If you asked me which Ubuntu is the prettiest, right now I'd say Ubuntu Budgie is. It's like GNOME with cosmetic enhancements, and while I prefer Kubuntu over KDE software, I like Budgie's default image better and even GNOME's. All this could change if UbuntuDDE became an official flavor, since it uses software in which design is an important part.
In the last few months, the Ubuntu family has grown. He has done it because three of the five projects that were trying it have joined it, but there are still two left: Ubuntu Sway and Ubuntu DDE. But what is UbuntuDDE? Right now we find it with the full name of UbuntuDDE Remix, and the surname has its own meaning. It is what these projects use when they want to tell us that they are trying to become the official flavor of Ubuntu.
UbuntuDDE: Ubuntu with Deepin Desktop
Without taking into account that last name that tells us a bit about his plans, the name UbuntuDDE is made up of the base, Ubuntu, and the desktop or graphical environment, Deepin Desktop Environment. Therefore, UbuntuDDE is Ubuntu with Deepin, in the same way that Kubuntu is Ubuntu with KDE, Xubuntu with Xfce, Lubuntu with LXQt and so on with the rest of the flavors, without counting some that repeat like Ubuntu Studio with KDE.
The base is the same as the one used by Ubuntu GNOME and the whole family, but it changes the graphical environment and its applications. Compared to GNOME, the names of the applications are probably the same, but they have nothing to do with each other. For example, GNOME uses Music (Music) as an application to play and store our music library, and the equivalent Deepin application shares the name. But the truth is that the full names should be GNOME Music (or music) and Deepin Music.
Deepin Apps
Deepin has many of its own applications, all with "Deepin" in front and we can refer to them in Spanish, such as:
- Boot Maker - creator of bootable drives.
- File Manager: file manager.
- System Monitor: application to see the open processes, their consumption, the possibility of stopping processes, etc.
- Package Installer: package manager.
- Font Manager: font manager.
- Store: official Deepin software store.
- Screen Recorder: tool to record the screen.
- Voice Recorder: tool to record voice.
- Screenshot: screenshot tool.
- Terminal: app of… that, a terminal emulator.
- Image Viewer: application to view images.
- Movie: video player.
- Music: music player and library.
- Calendar: calendar app.
- Calculator: calculator application.
- Driver Manager: drive manager.
- Editor: tool to edit plain text.
As for the functions, in general they use a philosophy more "GNOME" than "KDE", that is, they are applications that prioritize simplicity over features. The main difference with those of GNOME is the design, that Deepin's is more refined and is reminiscent of Apple's macOS.
why you should try it
The first answer that comes to mind is “why are you doing distro hopping”. That is to say, I do not recommend anyone to change if they are comfortable and confident in something, but I do recommend tests of interesting things. If someone is looking for a Linux-based operating system that they like, it's because they haven't found it yet, and this flavor may be what they crave.
Many of our readers use Ubuntu, and another answer to the question is that it is the most beautiful Ubuntu out there right now. It is not official flavor, but the base is the same. If what you are looking for is something that is 100% compatible with everything related to Ubuntu and that is also very beautiful, UbuntuDDE is worth it. Apple is famous for its designs, and although Deepin does not publish to great fanfare that they are based on them, it seems clear that they do. This variant would be what we would get when mixing Ubuntu with macOS.
The day that they become an official flavor, if it comes, I will say that it is a full Ubuntu, in the sense that it uses its base and has Canonical acting as an umbrella. When the company that Mark Shuttleworth runs accepts a new flavor, it has first made sure that the team that develops it is capable of doing things well and maintaining it, which is a guarantee that it works and will work for a long time.
How to try Ubuntu DDE
The best way to test it would be to install the operating system. Thus we would see everything on the ground, but we would "load" all or part of our hard drive. So I think the best way is by creating a Live USB and testing it in a live session. Another way to do it quickly is from GNOME Boxes, which allows you to install the operating system, but is limited. To see its design, both options are valid.
If you have decided to try it, even if it is taking precautions and not as the main system, it can be downloaded from this link. I recommend not doing it in GNOME Boxes.