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Kubuntu vs Ubuntu: What are the differences?
Desktop Environment: The key difference between Kubuntu and Ubuntu lies in their default desktop environments. Kubuntu uses the KDE Plasma desktop environment, known for its customizable and feature-rich interface, while Ubuntu uses the GNOME desktop environment, which is more streamlined and user-friendly for beginners.
Pre-installed applications: Another significant difference is the set of pre-installed applications. Kubuntu comes with software like KMail, KDE Connect, and Okular, tailored to the KDE environment, whereas Ubuntu includes applications like Rhythmbox, Shotwell, and LibreOffice, designed for the GNOME environment.
System requirements: Kubuntu and Ubuntu have slightly different system requirements due to their respective desktop environments. Kubuntu may require more system resources to run smoothly due to the resource-heavy nature of KDE Plasma, while Ubuntu tends to be more lightweight and can run on older or lower-powered hardware more efficiently.
Package Management: Kubuntu and Ubuntu use different package management systems. Kubuntu uses the Muon Package Manager and Discover software center, focusing more on graphical tools, while Ubuntu uses the GNOME Software Center and terminal-based tools like apt-get for package management.
Community Support: The community support and user base for Kubuntu and Ubuntu also vary. Ubuntu, being the flagship distribution of the Ubuntu project, generally has a larger and more active community, providing more resources and assistance to users. Kubuntu, while still well-supported, may have a smaller community and fewer resources available.
Default Theme and Appearance: The default look and feel of Kubuntu and Ubuntu are distinct. Kubuntu typically features a blue-themed interface with KDE Plasma's signature widgets and effects, while Ubuntu showcases the brown-orange Ambiance theme with the GNOME Shell layout, giving each distribution a unique visual identity.
In Summary, Kubuntu and Ubuntu differ in desktop environments, pre-installed applications, system requirements, package management, community support, and default theme and appearance.
Ubuntu is much more faster over Windows and helps to get software and other utilities easier and within a short span of time compared to Windows.
Ubuntu helps to get robustness and resiliency over Windows. Ubuntu runs faster than Windows on every computer that I have ever tested. LibreOffice (Ubuntu's default office suite) runs much faster than Microsoft Office on every computer that I have ever tested.
Global familiarity, free, widely used, and as a debian distro feels more comfortable when rapidly switching between local macOS and remote command lines.
CentOS does boast quite a few security/stability improvements, however as a RHEL-based distro, differs quite significantly in the command line and suffers from slightly less frequent package updates. (Could be a good or bad thing depending on your use-case and if it is public facing)
At the moment of the decision, my desktop was the primary place I did work. Due to this, I can't have it blow up on me while I work. While Arch is interesting and powerful, Ubuntu offers (at least for me) a lot more stability and lets me focus on other things than maintaining my own OS installation.
Pros of Kubuntu
- Highly customizable5
- Large community5
- Very Stable4
- Good for beginners4
- Lightweight4
Pros of Ubuntu
- Free to use230
- Easy setup for testing discord bot96
- Gateway Linux Distro57
- Simple interface54
- Don't need driver installation in most cases9
- Open Source6
- Many active communities6
- Software Availability3
- Easy to custom3
- Many flavors/distros based on ubuntu2
- Lightweight container base OS1
- Great OotB Linux Shell Experience1
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Cons of Kubuntu
- Unstable2
Cons of Ubuntu
- Demanding system requirements5
- Adds overhead and unnecessary complexity over Debian4
- Snapd installed by default2
- Systemd1
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What is Kubuntu?
What is Ubuntu?
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