As Canonical works to “converge” Ubuntu, the massively popular open-source Linux operating system, across smarphones, tablets, PCs and cloud servers, it is also working to integrate the various parts of the Ubuntu Web ecosystem. So reports Canonical employee Alejandra Obregon in a recent update on the past, preset and future of Ubuntu.com and the role of the Ubuntu community within Canonical’s Web presence.

As Obregon explains, Canonical has been working to revamp its various Ubuntu-related websites in recent months, tying more closely together those that cater to different segments of the Ubuntu community.  One of the goals, she adds, was to promote greater interaction between the community and the official team behind Ubuntu:

But she also concedes that in the process of trying to use the Web to bind the Ubuntu ecosystem more tightly together, links to Ubuntu’s “community” Web portal disappeared from the master navigation bar, troubling some users who worried about Canonical’s commitment to the community.  Other portals, such as those directed at developers and OEM partners, remained prominent.

But, Canonical says, the community site will reappear in the navigation soon — though for now it remains absent — and the main gist of the blog update seems to be to reassure the community that Canonical has not forgotten it.

The take-away: Even as Ubuntu forges paths across hardware where traditional Linux (pace Android fans) has never before ventured, and Canonical commercializes the operating system to an extent not yet seen, it is keen to keep peace with Ubuntu users. 

That’s smart, since even with all the in-house projects Canonical has invested in, from Unity to Mir to Landscape — an open-source platform such as Ubuntu is still heavily dependent on the support of third parties across the channel, starting first and foremost with those who use Ubuntu in one of its various forms every day.