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Idea #27306: Ubuntu desktop requirements are getting too high for older systems

bug This idea was marked as implemented the 26 June 11. Available starting Ubuntu 11.04 Natty Narwhal.
Written by turbolad the 2 Mar 11 at 15:07. Category: System. Related project: Nothing/Others. Status: Implemented
Rationale
Ubuntu's minimum and recommended hardware requirements are getting higher. This is not good for older computers or netbooks.

As users' discover Ubuntu as an alternative to Windows and install it on older computers alongside Windows XP, the requirements for Ubuntu may soon be too high and it will run slower.

67
votes
implemented
Selected solution (#1): Canonical Ltd should support Lubuntu as it's the fastest variant of Ubuntu
Written by turbolad the 2 Mar 11 at 15:07.
Lubuntu uses half as much memory (RAM) as Ubuntu. Lubuntu is designed to work better on older computers - it will also run faster than Ubuntu (and Xubuntu!) on newer computers.

I have Lubuntu on the netbook and it's much faster than Ubuntu Netbook Edition was. Also, the one bar at the bottom of the screen in Lubuntu is more user-friendly and saves screen space, instead of having 2 GNOME panels (1 at the top and 1 at the bottom of the screen).

Here's more about Lubuntu and using it on older computers:
http://www.osnews.com/story/24476/Lubuntu_Finally_a_Lightweight_Ubuntu_
-21
votes
implemented
Selected solution (#2): Canonical should design new *buntu edition optimized for slower computers
Written by Felitaur the 21 Mar 11 at 01:28.
Design some other variant of Ubuntu, which should be based on known light weight windows managers, like Openbox, ffwm2, Awesome, WMaker, with number of application running by default maximally reduced. So it should be faster than any other variant of *buntu using X.
-11
votes
implemented
Selected solution (#3): Canonical should design *buntu edition, which doesn't use X11 at all
Written by Felitaur the 21 Mar 11 at 01:34.
It must be ubuntu edition, with tmux or screen as windows manager + framebuffer, such a system should work well on Pentium I or maybe even i486 based machines, but provide modern software for users of such machines.
Such system should be able to display pictures and video with framebuffer and provide many more of console software, since it would not include any graphical applications on the CD, exept ones, which can be rebuilt to use framebuffer

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Toxicbits wrote on the 3 Mar 11 at 12:44
I would prefer it if Ubuntu was optimized the way Lubuntu is, at least if it doesn't limit the user experience, or the development of new features.

turbolad wrote on the 3 Mar 11 at 16:33
Lubuntu uses "lightweight" everything, which makes it suitable for older computers.

I agree with you Toxicbits. Ubuntu should be made faster and users would ideally have a faster computer running Ubuntu instead of Windows. Lubuntu is said to be much faster than Xubuntu, the latter is supported by Canonical, so why not support Lubuntu?

Installing Lubuntu on an older computer, i.e. around 7 years old, won't make today's programs run much faster, such as Flash Player (the Linux version of Flash player is so slow compared to the Windows version!), video editors and so on, but it will allow the computer to be usable for checking e-mails, word processing etc. instead of being dumped.

Going back to Flash Player: 720p videos on youtube are less "juddery" on my netbook now I'm using Lubuntu, so the difference is noticeable with Lubuntu. The netbook can't handle 1080p videos well, but netbooks are under-powered and Lubuntu is the ideal operating system to install and I notice that the windows are easier to move around and don't get maximised all the time like they did on Ubuntu Netbook Edition.

PaddyLandau wrote on the 7 Mar 11 at 10:35
I fully agree that Canonical should support Lubuntu. I have an old system where the original Windows XP got too slow to run, and even Xubuntu was too slow. Lubuntu, on the other hand, has revived the machine; without Lubuntu, the PC would have gone to recycling.

