Best way to get new computer onto Ubuntu 12.04

[grj23]

Hi All

Quick one for your opinions/advice:

I'm about to get a new laptop, which I'll be "upgrading" from ******* to Ubuntu. I want to get onto the 12.04 long term release, and wondered about the "cleanest" way to do so:
1. Install the 12.04 beta, and do my upgrades.
2. Install previous version and upgrade when it releases at the end of the month.
3. Install the previous LTR, and upgrade when 12.04 releases.
Other?

I'm actually using 10.10 at the moment, because I didn't really like Unity. I've read that 12.04 is likely to change all that. And that

sudo apt-get install xfce4-panel = 3
is a good idea to get a bit of control again. Call me old fashioned, but I like the applications, neatly organised into categories. But I'm sure I'll learn to adapt.

Thoughts on this?

Sorry for ramble. I was mainly asking my first question and then just got a bit carried away...

[Basher101]

"cleanest" way is to get the laptop and wait until the final release is out :popcorn:

as for the Desktop Environment, use whatever works best for you

[Curtis6767]

I've been using the Beta release for about 10 days and have had only minor problems which have been solved through re-boot.

It is a pain to upgrade and took me several hours even though I have DSL because downloading the upgrade is just the first part of a two step operation.

12.04 LTS stable release is just a few days away and most would advise you to wait on that release and some would say wait for a month afterward just to be safe.

Really no sense pushing the river when the final release date is so close, IMHO.

[grj23]

So I installed Ubuntu 12.04 Beta onto my Dell Inspiron 14z. Fantastic. 30 seconds from hitting the power button to getting a website up, including signing in.

Everything seems to be working fine! Might even get used to Unity

[kurt18947]

So I installed Ubuntu 12.04 Beta onto my Dell Inspiron 14z. Fantastic. 30 seconds from hitting the power button to getting a website up, including signing in.

Everything seems to be working fine! Might even get used to Unity

Unity in 12.04 is better than previous iterations. Other options are available though. I'm partial toward shell myself though I wish some extension developers would get busy and update their handiwork to work in gnome 3.4 :p. Xfce4-desktop installs & functions as well. Gnome classic even works pretty well these days.

[mastablasta]

Everything seems to be working fine! Might even get used to Unity

you can choose gnome classic on login to get the old Gnome2 look&feel