Do you participate in popularity contest?

[aysiu]

I'm just curious whether people on these forums use popularity contest or not. Please pick the poll option that is the most appropriate to your situation or the biggest factor in your choice to participate or not participate.

As always, I'm avoiding the "Multiple Choice" polls because they're difficult to interpret (the percentages don't add up to 100).

Some other threads on popularity contest:
What is popularity-contest? (http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=386381&highlight=popularity+contest)
popularity-contest (http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=449107&highlight=popularity+contest)
Unfairness? of package popularity contest (http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=342638&highlight=popularity+contest)
How to uninstall popularity-contest? (http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=217917&highlight=popularity+contest)
popularity-contest enabled? (http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=242324&highlight=popularity+contest)

For me, it was a tough call between it helping the developers and helping the users. I don't think the developers are going to care all that much. But it is kind of neat as a user to see which packages are the most popular.

[Metacarpal]

I used to participate in the popularity contest, but have stopped because I went on a mad housecleaning rampage on my system, eliminating any load-on-boot processes I didn't need. The popularity contest found itself on the chopping block.

[juxtaposed]

Yes, because the installer (debian) asked nicely.

[MetalMusicAddict]

Yes, because the installer (debian) asked nicely.

Yeah. I wished the Ubuntu disk did this.

I answered Yes because it helps everyone.

[FuturePilot]

No. I like the idea but I don't like that my computer is sending stuff as a background process. It seems a little sneaky. Like someone spying on me. If it was implemented differently I'd be glad to participate.

[Hendrixski]

I've heard of it, think it's a good idea, but I don't know how to set it up. Or if it would slow down my install operations.

[aysiu]

Yes, because the installer (debian) asked nicely.
What Ubuntu does in Feisty is make it an "advanced" option during the installation. Along with where to install Grub, you're also asked if you want to participate in popularity context (the default is an unchecked box--you can check the box if you want).

[Ireclan]

I participate in the popularity contest because, in effect, I was asked to by Ubuntu. Thus, because I trust Ubuntu, I was willing to perform this task for them. By the way, does popularity data get forwarded upstream? This would be a great way to let developers know how their application is faring in at least THIS segment of the wide world of Linux users.

[Adamant1988]

I'm just curious whether people on these forums use popularity contest or not. Please pick the poll option that is the most appropriate to your situation or the biggest factor in your choice to participate or not participate.

As always, I'm avoiding the "Multiple Choice" polls because they're difficult to interpret (the percentages don't add up to 100).

Some other threads on popularity contest:
What is popularity-contest? (http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=386381&highlight=popularity+contest)
popularity-contest (http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=449107&highlight=popularity+contest)
Unfairness? of package popularity contest (http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=342638&highlight=popularity+contest)
How to uninstall popularity-contest? (http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=217917&highlight=popularity+contest)
popularity-contest enabled? (http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=242324&highlight=popularity+contest)

For me, it was a tough call between it helping the developers and helping the users. I don't think the developers are going to care all that much. But it is kind of neat as a user to see which packages are the most popular.

Where it really matters, the popularity contest is rigged. the default installations of software are automatically getting votes, automatically making them more 'popular' and through transitive properties "better". Personally, I'm in favor of Ubuntu coming with almost no software included by default. I would rather the Ubuntu developers use the extra HUNDREDS of megabytes of space they would earn with a lighter distro to innovate and offer us more in the default installation. More focus on developing... If Ubuntu started off fairly bare-bones the popularity contest would work better, but as it stands OpenOffice is 'the very best', etc. because it's default, which I don't feel is a good way to handle things.

[aysiu]

For the sake of popularity contest, sure, no defaults would give the most accurate results, but for the sake of usability, no defaults would suck for new users.

I think the statistics are meaningful only for those packages that are not defaults, since a lot of people keep the defaults in for fear of losing the metapackage (ubuntu-desktop, for example) and thus having a rockier upgrade.

[Polygon]

Where it really matters, the popularity contest is rigged. the default installations of software are automatically getting votes, automatically making them more 'popular' and through transitive properties "better". Personally, I'm in favor of Ubuntu coming with almost no software included by default. I would rather the Ubuntu developers use the extra HUNDREDS of megabytes of space they would earn with a lighter distro to innovate and offer us more in the default installation. More focus on developing... If Ubuntu started off fairly bare-bones the popularity contest would work better, but as it stands OpenOffice is 'the very best', etc. because it's default, which I don't feel is a good way to handle things.


pop-con (popularity contest) updates like every week, so... if you install ubuntu and pop-con sends your package lists to the server, but then you remove whatever you dont want, then tthe next time it updates it sends the correct list of packages that you actually have on your computer

and im pretty sure that the devs know that the default packages are going to get 10000x more hits then other packages.

and byitself, linux does nothing. It gives you a command prompt, which you have to have programs installed to even use the command line (bash, all the GNU utilities). Then gnome itself is a package, which adds a bunch of its dependencies (like control center, screensaver, gdm) and then 99.9% of users need to install stuff like a web browser, cd burning tool, word processor, image program, chat program, music player, email program etc etc

I dont know about you, but the part i hate the most about windows is reinstalling. Not only does it make it hard because you only download like 10 updates at a time, then you have to restart, scan for more updates, and download some more (times this by like 6 tries before your fully updated), but then i have to go scourge the internet (or in ubuntu's case: synaptic) and download all the programs i need... firefox, thunderbird, open office, pidgin, cd buring tool, torrent program, all that

with ubuntu, a good portion of it comes installed by default. sure i have to change a few programs but thats far easier then installing EVERYTHING

sure not everyone will need every single package that is included by default on ubuntu, but the vast majority do. And if you dont like the package, simply uninstall alll the ones you dont want, and the ones that you do use and pop-con will make note of that and see that youve uninstalled X programs and installed Y programs.

[aysiu]

By the way, for those who don't know how to enable popularity contest post-install, here's how you do it.

[Mr_bleu]

Yeah. I wished the Ubuntu disk did this.

I answered Yes because it helps everyone.
It did in Feisty Fawn, listed under advanced during the install. You had to click it to enable. (I've installed wayyyyyyyyy too many times lol.) (Only 'cause I like to find out what this does, or that does, etc)

[aysiu]

It did in Feisty Fawn, listed under advanced during the install. You had to click it to enable. (I've installed wayyyyyyyyy too many times lol.) (Only 'cause I like to find out what this does, or that does, etc)
Yes, it's at the very last part of the installation if you click Advanced

[kevinlyfellow]

By the way, for those who don't know how to enable popularity contest post-install, here's how you do it.

That seems easier than when I last tried to use it. I'm lazy about it, but seems like it's easy enough now to enable that it may be worth it.

Edit: Oops, I didn't know I already was doing pop-con... that really was easy!

[LightB]

I didn't know about it, so I turned it on. Not sure how to vote so I'll simply vote 'yes'.