Giving up on Edgy

Sun Nov 19 09:33:22 UTC 2006

On Sun, 2006-11-19 at 01:04 -0800, NoOp wrote:

> http://www.ubuntu.com/
> JUST ANNOUNCED: Ubuntu 6.10, code named Edgy Eft, has been released with
> many exciting new features. Visit the download page for CD images.
>   http://www.ubuntu.com/news/610released
> gives the impression that Edgy is a fully released and stable Ubuntu
> version. It is not - or if it is, it should not be.

I agree. As I said, the webpage should be clearer. Somewhere it says
that "if you are interested in stability, use 6.06" but it is far too
less prominent.

> Edgy, for many, is an AOL coaster CD/download that can and *will*
> destroy a perfectly good Dapper system and/or virgin system. 

I haven't seen any real evidence for this. Yes, there were some postings
on the list, but without knowing how many upgrades worked fine, it is
hard to say. I suspect many upgrades are also hosed because of Automatix
and similar unoffical stuff, or people ignoring the instructions. I just
can say that I upgraded one system and installed another and both went
perfectly.

> Had my test
> system not been fully backed up when I attempted my Dapper to Edgy
> upgrade (and later full install) my system data would have been hosed.

Well ... upgrading without a full backup is foolhardy and everyone will
tell you so. Out of interest, what was the problem?

> Bottom line is that Edgy is buggy and IMHO should have never been
> released, nor should it be promoted as the primary Ubuntu distro.

"Not released" I don't think so, "promoted differently" I agree

> === Ubuntu 6.10 reviews from around the web ===
> 
(...)

> Review: Ubuntu Edgy is nice, but not so edgy : "I was surprised to
> find that Gnucash is not installed by default in Edgy, since the 2.0
> release came out in July"
> URL: http://www.linux.com/article.pl?sid=06/10/26/1552208

So? Having some apps not installed by default is certainly not breakage
or even a problem

> What Really Happened To Ubuntu's Edgy Artwork?
> URL: http://linux.slashdot.org/linux/06/11/14/2241255.shtml

Doesn't matter one bit in this discussion.

> Edgy pushed me over the edge : "To be honest, I am not entirely
> unhappy with having to run Breezy, even if I do still have a little
> envy for those able to enjoy the bells and whistles of Edgy Eft."
> "But, after my recent experience with Edgy I am more than happy to
> stick with something a little less cutting edge and flashy. At least
> for now."
> URL:http://www.tectonic.co.za/view.php?id=1266

This is definitely anecdotal. And Edgy does not work on his laptop but
Dapper doesn't either, so this again has little bearing on our
discussion. 

> Ubuntu 6.10 "Edgy Eft" released : "Ubuntu 6.10, which includes the
> freshly released Firefox 2.0, sports the new Tangerine theme, designed
> to improve visual integration of the browser by making it better
> conform to Ubuntu's style. Other visual improvements are featured as
> well, including a new USplash startup screen that will provide better
> support for a wider range of resolutions."
> URL: http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20061026-8087.html

This review does not mention a single problem, it also is not a review
but more an announcement. Your quote also does not mention a problem.

> EXE HOME: UBUNTU 6.10 REVIEW : "Ubuntu is the first Linux distro I've
> used and I have no plans to go anywhere else. It rivals Windows in
> ease of use, and comes with a lot of features packed. I couldn't ask
> for anything else."
> URL: http://exe.gotfrag.com/portal/story/35035/

What's bad about this? "I have no plans to go anywhere else. It rivals
Windows in ease of use, and comes with a lot of features packed"

> Edgy upgrade pains and fixes : "For now, perhaps the best thing to do
> with the Edgy Eft release is not upgrade your Ubuntu system. There are
> simply too many problems to justify the move, at this point. Once the
> fixes are in -- or at least well-documented ways to avoid the most
> common problems are published -- then, and only then, will making a
> move to Edgy Eft be a wise idea."
> URL: http://www.desktoplinux.com/news/NS3291004537.html

Very very inconclusive. A forum poll means nothing since users without
problems likely will not show up in problem threads. X not working after
upgrade sucks but is surely not limited to Edgy, the same problem
existed in all other Ubuntu releases, so again this has little bearing
on our discussion. The article then goes on to say that people who
actually followed the instructions had no problem upgrading.

