The installation process has become - in my opinion at least - far more friendly than even the Windows out-of-box experience. This new process takes you through literally step-by-step the things you need to get Ubuntu started. Many users would have experienced Windows up until this point, and will need a steady guide all the way through. This version of Ubuntu 10.10 offers this.

Once the installation begins, like Windows, it can be left alone to its own devices. The installation time is very short, taking on average 8 minutes over the course of four separate installations from the same disk image.

Not only does it have a new look, but it also has revamped categories, allowing you to easily see what has been recently added to the different Ubuntu repositories. Since Ubuntu is speeding up behind Windows and Mac users with growing numbers, more software developers are seeing the Linux operating system as a platform to develop for.

It also includes a history tab which gives you a solid idea of what you have installed and when, allowing you to keep track of the updates and applications you download and use. The new and improved software center also works with .deb (Debian) installation files, making the application install procedure far more seamless. On the whole, the Ubuntu Software Center has become a lot more user friendly. If an application needs add-ons or plug-ins, you can download them straight away from the page of that application.

To read more on the Ubuntu 10.10 release, check out Paula Rooney's post (ZDNet Open Source blog) 'Ubuntu 10.10 to debut on 10.10.10'" and Chis Dawson's post (ZDNet Education blog) 'Is Ubuntu 10.10 yet another chance to ditch Windows?'.

Developers can now add software to the Ubuntu Software Center for a premium price. The one available by standard is Fluendo DVD Player at $24.95, which users can pay for using the Ubuntu single sign-on service, which is connected with your Launchpad.

Multi-touch is now included with 10.10, making it more indistinguishable from it's rival, Windows. It works excellently on the Dell XT2, Lenovo touch-screen laptops and as I've tested, the HP tx2 laptop. Now we can expect that application developers will be building projects which really take advantage of the touch technology that Ubuntu now possesses.

Ubuntu 10.10 has a new wallpaper and theme named 'Ambience', which is intended to be a slightly brighter, lighter version of 'Radiance' in its predecessor, Ubuntu 10.04. On the whole it looks similar enough to 10.04 to maintain user experience levels, but different enough to inject a fresh new feel into the desktop environment.

The new system font has finally arrived, after being in beta for some time now. The font doesn't look too different from before, but does add an extra Ubuntu-like feel to this new release.

Rhythymbox looks very much the same as it once did, just cleaned up a little bit. Just as you can with Windows Media Player in Windows - hover over the taskbar and change the track, that is, you can now do this in Ubuntu by clicking on the volume control and switching track from there. Keyboard shortcuts also work, if you have dedicated keys on the device.

Ubuntu One has been updated, but with iPhone and Android support, according to Lifehacker. Users will be able to stream music from their 'personal cloud' storage over the air to iPhone and Android devices. The release for both platforms is expected soon.

Shotwell is the new photo editor built-in to Ubuntu 10.10. It doesn't offer all the features that most other Windows-based applications has, like Windows Live Photo Gallery or Paint.NET (still my favourite photo editor) but it does a great job in replacing F-Spot.