First, some of N900 users live in the USA, so someone from the USA can know something about Maemo .
Second, if the quotes from Wikipedia weren't true, they would be deleted from the article quickly, by anybody who would know that the information isn't true.
Encyclopedia looks like a reliable source of information, even if it is Wikipedia.

Here is how I have just updated.
1. set up USB Networking (I don't want to flash and erase all the information), with Ubuntu, as I'm too lazy to set it up with Windows;
Read N900 USB Networking in wiki.
http://wiki.maemo.org/N900_USB_networking
1.1. type "ifup usb0"; it should say "already configured";
1.2. type "ping 192.168.2.15"; if it cannot ping, type "ifconfig usb0 192.168.2.15";
1.3. type "ping <some local IP of your LAN>"; if it cannot ping, type "route add default gw 192.168.2.14";
1.4. type "ping google.com"; if it cannot ping, check that your LAN can ping google.com.
1.5 try to set up a dummy network; browser can see the web, Dummy is listed in Internet Connections in Settings, but HAM still cannot see the web because Dummy isn't in the list of suggested connections;
2. apt-get update;
3. apt-get upgrade;
4. apt-get install mp-fremantle-generic-pr;
5. by now you have run out of space, haven't you?
6. apt-get autoremove, apt-get clean, df -h /;
7. try "apt-get -f install mp-fremantle-generic-pr" or something else, don't remember exactly;
8. Success: you can see this line:
Setting up mp-fremantle-generic-pr (20.2010.36-2)
9. Reboot to see new version in About.
10. Contacts and most settings and installed application are intact. Except transitions.ini and unlocked FM transmitter.
If /etc/mce/mce.ini (including LED patterns) was modified, you would be asked whether you want to update it or not; you can make a backup and then update it to the new version (as you don't have diff, you cannot see the differences between your and new versions).
I don't see much immideate improvements; I'm going to change transitions.ini again and return LED patterns.

I'm glad that the update improves battery life and speed in general.
There are about fifty bugs fixed?