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I'm new to Kubuntu. Somewhere I read that Kubuntu only receives updates for those parts/packages which are shared with Ubuntu. Does this mean that there will be no updates for bugs in KDE desktop?

apadana
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KDE is a desktop environment. It is actually a bundle of many applications. All of the packages that come with Kubuntu are in Ubuntu repositories.

They will get updates the same as all the other software included with Ubuntu.

Somewhere I read that Kubuntu only receives updates for those parts/packages which are shared with Ubuntu

Your source must be misleading. Kubuntu uses the exact same repositories as Ubuntu. This means that Kubuntu provides the same software with the same updates at the same time as Ubuntu.

Does this mean that there will be no updates for bugs in KDE desktop?

No. The packages that are associated with KDE are regularly updated in Ubuntu repositories. As mentioned above, this includes Kubuntu.

Wikipedia: "Canonical provides support and security updates for Kubuntu components that are shared with Ubuntu for 18 months – five years in case of long-term support (LTS) versions – after release". I think it's more or less outdated. As far as I know, for LTS version of Kubuntu, the updates are provided for 3 years (not 5 years)

You are correct that the Wikipedia article is wrong and misleading in this quote. As mentioned above there are not "shared" repositories between two different distros, in effect, they are the same distro.

Standard releases only get supported for 9 months, and LTS releases get supported up to 5 years in the case of the official GNOME3 flavor, and three years for non-official flavors, like Kubuntu.

I hope this clears up your confusion. Please feel free to edit your question if you are still unclear.

Nmath
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  • I know that "all of the packages that come with Kubuntu are in Ubuntu repositories". But canonical doesn't provide updates for most packages. For example: geany, octave, wxmaxima. – apadana Aug 28 '20 at 21:50
  • You asked for my source. This is from Wikipedia: "Canonical provides support and security updates for Kubuntu components that are shared with Ubuntu for 18 months – five years in case of long-term support (LTS) versions – after release". I think it's more or less outdated. As far as I know, for LTS version of Kubuntu, the updates are provided for 3 years (not 5 years). – apadana Aug 28 '20 at 22:01
  • All of the flavors of Ubuntu actually use Ubuntu repositories. This is why we call them "flavors" of Ubuntu. It's confusing to think of them as separate distros. geany, octave, and wxmaxima, are exactly the same for Kubuntu 20.04 and Ubuntu 20.04. All standard releases are only supported 9-months. LTS are 5 years for the official flavor desktop and server, and other flavors 3 years. Package support is the same until EOL. – Nmath Aug 28 '20 at 22:07
  • I'm new to Kubuntu and KDE desktop, but I've been using vanilla Ubuntu at least since version 10.10. And I know they are the same OS, just the desktop environments are different (GNOME vs KDE). Incidentally, according to Kubuntu.org, "Kubuntu 20.04 LTS [is] supported with security and maintenance updates, until April 2023." Unfortunately you didn't answer my question. – apadana Aug 28 '20 at 22:13
  • @apadana I elaborated on my answer. My goal, among others here is to help you, but that does sometimes require some back and forth because communication is not always 100% effective. Give us the chance to understand what you are confused about before throwing in the towel – Nmath Aug 28 '20 at 22:46
  • Thanks for your time. I knew that the same packages are available on different flavors of Ubuntu. But the thing is that Canonical provides updates for some packages (like Firefox, linux kernel, etc.), not all of them. For example, if you have installed octave, you will not receive newer versions of it, unless you use snap or PPAs. So my question was: does Canonical provide updates for packages associated with KDE plasma desktop? It seems that you think the answer is "yes". – apadana Aug 29 '20 at 07:26
  • There are actually four categories for Ubuntu's repositories: main, universe, restricted, and multiverse. Packages will belong in one of these. See: https://packages.ubuntu.com/ The "main" repository is the one whose software is officially supported by Canonical. The majority of KDE packages are in "universe" (The same is also true for GNOME3). As far as when newer versions of packages are released check out this question: https://askubuntu.com/questions/151283/why-dont-the-ubuntu-repositories-have-the-latest-versions-of-software – Nmath Aug 29 '20 at 08:14