Debian as a desktop system

[Joseph Sinclair]

I don't know about Hans' reasons, but here are my top 10:
1) It installs (debian often fails).
2) It works, reliably, on AMD64 (debian doesn't, yet).
3) It's pared down to 3 architectures, PPC, AMD64, and i686, rather than the 11 Debian tries to support, so updates are more frequent.
4) The Ubuntu team has committed to a 6-month release frequency, so the system is often more up-to-date.
5) You get much of the advantage of using the unstable (sid) repositories with a lot more stability thanks to Ubuntu Q/A testing.
6) It's pared down to a reasonable set of applications (2 browsers, 2 email clients, a few games and accessories, 1 office suite, etc...) in the base install.
7) It has access to nearly all of the debian packages to add more applications, should you need them.
8) The Ubuntu team has smoothed out the desktop experience and added polish in many areas.
9) The Ubuntu tiered update repositories allow you to run a stable system and still get the latest security fixes easily.
10) You can get a CD of the latest version free by just asking for it, no need for dial-up users to spend a week downloading the ISO.
11) Did I mention it works reliably on AMD64?

==Joseph++

Lynn David Newton wrote:
>   > At this point, however, I'd recommend using Ubuntu for desktop. 
>   > Ubuntu is strongly debian-based, but provides a better workstation
>   > experience.
> 
> What specifically makes it so in your experience?
> 
> (Never seen Ubuntu)
>