Ubuntu Media Center Edition

Ubuntu Multimedia Center is a Ubuntu derived system thats built for viewing multimedia and for playing games. Currently at RC1 we have yet to decide what media center style to use for example should we go for elisa or linuxmce. But it's your decision. Of course, even if the above tools don't offer to upgrade your system—for example, if you're running Ubuntu 16.04 LTS and want to upgrade before July 26—you can download the latest version of Ubuntu from the website, make a bootable USB drive or burn a disc, and then reinstall Ubuntu on your system. Distributed as Desktop and Alternate editions It is distributed as Live CDs with the usual Desktop and Alternate editions, as well as a Server flavor. All of the are deployable on either USB flash. In this article, I have tried to generic list some best Ubuntu Video Editing Software. But this does not end. There is a lot of Video Editing Software available for Ubuntu. The media-editing tools which I mentioned in this article will be great for you. You can try your best one. Don't forget to share it with your friends.

1. Ubuntu Software Center
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3. 10 Best Linux Media Center Distros - Linux HTPC Distros

This tutorial explains the different types of Ubuntu flavors in detail. Learn the differences and similarities between the different types of Ubuntu flavors.

What are the Ubuntu Flavors?

Ubuntu is a free open-source operating system. It is available under the GPL license. GPL license allows us to modify, strip down, build upon, extend, and embed any part of Ubuntu. It also allows us to distribute the original Ubuntu with those changes or modifications. A customized or modified version of the original Ubuntu is known as the Ubuntu Flavor.

There two types of Ubuntu flavors; official and unofficial. The differences between official Ubuntu flavor and unofficial Ubuntu flavor are the following.

• Official flavors are customized by the same company which develops the original Ubuntu while unofficial flavors are customized by third parties or communities.
• Same as the original Ubuntu, official flavors are also distributed under the GPL license. Unofficial flavors may or may not be available under the GPL license.
• Official flavors are customized based on the general requirements while unofficial flavors are customized based on the particular requirements of the company or community which customize them.
• Official flavors are available to download and use for everyone. Unofficial flavors may or may not be available for everyone. The company or community, who customizes them, decides whether they will be available for everyone or not.

Official Ubuntu flavors

Official flavors are recognized and supported by the Tech Board of the main Ubuntu team. These flavors are built and tested with the same standards which are used in the development of the original Ubuntu. Bugs in these flavors are monitored, tracked, and fixed by Ubuntu team members. Updated versions of these flavors are usually released in a few days after the release of the main Ubuntu.

Official Ubuntu flavors are Ubuntu GNOME, Kubuntu, Lubuntu, Ubuntu Budgie, Ubuntu Kylin, Ubuntu MATE, Ubuntu Studio, Xubuntu, Edubuntu, and Mythbuntu.

In terms of hardware and software compatibility, there are no significant differences between these flavors. Almost any application which works in one flavor also works in other flavors. These flavors are different from each other in the term of customization. Customization mainly involves desktop environment and specific requirements.

Let's understand both in detail.

Desktop environment

The desktop environment is the group of programs that runs on the operating system and provides a Graphic User Interface (GUI) to access the system.

The desktop environment is also known as the desktop shell. GNOME is the default desktop shell in Ubuntu. Besides GNOME, several other desktops are also available such as Unity, KDE, MATE, XFCE, etc.

There are two ways to use a different desktop shell; either install it along with the existing shell or use a different flavor of Ubuntu which uses the desired desktop shell by default.

A desktop environment typically contains several elements such as icons, windows, toolbars, folders, wallpapers, desktop widgets, etc. Because of this, even Ubuntu supports, yet installing and using multiple desktops in a single system is not recommended.

If you want to use a desktop other than the default, use the flavor of Ubuntu which uses it by default. Using a dedicated flavor not only provides a great user experience but also allows us to use several desktop specific applications.

Original Ubuntu is designed for general purpose. Just like a desktop environment, we have two choices; either customize the original version of Ubuntu or use the already customized version of Ubuntu.

Anyone is allowed to build his or her clone of Ubuntu with custom settings, tweaks, added extra applications, and so on. So if you are an experienced user, you can customize Ubuntu on your own to meet your specific requirements.

In this tutorial, instead of discussing how to customize the original Ubuntu, we will discuss already customized versions of Ubuntu.

