Exactly. If you’re an Ubuntu user and don’t mind snaps, great. If you’re an Ubuntu user and hate snaps, why not just use one of the thousand other distros out there that don’t have snap?
On Ubuntu, even if you remove all snaps and snapd, apt commands are hijacked and will reinstall everything if you touch certain packages. The better solution is to not use anything from Canonical.
This is a post I made on r/BuyFromEU a few months ago. Could help you understand why would someone use it.
Despite its relative skewed reputation among online Linux enthusiast, Ubuntu has remained the most downloaded and support Linux distribution to this day.
These are my reasons for picking this distro specifically:
A unique user interface. A common theme I noticed on this subreddit is recommending Linux Mint as a drop in replacement for Windows due to its similar UI - this is perfectly valid but I appreciate Ubuntu’s unique layout and workflow. I got used to it very quickly and I now can’t even use Windows without placing my taskbar on the left.
Tap the Windows (super) key once to bring up all of your running apps on the workspace, tap it twice to bring up the app launcher. This makes a lot of sense and makes it easier to navigate the open apps for me.
I could write about a lot more things I like about its UI, such as how you can just start typing inside of the file manager to start searching, but the point is that a different UI from Windows doesn’t mean you can’t ever get used to it or like it. One thing I really love is notifications appearing on the top of the screen just like on Android/ios. It’s a small thing but they count too.
Long term support. Have you ever felt like you just want to keep using your Windows PC until it dies and only receive security updates? Every Ubuntu is supported for 10 years and you can always select that you want to install security updates only. I have a laptop with Ubuntu 22.04 and it’s still running just fine, and it will keep doing so until 2032.
By default you get 5 years of support, and to get the other 5 you have to make an account and attach your device to it. I know, I know, accounts are bad because Microsoft is ran by morons who won’t let you even boot up your device without one, but the company behind Ubuntu has to live somehow. They wouldn’t be able to get money from companies who run thousands of workstations if everyone got such long support for free. Companies pay for it, you as an individual get it for free. No personal data are required either.
Personality. Yes, it is subjective, hence the title of this post. The purple and orange color scheme is iconic, they even have their own font, every new version is named after some animal with a unique wallpaper made just for it. When watching videos I sometimes notice a computer with Ubuntu on it, and can pinpoint what version that is, what was special about it.
I dug deeper and discovered that in the past Canonical, the company behind Ubuntu, tried making a phone which failed. It had a user interface which would be used across both the desktop and mobile phones. But it turns out the community (UBPorts) is keeping it alive. The fact that a company tried launching a phone and failed doesn’t make Ubuntu a better operating system than let’s say Debian or Fedora. I just feel like it’s a very unique company with a rich history that’s fun to learn about.
The elephant in the room, the snap package manager
Yes, Ubuntu partially switched to this form of software distribution. If you don’t even know what a package manager is, you can ignore this. I’m including this section because someone will eventually mention it in the comments. Snaps aren’t bad or evil by any means. If you heard that they are bad, I encourage you to give this a read and then make your own opinion instead of parroting whatever someone said.
For me it was the entry point, I heard everywhere it is the “beginners distro”. That was about 4 years ago, now sentiment changed and people are recommending Mint instead.
TL;DR (Summary)
zr0 is expressing a flat rejection of Ubuntu as a valid Linux choice, likely due to Canonical’s decisions around Snap and other user-hostile defaults. They see no redeeming reason for anyone to run Ubuntu — especially with better alternatives like Debian or Arch available.
List all said “decisions and defaults” that would incur such an unfavorable verdict from a seasonned linux user ?
Snap Package System (snapd)
This feels to many like vendor lock-in — a betrayal of open-source ideals.
Data Collection (“Ubuntu Phone Home”)
Though anonymized, the default opt-in raised privacy concerns
Amazon Search Integration in Dash (Ubuntu 12.10–16.04)
Eventually removed, but left a lasting stain on Canonical’s reputation.
Abandoning MIR and Unity — Then Reversing
Bundling Bloat / Non-Free Software by Default
Canonical’s Commercial Focus
LTS-Only Philosophy in Flavors and PPAs
Centralized Development Model
Ubuntu is technically “open source,” but most decisions come top-down from Canonical.
Snap is developed behind closed doors, then pushed downstream.
System Resource Usage
Ubuntu’s GNOME desktop and background services (like Snap, Tracker, etc.) are heavy on RAM and CPU.
Difficulty Removing Canonical Components
Removing Snap, cloud-init, or motd-news (system message ads) often takes manual, repeated effort.
System update may reintroduce unwanted packages.
This gives a feeling of a system that’s working against the user.
Yup, it’s an Ubuntu thing.
No idea why someone would run Ubuntu and then be surprised that snaps are enabled.
EDIT:
Yes, I already knew that Canonical keeps re-enabling snaps even if you uninstall/disable it - my original statement still stands.
Exactly. If you’re an Ubuntu user and don’t mind snaps, great. If you’re an Ubuntu user and hate snaps, why not just use one of the thousand other distros out there that don’t have snap?
It’s not that they’re enabled, it’s that they can re-enable themselves after updates even if the users disables Snaps and removes snapd.
Had this issue with Ubuntu on my Dads laptop before I switched it to Debian.
Sounds like something Microsoft would do!
Its something capitalism does.
You didn’t hear that Microsoft is getting into Linux? They’re going to call it mi-cux
Ubuntu is propped up by Microsoft (Azure)
@[email protected] posted a how-to to get rid of snap permanently by using apt pinning:
https://lemmy.nowsci.com/comment/14911535
404 :/
Strange. The link no longer works for me either. Anyway, it’s here under this post:
My first mention. I’m honored.
On Ubuntu, even if you remove all snaps and snapd, apt commands are hijacked and will reinstall everything if you touch certain packages. The better solution is to not use anything from Canonical.
No idea why someone would run Ubuntu. Full Stop.
This is a post I made on r/BuyFromEU a few months ago. Could help you understand why would someone use it.
https://www.reddit.com/r/BuyFromEU/s/HiWHfrAeSH
From my experience it is people who used Linux 15 years ago and are just now coming back
They missed the part where Ubuntu enshitified
For me it was the entry point, I heard everywhere it is the “beginners distro”. That was about 4 years ago, now sentiment changed and people are recommending Mint instead.
work requirement 😔
Still better than windows.
absolutely
…needs of shoe-horning linux on to microsoft device :(
TL;DR (Summary)
zr0 is expressing a flat rejection of Ubuntu as a valid Linux choice, likely due to Canonical’s decisions around Snap and other user-hostile defaults. They see no redeeming reason for anyone to run Ubuntu — especially with better alternatives like Debian or Arch available.
List all said “decisions and defaults” that would incur such an unfavorable verdict from a seasonned linux user ?
This feels to many like vendor lock-in — a betrayal of open-source ideals.
Though anonymized, the default opt-in raised privacy concerns
Eventually removed, but left a lasting stain on Canonical’s reputation.
Ubuntu is technically “open source,” but most decisions come top-down from Canonical.
Snap is developed behind closed doors, then pushed downstream.
Ubuntu’s GNOME desktop and background services (like Snap, Tracker, etc.) are heavy on RAM and CPU.
Removing Snap, cloud-init, or motd-news (system message ads) often takes manual, repeated effort.
System update may reintroduce unwanted packages.
This gives a feeling of a system that’s working against the user.
Do you agree with that assessment user “zr0” ?
It’s about Snap being an impurgeable rootkit on your machine. It’s the same as Onedrive or Copilot on Windows.
Least insane online Linux user take
My surprise would be something like “what’s snap didn’t I remove whatever that was”.