After comparing between Ubuntu 12.10 and 12.04.1, where the verdict was mixed, next in line is Kubuntu. Like Gnome 3 shell, even KDE is going through a lot of transformation and users are bearing brunt of it. KDE 4.8.5 actually made me prefer XFCE as my primary desktop. However, KDE 4.9.2, I heard, has fixed a lot of the previous bugs and instability. KDE as a desktop is, possibly, the closest to Windows 7, offering similar looks and menu as well as previews as in the Microsoft OS. The changes in KDE have been incremental and it has retained the same look and feel, unlike Gnome, where even the look and feel have changed!
I am comparing here the latest Quantal
release with the Kubuntu Precise 12.04.1 LTS release, both 32 bit. Also,
point to be considered here is that both releases are just 6 months
apart. So, I wasn't expecting anything radically different between the
two, but just a few incremental innovations.
High Level Comparison
Kubuntu Quantal Quetzal comes with the improved KDE 4.9.2 shell and Ubuntu Linux kernel of 3.5.0-17 (based on v3.5.5 upstream Linux kernel). Quantal is the first release to support the UEFI secure boot (in Windows 8) to enable dual boot even there. This means a new Grub2 boot loader.
Kubuntu 12.04.1 ISO (738 MB) is a bit lighter than Kubuntu 12.10 ISO (1000 MB). I booted up both of them on my Asus K54C laptop with 2.2 GHz Intel 2nd Gen Ci3 processor and 2 GB DDR3 RAM. Look and feel wise both the distros seem identical. A high level comparison of Quantal and Precise is given in tabular form below:
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| From Ubuntu 12.10 Comparison |
High Level Comparison
Kubuntu Quantal Quetzal comes with the improved KDE 4.9.2 shell and Ubuntu Linux kernel of 3.5.0-17 (based on v3.5.5 upstream Linux kernel). Quantal is the first release to support the UEFI secure boot (in Windows 8) to enable dual boot even there. This means a new Grub2 boot loader.
Kubuntu 12.04.1 ISO (738 MB) is a bit lighter than Kubuntu 12.10 ISO (1000 MB). I booted up both of them on my Asus K54C laptop with 2.2 GHz Intel 2nd Gen Ci3 processor and 2 GB DDR3 RAM. Look and feel wise both the distros seem identical. A high level comparison of Quantal and Precise is given in tabular form below:
| Parameters | Kubuntu 12.10 | Kubuntu 12.04.1 LTS |
| Size of ISO | 999.6 MB | 738 MB |
| Booting time (post installation) | 10 sec | 12 sec |
| Desktop | KDE 4.9.2 | KDE 4.8.4 |
| Linux kernel | 3.5.0-17 | 3.2.0-29 |
| CPU usage (live boot) | 2-6% | 2-6% |
| RAM usage (live boot) | 270 MB | 250 MB |
| CPU Usage (post installation) | 2-10% | 2-10% |
| RAM usage (post installation) | 300 MB | 310 MB |
| Installation time (with 1 MBPS connection) | 30 min. | 30 min. |
| Wifi detection | Immediate | Immediate |
| Touchpad detection | Works by default | Works by default |
| Ease of use | Works well on the system | Works well with the system |
| Eye candy factor | Plasma interface looks good | Plasma interface looks good |
| Repository | Muon Package Manager 1.4.1 | Muon Package Manager 1.3.1 |
| File Manager | Dolphin 2.1 | Dolphin 2 |
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| From Ubuntu 12.10 Comparison |
Incremental changes
Of course, apart from whatever listed in the table above, there are certain other incremental changes, though not as significant as Ubuntu.
- Login screen has changed a bit, it now looks better and picks up the username automatically. No need of username manual input like Kubuntu 12.04.1.
- Calligra Applications include Kexi for desktop DBMS solutions and Krita for painting.
- LibreOffice has been upgraded to Version 3.6.2.2.
- KDE Telepathy has been upgraded to Version 0.5.1, replacing the Kopete Instant Messenger.
- Rekonq has been upgraded to Version 1.1.
- Amarok has been upgraded to Version 2.6.0.
