The official derivative of Ubuntu is Kubuntu; instead of GNOME, Kubuntu uses KDE graphical environment, and shares its underlying system along with Ubuntu.
Kubuntu is a project of Ubuntu; here’s a comparative analysis of Ubuntu vs Kubuntu
Kubuntu - The Latest Sensation!
Origin of Kubuntu
There is a possibility of running Kubuntu on both of the desktops GNOME and KDE. Kubuntu is similar to Ubuntu in terms of the underlying operation, as you can install ubuntu-desktop on Kubuntu, and kubuntu-desktop on Ubuntu.
The word Kubuntu has literal meaning – ‘towards humanity’. Here, the letter K refers to the desktop or applications of KDE run by Kubuntu. In Kirundi, the meaning of Kubuntu is ‘free’.
Overview of Ubuntu
Ubuntu is a type of operating system that is designed based on the distribution of Debian GNU/Linux. The name of the operating system Ubuntu comes from the ethical ideology of South Africa named Ubuntu.
It is an open source, freely distributed software, which is highly efficient, and robust than Windows, and Mac OSX.
Being an operating system that is so stable, up-to-date for an ordinary user with the easy installation, and a great focus on the usability of the operating system, Ubuntu is one among the famous distributions of LINUX. The current market share of Ubuntu is about 40 to 50 percent according to the web statics from late 2009.
Kubuntu vs Ubuntu: Performance Comparisons
Although Kubuntu is derived from Ubuntu, it differs from Ubuntu in many ways. Gnome desktop is used by the usual installation of Ubuntu, while KDE desktop is used by Kubuntu. On top of Ubuntu, metapackage of the Kubuntu’s desktop and can be used as Kubuntu or another method is to install just Ubuntu and then to install KDE. The disadvantage of doing this leads to the usage of both KDE and GNOME.
Kubuntu versus Ubuntu 9.10
The minimum system requirements needed for the installation of Ubuntu are as follows. ARM, AMD 64 and Intel x86 are the motherboard architectures supported by Ubuntu. Some among the server based operating systems support the SPARC architecture too.
The minimum requirements of the system for installing Kubuntu are a processor of 300 MHz, RAM of 64MB, hard disk space of 8 GB and a video card that can support VGA at the resolution of 640×480, which you’d find even in an age old PC; this literally means you can run it any system in this world! (unless you’re really living in the dark age!)
When you see the 9.10 release, it looks really promising, but once again, it is up to the user to decide as to how he/she needs to go about it.
Kubuntu vs Ubuntu 10.04
In the latest 10.04 release, things aren’t as clean as the 9.10 stable release. So, if you compare Kubuntu vs Ubuntu 10.04, Kubuntu is definitely a superior option. Remember, running a KDE application doesn’t integrate very well (visually) within the Gnome environment and vice versa.
Customizations in Kubuntu
Kubuntu can be totally customized according to the user’s requirement. Kubuntu’s intention is to make the transition easier for the users from different operating systems by giving the allowance to a desktop layout that is similar.
Architectures like AMD64 and Intel x86 are presently supported by the Kubuntu’s desktop version. As Kubuntu is derived from Ubuntu, any kind of software that is applicable for Ubuntu is available also for Kubuntu!
So, in a nutshell, a comparative analysis of Kubuntu vs Ubuntu depends upon what you really require, and the versions you’re comparing, and several other aspects.
You may also want to read more on differences between Kubuntu and Ubuntu
Suggested Reading
March 8, 2010 at 11:37 pm
I appreciate the work that you have put in, in this page. Really good, also I wish to quote a few lines from this article in my site, I will give a link back to this article. Again.. it is really a good work.
Thanks
Ajithkumar
April 15, 2010 at 5:44 am
Great article, BUT i really could have used a bottom line on which is easier to use and the way to go.
Thats all
April 20, 2010 at 9:18 pm
It was good but there was no real straight facts as to which one performed faster,was more stylish and no explanation to the real difference between Gnome and KDE.
April 24, 2010 at 10:59 pm
Don’t Worry Krnchy & John, i am going to give another comprehensive comparison between these two!
