Why is Ubuntu more pupular than Kubuntu

[ktech]

Apart from the 8.10 release with kde 4.1. Kubuntu (KDE) is more attractive and as stable and reliable that Ubuntu (Gnome). Its just that when windows users search linux they see Ubuntu first and don't even know about Kubuntu until later. I'm currently using KDE 4.3 rc2 and I'm impressesed. It's fast and feautured.

Gnome seems to be stuck since GTK2.
But seems like Gnome 3.0 has been announced.

I posted the same on ubuntuforums and see the replies from GNOME fans
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1221645

[aged hippy]

Re: Why is Ubuntu more pupular than Kubuntu

It seems to me that - in the Ubuntu Forums thread - Praveesh summed it up quite well:

The saddest thing is that some people compare KDE and Gnome by comparing KUbuntu and Ubuntu.

[Fintan]

Re: Why is Ubuntu more pupular than Kubuntu

Apart from the simple fact that kubuntu IS a sister project, and a good one at that.
So it gets all the press, which Kubuntu could do with more of, but not until KDE4.x.x really starts to rock & roll.

Kubuntu's decision to adapt kde4 early was courageous and will pay off eventually.

Also, KDE is just not as popular in the States as it is elsewhere like Europe.

Maybe that is because we americans are inherently lazy and don't want t fiddle with our DE

Personally I don't care.

The only real issue I have with kubutnu / kde a it is now is the network-"un"manager and kpackage kit which I refuse to use as I didn't use "non" adept in the past.

[kubicle]

Re: Why is Ubuntu more pupular than Kubuntu

IMO, this comes from two things:

1. Marketing
Canonical's marketing is clearly focused on ubuntu, and kubuntu doesn't get that much press. New linux users (who make a large protion of *buntu's userbase, and don't have prior preference for a desktop) choose the default, the one which they have read about...ubuntu.

2. Reputation
Ubuntu has a reputation (justifiably so) of a gnome-first distribution, and many kde users rather choose a distribution that focuses on kde (like opensuse or mandriva)

However, you can't really judge the popularity of kde and gnome based on the ratio of ubuntu and kubuntu users.

Traditionally, kde has been the more popular one of the two, but I'd estimate the playing field is quite level nowadays (ubuntu's success is a contributing factor here). There seems to also be geographical differences in the popularity of the desktops, kde seems to be strong in Central Europe and Latin America, while gnome is very popular in the US, for example.

EDIT: looks like Fintan stole my points already

[aged hippy]

Re: Why is Ubuntu more pupular than Kubuntu

The only real issue I have with kubutnu / kde a it is now is the network-"un"manager and kpackage kit which I refuse to use as I didn't use "non" adept in the past.

I used Kpackagekit twice, once to up-date after installing.... then to install Synaptic.

[Fintan]

Re: Why is Ubuntu more pupular than Kubuntu

looks like Fintan stole my points already

Sue me

[lmilano]

Re: Why is Ubuntu more pupular than Kubuntu

I honestly think Ubuntu has a lot more polish then Kubuntu, and it is a better distro now. I just think KDE is so much better than GNOME that it makes it worthwhile to me.

Now the bright side: the Ubuntu family is moving in a direction I always advocated (and the FSF encourages): desktop independent libraries plus front ends for different DE's. Examples:

* Network manager and its GNOME and KDE front ends. Brilliant (I know, wicd is more solid but doesn't fit that)

* Package Kit, Policy Kit and its GNOME and KDE front ends. Brilliant. It hurts now because KPackageKit is broken now. But we need to be patient.

If we encourage and support these initiatives (and propose more along these lines), soon enough (within one year) both Kubuntu and Ubuntu will have similar degrees of polish. GNOME will still be more popular, because people download the default OS, and that's GNOME based and not about to change. I wish it was KDE, but hey.