- OwnCloud has been upgraded to Version 4 with a host of new features including shared calendars, easier sharing of files and a more shiny photo gallery. New in this release is owncloud-client, a desktop app to sync your folders to your OwnCloud.
- New Grub2 menu, as mentioned above.
- Migration-assistant removed: The tool responsible for migration of user profiles from existing operating system(s) is no longer part of Quantal
- Python 3: Still, Python 2 is supported.
- No OpenJDK6: Now Ubuntu has totally moved to OpenJDK7 as the default Java implementation.
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| From Ubuntu 12.10 Comparison |
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| From Ubuntu 12.10 Comparison |
Now the question is, does it inspire users to leave 12.04, which is an LTS, and upgrade to 12.10? Unlike Ubuntu 12.10, where I find a better integration of social networks through web apps, Kubuntu 12.10 doesn't offer incremental benefits of upgrading to the same extent.
In my opinion, both perform equally well on the same machine. I really like way KDE desktop looks and feels like. Definitely KDE is a good option for those who hate either Unity or Gnome 3, and possibly KDE 4.9.2 got the bugs fixed. I used Kubuntu 12.10 for a couple of days and didn't note anything crashing.
For me, if I have to install in a system powered by Windows 8, I would definitely go for a Kubuntu 12.10. However, if it is a legacy XP or Windows 7 laptop, possibly I would stick to Kubuntu 12.04.1 with long term support given there are no significant differences between the two distro. Upgrading any Ubuntu installation is really painful and most of the time leaves broken packages. It is easier to install a new release and start afresh. So, as I don't use any Windows 8 laptop, my choice is right now Kubuntu 12.04.1 LTS!
Hi,
ReplyDeleteBeen working with Kubuntu 12.10 since beta version and it's so GOOD, that my long standing Ubuntu 12.04 was replaced.
It came to stay, so sorry about Ubuntu (used by years). Now, with Kubuntu I feel at home again with Linux like never before. Everything works out of the box, it's fast, nice and stable, very far from my bitter experience with KDE 4 several years ago.
Personally can't stop recommending this boy. It's perfect from my point of view.
Regards.
Hi,
DeleteI agree, Ubuntu with Unity requires a lot of unlearning and is very different from other desktop environments. Kubuntu, more or less, have maintained a consistent look for last 2-3 years without any radical change. Definitely, Kubuntu is worth recommending. You can try out Linux Mint 13 KDE as well - I am more impressed with it than Kubuntu 12.04.1 LTS.
Regards,
Arindam
Unity is just like Gnome 2 with a icon bar fixed on the left hand side. I think it is Gnome Shell which you are probably referring to which has changed the desktop we are all used to radically. I have tried Gnome Shell, KDE & Unity and out of all I find Unity to be the most useable to me. However I understand that since Unity works for me, it might not work for others and everyone has their own preference.
DeleteRegards,
Rajiv
Yes Rajiv, I was referring to the Gnome 3 shell itself. Unity interface is actually a lot more intuitive and easier to use than the Gnome 3.4 desktop itself. If you use OpenSUSE 12.2 Gnome or Fedora 17 with Ubuntu 12.10, you can appreciate the difference.
DeleteRegards,
Arindam
I don't consider myself picky. Took Unity "by the horns" years ago and got used to it. But I really missed all the customization stuff, gone with Unity and now discovered again with KDE.
ReplyDeleteAs I said in the first post, the beauty, easy of use and specially this freedom to change every little detail is what made me fall in love with Kubuntu 12.10. And yes, I gave a try with Mint KDE but found some details (ie, the package manager), besides, they go a little bit slower with the repositories.
Here, I downloaded the beta of Kubuntu and made a bootable USB for testing... 3 days later, Ubuntu was replaced and my PC is now happy with this lovely OS.
Regards.
I also don't hate Unity interface and got used to it. But, like you mentioned, lack of customization, actually doesn't motivate me to use Unity, though it is getting better with every release. Personally, I shifted to Linux for the freedom it offers to the users and the customization you can do as per your liking. Kubuntu is really good in this regard.
DeleteHi - I did an on line upgrade to Quantal for 3 Precise installations (2 desktops and a laptop). Less time taken than previous upgrades and no problems, no broken packages. Best experience yet from Ubuntu. I enjoy KDE 4.9 but the dancing icons still drive me crazy.
