Deepin is a beautiful desktop environment with an intuitive UI. UbuntuDDE project combines the power of Ubuntu and the beauty of Deepin.

Deepin Desktop Environment (DDE) is a beautiful desktop environment created by the developers of Deepin Linux. Initially, Deepin Linux was based on Ubuntu but later they switched to Debian.

Deepin Desktop Environment in Ubuntu

One major problem with Deepin Linux is its slow servers. A regular system update takes hours to download for the fact that they have all their servers in China and these servers are unfortunately extremely slow.

If you want to use Deepin desktop, nothing stops you from installing it on your regular Ubuntu system. UbuntuDDE is trying to make it simpler by providing you an out of the box Deepin desktop experience on top of Ubuntu. This saves you time and effort in installing and configuring Deepin on Ubuntu.

Ubuntu DDE: Power of Ubuntu and beauty of Deepin desktop

Please note that UbuntuDDE is not an official flavor of Ubuntu. UbuntuDDE developers are not associated with the Ubuntu team. UbuntuDDE is currently a Remix distribution and is aiming for getting recognized as Ubuntu’s official flavor in future releases.

Screenshot of UbuntuDDE

UbuntuDDE developers are helped by Alan Pope of Ubuntu’s Snapcraft team and teams of Ubuntu Budgie and Ubuntu Cinnamon and a few other developers like Hualet Wang and Felix Yan.

In a conversation with It’s FOSS, its lead developer Arun highlighted that the important aspect of this project is to regularly maintain the DDE packages for Ubuntu and help users enjoy the full taste of DDE (Deepin Desktop Environment).

Ubuntu Deepin Edition login screen

Arun also mentioned that this Ubuntu Deepin remix project started first by maintaining and packaging the packages to the latest release from the upstream i.e. Deepin Repository. Then, it eventually got spin with Ubuntu 20.04 focal resulting in an image file that everyone can install without the hassle to install regular Ubuntu first and then the Deepin Desktop. UbuntuDDE is not just the combo of DDE and Ubuntu but also the fusion of selective packages and design changes by the UbuntuDDE Team.

UbuntuDDE screenshot

Unlike Deepin Linux, UbuntuDDE doesn’t use Deepin Appstore. It uses Ubuntu Software Center instead. This should be a good news if you are spooked by the spyware labeling of Wuhan-based Deepin Linux.

Download UbuntuDDE 20.04 Beta

UbuntuDDE is aiming to release its first official stable release with Ubuntu 20.04. Like other Ubuntu flavors, UbuntuDDE 20.04 beta is also available for you to download and try.

Warning! A word of warning. UbuntuDDE is a novice project under development. Please don’t use it on your main system. If you want to try it, use it in virtual machine or on a spare system.

Installing UbuntuDDE

Since it is essentially Ubuntu, installing UbuntuDDE is the same as installing Ubuntu. You may refer to this tutorial showing how to install Ubuntu inside VirtualBox.

I know you may think ‘not another Ubuntu’ or ‘it’s just Deepin on Ubuntu that anyone can do’ and you do have a point. But I also know there is a small segment of users who like projects like UbuntuDDE that makes thing easier for them. I mean that’s how many Ubuntu flavor came into existence. What do you think?