Canonical asks desktop users to "pay what you think Ubuntu is worth"

[fat yak]

Yes I'd contribute because it's my OS of choice but I second the point about ironing out bugs and hardware compatibility. Get the basics right before playing with the desktop.

[aysiu]

I think *buntu used to be a great distribution until they started with six month release cycles,stopped shipit and started to change the direction the distribution was heading.

Ubuntu's always had six-month release cycles:

October 2004, Warty Warthog
April 2005, Hoary Hedgehog
October 2005, Breezy Badger
June 2006, Dapper Drake
October 2006, Edgy Eft
April 2007, Feisty Fawn
October 2007, Gutsy Gibbon
April 2008, Hardy Heron
October 2008, Intrepid Ibex
April 2009, Jaunty Jackalope
October 2009, Karmic Koala
April 2010, Lucid Lynx
October 2010, Maverick Meerkat
April 2011, Natty Narwhal
October 2011, Oneiric Ocelot
April 2012, Precise Pangolin

The plan was always six months. Dapper got delayed a little, but it's pretty much been on a six-month release cycle since day one.

[forrestcupp]

I don't think it is either, but this along with the Amazon thing just seem like the kind of quick'n'easy attempts to monetize a distro that you'd expect from some one-man respin.

I'm not saying it's wrong, or that it won't make them some money, or that they don't deserve to get some money back on what they do. It's just ... they're a multi-million-dollar corporation. It's like a lawyer having a tip jar, or a stock-broker selling magazine subscriptions.

Yeah, I don't have any problem at all with the donation thing, but it wouldn't take much for me to start having a problem with things like Amazon search. I understand that they need to increase revenue, but one of the attractions of Linux over Windows PCs is the lack of crapware. I can see how this could possibly snowball into more and more crap cluttering our desktops to help increase Canonical's revenue. The Unity DE is sure not enough to make me think all that stuff is worth it. But like I said, I don't have any problem with the donation thing.

I was pleased that I could contribute to the expenses that Canonical has been carrying for these many years.

I contributed a reasonable amount today, and will likely do so for each new release level I start using.

I am running Ubuntu on 8 systems at home. Lord knows that I have paid more than enough for Windows and OSX releases over time for my non-Ubuntu systems.

But you have to keep in mind that you only get a new Windows release every 3-5 years, and you get Ubuntu twice a year. If I drop $20 on Ubuntu every time I upgrade, that's $120 over 3 years and $200 over 5 years. I can get a Windows 8 upgrade for $40, and the service packs over the next 3-5 years will be free.

I'm definitely not saying I want anything to do with Win8, but I'm just putting into perspective the question of how much is Ubuntu worth. Maybe $20-40 each time they have an LTS release?

[Statia]

- FFS Stop Making The Desktop Even More Amazing (TM) And Get Basic Hardware Compatibility, Bugs And Features Working

This.

[cprofitt]

Canonical and Ubuntu has existed for almost ten years and they still have not made a profit. If it was any other company, it would have shut down years ago but Canonical is supported by Mr. Shuttleworth's millions. Apple on the other hand is profitable already, so no, nobody would call them desperate in that sense.

True,... so one has to make an assumption about Canonical's balance sheet to label this as desperation, because the act itself is not any indication of the state of affairs. When I start seeing things like layoffs and hiring freezes I will start to worry. When I see Canonical asking for money from Microsoft to stay afloat (like Apple once needed) then I will worry. I will not make an assumption about the finances based on allowing users to contribute in a way that allows them to choose what they want to support.

So?
Revenue alone means nothing.

True... allowing people to have an elegant way to donate to the project alone means nothing as well.

[lykwydchykyn]

"Unbecoming" of their stature..?

I think it's just that it suggests something negative about their other revenue streams. Essentially, it suggests that Landscape, Ubuntu One, Ubuntu Music, OEM deals, software center sales, and corporate support contracts aren't collectively bringing home the bacon.

What I'd hope to see ultimately is Canonical become a wildly successful corporation with a solid, FOSS-friendly business plan. A donation button isn't part of a sustainable business model. I guess it's a bit of a let-down to me that they have to resort to this.

[johnnybgoode83]

We only need to remember one thing. Open source is about software freedom, not free software.

[stalkingwolf]

400 CDs is a lot

My question is what is the life of a service man or woman worth?
There are ways to verify that the person requesting is actually on active duty.
There are also severe penalties for using that position for fraudulent purposes.
Being a veteran myself from the Vietnam era and from a military family, i know many who gave all, and ALL gave some.

We only have one side of the story but i am inclined to believe it. Ive seen it.

Had Canonical honoured a legitimate request from an Active unit the advertising and marketing standpoint could well still be paying dividends.
The involvement of Veteran owned business's, families, friends, service organisations, etc etc. Instead the old marketing axiom was invoked.
"1 dissatisfied customer can do more damage than 100 satisfied ones."

As to donating i have no problem with that. as long as i see it resulting in something other that bling. I dont buy a new computer every 6 months. i dont need all that crap. If I need or want something i add it.

Like the inhibit applet, force quit, and system monitor applets. which are becoming scarce.

[alexfish]

Don't now true cost of Supporting the Ubuntu project .

This one may raise some eyebrows.

Lets take a look at support + security and updates. These in essence are still free.

Supposing this activity could raise money

In terms of user's , ported to be 20M.

A yearly or 6 monthly fee for support + security and updates could = a lot of revenue , yet not hurt pocket , could also be scaled depending on local.

20M * 1 = 20m : 5 = 100M and so on

I for one would prefer this option instead of putting into a begging bowl , although not a bad option if there no other means. but not a professional one .

Alex

[meditatingfrog]

* Those individuals with low/no revenues who otherwise believe Ubuntu is priceless won't be able to "pay what they think it is worth", unfortunately

* This must only be for people who actually download the iso from the website, and don't download and seed with a torrent file (since the ubuntu.com bandwidth isn't free as in rootbeer)

* i'm surprised they didn't do this earlier

* i wonder how long it will take for them to accept bitcoins