Intrepid is only a few weeks away now, and while I don’t really count myself as a rabid Ubuntu user any more, I have my usual sense of drama that’s building. Mostly it means I’m on the prowl again for a sub-300Mhz laptop that I can beat up in the name of science.

On the other hand this post, from months ago, suggests that maybe the Xubuntu version of Intrepid will be a return to lighter times:

If all goes well, I think we’ll see Xubuntu lose a few pounds for Intrepid.

Pardon me if I don’t leap out of my chair at the suggestion; I like the idea, but I have my doubts.

Somehow I think my idea of “lighter” is still a great deal different than what the Xubuntu crowd has in mind. And from what I’ve seen of Xubuntu’s growth and development, “lighter” is a useful term only so long as it doesn’t interfere with the addition of things like Thunderbird over Sylpheed-Claws, or Firefox over Kazehakase, or Evince over ePDFView.

Of course, I’m being unnecessarily harsh, and I apologize for that. It’s always possible that the Intrepid Xubuntu will turn out to be something usable on very old machines. I don’t expect it — I gave up on that around Edgy — but I’m willing to take a look.

So in about three weeks I expect I’ll be downloading my first Xubuntu ISO in a year or so. I don’t plan to put it at the top of my “action priority list,” but it’ll be done. And I promise to be fair … but also honest.