Ubuntu Studio is a Linux distro from Canonical that's designed for creatives.It comes preinstalled with a big array of free and open-source software for audio, video, graphics, and photography.Early on in my career, I did graphic design work for a while and I still draw illustrations for fun.
These are my impressions of Ubuntu Studio.What's the point of this distro? Perfect for creatives who are switching to Linux If you're a power user, you might be wondering what's the point of a distro like Ubuntu Studio when you can just install the same software on any distro.First, creative professionals need the low-latency Linux kernel.
That kernel ensures there's minimal lag between, say, hitting a note on a music instrument and the output from the computer.Or, if they're scrubbing through the timeline on a video editor, the view port should update instantly.Ubuntu Studio uses this kernel by default.
Most Linux distros ship with generic kernels.And swapping them out with low-latency versions is not trivial, especially for beginners.Even for power users, it's more trouble than it's worth, in my opinion.
Setting up graphics drivers on Linux can be a hassle with NVIDIA cards.Those drivers aren't built into the Linux kernel, so you either have to install them manually or have your distro do it for you.That's exactly what Ubuntu Studio does.
It handles all graphics drivers and media codecs automatically, out of the box.You just have to check the "Install third-party software for graphics and media formats" during the OS installation process.I had my Huion drawing tablet hooked up to the PC during the installation, and it worked fine after the installation completed.
I didn't get the fancy dashboard that Huion provides for Windows, but basic pen features and pressure sensitivity work.In most cases, you'll never have to hunt for drivers or media codecs with this distro.From what I've heard, it's really complicated to set up professional audio on a standard Linux distribution (which includes switching out the kernel to a low-latency version).
So for audio engineers who aren't Linux power users, Ubuntu Studio is perfect.Creatives who are coming from Windows or macOS and want to try FOSS suites will find Ubuntu Studio much more convenient.They won't have to research alternatives and install them from scratch.
Getting Ubuntu Studio Incredibly beginner-friendly installer Installing Ubuntu Studio is as simple as it gets.It comes with a point-and-click graphical installer.You can point the installer to the drive you want to keep Ubuntu Studio on (it can even install alongside Windows by intelligently shrinking and partitioning the drive.) It can also install third-party hardware drivers during the process if you just check a box.
All you have to do is grab the installer ISO from Ubuntu's website and flash it on a thumb drive with a tool like Belena Etcher or Rufus.The computer will reboot once and drop you into the Ubuntu Studio desktop.The desktop environment here is KDE Plasma.
Most Ubuntu flavors default to GNOME, which I don't care for.GNOME gives you limited customization options and forces you to adapt to its default workflows instead.KDE is the opposite and lets you customize or tweak the look, feel, and function of your desktop space as much as you like.
That's a point in Ubuntu Studio's favor right away.What's inside Ubuntu Studio Every free and open source creative app I've heard of (and then some) When I was school, my favorite past time was learning and working with Photoshop.I spent hours in that program to the point I had committed pretty much every shortcut to muscle memory.
Despite that, I still looked for alternatives because I wanted to switch to Linux and WINE support for Photoshop was awful.I still haven't found a 1:1 replacement, but at least for drawing and painting, I found a program that's actually better than Photoshop.That program is Krita.
I love Krita and recommend it to anyone who's into digital drawing or painting.Its sketch pencil is my favorite brush of all time.Krita is preinstalled on Ubuntu Studio, alongside Inkscape (for vector graphics), Blender (for 3D design work), GIMP (open-source Photoshop alternative), and even a pixel art tool called PikoPixel.
For photographers, there's Darktable (Adobe Lightroom alternative) and DigiKam (for importing and organizing your media libraries.) For video editing, there's Kden Live.It's perfect for basic video editing.From what I understand, it can do most of the things Adobe Premier can.
If you need a pro tool you can always get DaVinci Resolve on Linux.You'll also find some add-ons in the Ubuntu software store to extend Kden Live's functionality.In addition to graphic design, photography, and video production, Ubuntu Studio comes with a huge selection of audio and music production software.
I'm not a musician or an audio engineer, so I can't speak to the nature of these apps.However, the sheer number of apps suggests that Ubuntu Studio has tried to cover every base.If you're a creative professional or a hobbyist looking to switch to Linux, Ubuntu Studio gives you the best starting point.
It has everything you need to get to work, right out of the box.Ubuntu is a really stable base and I personally love the default KDE desktop.
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