Why Ubuntu Then?

With so many distros out there, you may wonder why you should opt for Ubuntu. Well, as they say, numbers don’t lie, and Ubuntu’s popularity is not without good cause. These traits are especially crowd pleasing:

Easy to install
It’s fair to say that most Linux distributions these days are pretty easy to install (and definitely easier and faster to install than Windows). Ubuntu is right in line with these improvements, and the fact that you can install it with only a few mouse clicks while running the live CD means it is pretty much ready to go whenever you are.

Easy to use
Ubuntu is easy to use in that it is very Windows-like in operation, and yet it’s more Linux-like than other Windows user–oriented distributions.

DEB based
Ubuntu is based on the Debian distribution, which means that it utilizes Debian’s very convenient DEB package system for application handling and installation. The two preconfigured, graphical package installers that come with Ubuntu make installing applications even easier. There are so many packages available for Debian systems like Ubuntu that you are likely to find more software out there than you’ll ever know what to do with.

Up to date
Some distros are updated at a snail’s pace, while others strive to be so cutting edge that they are often plagued with bugs. Ubuntu, with its reasonable six-month release cycle, tries to stay as up-to-date as possible, while at the same time making sure that things are not released before they are ready for prime time. In this way, you are ensured of having an up-to-date yet less buggy distro at your disposal.

Dependable and robust
I know these terms come across as mere hype, but after you smack Ubuntu around a bit, you come to understand what they mean. Knock things down and around, and they bounce right back—this is very important for beginners who often have a knack for screwing things up. Nothing turns a new user off more than a twitchy system that has to be velvet gloved all the time.

Desktop user–oriented
A lot of Linux distributions, although quite capable in the desktop arena, cater more to geeks and developers, taking up valuable disk space with a lot of junk you’ll probably never use. Ubuntu’s purpose is to grab desktop market share from the Redmond folks, so the needs of the common end user are always in mind. The result is that Ubuntu’s GNOME desktop environment is a very comfy place for the average desktop user to be.

Source of Information : Ubuntu for Non-Geeks (2nd Ed)