?
Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Edubuntu, and their respective logos are trademarks of Canonical.
Canonical adds Premium Service Engineers to support options
Canonical has added another option to their ever-increasing list of enterprise support options. Businesses requiring frequent support may pay for access to a Premium Service Engineer, an Ubuntu expert who works with the company’s existing team to keep the company’s Ubuntu installations running smoothly.
Ubuntu Premium Service Engineers, as opposed to more traditional Ubuntu support plans, gives businesses a single person to contact, who will already know how the servers and desktops are set up in advance of any help being needed. This type of support does not come at a cheap price, though. The Register reports that access to an Ubuntu PSE will cost $50,000 per year, compared to only a few hundred for some of Canonical’s support offerings.
Still, PSEs offer an extremely valuable resource of businesses: a person with specific Ubuntu training. Most IT people are trained primarily in Windows, particularly when it comes to supporting desktops. Paying for a PSE basically givces you a staff member who has Ubuntu training. The only significant difference is that PSEs will not usually be on-site, preventing them from actively managing computers.
Canonical Announces Inexpensive Phone Support
Canonical has announced consumer-oriented phone and email support for Ubuntu Desktop Edition. Ubuntu offered phone support before, however it was priced for enterprises managing large install bases. The new support plans are targeted at consumers and start at about $50 per year.
There are three tiers of this new support plan: starter, advanced, and professional. All three tiers offer support for installation and basic tasks, such as e-mail, web browsing, and OpenOffice. The advanced tier, which costs $115 per year ($65 more than starter) additionally offers support for Windows migration and a broader set of applications. Finally, the professional tier, which costs over $200 per year, adds support for topics such as virtualization and remote desktop.
These support offerings are most interesting for new Ubuntu users. The professional tier is probably unnecessary, however either starter or advanced support for a year (largely depending on how much migration suppor they need) would really get a new user going. Plus, compared to buying a copy of Windows, a year of support is still very cheap. Admittedly most people do not buy Windows alone, however you can usually save at least $50-$100 by getting a computer with Ubuntu rather than Windows.
This new support offering potentially offers a familiar bridge for new users. My only complaint is that the minimum support length is a year. many people may only need a few months of support, so a cheper and shorter option would be ideal.
One Hundred Papercuts: The Most Exciting Thing Since the Last Thing Canonical Did
Remember when Mark Shuttleworth announced Canonical was putting together a usability and design team? That team has announced their first major project, called One Hundred Papercuts. The idea, as described by David Siegel (member of the team and Gnome Do developer) is to select one hundred easily fixable bugs that are day to day minor annoyances to the user and fix them for the next release. Not big changes, just small things like how a file is named by default or where the cursor’s focus is put.
That might not sound like a big deal, but fixing one hundred little things is far more important than introducing a big new feature at this stage of Ubuntu’s development. Long-time Linux users often become blind to these problems, but first timers run into some of these issues like a street lamp (I would say a brick wall, but most of the issues are easily navigated around once you figure them out). Every release fixes some bugs, but Ubuntu will be the first distribution that I know of to make fixing usability related bugs a major priority. I certainly hope this will become a trend.
This project is probably the most exciting announcement for the Linux desktop since…. the last announcement Canonical made. As much as I wish other distributions would excite me, Ubuntu seems to be the only distribution that is really making progress in terms of creating a better product for the average user. Other distributions aren’t necessarily doing badly. In fact, many of them are on the bleeding edge in terms of technology. Ubuntu, though, is one the bleeding edge of usability and integration in a way that no one else can match. I’m sure that this assertion will trigger an endless stream of counter-examples, which I look forward to. There are certainly interesting projects going on in other distributions, but Ubuntu is consistently rolling out intersting plans that don’t just push the technology, they refine the technology and make it work that way it should.
Free software, and especially desktop Linux, is a difficult place to run a successful business since your main product is, of course, free.Canonical, though, looks like it might succeed.
The main difference between all of the other Linux distributions, many of whom also have commercial sponsors, and Canonical is that Canonical recently launches new and truly valuable add-on or subscription-based services for Ubuntu. From Ubuntu One, which hopes to change the way applications and files sync, to Landscape, Canonical’s proprietary management system for dealing with tons of computers on one network.
Not each of these products will be a success, but only a couple must be invaluable befoe the business becomes sustainigle. As long as a few of these products turn out to be major successes, they will pay for the others and create a sustainiable business.
Ubuntu One Cloud Syncronization: A Viable Business Model?
Due to the nature of free software, most companies that produce free software do not make money off of the code itself but rather complementary services, such as support. Canonical has just launched one such service that, in addition to opening some interesting possibilities for the future, could provide a good revenue stream for Canonical.
The new service, called Ubuntu One, is essentially just a cloud synchronization service that is similar to Dropbox. Ubuntu One is supposed to be ready for Ubuntu 9.10 and will come free with 2GB of storage. In order to upgrade your storage capacity, you can pay an extra fee.
There are two things that make this service interesting. First, the fact that it will be so tightly integrated with Ubuntu. This means that is has the potential to create a better user experience than any other synchronization service. Second, Canonical is apparently thinking about working with application developers to let you sync your application preferences.
