pros and cons<p>which has a smaller base system? (i think debian has a smaller base system than ubuntu. although ubuntu server is pretty lean.)<p>which has an easier config? (i don't want to spend a week. 1 business day max. 4 hours.)<p>which one has lower energy usage? (i think canonical (and intel) have made laptops a high
priority...where is debian in this regard? i am ignorant.)<p>better philosphy? (i think the debian way makes more sense. as a ubuntu user, i hold back my non critical patches for at least a year anyway. which debian variant is close to this upgrade pattern?)<p>repository uptimes? (the couple times i've left debian it was because the repos were 404ing at crucial times.)<p>right now i'm in xfce4 using the gala wm with plank. (probably the most inspirational desktop i've had since zenwalk '07-08 (a powerful time in computing for me). if only pkgsrc would've worked i would've used it longer.)<p>i want a system with the least amount of cruft. whatever services and modules i can tear away, i need to doit.<p>whats the init script wars about? do they affect me really?
I used Ubuntu for a few years off and on. I got fed up with Ubuntu One and some of the goings on with Ubuntu. I switched to Debian Wheezy.<p>Ubuntu is a bit easier to setup, for example, most printers are plug and play on Ubuntu. It takes several extra steps with CUPS to get Debian printing.<p>I think you'd have to weight your questions to come out with an answer. The above seem to cause a dead even decision when I go through your questions in my head.
They're basically the same but better hardware support lead me to Ubuntu. This is because Ubuntu repos / installers by default include more drivers.<p>I use XFCE with Ubuntu for a lightweight desktop and have disabled "Ubuntu One" and some other bloatware.
If you want "least amount of cruft," which is strictly perceptual, then Debian is the way to go.<p>If you want Linux and you simply to get work done regardless of ideology, Ubuntu is the way to go.
Switched to Debian awhile ago and found it annoying that a lot of things online are now Ubuntu specific (guides, etc) so some small things are different. I'll probably install Ubuntu again soon.