[Fintan]

Re: Why is Ubuntu more pupular than Kubuntu

Just for the fun of it:
http://news.softpedia.com/news/Ubunt...1-117368.shtml

Have a close read :P

[BigCityCat]

Re: Why is Ubuntu more pupular than Kubuntu

I think it's because you have tons of new people that are just experimenting and Ubuntu is the most popular. Most new users have no idea what KDE is. Then you have old school guys who are command line guys and gui isn't important. In fact gui is almost looked down on as too windows like.

I really love this new kde 4.3. It's awesome.

[GreyGeek]

Re: Why is Ubuntu more pupular than Kubuntu

When Michael De Icaza first create GNOME he gave as his reason the fact that KDE was not GPL. Now, nearly a decade later, Qt, on which KDE is built, has been under the GPL for several years, and GTK, on which GNOME is built, is moving toward a dependency on MONO, which has licensing issues. So time has reversed the situation. This has given rise to the infamous "desktop wars" of the past but, thankfully, those wars are a thing of the past.

When GNOME versioned from GTK 1.x to GTK 2.0 the GNOME developers also began emphasizing a "Keep it simple" approach. There was a lot of whining at the time by some GNOME users that the "new" GNOME was "dumbed down". When KDE versioned from 2.x to 3.0 there was a lot of whining amongst KDE users then, just as there has been a lot of whining now, as KDE 3.5.x versioned to KDE4. The Ubuntu Technical Board's announcement that the GNOME desktop remix will become dependent on MONO has raised a lot of complaints with GNOME users. Time erased past whines and will erase present whines. Both desktops have matured to very usable levels and which one a person uses is totally a matter of aesthetic AND political choices. Personally, I wouldn't touch a MONO tainted distro with a 20' pole.

Ubuntu's increasing popularity in the US is the result of marketing by Canonical, and that has led to a situation similar to what made Windows popular, being preinstalled on PC OEMS like Dell and others. In Europe SuSE and Mandrake were very popular. Mandrake changed its name to Mandriva and is still popular in Europe. The German distro, SuSE, was sold to Novell, which changed its name to SUSE, but SUSE is not as popular in Europe as SuSE was. SuSE featured the KDE desktop and after Novell got a hold of it they made GNOME the default. A recent uprising among OpenSUSE users is trying to get KDE reinstated as the default desktop. Mandriva has always been a KDE desktop, but they have recently released a version featuring GNOME. PCLinuxOS, MEPIS, KNOPPIX and several other top distros feature KDE, but Mint features GNOME. While KDE enjoyed a large share of the Linux desktop market in the past, that market is currently about equally divided, with the XFCE and WindowMaker Xclients rounding out the top 4 Linux desktops.

Most users will stay with the OS that is installed on their computer when they bought it, and for most Linux powered computers that is GNOME. However, if they have problems and they come to forums like this they hear about KDE and get curious. The LiveCD resolves that curiosity. Some switch and some do not. Besides desktop hopping there is also a lot of distro hopping. Most hopping around is more out of curiosity and playing around, because one can afford to do that in Linux, than it is about dissatisfaction. Linux is Linux, regardless of which desktop you use, or if you prefer the console.

Basically, which desktop is better depends on which one you like. What others think about your choice is immaterial.

[claydoh]

Re: Why is Ubuntu more pupular than Kubuntu

Basically, which desktop is better depends on which one you like. What others think about your choice is immaterial.

+1
I would also add the fact that I may choose one environment doesn't mean that the alternatives are bad.

[kbunt]

Re: Why is Ubuntu more pupular than Kubuntu

Why does Kubuntu's KDE have a poor rep? I am being completely neutral as I plead ignorance in this case but I wanted to hear the other side. I am sure that someone here will know what I mean and this is specific to the 'KDE version' in Kubuntu. I didn't know that there was a distinction between the various distros which use KDE (especially KDE 4) and I suppose there are some differences between the most recent developments in KDE (i.e. KDE 4.3). I didn't know that the differences were so significant that various users had preferences or alluded to one doing 'a better job' than other distro's developers etc.

Do they refer to which packages they use or how they implement them? The devs? Or how they utilize and modify the packages or what?

