Whats a good Linux distro to dip my toe in with in a laptop running Windows 11? Is there a decent longer form guide to doing it successfully?
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The most important decision as a new Linux user is the desktop environment, the most similar desktop environment to the Windows desktop are KDE Plasma and Cinnamon. This means your best options are:
- Linux Mint (Cinnamon): They are the creators of the Cinnamon desktop environment and will be the default on installation.
- Kubuntu (KDE Plasma): This is Ubuntu's official KDE Plasma flavour, it comes with everything as usual just different desktop.
- Fedora (KDE Edition): Same story as Ubuntu here, only that with Fedora's own packages and environment.
First I would check if the hardware is compatible (99% of the time is). Then I would check what software you need and/or want and check if it is available at these distros, and get familiar on how to install the software packages (either with their respective app stores or in the command line).
There is a lot to learn but with these distros you can just install, forget and simply keep using them for eternity.
The last and more important tip I have is to not to worry about the sea of options out there, you will not be missing anything huge by picking one or the other. Which is how most of new users feel (I did in my time).
Hope you have a great Linux journey mate!
Agree with everything you've said. I would add OpenSUSE Tumbleweed. I tried all the KDE distros you mentioned and OpenSUSE is what really got me using Linux longterm.
Also, I didn't know about this at the time, but now that I look back I wonder if Tuxedo OS would have been the best starting option for me. I wonder why Tuxedo OS hardly gets mentioned.
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Can't go wrong with Linux Mint
Seconding mint. I've heard it referred to as "Ubuntu for people who don't want to admit they're running Ubuntu", but the fact of the matter is that Mint has consistently been, for the last 15 years, the distro that has worked best out of the box on my daily driver laptops.
I use several distros for various purposes, but Mint is my go-to for general purpose everyday use.
Plus if you want to just check it out, the install USB can be used as a live OS without any installing anything to the disk. It probably won't handle GPU drivers and the like, but it should be enough to just get a quick glance at what it's about.
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I hate Microsoft and Windows, I want to choose better AND more importantly, see what all this fuss about Linux being awesomest is about
Fedora, imo, strikes a great balance between modern, cutting edge, and stable. It's typically what I recommend.
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I hate Microsoft and Windows, I want to choose better AND more importantly, see what all this fuss about Linux being awesomest is about
IT guy here, I mostly work with Windows, but have daily driven Linux in the past and am planning on switching back to Linux when Windows 10 goes EOL.
Anyway, here are my thoughts.
Ubuntu - simple to use, but has a history of doing their own thing to the detriment of the user. Currently pushing their own alternative to Flatpaks, Snaps, which is built around centralizing apps around Canonicals servers.
Mint - similar to Ubuntu in terms of use, based on Debian, well known and seemingly working well. Good starting point for everyone.
Fedora Linux - easy to use, more standard Linux than Ubuntu, based on Red Hat, focused more on using the latest tech when compared with Mint and Ubuntu.
Manjaro - for the more experienced users, based on Arch, modern, but a bit more unstable than the other distributions mentioned here.
There are other's but few that I have actual experience with and can be called newbie friendly, so it would be unfair to add distributions I don't have experience with.
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IT guy here, I mostly work with Windows, but have daily driven Linux in the past and am planning on switching back to Linux when Windows 10 goes EOL.
Anyway, here are my thoughts.
Ubuntu - simple to use, but has a history of doing their own thing to the detriment of the user. Currently pushing their own alternative to Flatpaks, Snaps, which is built around centralizing apps around Canonicals servers.
Mint - similar to Ubuntu in terms of use, based on Debian, well known and seemingly working well. Good starting point for everyone.
Fedora Linux - easy to use, more standard Linux than Ubuntu, based on Red Hat, focused more on using the latest tech when compared with Mint and Ubuntu.
Manjaro - for the more experienced users, based on Arch, modern, but a bit more unstable than the other distributions mentioned here.
There are other's but few that I have actual experience with and can be called newbie friendly, so it would be unfair to add distributions I don't have experience with.
What do you think of a PopOS, sort of leaning there just based on statistics
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What do you think of a PopOS, sort of leaning there just based on statistics
It is based on Ubuntu, so I expect it to be easy to use, I don't know if it uses Snaps nor not, if it does, I would avoid it.
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Fedora.
I guess installing arch via the wiki wouldn't be so bad if you are more techy and want to learn about stuff. The arch wiki is also great for any distro.
Eh. It's a fine distro (I use it as one of my boots) but I really would steer new folks away from Arch as a first distro. The wiki is phenomenal but it's not very ergonomic for people who don't live in the terminal (like me), even with Discover.
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I hate Microsoft and Windows, I want to choose better AND more importantly, see what all this fuss about Linux being awesomest is about
Mainly I would steer you away from any distro that uses Gnome. Very short answer as to why: most desktop environments bear some resemblance to Windows, Gnome is more like MacOS with a concussion.
