Ubuntu made a minor leap this week to 9.10, and with that came a major upgrade to their Netbook Remix, which until this point has been interesting but less than spectacular. The UNR not only comes with a newly-refreshed look, but also a much-needed kernel upgrade to 2.6.31 — which along with the removal of HAL (which seems to consistently live up to its holywood-namesake’s penchant for shenanigans) means for a much smoother initial setup.

In earlier versions, users were met with considerable roadblocks as they booted into an environment completely devoid of networking. They then had to actually figure out why they were unable to use their hardware, and usually ended up ferrying a new kernal over to their netbook on a USB key. This is nothing short of ridiculous, considering the entire purpose of a netbook is to be connected to a net.

It’s Easy on the Eyes.

The new look of the UNR is not only gorgeous, as you can see from the screenshot above, but also extremely pragmatic. Learning from the considerable success of other netbook-centric releases of competing linux distros, Ubuntu has gone the route of absolute efficiency with regards to the desktop. The new wave of netbook-desktops are no longer vast empty spaces with a menu, now they are vast, beautifully streamlined, transparent menus layered atop a wallpaper. The overall look is stunning, while giving the illusion that very little has changed at all. Applications now fill the entire screen when opened, and are quickly minimized down to icons as needed.

Download UNR 9.10 Here.

The entire package is really something, and I have to say that it may be the most enjoyable, silky-smooth distribution of Linux that I’ve had the pleasure of using yet. I also have to say that Windows XP is still far snappier on my Asus Eee. While I may love Linux, I use XP. It’s slightly painful, but I’m a pragmatist at heart, and I like my systems not just smooth and stable, but fast. The single drawback I’ve found with using Ubuntu Netbook Remix is that it’s just plain sluggish. Every action seems to be delayed, prolonged, bogged-down. Perhaps in time these kinks will be worked out, and the archetypal speediness of Linux will begin to shine through. I hope that’s the case, but I’ll keep dual-booting for now.