Anyhow, I have read repeatedly from various sources of Linux users being negative on Kubuntu's KDE use (and I guess most of it applies to a preconceived notion that Ubuntu favors, well, Gnome and so the KDE work or implementation is neglected or shoddy?

[lmilano]

Re: Why is Ubuntu more pupular than Kubuntu

Why does Kubuntu's KDE have a poor rep?

Excellent question, and I am not sure I know the answer. But here are some thoughts:

* Anything *buntu gets bashed, because the *buntu has been very successful, and success tends to draw lots of reactions in the Linux community.

* Ubuntu (Gnome) has a lot more polish, because it get a lot more resources. Some KDE lovers feel that Canonical is neglecting them, and that other distros have a more polished and complete experience built around KDE. This seems true of OpenSuse, though I strongly support http://boycottnovell.com/

* The wrong conclusion, though, is that the KDE in Kubuntu is bad. This is just not true.

Cheers!

[claydoh]

Re: Why is Ubuntu more pupular than Kubuntu

Why does Kubuntu's KDE have a poor rep?

Excellent question, and I am not sure I know the answer. But here are some thoughts:

* Anything *buntu gets bashed, because the *buntu has been very successful, and success tends to draw lots of reactions in the Linux community.

I agree here, and the fact that Kubuntu does get less resources than Ubuntu does tend to add to the perception that Kubuntu is not as good because of the different level support from Canonical.

Personally, while I would love to see Kubuntu's KDE get the same level of attention as Ubuntu's Gnome, it is pretty unrealistic to expect this to happen. And I am not upset by this in any way. Why dilute the fine work Ubuntu has done for the Linux community?

* Ubuntu (Gnome) has a lot more polish, because it get a lot more resources. Some KDE lovers feel that Canonical is neglecting them, and that other distros have a more polished and complete experience built around KDE. This seems true of OpenSuse, though I strongly support http://boycottnovell.com/

Opensuse and mandriva often heavily patch their KDE implementation, as well as add distro-specific tools and programs. Sometimes, they 'backport' features and code from development versions. Kubuntu and I assume Debian are much, much closer to a 'stock' implementation of KDE.

* The wrong conclusion, though, is that the KDE in Kubuntu is bad. This is just not true.

Cheers!

Agreed

I am positive that many of the reasons a user of Distro A thinks Distro B is terrible can be pointed back to Distro A by another user for whom Distro A does not work well, but Distro B works wonderfully

[GreyGeek]

Re: Why is Ubuntu more pupular than Kubuntu

Why does Kubuntu's KDE have a poor rep?

I am not sure that it does, except among Ubuntu GNOME users "protecting their turf" and KDE 3.5.x users who hate KDE4.

Every time I have tried Ubuntu, and distros based on it, like Mint, the experiment failed because Ubuntu's HAL could never configure my video chip (GM45) and it gave me a grey screen, even though the desktop was up and working invisibly. I never tried Kubuntu because I figured that it used the same HAL as Ubuntu.

I had been running Mandriva PWP 2009 for about 6 months. It featured KDE 4.1.3, which worked very well for me, but it could not give me 3D accelerated video. And, Mandriva announced that they would not move to KDE 4.2 until the spring release. At about the same time I heard that Kubuntu Jaunty featured 4.2 so, on a lark, I booted the LiveCD. In addition to KDE 4.2 I was stunned to see 3D accelerated video. I switched to Kubuntu immediately.

In the last 6 months I have upgraded to KDE 4.3, which is stunning, much faster and stable.

IMO, KDE 4.3 and Kubuntu is VERY POLISHED.

Yesterday I replaced FireFox 3.0 with 3.5. The difference in speed between FF3 and FF3.5 is just as remarkable. Now, FF is as fast as KDE4.3 is on my box.

This laptop came with VISTA Home Edition preinstalled. It was SLOW, buggy, was constantly throwing up useless confirmation dialogs. Visually, it was better looking than XP but isn't nearly as beautiful as KDE 4.3. Functionally, in terms of power and ease of use, KDE 4.3 far outshines any other OS or destkop I have ever used or tried.