May 20, 2010 at 12:57 pm
I don’t know if it’s entirely correct to say that “Kubuntu’s intention is to make the transition easier for the users from different operating systems by giving the allowance to a desktop layout that is similar.” I think kubuntu’s purpose is more just to provide the ubuntu core environment on top of KDE instead of GNOME. While KDE might be more similar to a Windows or Mac desktop, I wouldn’t say that it’s purpose is as a stepping stone to other desktops.
June 18, 2010 at 4:32 pm
i want to at least try a deul boot, as windows blender 64 bit is still weak in the fillm editer section (have to use 32bit for sequences) as i like 2.49b better than 2.5. i could only get full 64bit supprt for it on a linux system. i tested both cd boots, and even from usb (only for 32bit but smoother run) blender’s interaction was stickie in Kubuntu- menus took seconds to open when clicked. Ubuntu was fast windows, no click stall. is there a reason for this? i was suprised ubuntu used more resources than kubentu when clearly kubuntu is most bling- it has a freakin bouncy ball to play with- it’s cool to see an o.s with a serious look but be toyetek too. maybe include animated desktop wigits like systemanimator, it has nicer sounds too!
July 21, 2010 at 3:29 am
Well, after laying hands on both of the distros. First Kubuntu 10.04 and then Ubuntu 10.04.
Kubuntu looks ravishing and elegant with its plasma desktop feature. But there were minor bumps like loose desktop integration and after few installations Kpackagekit got locked and was always “waiting for other tasks”, God knows which tasks.
No automatic updates and multimedia player codecs need to be installed manually unlike Ubuntu where media player automatically searches and installs the required codec.
Ubuntu doesn’t look as attractive as its “K”ounterpart, hands down, but its “G”enes can be modified as per user needs. Check out if Plasma feature is compatible with Gnome, for its captivating appearance.
Other than that Ubuntu simply surpasses Kubuntu.
Towards humanity.
August 25, 2010 at 1:40 am
I must say after throughly exploring Ubuntu , Kubuntu and Xubuntu for all dependability, I say hots of to Ubuntu it is a refreshing change from Win Vista and 7. This is also my first time working w anything Linux. Kubuntu has a brilliant layout! None better I was extremely satisfied w Kubuntu until it would not read my cam! So, the only way I could get my pictures from my camera was via GIMP!
I could not save my pictures as a folder like i could in Ubuntu! It is very disapointing because Kubuntu has such a beautiful layout!
August 25, 2010 at 3:21 am
That is quite true; well, Kubuntu has a great layout, but just as every coin has a flip side, you’ll have to live with those downsides… perhaps in future, they’d improvise on its drawbacks, and next version of Kubuntu would take of this problem too.. By the way, which version were you referring to, in this case?
September 18, 2010 at 12:23 am
I generally like paying for software as it guarantees me a level of support. I have been form months to numerous forums asking the same question OVER AND OVER:
“How much does ubuntu and/or kubuntu cost”???
No one has ever bothered to answer me, except for one anonymous email I got simply stating “You are an idiot”
Regards, Wagner Goldberg
September 18, 2010 at 2:30 am
Kubuntu, Ubuntu, and all flavors of Linux/Unix are open source, and hence they’re FREE
So, it doesn’t cost you even a penny 
September 28, 2010 at 8:54 pm
Well, basically my experience is, Ubuntu 10.04 seems to be more stable, but Kubuntu Crashes often and has some funny …”glitches” in its display. I installed Kubuntu 10.04 through the software manager on Ubuntu 10.04. Now my Ubuntu “session” is stuck with the Kubuntu Plasma desktop mouse pointer and I have not figured out how to switch it back to Ubuntu’s default. But I think I am going to remove the Kubuntu.
Overall , Kubuntu has a beautiful layout and some cool features but is not as stable as Ubuntu and running both of them through sessions can be a problem. I am going to try to revert to Ubuntu 10.04 LTS only now tho. Looking forward to your review on the newer systems.
October 1, 2010 at 8:27 am
Yes definitely; i am testing the latest version of Kubuntu now, and i will be doing a separate review on that shortly!
December 3, 2010 at 1:18 pm
I appreciate the work that you have put in, in this page. Really good, also I wish to quote a few lines from this article in my site, I will give a link back to this article. Again.. it is really a good work.
Thanks
Jack
June 2, 2011 at 1:04 am
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