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13 Comments
- weizbox, on 11/02/2008, -2/+13Advertising, clearly. The distro itself doesn't really separate itself much from the other major desktop distros in terms of hardware compatibility or special features, since all the major desktop distros all are essentially build on the same packages, just perhaps different versions depending on the release. Occasionally there will be some differences, like with the new BBC plugin (which others would have more easily at this point if it weren't for the Ubuntu devs using apt code instead of a standard, like PackageKit) and the new Guest account (previously, only a ~3-click process).
The 'Availability' section tells us it's popular because Ubuntu is being preloaded on computers... but that's only because it was somewhat popular to begin with. Using the result of it being popular to say that's a reason WHY its popular is somewhat invalid. I can't believe sources to download was used as a reason... as if you can't find almost any other distro on an ftp, torrent, usenet, etc. The Ship-It idea could help spread the software to people with slow connection, making Ubuntu popular via means of acquisition, but won't help in the distro popularity by what it can do post-install.
'Reliability'
Almost any distro updates packages quickly (in fact this can't be said ab out Ubuntu as much since they didn't even include OOo3 in the latest release). Every project has a schedule, so that could be said for anyone. And yes, one good (and bad) thing about Ubuntu is that it stays on time for the release (most of the time)... but this also means a lot of things are rushed out with bugs (as we've already seen with 8.10) and with older software, like using OOo2. I have yet to see a mainstream distro not have an 'Organized and unified community'. Everyone is there for a reason to begin, to be a part of and help progress the distro.
'Community'
Oh, wasn't this listed under 'Reliability'? Forums, Bug Trackers, Blogs... what distro doesn't have these? - Darkhacker, on 11/03/2008, -2/+10I can't speak for anyone else, but I use Ubuntu for several reasons.
- Releases: The release schedule is predictable and releases are made often.
- Software: Ubuntu comes with very sane defaults and I don't need to remove a ton of packages or spend all day downloading more packages to get my desktop the way I like it. They have also found a good balance between stable and up-to-date software. Fedora can be a little too bleeding edge at times and other distros are behind the times.
- APT: I just like APT better. I've always used Debian based distros.
- Single CD: One of my dislikes about Suse and Fedora is it comes on like 5 CDs. Yes I could get the DVD or I could just download a portion of the CDs but that's really retarded to me. It's wasting bandwidth on packages I'll never want or need. Plus, some older computers only have a CD drive (no DVD) and it's easier to handle a single disk.
- Support: 18 months for regular releases and 36 months for LTS. It's nice knowing that I'm not rushed to upgrade.
- Popular: Sort of a chicken-and-egg scenario but I started using Ubuntu because I saw it was number one on Distrowatch. That creates a great community and means that I'll get a well tested distro with lots of community support.
- Company Backing: We can sit around the camp fire and talk about "power to the people", but I really like company backing. If a company (in this case Canonical) is backing a distro, I have more faith in the quality of maintenance (releasing security updates for all packages, reliable update servers, etc) than if It's being run by a couple guys in their spare time. Who knows if they'll continue to support it. What if they miss a security update for a package in their repos?
Yes I know that a few other distros meet some of these criteria, but Ubuntu hits them all. - wendall911, on 11/03/2008, -0/+7Absolutely correct. This is a case of good marketing.
- neasteflorin, on 11/02/2008, -0/+6You have some valid arguments, and I always appreciate constructive criticism. I included the part about advertising in the article along with a link to your profile.
- daengbo, on 11/03/2008, -0/+3The number one reason is marketing. Ubuntu is on a six-month release cycle. Let's look at the Hardy to Intrepid release cycle.
March -- Hardy pre-releases are hyped up
April -- Hardy is released
May -- Planned features in Intrepid are announced
July -- Hardy "SP1" (8.04.1) is released
September -- Intrepid pre-release hype starts
October -- Intrepid is released.
I mean ... hell ... it's in the news almost constantly. Why wouldn't it be popular? Fedora has the same release cycle, but it doesn't market nearly as well. - ryan83189, on 11/03/2008, -2/+5I think it is the most popular because they set out to build the easiest to use distro and had periodic releases and long term support set up from early on. Most of the desktop linux distros are equally as easy to use now, but Ubuntu was one the first "Out of the box" distros, so people remember it and come back. They continue to try and make things easier to use, like WUBI for example, so a novice can install Ubuntu from Windows without having to know anything about partitions. The community also pushes Ubuntu more than any other distro IMO, since it is an easy to use system for novices.
- mahadiga, on 11/03/2008, -0/+2Word of mouth advertising works well for Ubuntu.
- depro9, on 11/03/2008, -1/+3Digg
- MaxMWood, on 11/03/2008, -1/+2Lets just make it clear that it's popular only within Linux distros. Nothing else.
- inactive, on 11/02/2008, -4/+5s/Ubuntu/Linux/
- DotNetWill, on 11/03/2008, -1/+1What a pointless and useless comment
- darkchild, on 11/03/2008, -2/+2Well some of your points apply to other distros as well, so they are not unique
- Releases: Most of the major distros except Debian have predictable release cycles e.g. Mandriva has 6 monthly release cycles, Fedora: 6 - 9 months, openSUSE: 6 - 9 months etc.
- Software: Other distros have sane defaults. If you choose to install the live cd versions you end up with a working environment and apps similar to Ubuntu.
- APT: APT works on other distros if you wish. Tools like zypper are just as good as APT.
- Single CD: There is nothing unique about this anymore. Ubuntu wasn't the first to ship a live cd version and many distros have optional live discs e.g. Mandriva One, openSUSE KDE, openSUSE GNOME, Fedora KDE, Fedora GNOME, PCLinuxOS etc.
- Support: Whilst 18 months is good for typical releases, this appears to be standard practice amongst most distros. For their server versions most distros support them for 3 years to 7 years.
- Popularity: I agree with you that Ubuntu is popular. Other distros are popular, but Ubuntu seems to have built a better ecosystem in terms of community involvement and support.
- Company: Whilst its good to have someone that accountable for the distro, community based distros like Debian thrive without any company involvement.
I'm not saying that Ubuntu is not a great distro because it is, but I feel that most of your points are applicable to all other distros. - jzraikes, on 11/02/2008, -14/+7Because it's not Windows...
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