And this attitude is exactly why Linux will never become remotely mainstream. Mucking around with code, recompiling stuff, etc, might inflate your linux ego, but it is going to turn away 90+% of computer users. Making a good OS doesn't have to mean one or the other. It just means building something that works seamlessly on the "clicky-clicky" level while hiding more powerful options in the background, but leaving them in for power users to play with. Ubuntu has done a lot for linux adoption and popularity, despite such snooty opinions of linux geeks such as yourself.