Can't tell you "exactly" because it's been so long. Might have been as early as '99? Was definitely using Ubuntu as a desktop from its literal beginning. Why?
Anyway, no, the new Ubuntu crap is mostly just that. This isn't a mere idea; I teach IT and every semester I require folks to use a Linux desktop. Mint, MX, Lubuntu and Ubuntu, the occasional Arch are all in testing rotation; over the past few years Ubuntu/Gnome give me the most trouble -- they just suck at backwards compatibility.
