Ubuntu 26.04 (Resolute Raccoon) Review: A Free, Powerful, and Well-Designed OS

Ubuntu 26.04 (Resolute Raccoon) Review: A Free, Powerful, and Well-Designed OS | PCMag

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4.0 Excellent this.$refs.template.innerHTML, onCreate: (instance) => this.tippyInstance = instance, onShow: (instance) => { this.escapeHandler = (e) => { if (e.key === 'Escape') instance.hide(); }; window.addEventListener('keydown', this.escapeHandler); }, onHide: (instance) => { if (this.escapeHandler) { window.removeEventListener('keydown', this.escapeHandler); this.escapeHandler = null; } }, onMount: (instance) => { const closeBtn = instance.popper.querySelector('[data-tooltip-close]'); if (closeBtn) closeBtn.addEventListener('click', () => instance.hide()); }, }; }, }">   What Our Ratings Mean 5.0 - Exemplary: Near perfection, ground-breaking 4.5 - Outstanding: Best in class, acts as a benchmark for measuring competitors 4.0 - Excellent: A performance, feature, or value leader in its class, with few shortfalls 3.5 - Good: Does what the product should do, and does so better than many competitors 3.0 - Average: Does what the product should do, and sits in the middle of the pack 2.5 - Fair: We have some reservations, buy with caution 2.0 - Subpar: We do not recommend, buy with extreme caution 1.5 - Poor: Do not buy this product 1.0 - Dismal: Don't even think about buying this product Read Our Editorial Mission Statement and Testing Methodologies. The Bottom Line While not as polished as it appears on the surface, the free, highly customizable Ubuntu operating system serves as an excellent introduction to Linux, installing easily and running well. MSRP Free $0.00 See It PCMag editors select and review products independently. If you buy through affiliate links, we may earn commissions, which help support our testing.

Pros & Cons Elegant, cohesive interface that's easy to navigate Flexible and lightweight installation options Smooth performance in testing Extensive customizability Free Can be frustrating to troubleshoot issues Doesn't come installed on many devices Some major third-party apps remain unavailable Windows and macOS might be the most popular desktop operating systems around, but they aren't your only options. The GNU/Linux-based Ubuntu (pronounced "oo-boon-too") is an excellent alternative. It features a sophisticated user experience, performs reliably, and is fairly simple to set up. Best of all, it's free to download and use. However, troubleshooting Linux can be a technical process, and Ubuntu doesn't support nearly as many third-party apps as macOS Tahoe and Windows 11, so they remain our Editors' Choice winners for the category.Ubuntu Basics: What Is It, and Who Should Use It?If you're unfamiliar with GNU/Linux and Ubuntu, let's step back for a moment and establish some basics. For a more in-depth history and discussion, head to our explainer on GNU/Linux.What most people refer to as a Linux OS is actually a combination of the Linux kernel and the Unix-based GNU operating system (which recursively stands for GNU's not Unix). Today, there are many GNU/Linux distributions (distros) that comprise several distinct elements, including a kernel, a graphical user interface (GUI), a windowing system, a desktop environment, and more. Ubuntu is an example of a GNU/Linux distro. It's based on Debian (another distro) and uses a combination of open-source software, but some don't consider it fully open-source. Ubuntu uses a modified version of the Gnome desktop environment. Other desktop environments you might come across include KDE Plasma, MATE, and XFCE. Ubuntu's name comes from an African term for a philosophy that translates to "humanity towards others." A company called Canonical maintains the project. Apart from the desktop version I discuss here, Canonical releases versions of Ubuntu for cloud, IoT, and server platforms. The UBports community now manages the development of Ubuntu Touch, an open-source mobile OS project. Similar Products

Our Current Picks for The Ultimate OS Showdown: Windows vs. macOS vs. Linux vs. ChromeOS Microsoft Windows 4.5 Outstanding Visit Site at Microsoft See It Read Our Review Apple macOS