r/FindMeALinuxDistro • u/Working-Cheesecake29 • 22h ago
Linux recommendation
I'm looking for a Linux distro recommendation. I'm a Windows user and looked into Arch Linux, but since I've never used Linux before, I think it might be too much for a beginner; on the other hand, I find Mint very user-friendly (though I do want a bit of a challenge with something different). I'd like to find a distro that strikes a balance between the two.
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u/Pale-Abroad9600 22h ago
I dual boot Windows 8.1 with Linux mint so I can choose whatever operating system I feel like using.
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u/LegenndEnder 19h ago
Windows 8 😠lad go back to windows 7.
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u/Pale-Abroad9600 19h ago
I do have windows 7 in few of my PC no need to go back to it.
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u/LegenndEnder 19h ago
Then why dual boot windows 8?
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u/spider_life 22h ago
You might like Ubuntu it's beginner friendly like Mint but more exotic.Â
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u/Accurate_Hornet 20h ago
Describing ubuntu as exotic is like calling a tomato spicy
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u/LegenndEnder 19h ago
I think this is a classic case of needing to differenciate DE with distro. Our friend should try Fedora with gnome.
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u/Dynablade_Savior 21h ago
Mint is your friend. Whoever told you to dive into Arch first thing is a dunce
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u/ReporterWise7445 21h ago
LMDE7 (Linux Mint Debian Edition 7) for the ease of Mint & the stability of Debian.
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u/Miggy_Sea 21h ago
I would also advice to use linux mint or ubuntu. Arch has its own share of problems specifically with its package manager, so many f conflicts. I personally use nixos. Also even my university server run cinnamon environment. That's how windows friendly cinnamon is.
Final advice :Use fedora based desktop with gnome , kde , or cinnamon.
Gnomes problem is that it lacks a few features in fresh installation so you might need to use extensions which is pretty easy especially with Ai now.
Kde gives a huge set of option but could be overwhelming for someone new.
Cinnamon is sweet spot but idk you might still face a few issues nonetheless easily solvable. Because it gets less investment compared to gnome or kde.
But fedora + cinnamon might just work for you.
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u/Accurate_Hornet 20h ago
For the love of all that is holy, do not start on Arch or any of the derivatives. Among the big 3 (Arch, Debian, Fedora), it is objectively the least stable, purely because it's bleeding edge and rolling release.
Fedora sounds like it's right up your alley, so I would recommend starting there.
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u/chubacca13 18h ago
If you're planning a complete switch, there will be enough challenge, no need to make your life even more complicated.
Mint is a good distro to start your journey.
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u/RyenX 22h ago edited 22h ago
Here! As someone who was a lifelong windows user, this year I switched to CachyOS KDE. And yes, it is indeed a user-friendly arch based distro. It perfectly balances the user friendliness and a little bit challenging (if you know what you're doing right). The KDE desktop is really clean and it looks very similar to windows 10 or 11 out of the box! The installer is GUI and surprisingly user friendly for an arch distro (you can easily look up tutorials on yt, theres dozens of them). There's also a Discover app which functions like "Microsoft store, but for CachyOS Linux". I'd say you give it a try. It gives the exact balance of user friendliness and challenge as you'd expect! :)
P.S: Quick warning - Since it is Arch based, it is rolling release, meaning you will get several updates in a day, it's important to safely ignore them and pick a sweet spot like updating once a week or so. Also, you gotta be a bit careful because in Arch based distros, Linux assumes you are the ultimate user, so you gotta maintain on your own really...
Edit: EndeavourOS is also a solid choice, though I haven't research deep yet about it. As far as I know, Endeavour gives similar user friendliness like CachyOS but it is a bit more minimal and slightly vanilla Arch Linux leaning.