So i was surprised today when my fiancee told me she was thinking about switching over to linux. Surprised because she is absolutely not technically minded, but also because she was weary about having Microsoft AI slop forced on her PC every update. ( i’m so proud!)
Now i’ve used a little linux but i’ve always been a holdout. Won’t stop me from moving someone else over but i have too much going on in my setup to deal with that right now. So i’m not super versed but i was able to give her the basic rundown of what distros are, concerns when switching, what may and may not be available, shes still on board so we’re doing this! Knowing her she would like to not have to transition too much, whats something fairly hands off and easy to learn. I’ve heard some good things about mint from hanging around you nerds the past few years but also some not so good things, any suggestions?
next concern is what kind of transfer process is this going to be? i have some spare HDD’s so we can try and get everything ported over but i’m so busy with school right now i can’t quite allocate the time to really deep dive this.
Any help is appreciated, cheers!
Well quite obvious: as the name “Debian” was coined to celebrate the union between Debra and Ian, makes it a de facto choice! ;)
They split up :-(
I think Ian later died
Fedora because it just works.
Personally, I don’t think anyone new to Linux at this point, who isn’t tech-minded, should be pointed to an X11 environment. So until Mint devs have ported Muffin into a Wayland compositor, I wouldn’t recommend it. They’re used to a shiny experience visually, so I’d go with Plasma 6 running on Fedora or OpenSUSE Tumbleweed.
Yeah I think mint advice is extremely dated, Bazzite or base Fedora is the way to go
Not a mint user myself, but I have helped a friend install it. The install script at the time would silently crash if it had issues with the network card name. Researching it I found that this had been reported 8 months before my friend ran into it, and a PR submitted, but was not even looked at for a month after. Sure, these are all (largely) unpaid volunteers, but if your objective is to be beginner friendly, stuff like that really shouldn’t be left sitting for so long.
I second the atomic Fedora ones with Plasma. Very stable system, updates run automatically like she is used to, and the Bazaar software center is a great and well organized central repository for flatpaks.
Just straight up Bazzite to be honest.
Fedora by itself is too Puritan for stuff not fully foss in their default repos
Debian + KDE
Why did it take so much scrolling to get to the right answer
The right answer is,
Debian if they just use web browsers and basic office apps.
Fedora if they use do the same but also use recent hardware that needs a newer kernel
Bazzite if they are a casual gamer and you want to make sure her sims still work easily
Cachy if she’s a nerd and plays a lot of higher end games.
All with kde of course
If you’re using that currently, do you notice that on a fresh reboot, if you sit at the desktop and just wiggle the mouse for a while, or keep creating selection boxes with your mouse, KDE will freeze for a random amount of time?
OpenSuse of course
I don’t ever want to have to set up my PC again. Will Tumbleweed be good to accomplish this for a user used to Windows?
I like OpenSUSE Tumbleweed: everything’s up to date and it’s very stable for a rolling distro. Very occasionally an update is problematic but there are easy rollbacks thanks to btrfs. KDE Plasma is an easy desktop environment for a former Windows user too. One weirdness is you’ll have to get used to using the command line to update native packages and Flatpaks (“sudo zypper dup” and “sudo flatpak update”), because the GUI updater apparently isn’t really intended for the rolling distro.
Yes, and Aeon would even be better. Anything is just a box throw away.
I’m not sure what that last part means, but TY.
On atomic distros, you install stuff mostly via flatpak and distrobox. I’d even recommend using distrobox on traditional systems because you can just kill the box if you don’t want it any longer. You can have multiple package managers at the same time installed without problems, e.g. yay, dnf and zypper. I guess you could even take your box with you when switching to a new distro (e.g. when switching from atomic fedora to opensuse as I did recently) but I have not yet done that.
Yes, management could be more end user friendly, but it’ll get there
Thx for the explainer - I have some research to do.
You can go with the Slowroll version which is Tumbleweed but with a week delayed updates which might prevent issues in updates you’d have on Tumbleweed. Personally, been with Tumbleweed for a year now and haven’t had issues with updates.
You need to apply the update from time to time. You’ll have to teach the user to do that. But you can create a simple alias in the terminal so they don’t have to remember the update commands (system update and flatpak update cmds).
Mint
Mint.