We don’t know much yet, but Ubuntu One certainly looks like an interesting service, and it might give Canonical some money.
A Much Needed Push From Canonical
The desktop, not just the Linux desktop, has reached a state of stagnation. Each new release of Ubuntu, and of most other Linux distributions, comes with only a few truly interesting features, Apple announced they are essentially doing a maintenance release, and the overall response to Vista was, at best, “meh.” Whoever breaks this cycle first is going to get a big lead.
Today, Mark Shuttleworth has announced that Canonical will be hiring a team of developers and designers whose job it will be to improve the Linux desktop. The point of this team, as I understand it, is to take some of the ideas from the community, mix those ideas with the team’s own ideas, and develop those ideas into a finished product to integrate into Ubuntu.
My hope for this team is that it will give Ubuntu the necessary push to bring something truly new to the desktop, not just more of the same. If this happens, Ubuntu stands a chance to jump over Apple and Microsoft and be far ahead by the time they start moving again.
I believe that identifying a general area of Linux that needs improvement and putting a group of people on the area is exactly the right thing to do. Of course, it still remains to be seen what this team will do, but, as you can tell, I have high hopes.
Would An Ubuntu PC From Canonical Make Sense?
Just a few days ago, the news appeared that there was a boxed version of Ubuntu being sold at Best Buy stores. While I, and just about everyone else, was excited, there is a reality, as a WorksWithU article pointed out, that just having the software hidden away on some shelf is highly unlikely to attract new Ubuntu users. This made me wonder if it would be a smart move for Canonical to introduce an Ubuntu PC, probably a laptop?
I have seen suggestions that Canonical should make “Ubuntu stores” in the same way that Apple has “Apple stores” and have always ignored them, because the likelihood of something like that happening is just about zero. I am not proposing anything like “Ubuntu stores.” My idea would be for Canonical to sell one, or possibly two, computers preinstalled with Ubuntu. These computers might be sold directly by Canonical, but the main point would be to get Ubuntu-based computers in major stores, both online and physical.
You might say that Dell and some other vendors are already selling Ubuntu PCs, so why not just promote those? The answer is that there are two potential problems with Ubuntu PCs from Dell:
- Dell has no particular incentive to promote Ubuntu.
- Dell (presumably) has Microsoft on their backs, quite possibly threatening to cut Dell a bad Windows licensing deal.
For these two reasons, Canonical could do a much better job of creating an Ubuntu PC that stores would really want to sell. How could this Ubuntu PC be differentiated from every other PC out there?
- Canonical would have to pay close attention to making an attractive design. Doubt the importance of design? Then tell me why there are reports of tons of Mac laptops at Linux events.
- Codecs for media playback and DVD playback should be preinstalled.
- The PC’s packaging should explain why you should choose Ubuntu on it, similar to how the boxed version of Ubuntu marketed itself.
Even if Canonical made little or no money on the PC itself, it would be a good long-term investment to make Ubuntu better known and it might even turn into a major source of revenue for Canonical. Either way, Canonical and other Linux distro sponsors should certainly consider creating and selling an <insert distro> computer.
A Better Website With More Community Control
Canonical has just announced that they are creating a new Ubuntu team to help out with the Ubuntu website. For two reasons, I applaud this decision.
First, and most obviously, this brings a strong potential for a really cool website. The announcement says that some of the things that might be improved by the team include countdown banners, the start page, and, of course, elements of the main website. This means that, for example, when Intrepid Ibex ships, and a new user starts Firefox for the first time, the home page he or she sees will be less of a generic page and more of a cool and useful launch page for learning about Ubuntu, getting involved in Ubuntu, or for surfing the web.
The second, and less obvious reason, that I applaud the forming the new team is that it gives more control to the community. This really emphasizes Canonical and the community as partners, rather than one just helping out the other.
So for these two reasons, I am really glad to see the forming of this new team and I look forward to seeing the results.
Canonical, the company behind Ubuntu, just announced an online course intended for “corporate and home desktop users to get started with Ubuntu.” The course is available for $100 and covers the following topics, according to the announcement:
- Understand the concepts of open source and how they tie in with Ubuntu
- Customize the look and feel of the Ubuntu desktop
- Navigate through the file system and search for files
- Connect to and use the Internet
- Perform basic word-processing and spreadsheet functions using OpenOffice.org
- Install and play games
- Add, remove and update applications
- View, draw, manipulate and scan images
- Play, edit and organize music and video files
- Seek help on Ubuntu from free and commercial sources
- Create partitions and dual-boot options
To be honest, I can’t imagine any home user wanting to take a course in using Ubuntu, but I do think that offering this to businesses is a great idea. Here is why:
For a company planning on switching to Ubuntu, their IT people, who would probably not be familiar with Linux, would want to get some training in Linux, before deploying it to all the employees. With this course, they can not only learn how to use Ubuntu, but also how to teach other people at the company how to use it, all while only paying $100.
This is an advantage Ubuntu really needs to compete in the enterprise space. Right now, many people are probably tempted to go with Red Hat or Novell’s comercial Linux offerings, because of the support that comes with it. By providing even this modest kind of support for commercial users, Canonical may be able to develop a bigger presence in that market to complement its leading position among non-commercial users.