Ubuntu 20.04 got a lot of things right!

[exploder]

I recently installed Ubuntu 20.04 on my newer HP 15 laptop to try and resolve sound card issues. It turned out to be a kernel issue and I did get it resolved. I had been using Kubuntu 20.04 and I like it a lot. I passed on Gnome Shell originally thinking that it just looked dated. I tried a few distros on the laptop but Ubuntu by far has the most support and information easily available. Installing a mainline kernel was painless with the instructions available.

The new theme took me by surprise! Gnome Shell in it's default state looks like it's from the 90's. Ubuntu with it's community theme looks amazing! It's clear a lot of time and effort went into the new look! The customized dock in my opinion was a nice touch in that it retains the feel of Unity that some users liked very much. It's not all bling and no go like some other desktop environments. I have used Linux for many, many years and have always thought that default look and feel was what was holding Linux back. Ubuntu 20.04 has changed my view of Gnome Shell. The community did an outstanding job with the theme and icons.

I was not sure about snaps at first, I see both positive and negative comments. I gave the VLC snap a try after the version in the repos kept crashing. The snap version starts just as quick and works perfectly! I expected the app to take a while to start but I was willing to give it a try first rather than add a ppa. I don't know if all snaps work that well but I do like the idea of them in general and am glad they are available. Canonical seems to be addressing the issues originally associated with snaps rather quickly and I hope the technology continues to improve and become more popular.

I see a lot of newer technology in Ubuntu 20.04, snaps, improved plymouth, live patch for the kernel and a community theme that is unique and appealing. All of these things combined with the availability of support demonstrate that Canonical is headed in the right direction.

Edit: Forgot to mention the inclusion of a Wayland session! Wayland works well under Gnome Shell on two of my Intel systems. It was nice that it was included by default as an option.

[TheFu]

Using VLC as a snap, play a media file located anywhere outside of /home/, perhaps in /nfs/media/Movies/

[mastablasta]

VLC cna also do a bti of editing. you probably can't save it anywhere outside of home as well. if you can save it at all.

[exploder]

I never said snaps were perfect but if the technology continues to improve at it's current rate they could provide a competitive edge. Competing operating systems are still putting lipstick on a pig, Canonical and Redhat are developing new technology. Flatpack, snap and app images are all interesting concepts.

[TheFu]

Canonical and Redhat are developing new technology. Flatpack, snap and app images are all interesting concepts.

Agreed. I love the way Wayland has been introduced. It is optional.
I hate the way snaps are being introduced in an LTS, before they are ready. Mandatory.

Fedora has made flatpaks so that local control is possible for the constraints.

Mandatory snaps without local controls are what will drive sophisticated users/companies away.

[zebra2]

Lack of local control with Snaps aren't driving me away from Ubuntu but I don't use snaps. As to the OP, I use Ubuntu 20.10 with Wayland on all fo my machines. I switch to Gnome when Unity was dropped. It felt immature and actually childish compared to Unity at first but upped their game pretty fast. With all of the Gnome improvements in the Settings Manager it doesn't come close to CompizConfig in Unity. And especially with a 3D kernel driven compositor like Wayland on the buffet. Also, I still use the retired system-config-printer with OEM drivers for my printer setup. I can't get a decent printout with the default print manager. I'm having no problem dual booting Windows in Legacy mode but have no use for UEFI. I think when the time arrives and if it doesn't get fixed I will just set up a stand-alone Win Machine for my once a year Taxes and Garmin update. VM's don't get it for me and I have a lot of RAM.
Other than that count me in as "just loving it". I agree that over all we are in a great place with the Ubuntu OS.
PS , There is a lot of great information on this forum also. Many of the posts here took a lot of time and effort. I especially like the Kernel thread and the Security section. You have to have a fire burning to keep things like that going. I think I am blessed.

[exploder]

I wonder if Canonical decided to include snaps in the LTS as kind of an attraction to users migrating to Linux after support ended for Windows 7? Linux adaption has increased after all. Maybe that's stretching things a bit but how many times in the past has Linux missed the boat when things like that happen? There should be a clearer way in the software center to distinguish snaps from debs but I am sure sure that will come in time. We know what we are looking for but a new user probably wouldn't. Canonical would have been criticized if they hadn't included snaps too. I personally think they made the right choice by including them.

[TheFu]

I wouldn't know how to tell the difference in Software Center. I've never used it.

Snaps have been around since at least 17.10. Anyone who says they don't use snaps in 20.04 probably isn't looked. There are some core things in 20.04 that only come as snaps. Even an Ubuntu Server install pushed a few snaps without asking.

Still, it is good that some people are happy with 20.04. I'm not there yet. Perhaps 5-8 more months of fixes?

[deadflowr]

You can see where any package is from in the Software Store by looking at the package's Details section.

[ajgreeny]

I wouldn't know how to tell the difference in Software Center. I've never used it.

Snaps have been around since at least 17.10. Anyone who says they don't use snaps in 20.04 probably isn't looked. There are some core things in 20.04 that only come as snaps. Even an Ubuntu Server install pushed a few snaps without asking.

Still, it is good that some people are happy with 20.04. I'm not there yet. Perhaps 5-8 more months of fixes?

I have never used the Software Centre/Software Store, or whatever name it uses now either; if I want a GUI for package management I go straight to synaptic as it is probably the easiest with which to search for packages.

You may be correct about snaps, ie they make up some of the core things in Ubuntu 20.04 but the snaps in some of the other flavours, eg Xubuntu which I use, are the snap management packages only such as snapd, snap-store, core18, and two versions of gnome, all of which I removed along with chromium after finding that it would not save any files where I wanted them; everything had to be saved in Downloads, not necessarily where I wanted. I still use chromium but mine is now is from the PPA at https://launchpad.net/~saiarcot895/+...u/chromium-dev.
If I wanted a snap now I could only install it by adding back the whole snap infrastructure, but I have realised I do not need nor want any snaps so unless things change, I am and will remain, totally snap free.

I have to warn anyone using default Ubuntu with the gnome desktop that their success removing all snaps could be totally different from mine with Xubuntu; maybe Ubuntu with gnome has a need for some of those snap packages that I removed but having used Ubuntu only for a very short time as a virtual install in Virtualbox, I am unable to say if removal of the snaps would cause problems of any sort.