Introduction to Flavors

The difference between the flavors are in the set of packages installed. However, all flavors of Ubuntu use the same repository for downloading updates, so the same set of packages is available regardless of which flavor you have installed.

You can switch between the various flavors by simply installing the meta package for the new flavor that you want. Although you can have only one “...-desktop” package installed at a time, you can install the features available for any Ubuntu flavor by selecting the individual packages (link to a synaptic page).

One other difference between the flavors is the artwork packages. For example, the EdUbuntu flavor has more “kid friendly” artwork icons for icons and background. You can sometimes select between different themes with “dpkg-reconfigure edubuntu-artwork” You can also create your own theme by following these instructions (link).

About the Flavors

All 4 of these flavors distribute a CD-ROM image. Note that you can install any Ubuntu flavor from any install CD, by doing a server install, and then adding the corresponding -desktop package from the apt repository.

Ubuntu

Ubuntu is the default Ubuntu Flavor. It installs with the Gnome desktop. In early releases, it was the first flavor to ship, but things are worked out now so that all the flavors usually release within a few days of each other.

This is a safe bet for anyone who is confused by all the options.

Kubuntu

Kubuntu offers KDE's Plasma Workspace experience on top of the Ubuntu core system. Built on Nokia's Qt it offers a modern, good-looking and stable system for home and office use.

Edubuntu

The Edubuntu flavor is targeted at schools. It includes applications and games appropriate for children. Edubuntu is designed for a teacher or network administrator to be able to setup a complete classroom quickly and easily.

Xubuntu

The aim of the Xubuntu community project is to provide a nice Ubuntu desktop experience (even on older hardware) by using Xfce4 as the desktop environment and GTK+ 2 applications wherever possible.