It became less slow and I think they considered implementing human verification for new packages but idk if they did.
Have they made any changes in their management that may make sure there won’t be another Amazon search thing?
Even if management changes are done, it’s as easy to revert them. This one is purely a matter of trust.
Is it best to use the default desktop on Ubuntu? I would recommend Kubuntu to them, all else being equal, but don’t know if maybe the default one is better integrated.
I think the default Ubuntu has the best integration in terms of theming and stuff but not having it is absolutely not a problem. I don’t remember the flavours being less user friendly or anything.