Default Ubuntu

The default Ubuntu arrives in two editions Ubuntu Desktop and Ubuntu Server. Let's understand the differences and similarities between these two versions.

• Ubuntu desktop edition includes the desktop environment while the Ubuntu server edition does not.
• In the installation process, the Ubuntu desktop edition uses the regular GUI interface while the Ubuntu server edition uses the menu-driven CLI interface.
• Unless the default customization is changed by manually selecting the packages in installation, the Ubuntu desktop edition is customized for desktop use while the Ubuntu server edition is customized for server use.
• Before version 12.04, the kernel was differently optimized for both editions. Along with kernel, the support life cycle was also different for both editions. For the Ubuntu desktop version, it was 5 years. For the Ubuntu server edition, it was 3 years.

Technically, after version 12.04 both editions are the same except for the default installation of packages. In desktop edition, by default Ubuntu installs the packages what it considers as desktop packages (such as Gnome desktop, Game, Video player, Open Office, etc.) and skips the packages what it considers as server packages (such as Apache2 web server, Samba server, Bind9, NFS, etc.). In server edition, by default Ubuntu installs the server packages and skips the desktop packages.

Since installation disks of both editions contain all packages, by manually selecting the packages in installation, one can easily install the desktop edition from the server installation disk and the server edition from the desktop installation disk.

After version 12.04, both editions use the same kernel and support the same life cycle. Little video clips. Now both editions are supported for 5 years.

Until version 11.04, Ubuntu used GNOME as the default desktop. In version 11.04, Ubuntu replaced GNOME with Unity. Unity remained the default desktop till version 17.10. In version 18.04, Ubuntu reverted to its former desktop GNOME. Now GNOME is the default desktop environment in Ubuntu.

Before 11.04, GNOME 2 was used as the default desktop. In Ubuntu 18.04, GNOME 3 was used as the default desktop. A lot of features and functions have been removed, added, and improved in GNOME3 from GNOME 2.

Ubuntu MATE

In version 11.04, Ubuntu changed its default desktop to Unity from GNOME 2. Many users, who were passionate about GNOME 2, did not like this change. A community of such people made a new flavor known as Ubuntu MATE. In this flavor, they used GNOME 2 as the default desktop. In nutshell, MATE was the reincarnation of the classic GNOME 2 desktop.

Later Ubuntu team members decided to use GNOME back as default. But instead of using the classic version (GNOME 2), they decided to build a brand new version of GNOME. They also decided to use Unity as the default desktop until the development of the new GNOME is not finished.

Since GNOME was going to be the default desktop again in Ubuntu, the community who made the Ubuntu MATE, renamed everything in their customized version so it could coexist with the newer version of GNOME.

Ubuntu Software Center

As explained earlier, starting from version 18.04, GNOME 3 is the default desktop in Ubuntu. If you love classic GNOME 2 for its clean and logical desktop layout and robust performance, use this flavor. If you want to experience a brand new GNOME 3, use default Ubuntu.

Kubuntu

The Kubuntu uses KDE Plasma desktop by default. Kubuntu was first released in 2005. After default Ubuntu, Kubuntu is the second most popular flavor of Ubuntu. In this flavor, applications' names usually start with the letter ‘k'.

Kubuntu not only provides a desktop environment that looks like Windows' desktop but also uses a start button and a taskbar just like the Windows. Same as the Windows, the taskbar is aligned at the bottom and the start button is placed at the left corner of the taskbar.

Kubuntu provides the highest level of customization. You can customize hundreds of settings, add and install new desktop widgets (known as plasmoids), change the look and feel of the desktop, customize the toolbar, and so on.

Numbers to xlsx online. The only downside of Kubuntu is that it provides customization at the cost of system resources.

If you are a Windows user and looking for a Linux alternative to Windows, this is the perfect match. Use this flavor, if you have a modern system or need superior GUI experience. Since this flavor uses a lot of system resource, it is not recommended to install and use it in an older system or in a system which has less memory and CPU.

Lubuntu

Lubuntu uses the LXDE desktop. It was first released in 2006. This is the third most popular flavor of Ubuntu. It is optimized for faster performance and resource-saving. Just like in Kubuntu applications' name start with the letter 'k', in this flavor applications' name start with the letter 'l'.

