What is SpreadUbuntu

The marketing team is, as of june 2008, working on its reorganization in order to serve the rest of the Ubuntu community in a even better way than we have until now.

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THIS PAGE IS OBSOLETE - NEW ONE HERE!

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Download location: http://doc.ubuntu.com/~marketing/spreadubuntu

SpreadUbuntu has two important aspects:

• The first is a website that offers a basic welcome and crossroads to new users. It gives them screenshots and basic "about Ubuntu" info, much like ubuntu.com.
• The second, more important, is a unified resource for DIY Marketing Material and guides.

SpreadUbuntu aims to ease the excited new user from exploring the community straight to spreading Ubuntu in his locality. We believe it's a small step from being an excited new user to being an active local advocate - given the resources necessary. SpreadUbuntu was admittedly inspired by SpreadFirefox, but is not intended to be an Ubuntu analogy thereof.

Goals and Objectives

• Raise awareness of Ubuntu as a viable option for an operating system.
• Guide the visitor through the thought process of choosing whether or not to use Ubuntu.
• Provide clear information on the benefits of Ubuntu, and Linux in general.
• Steer the freshly convinced user straight to passing the word on to his 'neighbours'.
• Provide him/her with all the info and material available and necessary.
• Serve as a repository and database of community DIY material.

Methods of Operation

• Provide a unique design to invoke the Fresh/New/Exciting feeling of Ubuntu.
• A website easy to use/navigate that one will gladly bookmark for later reference.
• Eventual internalisation.
• State only the truth, and the entire truth - including drawbacks and risks of engaging in the FLOSS world.
• Keep the new user in mind, as well as the recidivist Ubuntu spreader.

What We Have Now

Site map and structure

I made this sitemap to reflect what I'd like the site to look like:

Please do try to make a few graphical design proposals and send them to JendaVancura - the deadline is at July 12, then we'll try to work out what we like best. Please use the text from ubuntu.com for the mockups.

Design Proposals

https://wiki.ubuntu.com/MarketingTeam/SpreadUbuntu/GraphicalDesignSpec

Site Content

Let's plan out what the particular boxes above mean. I'll try to keep one-word page names to navigate easier, marked bold. Keep in mind that most of the text can and will be grabbed elsewhere, adapted to our needs.

Index

This is the one the mockups should show. It will have a friendly block of text about Ubuntu with:

• context links to more detailed info pages (FLOSS, FAQ, Community, Features, Map?, Testimonials...)

• big beatiful links to Screenshots, Interactive Desktop, Downloads and Shipit with tooltips to describe them, I'd imagine. Link texts: See it, Try it, Get it, Shipit.

• one piece Large unobtrusive good looking elegant link (tm) to Spreadit, with tooltip.

FLOSS

Friendly description of what FLOSS and OSS is, why it's good for your teeth.

• https://help.ubuntu.com/community/FreeFormats

• https://help.ubuntu.com/community/FreeSoftware (NEEDS TO EXIST!)

  • Resources:

    • http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/FLOSS_Concept_Booklet

    • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_open_source_and_closed_source

    • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_Windows_and_Linux

    • http://www.gnu.org/software/reliability.html

    • http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/schools.html

    • http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/your-freedom-needs-free-software.html

Free Software Alternatives

• https://help.ubuntu.com/community/FreeSoftwareAlternatives (NEEDS SERIOUS WORK!)

  • Resources:

    • http://www.google.com/search?q=free+software+alternatives

Community

Describe why a distribution has a community, what this community is, how it communicates.

Context links to Testimonials,Map,forums, ubuntu.com, fridge, etc.

Features

Outline the greatest advantages of using Linux, and those of Ubuntu in particular.

Map

A map of users around the world. This idea needs a bit of brainstorming. Do we want to grab IPs of downloaders/visitors etc. automatically?

Testimonials

We could collect interesting community member stories about deployments here. It could include press reviews, or those could be done in a seperate page (Press).

FAQ

We can cram FAQs, if there are any, here. Can be blank to start with, really.

Screenshots

We should section this into vanilla Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Xubuntu shots and then customised screenshots with specific instructions on how to set up the environment shot.

Here are a few we have prepared now:

Ubuntu:

• http://www.flickr.com/photos/gimpuser/182707435/

• http://www.flickr.com/photos/gimpuser/134561039/

• http://www.flickr.com/photos/gimpuser/134561040/

Kubuntu:

• http://docs.google.com/View?docid=ddrq2x3v_20cd42kn

• http://docs.google.com/View?docid=ddrq2x3v_22c7kgqs

Xubuntu: none

XGL Ubuntu:

• http://picasaweb.google.com/Boredklink/Ubuntu

Context links to Gnome-look, KDE-look, etc.

Interactive Desktop

This was an idea that was around earlier, but it would take a serious developer to make. The idea is a http accessible interface that simulates a vanilla or almost vanilla Ubuntu install. Several versions thereof (U/K/X) would be nice too.

• Perhaps something like TechOnLine? (here's an example, sorry for the registration requirement [it's not my fault!]). This is also a perfect scenario for Xen.

• Ulteo has achieved it. See their connected desktop thing that operates through Java.
• There are several VNC java applets available, but I don't think they will be very usable because of network latency.

• No idea how well it works, but NoMachine has a java applet for NX (http://www.nomachine.com/screenshot/companion.php). NX is known to work great over low bandwidth links.

• Really have to look at security. There is also the issue of dynamically creating and destroying user accounts. If data is persistent for users between sessions, you will have some people abusing it (depending on your intentions). There is also the issue of people using it to proxy attacks on other machines.

Downloads

Links to the ubuntu.com download pages, but we could include stuff like the openCD as well.

Shipit

A brief and friendly explanaition of what Shipit is, how it's funded, etc. Link thereto.

Spreadit

Here's where the fun starts. This section should offer:

• Marketing HOWTOs
• DIY Material
• Testimonials and reviews.

Marketing HOWTOs

• This, IJO*, is the greatest contribution SU will have to the community. Here, we will try to gather recipes on how to spread Ubuntu in your locality. I think we should rate them in terms of:

• time required - both free time to organise and time it takes to fire & forget (ie. an Ubuntu Day can take hours to prepare and is over once it's over - OTOH, a freedomtoaster type stand can take less time to prepare and is almost permanent - requires maintenance too).

• cost
• ingredients (40 pcs Ubuntu CDs, 2 pcs T-shirts needed, 1 pcs metropolis, etc. - doesn't need to take this form either)

*In Jenda's Opinion

DIY Marketing Material

• Downloadables, printables, shipabbles? See DIYMarketing for what this wiki already has. Spreadubuntu could offer it in a more accessible way.

Testimonials and Reviews

• We believe the user/spreader would like to know what others say about Ubuntu. We can include negative reviews as well, but we should add fine print comments denouncing or admitting the mistakes claimed within.

How Can I Help?

• Well, most importantly, we are looking for graphical designs now. Please chuck any ideas at JendaVancura. On a more general level, though, see GetInvolved.

  You can also add links to your works to the What we have section above.

Member/User Comments

Firefox is having a "Firefox Day" (see http://www.worldfirefoxday.com/en/). Now, I know you say it would take a lot of organising, but if many people used this day to send an Ubuntu CD to 1-2 friends/family members who they thought might be able to use it, the user base could increase quite quickly. -- AlanRae 2006-08-10 15:11:41

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