Long-term support

[wtb32141]

My laptop runs Ubuntu 16.04 LTS (the desktop version--not the server version), where “LTS” stands for “long-term support.” I take it that support comes in the form of updates to the software. I say that because I just tried to update the software, and it failed. The 3 years of LTS ended 3 months ago; so I suppose the “support” was my ability to update the software during the 3 years running from April 2016 to April 2019. Is that supposition correct?

[Don B. Cilly]

Yes. It's LTS, not VLTS

[wtb32141]

Thank you.

[SpecialEd]

16.04 LTS does not reach EOL until 2021.

[Don B. Cilly]

Well, there is a "Forum: Kubuntu 16.04 Xenial Xerus (LTS): EOL Apr 21, 2019" on the front page here...

Apr 21, 2019 was the beginning of the year 2772 of my calendar, BTW

[claydoh]

16.04 LTS does not reach EOL until 2021.

That is for Ubuntu. Kubuntu and other 'flavours' only support their desktops for three years, and even then, the desktops, such a Plasma, stop getting updates to whatever version it has, often well before that time is up.
There have been no KDE/Plasma updates in the PPAs for Xenial now, for about a year and a half, and even (much) longer if one sticks with the normal repos, I think.


LTS is mainly for security support, and not for version updates, though Kubuntu do try to provide as recent a release of Plasma as they can, within the constraints of what core components are in Ubuntu's repos. Even if the Kubuntu bits are no longer updated, the kernel and core components continue to get security fixes as they come up, and FIrefox will stay current as well

[Don B. Cilly]

I see.
I just find it hard to get it into my head that there are people out there using Gnome and Unity when KDE is just as readily available...
And this being KFN and all, I just misread the op.

[wtb32141]

16.04 LTS does not reach EOL until 2021.

You are correct. Thanks. I read something this morning that led me to believe that 16.04's desktop version was good for 3 years, and the server version for 5 years. I have tried diligently to find that text, but I have given up looking.

[wtb32141]

I have Kubuntu on my desktop PC. When I bought my laptop from Dell, Ubuntu 16.04 LTS was the only flavor of Linux that was offered, and it came pre-installed. I have stuck with it instead of taking the time to convert to Kubuntu.

[Don B. Cilly]

Terrible, eh?
I'll tell you a little story... hope you don't mind.

Many years ago, my son was studying at university (in Oxford, England), came home, he had a uni laptop with something called Bio-Linux on it.
It was Ubuntu-unity with a lot of biology stuff.
So I thought, these Oxford academics aren't that stupid after all ;·)
But, I said, you don't like that unity/gnome crap, do you? He said, no, so we installed KDE on top of it, so it kept all the bio-stuff.
Apart from very minor graphics issues, it worked just fine. Did for years.

Now, he's got his PhD and all, he's a researcher at Cambridge University (not far).
Came home the other day, got a new laptop, it's got Windows on it.
Says, yeah, we have to use it at work because most stuff only works on that.
We installed Neon as dual-boot, but... come on, university stuff only works on Windows now.
Even more terrible, eh?

[SpecialEd]

That is for Ubuntu. Kubuntu and other 'flavours' only support their desktops for three years,>>>>

Oops!

[oshunluvr]

From the Ubuntu official Wiki:

Support lifespan

Ubuntu 16.04 LTS will be supported for 5 years for Ubuntu Desktop, Ubuntu Server, Ubuntu Core, and Ubuntu Kylin. All other flavours will be supported for 3 years.

[WWDERW]

come on, university stuff only works on Windows now.

At the uni that I went to, Windows was the OS that they always had on their computers (and not typically the latest either). Most officially recommended programs through the departments were Win only. Unfortunately, I really wasn't aware of Linux when I went through Uni, otherwise I would have tried to use it for sure (don't know how successful I would have been with an install, I heard some horror stories of Linux installs of old). As school stuff (atleast as far as my son is concerned at this time) seems more web centric, it won't matter too much for my son (he has Neon on his NUC), hopefully it will stay that way by the time he makes it to uni.