Sadly I dont see Ubuntu doing that any time soon (I could write an essay on how much I dislike Ubuntu's UI!). It's just not a "glamorous" part of the OS-making process (IMO it's the great stumbling bloack of all modern Linux distros...).

Agreed over the luxury branding of Apple though. It will be interestign to see how they fare over the next 18 months.

Although with that said the Ipod is (probably annoyingly) one of those luxuries that isn't a luxury any more - so that should keep them going.