PenDrive Linux vs full install?

[Gilles Gravier]

Hi!

I am looking at having a Ubuntu (11.04) system on a USB stick. I have a
16GB stick available for that.

If I take the Ubuntu Live CD and the USB installer, I can get something
easily, working nicely, with some persistance... the Universal USB
Installer lets me define 4 GB of on-stick storage. Nice. Inconvenient :
no updates to Ubuntu on this system. It's always what was put on the
stick when I installed 11.04 Live CD. Advantage : very easy to do. In
fact, by the time I finish typing this mail, it will be done.

Other option : put the USB stick in a machine. A CD in same machine...
and perform a full installation of Ubuntu on that USB stick...
Advantages, I can then run full updates. The whole stick is a disk with
Ubuntu and data on it. Complete persistance of state. But... what are
the inconvenients? Anybody try that? What do you think?

TIA,
Gilles.