To reduce the usages of system resources, a lot of customization is done in this flavor. For example, PCManFM is used for the file manager, SDDM is used for the login greeter, Leafpad is used for the text editor. Just like these, several other heavy applications are replaced by lightweight applications.

If are looking for a flavor that is not only lightweight but also optimized for fast performance, this is the right choice. This is also a recommended flavor if you have a system that has less memory and CPU.

Xubuntu

Xubuntu is also a lightweight flavor of Ubuntu. Xubuntu stands just above Lubuntu in lightweight. This flavor uses XFCE desktop as default. XFCE is a clean and uncluttered desktop that is optimized for performance and usability.

Unlike Lubuntu which is mainly customized for lightweight, Xubuntu is customized for both lightweight and features. Since Xubuntu and Lubuntu both are customized for the same audiences, both have similar features. Both are lightweight and attractive and use less RAM and disk space.

If you have to select one from Xubuntu and Lubuntu, select Xubuntu. Xubuntu offers almost all the features which Lubuntu provides. Xubuntu is older and more stable than Lubuntu.

Ubuntu Budgie

This is another lightweight flavor of Ubuntu. This flavor uses Budgie's desktop. Originally, this flavor was customized by the community. Later, it was included in the official flavor of Ubuntu. It was first released in 2016.

In lightweight, it stands above Xubuntu. Unlike Xubuntu and Lubuntu, Ubuntu Budgie is a new flavor. It uses a balanced approach between lightweight and appearance.

If you are looking for a flavor, which is not only fresh and sophisticated but also consumes fewer system resources, this is for you.

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Edubuntu

This flavor is customized for schools and universities. It uses the same desktop environment which the default flavor of Ubuntu uses. However, it includes several custom applications which are specially designed for educational purpose. Blinken memory game, Chemtool for scheming chemical formulas, Fritzing emulator for building electronic circuits, Calibre books manager are few examples of these applications.

Since this flavor contains a lot of applications, its installation image is quite large. It also consumes a lot of disk space. To save disk space, you can customize the default selection of packages. Edubuntu installer allows us to select the applications for target audiences (such as preschool, graduate, and postgraduate) and course levels (such as primary, secondary, and tertiary).

This flavor is no longer supported by Ubuntu. The last supported official release was 14.04.

Mythbuntu

MythTV is a free and open-source home entertainment application. It is used to turn a computer into a network streaming digital video recorder, a digital multimedia home entertainment system, or a home theater personal computer. It is a free and open-source alternative of Windows Media Center.

Installing and setting up MythTV in default Ubuntu requires a lot of customization. We have to download and install several packages. Besides this, we have to update related configuration files. Only a professional or an experienced user can do this.

If you are an inexperienced user or looking for an easy way to setup MythTV on Ubuntu, Mythbuntu is for you. Mythbuntu by default not only installs MythTV but also configures it. Mythbuntu is the tailored solution for inexperienced users who want to use MythTV in Ubuntu.

Ubuntu Studio

10 Best Linux Media Center Distros - Linux HTPC Distros

This flavor is specially customized for media professionals. This flavor includes several applications that are specially designed for audio and video editing. For example, it includes a2jmidid (ALSA sequencer), Ardour (hard disk recorder) Audacious (a lightweight audio player), Audacity (a digital audio editor), BEAST (music composter), Creox (real-time guitar effects generator), Hydrogen (drum effect generator), MusE (a MIDI/Audio sequencer), TiMidity (MIDI format convertor), Xwax (video emulator) Yoshimi (audio mixer) and so on.

If you are a media professional or looking for a free and open-source platform for multimedia related works, this is a perfect choice.

Ubuntu Kylin

This is the Chinese version of Ubuntu. It is customized by the IT (Information Technology) department of China for the Chinese people. The difference between this flavor and the default flavor is that this flavor is localized in the Chinese language for the Chinese market. This flavor is also released under the GPL license. It means you can install and use it even if you are not Chinese.

Unless you know the Chinese language, use the default flavor of Ubuntu. In terms of hardware and software support, both are the same. The only difference between them is the localization.

That's all for this tutorial. If you like this tutorial, please don't forget to share it with friends through your favorite social channel.