@Toxicbits: There is always a trade-off between optimisation and making the system "prettier". Many people convert to Linux only after seeing the special desktop effects. Thus, I believe that Ubuntu should continue as it is, with Compiz, etc. Systems that can run Windows 7 are very fast under Ubuntu.

phix wrote on the 7 Mar 11 at 22:26
Lubuntu is on track to becoming an "Official" Ubuntu variant. All it needs is to merge repositories with the main repos. They use a PPA now because Lubuntu uses patched software not yet in the main repos.

https://lists.launchpad.net/lubuntu-desktop/msg01055.html

ActionParsnip wrote on the 8 Mar 11 at 05:21
Ditch XUbuntu and use LUbuntu as the lightweight distro but keep XFCE and such in the repos

inkwina wrote on the 13 Mar 11 at 19:57
Lubuntu turned my ageing laptop from a brick into a useful machine! I use it as the version on Ubuntu under XBMC and it's great there too. It is so important for Ubuntu not to forget about old/low resource PC users.

sodacrystals wrote on the 13 Mar 11 at 23:21
There needs to be a balance between speed and features. Users will prefer Ubuntu not only based on it's speed, but also based on the features it provides, such as a well polished graphically appealing user interface. Often one comes at the cost of the other.

I personally install Ubuntu on many computers with various hardware capabilities. My main workstation is a newer computer with more capable hardware, however I've also fixed up old trashed computers to use as servers, some about 10 years old. Obviously there are different expectations in performance and features from each.

As newer hardware becomes available and computers more capable, it makes sense for Ubuntu to set higher minimal hardware requirements and include more features to satisfy the average users expectations. For those of us who have older computers, or who don't care to bother with the extra bloat of these features however, Canonical's support of Lubuntu could make the Ubuntu experience better for a broad range of users.

Felitaur wrote on the 21 Mar 11 at 01:23
I personally dislike LXDE, because its icons is too similar to vista icons. Can people who is using terrible icons from a crappy OS make something what is really good? Maybe it's better to support WMaker or IceWM or ion3buntu instead?

turbolad wrote on the 21 Mar 11 at 13:27
@Felitaur
I'm using Lubuntu 11.04 Alpha and after installing a load of updates, the LXDE GUI looks more modern and I don't see any resemblance to Vista at all.

I really wish Canonical would support Lubuntu. I'm so pleased with Lubuntu and it has given my netbook a new lease of life. Before using Lubuntu I nearly got rid of the netbook - now it's working properly and it's as fast as Windows XP (I dual-boot both so I can install Windows-only BIOS updates on Windows XP, but 99.99% of the time I use Lubuntu). My netbook is a Samsung NB30, very new still, but netbooks are very under-powered compared to today's laptop or today's conventional desktop PC's.

Felitaur wrote on the 24 Mar 11 at 06:56
I'm using usual Ubuntu LTS on netbook and is seem to work good, except memory overconsumption by Firefox and some other apps, so ff is going to be killed if I open about 20-30 or more tabs

TuxHHG wrote on the 27 Mar 11 at 11:18
My eee 901go was choked by 10.10 netbook, bootup time to 2 minutes, over 1 minute to desktop. Sluggish gui, stuttering mouse pointer. So i installed lubuntu on it, now it is fast again. 10.10unr is not a bad release, it works well and fast on my thinkpad x41 (which have lower gpu power than the eee)

Eldmannen wrote on the 30 Mar 11 at 17:41
New Ubuntu will use Wayland.
Maybe you want Damn Small Linux or Knoppix instead?

Ubuntu cant restrict itself to the lowest common dominator, if it wants to keep itself competitive with Mac OS X.

turbolad wrote on the 30 Mar 11 at 21:43
@Eldmannen

Ubuntu offers variants to suit different requirements. Ubuntu are NOT restricting themselves to the lowest common dominator. Ubuntu is keeping up with new trends e.g. Wayland, but Lubuntu offers users with older or lower power computers the benefit of Ubuntu - albeit without the support of Canonical at the moment.

Installing Lubuntu on older computers - which are working properly without any hardware faults - saves them from being thrown onto a scrap heap. Another benefit is Lubuntu can be a lifeline if someone does not have the money to replace an older computer with a newer one.

SchiFFer wrote on the 31 Mar 11 at 10:34
If Canonical supports Lubuntu, some stable and non-console way to manage layout swithing would be appeared there (and maybe other inconvenient things would be fixed) :) I'm casting thousands of affirmative votes!!

turbolad wrote on the 11 May 11 at 23:46
Apparently Lubuntu is now accepted by Canonical as a supported derivative of Ubuntu! If so, solution #1 is now implemented.


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