[Bug 372016] [NEW] Kubuntu sucks. It shouldn't.

[William Hood]

Public bug reported:

Binary package hint: kubuntu-desktop

I saw bug #314157, but I hope this would be taken more like bug #1.

There have been a number of reviews that have painted Kubuntu in a bad
light.

To name a couple:
http://www.itnewstoday.com/?p=355 (Comparing with Mandriva)
http://www.itnewstoday.com/?p=293 (Same author's review of Jaunty)

I'm not going to do an exhaustive search for bad reviews, but many users
would agree it's common knowledge that Kubuntu is the worst of the major
KDE offerings available, and has been for some time.  More than a few
forum posts have warned about Kubuntu shipping broken packages and
having poor choices for defaults.  I'm not saying this to flame, but
their complaints have merit.

Before you brush this off as "this-is-for-individual-issues-and-not-a-forum-for-discussion" I will point out a few things:
1. I have been a software tester for ten years, so I do claim some amount of authority to declare this a "bug" even if that's not what Canonical wants to call it.  As the creator of bug #314157 stated, this is more about process than individual issues.  The fact that Kubuntu has made numerous releases that were received poorly by both users and critics IS A BUG.  The fact that common knowledge says that "Kubuntu is Ubuntu's red-headed-stepchild" IS A BUG.  The fact that only the developers of Kubuntu can do anything about it, makes it even more of A BUG. Kubuntu sucks, it doesn't have to, and that IS A BUG.
2. I want to make explicitly clear that I didn't file this bug report because I want to flame you guys.  I filed it because I like Ubuntu, I like KDE4, I want Kubuntu to become a distro that kicks a**, and I want users and critics alike to agree that it kicks a**.
3. Canonical is free to brush this off the same way #314157 was.  I suspect I will not be the only Kubuntu user that evetually switches to another distribution if Kubuntu doesn't become just as good as Ubuntu.
4. What kind of bug is bug #1?  Is that an individual bug or problem?  Is launchpad the proper place for that sort of discussion?

I don't like to complain without suggesting what to do about it, so I will offer the following suggestions:
* Make the default selection of apps as close to Ubuntu as possible.  Don't be afraid to include something that's GTK if it's the best choice overall, or if that's what users want.  Why is Firefox not installed by default?  Why is GIMP not there?  Dragon's coming along, but why not use Totem until Dragon surpasses it?  Why not use the perfectly good Gnome network manager that Ubuntu uses?
* I suggest that QtCurve be the default theme for QT4, QT3, and GTK.  It is flexible enough that it could be made to look very similar to the Murrine version of Human and could make Kubuntu the most consistent KDE offering out there.
* Do enough market research to know what changes are made by the typical end user immediately after installing, and make sure you get as close to that as possible out-of-the-box.  I don't like that after I install Kubuntu I have to switch the theme to QtCurve, install Gimp, Install Firefox, set up the gnome network manager, etc.  I suspect I am not alone.  It certainly wouldn't hurt to look at what is being done right by the KDE4 distros that DO get positive reviews.
* Take extra time to get Kubuntu just as polished as Ubuntu.  If that means releasing it a month after the main Ubuntu release, so be it.  I think most users would rather have it "done right" than "right now."

OK, that's my two-cents.  Kubuntu was the distro that brought me ot the
Ubuntu family in the first place, and I'd really like to see it get
treated as first class.  Most of us that complain about Kubuntu are
doing so because a complaint is all we can offer to make it better.  Go
ahead and give this bug the write-of/brush-off if you wish.

...or perhaps you could escalate it, get some more feedback, give
Kubuntu whatever overhaul it needs, and make it the best damn KDE
offering anyone's ever seen.  You did it with Gnome.  You can do it with
KDE.

** Affects: kubuntu-meta (Ubuntu)
     Importance: Undecided
         Status: New

-- 
Kubuntu sucks.  It shouldn't.
https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/372016
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