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What do you think of a PopOS, sort of leaning there just based on statistics
It feels pretty Mac, if that's your jam
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I hate Microsoft and Windows, I want to choose better AND more importantly, see what all this fuss about Linux being awesomest is about
Mint if you like windows, Ubuntu if you like Mac.
Or whatever else looks interesting. Try a couple. It's not hard to just replace it with another if you don't like it. Most of them are easy to run off a USB stick to try out first too
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It feels pretty Mac, if that's your jam
Sorta is
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Mint if you like windows, Ubuntu if you like Mac.
Or whatever else looks interesting. Try a couple. It's not hard to just replace it with another if you don't like it. Most of them are easy to run off a USB stick to try out first too
Probably more Ununtu direction then
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Mainly I would steer you away from any distro that uses Gnome. Very short answer as to why: most desktop environments bear some resemblance to Windows, Gnome is more like MacOS with a concussion.
wrote on last edited by [email protected]So what distro is Mac without a concussion? I dont want windows
Ubuntu?
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IT guy here, I mostly work with Windows, but have daily driven Linux in the past and am planning on switching back to Linux when Windows 10 goes EOL.
Anyway, here are my thoughts.
Ubuntu - simple to use, but has a history of doing their own thing to the detriment of the user. Currently pushing their own alternative to Flatpaks, Snaps, which is built around centralizing apps around Canonicals servers.
Mint - similar to Ubuntu in terms of use, based on Debian, well known and seemingly working well. Good starting point for everyone.
Fedora Linux - easy to use, more standard Linux than Ubuntu, based on Red Hat, focused more on using the latest tech when compared with Mint and Ubuntu.
Manjaro - for the more experienced users, based on Arch, modern, but a bit more unstable than the other distributions mentioned here.
There are other's but few that I have actual experience with and can be called newbie friendly, so it would be unfair to add distributions I don't have experience with.
wrote on last edited by [email protected]If you choose Arch, you can say "I use Arch btw", from time to time, in unrelated conversations. That is a plus and should be considered.
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What do you think of a PopOS, sort of leaning there just based on statistics
PopOS is very old I would recommend against it to anyone not already stuck with it.
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Sorta is
Ubuntu 24.04 LTS sounds like your best starting OS.
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So what distro is Mac without a concussion? I dont want windows
Ubuntu?
Gnome is actually very solid. Its a great desktop environment, it just works in a specific way that takes some getting used to. A good out of the box gnome experience would be fedora.
People will not recommend it though, since desktop environments that mimick windows are easier to get used to for new users, like linux mint with cinnamon, or any KDE default distro.
The previous comment sais it's like Mac is with a concussion. It is an apt comparison because like MacOS gnome is very clean and minimal, but its still very different in its workflow. Giving macOS switchers quite a headache.
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I hate Microsoft and Windows, I want to choose better AND more importantly, see what all this fuss about Linux being awesomest is about
imo every single beginner friendly distro all have the same problem. They are, for some extent, easier to use than others, until they're not, at which point you find yourself digging through documents and forums or asking ChatGPT to break the system.
After few years of that dance, I found Linux Mint to be the easiest and Fedora KDE to be the nicest.
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imo every single beginner friendly distro all have the same problem. They are, for some extent, easier to use than others, until they're not, at which point you find yourself digging through documents and forums or asking ChatGPT to break the system.
After few years of that dance, I found Linux Mint to be the easiest and Fedora KDE to be the nicest.
They are, for some extent, easier to use than others, until they're not, at
The thing is that many well integrated distro have enough user friendly features to not need to go in the until they're not part. If the most complicated thing you do is install a standard package and a printer, you won't need to learn much.
Obviously, if you want to program a driver to control a nuclear reactor, it's another story.
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Agree with everything you've said. I would add OpenSUSE Tumbleweed. I tried all the KDE distros you mentioned and OpenSUSE is what really got me using Linux longterm.
Also, I didn't know about this at the time, but now that I look back I wonder if Tuxedo OS would have been the best starting option for me. I wonder why Tuxedo OS hardly gets mentioned.
I've been using tumbleweed for awhile and I would be hesitant to suggest it to a new user unless they are comfortable with solving technical problems and learning how to take advantage of its recovery features. (Such as btrfs snapshots)
It's got some out of the box issues where you're expected to research and understand how to solve them. (Like many other distros) Where I've found Ubuntu just simply works or its just a few clicks away from working.
Things like the backlight on laptops not responding, codec support (needing to use packman repo), Nvidia support (has improved significantly over the years).
And with the nature of tumbleweed there's so many frequent updates, plus you're expected to understand how to resolve zypper package concerns.
Great OS, most issues I've had, have been solved.
I am currently battling with it to properly support my 9070xt /w rocm. (Mostly working but unstable)
