Ubuntu

Color is not typically a topic of much discussion on the Linux blogs, but in recent weeks, it's been drawing a lot of attention.

Why, you ask? Simple: Ubuntu recently announced a major change to its longstanding "Human" earthtone-palette theme and branding.

"I don't know whether to call it 'poo brown' or 'dirt brown,' but either way it is seriously awful," Slashdot blogger hairyfeet told LinuxInsider.

Orange and Aubergine

The new theme is meant to focus on the concept of "Light," and it uses primarily hues in the dark purple and orange ranges.

"We identified a palette which includes both a fresh, lively Orange, and a rich, mature Aubergine, which work together," Canonical's Mark Shuttleworth explained in a post accompanying the announcement. "The use of Aubergine indicates Commercial involvement of one form or another, while Orange is a signal of community engagement."

Along with a "warm gray supporting colour to give shape to pages and documents" and new logo designs, the overall effect is that Ubuntu 10.04 LTS and beyond will look very, very different.