No war. I don’t use it, myself, but I’ve set up a couple family members and over þe past several years have gotten two tech support calls: one about connecting to a WiFi printer, which required only me telling þem how to get to system preferences; þe oþer because þey’d bought a new laptop which came wiþ Windows 11 and þey wanted help installing Linux (which þey were used to) on it instead.
This is the first I would suggest as well. As much as I like other distros, Mint has the appearance, capability, stability, and settings combination I would want as a new user
Even as an EndeavourOS user, I concur: Mint. Why? Cinnamon is hands down the best desktop environment. Beginner friendly default without blasting features in one’s face with configs all over the place, yet intuitively customizable for experienced Linux users.
This means she will be able to freely use it without your help, but you will be able to easily fine tune it to her preferences as well.
⚜︎ arscyni.cc: modernity ∝ nature.
Specifically Linux Mint Debian Edition
correct
What about Slackware? Not popular anymore?
Yep I don’t think it’s that popular anymore. I see Fedora or Pop-OS recommended a lot lately. And Mint.
It was just a just a joke. Slackware is a dinosaur.
openSUSE.
I guess a good question would be what software you plan on using. If it’s something more reliance on frequent updates and feature releases like gaming, the choice would be a bit different compared to something like office work or common browsing, where stability would be prioritized (at the cost of slower updates).
Mint, for example, is a great jumping off point for Windows users because of the familiar User Interface and a focus on stability and lack of prior knowledge required - but it lags behind when it comes to cutting edge stuff for things like gaming.
I just switched a couple months ago to Pop OS because it is supposed to be more up to date on Nvidia drivers and game stuff. I haven’t tested to many games yet but the couple I did worked fine. I was going to go with Mint originally but the gaming thing sold me on Pop. Its been pretty smooth but I would like more built in setting options for customizations.
Since Mrs. Erinaceus is considering switching, I was going to try and steer her towards Mint, but since she’s a gamer and I’m not (I know, boring) perhaps this would not be the best choice? Please tell me more.
Like 9limmer mentioned, Bazzite would be a good gaming focused choice for a beginner. There are alternatives like CatchyOS, but those are geared towards more experienced users.
Went with Bazzite for my main gaming rig almost a year ago. Really good all-round distro imo. Haven’t had an issue yet. NixOS for my other machines because it’s cool and I can have them fit for many purposes by just switching a single config file.
Nix is new to me, but what I’ve read seems like it’s very polarizing. Curious what kind of real world use makes it a good choice?
Curious what kind of real world use makes it a good choice?
It’s declarative. Everything is (usually) configured via Nix itself, without requiring manual steps of running additional commands. This ends up being pretty useful when you have a fleet of devices that you want to configure.
Changing config is atomic. If you end up breaking your system when trying to tweak it, you can boot into the previous generation and try again with different settings.
I would recommend either Debian or Devuan - both are absolutely rock stable and are a good entry level drug for the Debian based ecosystem. I personally like Devuan more (it just feels more mature and has more
oldmature community members).I’d suggest 0 change at first : boot on a live USB then connect with her Web accounts (e.g. Firefox Profile) then get an easy win. Sure not 100% will work but she’ll be 80% there in minutes. If she hates it, logout, reboot, remove key and that’s it.
Mint Cinnamon. Just make sure to change the background before she sees it. The first impression is god awful with that stock background.
I think basically all the default backgrounds aren’t great. There are a few passable ones but that’s it.
Unfortunately, Linux Mint devs are transphobic.
I have no reason to believe you, but even if I did transphobia isn’t a red line for me in software. Supporting Trump would be, but transphobic views on their own are not uncommon and don’t suggest the software or institution is untrustworthy (and no the CEO of Proton doesn’t support Trump).
I loved Mint. It’s still great. Recently I installed Linux on a family member’s laptop which is not upgradeable to Windows 11. Hate to say it (and I may be a bit petty here): Mint looks dated, Cinnamon needs a facelift.
That was a reason I went with Zorin. It clearly tries to transition users that come from Windows with it’s design (honestly, it’s modded Gnome looks awesome). Even running .exe files is as simple as just opening them. Zorin will either just run them or suggest a Linux alternative. Had no issues with that OS so far.
That said, Mint or Ubuntu are solid choices for beginners (and pros alike).
Came to say this : Zorin was perfect for me, especially for its elegant resemblance to Windows.
