Ubuntu Linux is a complete open source operating system built around the Linux kernel. The Ubuntu community is made up of software developers, translators, folks who love to write documentation, and most importantly the people who use Ubuntu every day. We invite you to join this community and help to make Ubuntu the operating system your family, friends, and office colleagues will love to use. Help to translate Ubuntu into your own language, test it on new laptops, servers and other exciting hardware, improve the web site with hints, tips and FAQ's, or help to define the set of software that is installed by default for future Ubuntu releases.
The Ubuntu community is built on the ideas enshrined in the Ubuntu Manifesto: that software should be available free of charge, that software tools should be usable by people in their local language and despite any disabilities, and that people should have the freedom to customize and alter their software in whatever way they see fit. For those reasons:
Ubuntu will always be free of charge, and there is no extra fee for the "enterprise edition," we make our very best work available to everyone on the same Free terms.
Ubuntu includes the very best in translations and accessibility infrastructure that the Free Software community has to offer, to make Ubuntu usable for as many people as possible.
Ubuntu is released regularly and predictably; a new release is made every six months. You can use the current stable release or the current development release. Each release is supported for at least 18 months.
Ubuntu is entirely committed to the principles of open source software development; we encourage people to use open source software, improve it and pass it on.
Find out more at http://www.ubuntulinux.org/ or take a look at some of the following:
The Ubuntu Mailing Lists, where the community discusses new ideas and issues with Ubuntu.
The Ubuntu Wiki, where we collaborate on the policies and strategy documents that define the direction Ubuntu will follow.
Chat with the community on Freenode IRC Channel: #ubuntu .
Access Ubuntu's local on line help by clicking the life preserver icon on the top panel of your desktop.
The Ubuntu Documentation Web Site.
Ubuntu uses the "Linux" kernel, the software which has come to define the worldwide movement to embrace open source software. Find out about Linux at Linux.org.
There are many GNU/Linux distributions (e.g., Redhat, SuSE, Debian, Mandrake)but Ubuntu distinguishes itself as a different kind of distribution.
Built on the solid and advanced base of Debian, the Ubuntu team aims to create a distribution that provides an up-to-date and coherent GNU/Linux system for desktop and server computing. Ubuntu includes a number of selected packages from the Debian distribution and is based on its powerful "APT" package management system. APT allows easy installation and clean removal of programs, as well as automatic download of extra packages to satisfy dependencies. Unlike most distributions that ship a wide range of software packages that may or may not be of quality, Ubuntu's core list of packages is reduced to only the important applications. (Although for maximum choice, you may choose from the full list, rather than being limited to the high quality core.)
By focusing on quality, Ubuntu produces a robust and feature rich computing environment that is flexible for use in home and commercial environments. The project has more time to spend on the finer details and is able to release a version featuring the latest and greatest of today's software, every 6 months. Ubuntu ships with versions for i386 (Pentium CPUs / IBM-compatible PCs), AMD-64 (Hammer) and PowerPC (iBook/Powerbook, G4 and G5) architectures.
The default desktop environment for Ubuntu is GNOME, a leading Unix and Linux desktop suite and development platform.
Another leading Unix and Linux desktop is KDE. Ubuntu does not install the KDE desktop by default. The project currently lacks the resources to maintain both KDE and GNOME desktops with a high level of quality. However, you will find all the KDE packages you could want in the universe component of Ubuntu. In the future, Ubuntu users will have a choice between these most excellent desktops. Work on this front is being done by the Kubuntu team.
Ubuntu includes the excellent OpenOffice.org Business Productivity software suite. This includes a word processor, spreadsheet and presentation combination that is largely compatible with other widely used Office software. Read more about the OpenOffice.org project at OpenOffice.org.