Should Tux the Penguin be featured more prominently in Ubuntu?

[8_Bit]

The first Linux distro I ever tried was a Knoppix live CD. I remember seeing Tux at boot and thought that was cool.

But we never see Tux anywhere in Ubuntu. Not even on the website.

Should Tux the Penguin be shown more often in Ubuntu promotional material? What do you think?

Ubuntu IS still Linux, after all, and Tux is the Linux mascot. But some people think that associating Ubuntu too much with "Linux" makes it look scary and noob-unfriendly, believe it or not. So that famous picture of the fat penguin Tux is more of a liability to those people.

[Nyromith]

No. Never liked this penguin. Doesn't look appealing.

[cespinal]

No...it is ugly, dated, and it does not represent what Ubuntu stands for these days.

[Spice Weasel]

I don't care, and it doesn't matter.

[Paqman]

No, Tux is rubbish. Ubuntu has a much better logo.

[ilovelinux33467]

I don't care, and it doesn't matter.

This

[jhonan]

No, Tux is rubbish. Ubuntu has a much better logo.
You'll make Tux cry... :(

[Thewhistlingwind]

While I love tux, it's not featured that prominently in other distros either. So why should Ubuntu be any exception? Ubuntu especially is the one distro that wouldn't even if it were expected.

The ubuntu splash screen is a masterpiece as it is. (Seriously, it's beautiful.)

The minimalism is refreshing in a world of flashy gimmicks.

[Zero2Nine]

While I love tux, it's not featured that prominently in other distros either. So why should Ubuntu be any exception? Ubuntu especially is the one distro that wouldn't even if it were expected.

The ubuntu splash screen is a masterpiece as it is. (Seriously, it's beautiful.)

The minimalism is refreshing in a world of flashy gimmicks.

Sadly I can't see it with my video card :(

[infestor]

No. Never liked this penguin. Doesn't look appealing.

agreed. another logo would be nice

[el_koraco]

Tux is the greatest!

[Grenage]

For the market Ubuntu is aiming for, it probably wouldn't be a great idea to use Tux. The penguin is a general Linux logo that's splashed all over the place, not a brand-specific icon.

It would be easy for someone to see a terminal or minimalist system with a penguin logo, later see that same logo on the Ubuntu website, and think "hell no". By having a particular brand image, you have far more control over how you are perceived.

[Random_Dude]

For the market Ubuntu is aiming for, it probably wouldn't be a great idea to use Tux. The penguin is a general Linux logo that's splashed all over the place, not a brand-specific icon.

It would be easy for someone to see a terminal or minimalist system with a penguin logo, later see that same logo on the Ubuntu website, and think "hell no". By having a particular brand image, you have far more control over how you are perceived.

^This.
I don't see any marketing advantage in doing so.
Ubuntu is targeted at newcomers, it's probably better not to scare them away.
Besides, the more experienced users know what Ubuntu is, they don't need a logo on the website to know that it's a linux distro.

Cheers :cool:

[timZZ]

I am probably missing a back-story here but in my opinion, a penguin never was a good mascot for Linux. There is not an obvious relationship between the two.

[swoll1980]

For the market Ubuntu is aiming for, it probably wouldn't be a great idea to use Tux. The penguin is a general Linux logo that's splashed all over the place, not a brand-specific icon.

It would be easy for someone to see a terminal or minimalist system with a penguin logo, later see that same logo on the Ubuntu website, and think "hell no". By having a particular brand image, you have far more control over how you are perceived.

This. It would be like GM scrapping their logo for the Goodyear logo because they use their tires.

[forrestcupp]

I am probably missing a back-story here but in my opinion, a penguin never was a good mascot for Linux. There is not an obvious relationship between the two.

Yeah, but what is the relationship between a clown called Ronald McDonald and a hamburger joint?

[sanderd17]

I love tux (see my signature) but I don't think it's a good idea to market Ubuntu with tux.

[timZZ]

Yeah, but what is the relationship between a clown called Ronald McDonald and a hamburger joint?

I am not saying this mascot couldn't be improved either, however, in your example you chose to use a widely recognized brand, who had many mascots that are not longer in use.

[BrokenKingpin]

Tux is awesome. They should display the logo somewhere, as it shows they are running the Linux kernel.

[forrestcupp]

I am not saying this mascot couldn't be improved either, however, in your example you chose to use a widely recognized brand, who had many mascots that are not longer in use.

But Ronald McDonald was always the main one, and he still is. They should have stuck with Mayor McCheese. :)


And I don't think Ubuntu should adopt Tux. But I don't think there's anything wrong with elevating Tux, kind of like the old Intel Inside stickers.

[Anuovis]

Ubuntu logo is stylish and slick. Having a penguin might bring unnecessary difficulties to advertise and promote Linux. It is cute and cuddly but somewhat childish.

And while we are at it... I think OpenSuse has the best logo ever.

[Spice Weasel]

OpenSUSE has the best theme and branding of any distro, IMO.

[forrestcupp]

I don't think anyone was talking about changing the Ubuntu logo to Tux.

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

This. It would be like GM scrapping their logo for the Goodyear logo because they use their tires.

I agree with you.

The Linux kernel is such a small part of Ubuntu, Red Hat Enterprise Linux, SuSE, or ... the list goes on. What you get with a distro is so much more than the Linux kernel.