Ubuntu Linux comes in a few officially recognized flavors, as well as several derivative distributions. The recognized flavors are:
- Kubuntu – Ubuntu with the KDE desktop
- Lubuntu – Ubuntu with the LXDE desktop
- Mythbuntu – Ubuntu MythTV
- Ubuntu Budgie – Ubuntu with the Budgie desktop
Up until recently, the official Ubuntu Linux included the in-house Unity desktop and a sixth recognized flavor existed: Ubuntu GNOME — Ubuntu with the GNOME desktop environment.
When Mark Shuttleworth decided to nix Unity, the choice was obvious to Canonical—make GNOME the official desktop of Ubuntu Linux. This begins with Ubuntu 18.04 (so April, 2018) and we’ll be down to the official distribution and four recognized flavors.
For those already enmeshed in the Linux community, that’s some seriously simple math to do—you know which Linux desktop you like, so making the choice between Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Lubuntu, Mythbuntu, and Ubuntu Budgie couldn’t be easier. Those that haven’t already been indoctrinated into the way of Linux won’t see that as such a cut-and-dried decision.
To that end, I thought it might be a good idea to help newer users decide which flavor is best for them. After all, choosing the wrong distribution out of the starting gate can make for a less-than-ideal experience.
And so, if you’re considering a flavor of Ubuntu, and you want your experience to be as painless as possible, read on.
Ubuntu
I’ll begin with the official flavor of Ubuntu. I am also going to warp time a bit and skip Unity, to launch right into the upcoming GNOME-based distribution. Beyond GNOME being an incredibly stable and easy to use desktop environment, there is one very good reason to select the official flavor—support. The official flavor of Ubuntu is commercially supported by Canonical. For $150.00 per year, you can purchase official support for the Ubuntu desktop. There is, of course, a 50-desktop minimum for this level of support. For individuals, the best bet for support would be the Ubuntu Forums, the Ubuntu documentation, or the Community help wiki.
Beyond the commercial support, the reason to choose the official Ubuntu flavor would be if you’re looking for a modern, full-featured desktop that is incredibly reliable and easy to use. GNOME has been designed to serve as a platform perfectly suited for both desktops and laptops (Figure 1). Unlike its predecessor, Unity, GNOME can be far more easily customized to suit your needs—to a point. If you’re not one to tinker with the desktop, fear not, GNOME just works. In fact, the out of the box experience with GNOME might well be one of the finest on the market—even rivaling (or besting) Mac OS X. If tinkering and tweaking is of primary interest, you will find GNOME somewhat limiting. The GNOME Tweak Tool and GNOME Shell Extensions will only take you so far, before you find yourself wanting more.