Finally making the transition from Windows to a Linux. I’m pretty sure it’s been asked several times but which Linux OS would you recommend a beginner to use? I’ve seen Ubuntu and Mint as a good start. Not looking to do much. Game here and there (not too worried about Linux compatibility), streaming, editing videos. If I break any rules. I’m sorry.
Just adding to the numbers recommending Linux Mint. Once it’s set up you don’t really need to fiddle with it much/at all. Software manager is easy to use to find what you need for your tasks.
OpenSUSE, Fedora, maybe Ubuntu. I’d avoid immutable style distros like bazzite. They make things easier at the beginning but have other downsides where “normal” solutions need additional steps.
Bazzite if you want gaming working well without adding packages manually.
Do you know anyone in real life that has some experience with Linux, and is willing to help you out with it? If yes, use the same distribution (distro, or “OS”) as they do.
If not, as others said, Mint is a good start.
Here are my recommendations from last time I saw this question asked: https://lemmy.blahaj.zone/comment/17912220
editing videos
What program will you use?
I have heard that DaVinci resolve is very hard to set up. as for Kdenlive, I have used it few times, and it felt very clunky.
I would go with mint if you have older hardware and bazzite if you have new hardware (especially nvidia graphics card). If you really want windows-like layout check zorin OS.
for actuall advice: I would try a bunch of them and stick with one where video editing works.
Besides almost everything availiable to try on Windows before the switch, I’ve seen Nobara writing on their page about their media-focus, mentioning DaVinci Resolve workarounds from out of the box. I’ve not tried it yet.
Start with Mint. You can always try something else when you’re more comfortable with Linux.
Mint is also one of the biggest distros which is a factor in getting help. Any problem you may have, chances are, somebody already posted the solution.
I have been using Mint for a long while now, and I’ve been very happy with it. Can’t say I’ve felt the need to try anything else…
The thing about Linux is the back and front are separated, and you can customize the ux like crazy. So as you try stuff, pay more attention to package manager, how easy things are in terminal, compatibility, etc.
Try some shit.
Mint or Fedora. You’ll get tons of responses, and none of them are wrong, because no one can tell you what’s best for you, but those are the most popular choices among newbies, and they are very user friendly and approachable.
The best advice I can give you is try a bunch of different ones and see which one you like best. They’re free and easy to reinstall if you end up liking one over another.
Best of luck and I hope you find one that you truly love. :)
I started and ended with mint. Donknow about video editing, but it just worked. It’s like everything windows p should have been. No bs, easy interface, easy to fix. Do it
Pick any of the more popular ones at random; it really doesn’t matter that much.
I will be the black sheep that strongly recommend against Mint. I have had more hardware compatibility problems trying to run Mint than any other distro. This is anecdotal, but consistent enough that I would make bets on it. Secondly, I hate Cinnamon, the default desktop environment. There are better choices.
Instead, I’ll suggest Fedora KDE. It’s rock solid, reliable, and the KDE Plasma desktop is the best currently available whether you leave it stock or customize it.
If you want to try things out, set up a spare thumb drive with Ventoy, which will let you boot to any ISO you copy to it. Most distros have “live” versions that you can boot to from the thumb drive and try out before installing. That said, most linux distros install in 5 minutes, so don’t be afraid to try anything and everything you’re curious about.
Also, avoid Cachy or other Arch based distros for now. They are great, but a far more hands-on. Something for the future, when you are more comfortable with linux in general.
Fedora is a good option. I’m surprised to hear about hardware incompatibilities with Mint, though. Do you have obscure or bleeding-edge hardware?
I’ll +1 the Ventoy suggestion. Lets you try lots of things easily. Try at least Fedora KDE, Ubuntu, and Mint. Go with whichever feels good to you when you try them out.
Finally someone else said it.
Just adding that since they game Bazzite is maybe the better option but still fedora based.
But I’ve too seen compatibility issues recently with Ubuntu and Ubuntu based distros, but not really with Debian based ones (yes, even though Ubuntu is based on Debian). I don’t know why, but even MX has given me less troubles recently than Mint (not that I’d recommend base MX though - I just heavily customized it so that it’s elderly friendly, so people who basically barely can use a browser and have poor eyesight).
I moved an older relative to Mint and I regret it. Weird lagging and display server crashes sometimes, probably because of X11. Plus it’s release cycle is very slow, so old packages. Ubuntu is far from my favorite distro, but at least it uses a DE with first class Wayland support.
Ubuntu
This question is probably as old as Linux itself. While many (me included) do not like Ubuntu anymore, I still think its a good operating system for newcomers to Linux. Not at last because of the community it has. Ubuntu is only by those dislike who are long enough in this game. There are also different variants with different user interfaces and such (like Kubuntu).
Go with Mint until you learn more about how Linux filesystems work and then you can go wherever you feel comfortable. Mint just has a really easy install.
What is there to learn about Linux filesystems? How is it different from a Windows filesystem, from the perspective of an average user?
Lesson one: files Lesson two: folders Here’s your diploma.
You will probably come across having to fiddle with rights, which isn’t really a thing on Windows
Linux filesystems exam time:
section A basics
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what does CoW stand for?
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evaluate through pros and cons which you personally would pick: Btrfs, ZFS, F2FS, bcachefs, OverlayFS, aufs, Nilfs2, JFFS2, UBIFS
section B btefs
- what exactly happens when running this command, including how qgroups, compression, and recursion interact?
btrfs balance start -dusage=5 -musage=20 -c zstd \ --bg /srv/vms && \ btrfs qgroup limit 50G /srv/vms/guests/win10- explain the effect of the following command on device allocation, RAID reshaping, and metadsta distribution:
btrfs device add -f /dev/nvme2n1 /home && \ btrfs balance start -mconvert=raid1 -dconvert=raid1 -sconvert=dup /home- describe what this snapshotting pipeline does, including send stream structure, parent selection, and how receive-side overwrites are handled:
btrfs subvolume snapshot -r /opt/app /opt/.snaps/auto-$(date +%s) && \ btrfs send -c -p /opt/.snaps/last-full \ /opt/.snaps/auto-$(date +%s) \ | ssh backup 'btrfs receive -f /backup/opt/incoming'- what actions occur on the filesystem when this defrag call is executed, especially regarding extent sharing and how compression interacts?
btrfs filesystem defrag -r -v -czstd:15 \ /var/lib/docker/overlay2- analyze subvolume management sequence, including how default-subvolume selection influences mount behavior:
btrfs subvolume delete /mnt/root/@old && \ btrfs subvolume snapshot -r /mnt/root/@clean /mnt/root/@ && \ btrfs subvolume set-default 256 /mnt/root
section C zfs
[…]
/s
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Mint is popular for beginners. I went with Debian KDE because I wanted something a little more minimalistic and boring. Fedora and OpenSUSE are also good options.
If you want to stick with a Windows-like desktop, pick a KDE distro over GNOME.
If you want to stick with a Windows-like desktop, pick a KDE distro over GNOME.
I like KDE Plasma, too. Thankfully, most desktop distros have it in their repositories, so even if they use GNOME or some other desktop by default, you can install and switch to KDE after the initial OS install. I’m pretty sure this includes Linux Mint.