ReplyDeletedancing icons? If your'e talking when you launch an application and the icon start to bounce, is configurable and you can disable this effect...
DeleteGo to Menu -> System settings -> Desktop Effects -> In general, uncheck Enable desktop effects at Startup and various animations or in All effects, disable the effects which you don't need.
DeleteRegards, Arindam
Thank you, I will follow your guidance - we are always learning and that's good.
DeleteFound it! System Settings -> Application and System Notifications -> Launch Feedback -> Busy Cursor -> No Busy Cursor.
DeleteCool :)
DeleteI installed Kubuntu 12.10 a few days ago, what can I say but brilliant. Even with most of the desktop effects enabled, my machine still runs smooth. Kubuntu has everything I need and more. As much as I want to support Unity, it's clearly missing the ability for me to customize things on the desktop. I will probably install Unity as a Virtual Machine, but at the moment Kubuntu is my desktop of choice.
ReplyDeleteI agree, KDE is highly customizable whereas Unity is not. Even I dislike Unity for the same reason.
DeleteKDE is great, and this is a good KDE distro. Have it on a partition fir testing purposes, works great (12.10).
ReplyDeleteKDE is really customizable and seems like the developers have got the bugs fixed in 4.9.2.
DeleteI find Kubuntu to be stable and easy to use. Long gone are the early days of KDE 4 instability nand brokenness.
ReplyDeleteThe one thing that's not included but should be, is Synaptic Package Manager (I consider it to be the best package management software available for Linux ).
I agree on KDE 4.9.2 being really stable. But, on Synaptic Package Manager I disagree. I find pacman a better package manager than synaptic.
DeleteI was a happy 10.04 Gnome 2 user. Although Unity improved a lot over the time there have been some things which have been a show-stopper for me. The last time I was working with a KDE distro was going back to the early KDE 3.x times. After having seriously worked a while with Lubuntu, Xubuntu and Linux Mint I was wondering if there isn't one desktop which can satisfy me. I tested for a while Linux Mint 13 KDE and decided then to go with Kubuntu 12.10 on my desktop. Seen from my perspective KDE is the real deal. Kubuntu 12.10 works very well. There are only tiny things which are still a bit rough. But stability, performance, comfort and customizability are great. Some KDE applications are not top-notch (I replaced e.g. Muon with Synaptic) but the integration of GTK based applications is fantastic. So I have here the best of both worlds. Then I installed Kubuntu 12.10 on my new $600 Acer laptop. Basically nearly everything worked out of the box. But two issues have been ugly: the touchpad and battery life-time. So I spent one whole day to research and optimize things. And that is the beauty of Ubuntu. I could tweak my touchpad perfectly (thanks to the Synaptics touchpad settings) so that all gestures I want are working now smoothly and in a reliable manner. I started with a 2.5 hours battery lifetime (with installed Apache, MySQL server and software development work). After many tweaks I managed 7.5 hours working time during my last travel. KDE can be configured in an energy saving manner and doesn't use a lot of CPU resources. Very nice. For sure I needed to disable some animations and glitzy stuff but that is hardly visible. My verdict: Kubuntu 12.10 is a great release and chances that Canocical or Mint can win me back to Unity, Mate or Cinnamon are very little. KDE is the best universalist. Kubuntu looks great, it is a pleasure to customize, fast, stable and flexible. Highly recommended.
ReplyDeleteI have always loved the look of KDE but it has always been buggy for me. I do however always try the new distros that come out. I have stuck to Ubuntu 10.04 since it came out at home and at work. I installed Kubuntu 12.10 last week and have enjoyed it a lot! Everything just... works! It is very quick and stable even on my spare machine that I use it on (2.4 Dual Core with 2g of ram). I never write reviews but I felt I should share my experience. Well done Kubuntu Team!
ReplyDeleteYes, 12.10 is good. I am using 13.04 alpha 2 and found it to be better in terms of performance. Kubuntu team has actually gotten rid of a lot of KDE bloatware and with KDE 4.10, the buggyness has come down significantly. Seems like more good things to come in future from Kubuntu.
Delete