> Upgrading to Ubuntu Edgy Eft a "Nightmare" :
> URL: http://linux.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/10/28/239258

Yes I have read this story when it was new. The article is inconclusive,
in the discussion there are people with problems, most didn't follow the
instructions.

> Scott James Remnant, one of Ubuntu's lead evelopers, has post two blog
> posts about various upgrading issues. You can read them at
> http://www.netsplit.com/blog/articles/2006/10/30/automatix-and-upgrading

This is the fault of the Automatix crap. This is nothing new and exists
since Automatix does. If people would just stop recommending it ...

> http://www.netsplit.com/blog/articles/2006/10/30/before-upgrading-to-edgy.

"Post not found". From the title in the URL I assume it explains that
you should follow the instructions (duh)

> Linux Forums: Ubuntu 6.10 Review: "This is probably my biggest
> disappointment: there are no 3D effects in Ubuntu 6.10.

So? Never planned, not a problem.

> Of course, if
> you have a look on the Internet, you'll see that installing and
> setting them up for Edgy Eft is not hard at all, 

How does this constitute an argument that Edgy should not have been
released?

> but considering how
> much attention 3D effects are catching at the moment and the efforts
> made by other distributions to integrate them by default, this seems
> like a slap in the face.

Slap in the face? Get a life

> Were they considered trivial and
> uninteresting? Why were they not on the agenda?" 

Read the specs

> also "By default
> Ubuntu won't play your multimedia files if they are encoded in an ugly
> format. The reason for that is explained on their website and you'll
> find a lot of information"

Nothing new, if this would be an argument to not install Edgy it would
also be an argument to not install Hoary, Warty, Breezy, or Dapper

> "There are no graphical tools for accessing
> Bluetooth devices but hcitool is installed by default so you can do
> that from the command line." 

Seems not specific to Edgy either

> "I found the applet and configuration
> tool for the network better in Mandriva 2007"

Might be, nothing new though

> URL: http://www.linuxforums.org/reviews/ubuntu_6.10_review.html

Excuse if I didn't read the review myself, your quotes seem pretty
irrelevant to our discussion

> Upgrade to Ubuntu Edgy (6.10) - and a look back on the switch :
> "Ubuntu/Linux has better support for my hardware (cardreaders [usb2]
> are a lot faster, than with Windows, my Bluetooth adapter has more
> functionality, and less trouble than with Windows, etc.)"

This is an argument against Edgy how???

> URL:
> http://www.sencer.de/article/1855/upgrade-to-ubuntu-edgy-610-and-a-look-back-on-the-switch

Excuse if I didn't read the review myself, your quote seems pretty
irrelevant to our discussion

> Ubuntu on the Desktop - My Experiences : "Contrary to some people's
> experiences, the upgrade went very smoothly."

This is an argument against Edgy how???

>  "I have to say I didn't
> notice much of a difference, except that after that first reboot, it
> took a while for my Bluetooth mouse to be seen and start working, and
> the first login seemed to take an age."

This is an argument against Edgy how???

> URL: http://luciphah.livejournal.com/45932.html

Excuse if I didn't read the review myself, your quotes seem pretty
irrelevant to our discussion

> A Diehard SUSE User Tries Ubuntu 6.10 : "Other programs that aren't
> loaded by default include XMMS, inkscape, or Bluefish. I use all of
> these on a regular basis, but loading them through Synaptic is fairly
> painless."

This is an argument against Edgy how???

> URL: http://www.linuxplanet.com/linuxplanet/reviews/6329/1/

Excuse if I didn't read the review myself, your quote seems pretty
irrelevant to our discussion

> The Trouble with Ubuntu: "My printer and scanner still need resolving
> under Ubuntu. This is mainly the manufacturer's fault (very few cater
> for this rogue GNU/Linux) but if it wants to be like OS X in simple
> driverless plug 'n' play, my non-obscure devices have to be catered
> for easily!"
> URL: http://www.mo79online.co.uk/2006/10/trouble-with-ubuntu.html

This is an argument against Edgy how??? Excuse if I didn't read the
review myself, your quote seems pretty irrelevant to our discussion

Summary: you would have save me a lot of time if you actually read the
links you posted instead of blindly copying and pasting. I am open to
discuss and I do believe that Edgy is rough around the, um, edges, but
let's increase the quality, will you?