Canonical has released Ubuntu 11.04, née Natty Narwhal. But this release is not your ordinary update with a handful of new features in the same basic Ubuntu you know and love. No, this marine mammal is an entirely new beast, with the Unity shell replacing everything familiar about the Ubuntu desktop. After a bumpy ride with the initial beta – which I dubbed the single worst beta release of Ubuntu I've ever tested – I did not have high hopes for the final release. Those low expectations were fortunate, because although things have certainly improved, they're a long way from the level of polish that we've come to expect from Ubuntu.