During a phone briefing today, Canonical CEO Mark Shuttleworth described the Ubuntu 9.10 desktop, server and cloud strategy to members of the IT media. WorksWithU tuned in and posed some key questions to Shuttleworth. Here are 10 highlights from the call.

Canonical CEO Mark Shuttleworth on Oct. 26 is set to speak with the press about Ubuntu 9.10 Desktop Edition and Server Edition. WorksWithU will be extra careful not to "hype" Ubuntu 9.10 over the next few days. Instead, we hope to ask Shuttleworth some timely questions about the new Ubuntu and Canonical's long-term business strategy. Here's a sampling of issues on our mind.

During a phone briefing with media a few minutes ago, Canonical CEO Mark Shuttleworth said Ubuntu Server 9.04 has been tested to run on 45 different server configurations from IBM, Sun Microsystems, Hewlett-Packard, Dell, Lenovo and smaller providers. And Shuttleworth also hinted that Canonical's server relationship with HP is growing stronger. Here are the details.

When Canonical this May launches an online training course for Ubuntu Server Edition, the virtual classroom will include a special guest speaker: Canonical CEO Mark Shuttleworth. Here's the scoop, and how to attend if you're interested.

Every six months you're guaranteed at least one entertaining post on the Ubuntu mailing list: Mark Shuttleworth's announcement of the next Ubuntu release. I don't know how he does it, but each announcement manages to relate the planned features of the next release to specific characteristics of the chosen mascot. This year, though, something is different.

Mark Shuttleworth, founder of Canonical and Ubuntu, sat for a video interview with Dell Cloud Computing Evangelist Barton George. In it, Shuttleworth takes a "service pack" shot at Windows 7 and covers numerous questions about Canonical's business and cloud strategy. Here's the video - plus some perspectives from WorksWithU.

As Ubuntu 10.04's debut approaches in April 2010, the hype has started: Plenty of folks are writing the usual Ubuntu vs. Windows or Ubuntu vs. Mac OS X stories. But another theme is emerging, and it involves Canonical's Ubuntu Server Edition and Ubuntu Enterprise Cloud (UEC) strategies - both of which are showing some momentum. Here's why.

Canonical has stated that its Ubuntu Server needs increased support from independent software vendors and system builders. "The acid test for Ubuntu Server is Oracle," Canonical chief executive Mark Shuttleworth told vnunet.com in an interview.

Mark Shuttleworth joins us for a video podcast to discuss the upcoming 9.04 release, Ubuntu history, Linux on the desktop, impacts of cloud computing, Ayatana, the community and Ubuntu, Ubuntu and Canonical, Google Summer of Code, Ubunet, and much more!