Ubuntu 11.10 is important because of one major issue: Unity. When Ubuntu 11.04 arrived, the Unity shell interface for the GNOME desktop environment seemed to be a step backwards — at least on the Ubuntu front. It was buggy, based on dated libraries, and showed little promise. But with the release of 11.10, things have taken a turn for better. Here are the 10 factors that I think have given Ubuntu a fresh impetus. Read more here