Any of the large, easy to use distributions should work just fine. I’d recommend a popular distribution because it’ll be easier to get help online. So consider Mint, Fedora, OpenSuse, Ubuntu and maybe Pop!_OS.
I think the main consideration should be which DE (desktop environment) she’d like to use. IMO the main contenders would be:
- KDE - Very configurable, nice looking, a bit heavy.
- Gnome - Simple and very opinionated, so not very configurable, a bit heavy.
- Cinnamon - Should feel familiar to Windows users, a bit faster than KDE and Gnome.
- Cosmic - A middle ground between Gnome’s simplicity and KDE’s configurability, pretty fast.
- XFCE - Very fast and light-weight, fairly configurable, but not very flashy.
Based on which DE she prefers, I’d suggest getting a distribution that comes with said DE by default, for the best possible integration. How do you figure out which DE she likes best? Put Ventoy on a USB stick along with a few different Linux ISOs. Ventoy wil let you choose which one to boot from a menu. You could get the following ISOs:
- Fedora or Ubuntu with Gnome
- OpenSUSE with KDE
- Linux Mint with Cinnamon
- Pop!_OS with Cosmic
- Mint or Ubuntu with XFCE
Download an ISO for each, install Ventoy on a USB stick and copy the ISOs to the stick. Boot into each ISO and play around with the desktop for a bit. When she’s figured out which DE she prefers, install a distribution that comes with that desktop.
I mean from what you’re telling me I’d imagine cinnamon, but now that you mention It, wasn’t there a website dedicated to showing off the different desktop environments?
Cinnamon is a great choice. It’s the default on Linux Mint for good reason.
Not really possible, because how a desktop feels or what can be configured it’s hard to show on a website. Especially how you can visually adapt it. And what you can configure in general. Running it from a live USB takes like 5 minutes.
For example KDE is also very close to Windows, but can also be configured to behave more like a Mac. Visually most desktop environment can be themed. Cinnamon just got additions to be able to theme gnome apps globally I think? If you want to use a central dock like a Mac and have running apps at the top, that’s just a master of setting that up on KDE.
For distros, not desktop environments. You can choose DEs for distros though. But there it is: https://distrosea.com/
Unfortunately, Linux Mint devs are transphobic.
I’ve not noticed Cinnamon being any faster than KDE. I’d recommend KDE for someone coming from Windows.
I’m on KDE as a former Windows and Mint user and it’s really annoying. Especially the text editor Kate. All the hotkeys are different than Windows/Mint, there’s no notepad equivalent and only a notepad++ equivalent, the GNOME text editor doesn’t match the theming, and I had to settle on Mousepad for my replacement.
I had to do a lot of customization to get the system to behave like Windows, particularly the panel. Maybe with ZorinOS it’s better.
there’s no notepad equivalent and only a notepad++ equivalent
I believe you’re looking for KWrite.
Thank you, that’s exactly what I’ve been looking for. Wasn’t bundled with Kubuntu (or maybe it was but I uninstalled it because I thought it was Wordpad) and didn’t come up when searching for it in the Discover app, but after going to the official site and opening a link in the Discover app I got it installed.
Now to look up how to clean up the start menu so searching for a text editor doesn’t give me the uninstalled Mousepad or it’s separate settings app (I did it with a 5 second duckduckgo search).
Dunno if kubuntu comes with it, but do you have an app called “main menu”?
Suggesting anything with gnome should come with a penalty of having to fist fight a Canadian goose and it’s henchswans.
I can recommend Debian or Fedora. They are both mature distros that are pretty easy to install and generally work well with minimal fuss and are easy to maintain. I often see Linux Mint recommend, including in this thread. I’ve never used it so I can’t speak to it. But I have every reason to believe it’s a solid choice.
As for transfer process, since you mention using spare disks, NTFS filesystems are supported and you may be able to just copy files off of them. I don’t know if bitlocker is supported.
Fedora. I would not have said that two years, but I am blown away by how easy and up to date it is.
And I am normally an Arch person.
Yeah I ran it up on distrosea and was surprised how intuitive it already looked
KDE works perfectly on the KDE version which is official now. Updates are straight forward, lots of software available.
I also supprised myself a few years back when I ditched Arch Linux (after 10 years) for Fedora! I now use Fedora Silverblue, but would also reccomend having a look at the uBlue variants for different flavoring.
