What is Ubuntu

Ubuntu Tutorials - Herong's Tutorial Examples

∟What is Ubuntu

This section provides a quick introduction of Ubuntu, the most popular Linux distribution.

Ubuntu is a Linux distribution system based the Debian distribution and was created in 2004 by Mark Shuttleworth. Main features of Ubuntu distribution are:

Open Source - It's completely free to use.
User-Friendly - It offers an easy-to-use desktop for beginners.
Stable - It provides LTS (Long-Term Support) releases.
Large App Repositories - It has approximately 3.6 TB of app available.

According to a linux market report by w3techs.com, Ubuntu is the most popular Linux distribution in 2025, with a 33.9% market share:

Distribution    2025 
------------   -----
Ubuntu         33.9%
Debian         19.0% 
CentOS          9.3% 
Red Hat         0.8% 
Others         37.0%

Here is a list of Ubuntu versions showing its releasing history:

       Version   Base        Release date
       -------   ---------   ----------------
Ubuntu   24.04   Debian 13   April 2024
Ubuntu   22.04   Debian 12   April 2022
Ubuntu   20.04   Debian 11   April 2020
Ubuntu   18.04   Debian 10   April 2018
Ubuntu   16.04   Debian  9   April 2016
Ubuntu   14.04   Debian  8   April 2014
Ubuntu   12.04   Debian  7   April 2012
Ubuntu   10.04   Debian  6   April 2010
Ubuntu    8.04   Debian  5   April 2008
Ubuntu    6.06               June  2006
Ubuntu    4.10               October 2004 - first release

Here is a simple family tree of major Linux distributions:

Linux 
|
|- Arch
|  |- Black Arch  
|  |- EndeavourOS 
|  |- Manjaro 
|  
|- Debian 
|  |- Debian Pure 
|  |- Kali Linux 
|  |- Parrot OS 
|  |- Ubuntu 
|  
|- Gentoo 
|  |- Funtoo OS 
|  |- Gentoo OS 
|  
|- Red Hat    
|  |- Alma Linux
|  |- CentOS  
|  |- Fedora
|  
|- Slackware 
|  |- Salix OS 
|  |- Slackware OS 
...

Table of Contents

About This Book

►Introduction to Ubuntu Systems

►What is Ubuntu

hostnamectl - Display System Information

"free" - Display Free and Used Memory

"who | w" - Logged-in Users and Their Running Commands

GNOME - Desktop Interface and Environment

Shell - The Command-Line Interpreter

Process Management

Memory Management

Files and Directories

APT (Advanced Package Tool)

Network Connection on Ubuntu

Internet Networking Tools

SSH Protocol and ssh/scp Commands

Administrative Tasks

References

Full Version in PDF/EPUB