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[Ralf Mardorf]

On Sat, 2023-05-13 at 16:16 -0400, Robert Heller wrote:
> Ubuntu uses apt for its package management

A PS related to apt:

While the "restricted" and "multiverse" repositories are clear, IMO it's
important to be aware of the difference between software from "main" and
from "universe", too. Actually a lot of the applications that "community
and users feel are most important" are provided by "universe", too.

Something installed under the apt package management might be replaced
by a snap when doing a release upgrade, without informing the user that
this does happen, see https://packages.ubuntu.com/jammy/firefox . The
way a containerized snap and a classic package management installed app
behave are different and easily can become the cause for trouble.

IOW the Ubuntu style differs a lot from the Debian way.

"Main

The main component contains applications that are free software, can be
freely redistributed and are fully supported by the Ubuntu team. This
includes the most popular and most reliable open-source applications
available, many of which are included by default when you install
Ubuntu. Software in main includes a hand-selected list of applications
that the Ubuntu developers, community and users feel are most important,
and that the Ubuntu security and distribution team are willing to
support. When you install software from the main component, you are
assured that the software will come with security updates and that
commercial technical support is available from Canonical.

Restricted

Our commitment is to only promote free software – or software available
under a free licence. However, we make exceptions for a small set of
tools and drivers that make it possible to install Ubuntu and its free
applications on everyday hardware. These proprietary drivers are kept in
the restricted component. Please note that it may not be possible to
provide complete support for this software because we are unable to fix
the software ourselves - we can only forward problem reports to the
actual authors. Some software from restricted will be installed on
Ubuntu CDs but is clearly separated to ensure that it is easy to remove.
We will only use non-open-source software when there is no other way to
install Ubuntu. The Ubuntu team works with vendors to accelerate the
open-sourcing of their software to ensure that as much software as
possible is available under a free licence.

Universe

The universe component is a snapshot of the free, open-source, and Linux
world. It houses almost every piece of open-source software, all built
from a range of public sources. Canonical does not provide a guarantee
of regular security updates for software in the universe component, but
will provide these where they are made available by the community. Users
should understand the risk inherent in using these packages. Popular or
well supported pieces of software will move from universe into main if
they are backed by maintainers willing to meet the standards set by the
Ubuntu team.

Multiverse

The multiverse component contains software that is not free, which means
the licensing requirements of this software do not meet the Ubuntu main
component licence policy. The onus is on you to verify your rights to
use this software and comply with the licensing terms of the copyright
holder. This software is not supported and usually cannot be fixed or
updated. Use it at your own risk." -
 https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Repositories#Main