组件

[oneleaf]

The Ubuntu software repository contains thousands of software packages organised into four "components", on the basis of the level of support we can offer them, and whether or not they comply with our Free Software Philosophy. The components are called "main", "restricted", "universe" and "multiverse".

The Ubuntu software repository is divided into four components, main, restricted, universe and multiverse on the basis of our ability to support that software, and whether or not it meets the goals laid out in our Free Software Philosophy.

The standard Ubuntu installation is a subset of software available from the main and restricted components. You can install additional software using the Synaptic Package Manager or Aptitude. Other components are added by editing the /etc/apt/sources.list file. See "man sources.list" for more information on editing the sources.list file.
"main" component

The main distribution component contains applications that are free software, can freely be redistributed and are fully supported by the Ubuntu team. This includes the most popular and most reliable open source applications available, much of which is installed by default when you install Ubuntu.

Software in main includes a hand-selected list of applications that the Ubuntu developers, community, and users feel are important and that the Ubuntu security and distribution team are willing to support. When you install software from the main component you are assured that the software will come with security updates and technical support.

We believe that the software in main includes everything most people will need for a fully functional desktop or internet server running only open source software.

The licences for software applications in main must be free, but main may also may contain binary firmware and selected fonts that cannot be modified without permission from their authors. In all cases redistribution is unencumbered.
"restricted" component

The restricted component is reserved for software that is very commonly used, and which is supported by the Ubuntu team even though it is not available under a completely free licence. Please note that it may not be possible to provide complete support for this software since we are unable to fix the software ourselves, but can only forward problem reports to the actual authors.

Some software from restricted will be installed on Ubuntu CDs but is clearly separated to ensure that it is easy to remove. We include this software because it is essential in order for Ubuntu to run on certain machines - typical examples are the binary drivers that some video card vendors publish, which are the only way for Ubuntu to run on those machines. By default, we will only use open source software unless there is simply no other way to install Ubuntu. The Ubuntu team works with such vendors to accelerate the open-sourcing of their software to ensure that as much software as possible is available under a Free licence.
"universe" component

The universe component is a snapshot of the free, open source, and Linux world. In universe you can find almost every piece of open source software, and software available under a variety of less open licences, all built automatically from a variety of public sources. All of this software is compiled against the libraries and using the tools that form part of main, so it should install and work well with the software in main, but it comes with no guarantee of security fixes and support. The universe component includes thousands of pieces of software. Through universe, users are able to have the diversity and flexibility offered by the vast open source world on top of a stable Ubuntu core.

Please note: universe is not enabled by default when you install Ubuntu, you need to turn it on yourself. Canonical does not provide a guarantee of regular security updates for software found in universe but will provide these where they are made available by the community. Users should understand the risk inherent in using packages from the universe component.

You can enable the universe component by editing the file "/etc/apt/sources.list" after installing Ubuntu.

Popular or well supported pieces of software will move from universe into main if they are backed by maintainers willing to meet the standards set for main by the Ubuntu team.

"multiverse" component

The "multiverse" component contains software that is "not free", which means the licensing requirements of this software do not meet the Ubuntu "main" Component Licence Policy.

The onus is on you to verify your rights to use this software and comply with the licensing terms of the copyright holder.

This software is not supported and usually cannot be fixed or updated. Use it at your own risk.

[shooter]

Ubuntu软件仓库包含上千个软件包，它们按照我们提供的基础等级和是否符合自由软件哲学，被分成四种组件，即“main”、“restricted”、“universe”和“multiverse”。（译者注：主要、受限、公共、多元化，下面我都用了英文，并没有翻译这四个词）

Ubuntu软件仓库被分成四组，“main”、“restricted”、“universe”和“multiverse”，按照我们所能提供的基础能力以及它们是否符合自由软件哲学来划分。

标准Ubuntu安装都采用main和restricted的软件。你可以通过Synaptic软件管理器和Aptitude软件包管理器安装其他的软件。通过编辑/etc/apt/sources.list文件，就可以得到它们。如果要编辑sources.list，请使用“man sources.list”来获得更多信息。

“main”组件

“main”组件包括了自由软件、可以被自由发布的软件和被Ubuntu团队完全支持的软件。其中包括了大多数流行的和稳定的开源软件，当您安装Ubuntu时默认安装的就是这些软件。

属于“main”中的软件，都是Ubuntu开发者、社区、用户感觉很重要的，而且它们有Ubuntu安全和发布团队的全力支持。当您安装标记为“main”的软件的时候，您将得到安全升级和技术支持。

我们相信“main”中的软件包含了大多数人在桌面和服务器应用所需的开源软件。

在“main”中的软件版权也必须是自由的，但“main”中可能也会包含二进制程序和某些字体包，如果不经过作者同意，它们是不能随意被修改的。但是，再发布却是没有任何障碍的。

“restricted”组件

“restricted”组件是专供普遍用途，而且没有自由软件版权，但依然被Ubuntu团队支持的软件。请注意，因为不能直接修改软件，因而我们可能不能提供完全的技术支持，即便如此，我们还能向实际作者反馈Bug报告。

一些“restricted”软件会跟随Ubuntu一起被安装，但它们被划分得很清楚，以便以后能方便的移除。我们之所以要包含这些软件，是因为考虑到为了让Ubuntu运行在一些特殊的机器中，典型例子是某些显示卡的驱动，只有安装它们才能让Ubuntu使用这些显示卡。我们首先会考虑用自由软件，但如果没有其他办法，也只好用这些软件了。Ubuntu团队正尽力让这些设备驱动开源化，以保证软件能运行在一个自由版权的环境中。

“universe”组件

“universe”组件是整个自由、开源Linux世界的缩影。在“universe”组件中，你可以找到大多数开源软件，以及在开源版权下的软件，所有这些都是在公共源的基础上建立的。这些软件都是使用“main”中的组件编写的，它们能与“main”组件相安无事地共同运行，但它们没有安全升级的保障。“universe”组件包含了数以千计的软件。虽然是公共的，用户必须明白它们与稳定的Ubuntu核心的软件的差异和不稳定。

请注意：当您安装Ubuntu时，“universe”组件是不会被安装的，您必须自己动手安装。我们对于“universe”组件不提供任何安全升级，但如果社区中能够获得的，我们也可以提供技术支持，用户们需要明白采用“universe”中的包所包含的风险。

安装完Ubuntu以后，您可以通过修改"/etc/apt/sources.list"来安装“universe”组件。

当它们中的软件被完全支持时，我们会将它们移到“main”中去，当然也要作者同意将它们提供给Ubuntu团队来开发。

“multiverse”组件

“multiverse”组件包含了“不自由”的软件，这意味着这些软件不满足Ubuntu相对于“main”组件的各种版权政策。

当您使用这些软件时，如何调整各种权力以及遵重版权所有者的问题，就完全依靠您自己把握了。

这些软件不被我们支持，而且通常不能被修改和更新，您将自己承担任何风险。

[oneleaf]

http://www.ubuntu.org.cn/aboutubuntu/co ... ument_view

[millenniumdark]

这个应该已经放在wiki的某个地方了