Going to Linux from Windows

Ubuntu and Mint are the obvious choices, both nice and easy to get running

I suspect if ease of use is the priority then it will be easier to stick with Windows and disable the features you don't want. TBH this has always been the case with Windows. Every time a new version there is a tonne of information and chat about how to disable all the new features.

That said, Linux is free to try so you might as well have a play and see.

Posted by: nickjb

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I suspect if ease of use is the priority then it will be easier to stick with Windows and disable the features you don't want. TBH this has always been the case with Windows.

This.

What they said.

Remember with most distros you can build it to a bootable USB, so you can 'try before you buy' so to speak.  Try a few and install what you're happy with.

 Zorin or Mint would be my suggestion. I agree with the others though, sticking with Win is by far the easier option. But no pain, no gain!

I've just switched from W11 to Fedora KDE for similar reasons as OP. It's beautiful and fast, but some technical expertise (or willingness to Google) is required. Zorin or Mint are much easier to get started with. 

IMHO the quality of Windows has nosedived recently.  I've had some pretty show stopping problems introduced by updates (e.g. completely broken login screen, start menu broken due to Copilot, tabbed explorer windows keep freezing). 

Posted by: nickjb

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I suspect if ease of use is the priority then it will be easier to stick with Windows and disable the features you don't want. TBH this has always been the case with Windows. Every time a new version there is a tonne of information and chat about how to disable all the new features.

That said, Linux is free to try so you might as well have a play and see.

And just to be awkward - absolutely not this.

I've no idea what people think installing and using a newish Linux distro is like but even for people reasonably familiar with windows the Linux process is much easier than playing AI/bullshit whackamole on windows 11. 

I use Zorin OS across 3 computers but Mint is also pretty user-friendly, Ubuntu is a bit different but not difficult and Cosmic PopOS also seemed really easy to get on with and looks pretty funky. In order of preference I tend to go Zorin, Cosmic, mint, Ubuntu but you can6go wrong with any of them.

Also, whilst you can try before you "buy" with a usb live disc I'm increasingly of the opinion that you should just pick one of the four distros I've listed, at random if needs be,  install it and go from there - you'll get full performance and if you want to try installing a new distro it still only takes 30mins max.

Thanks all. For a bit more context I'm not a complete technical noob, and my motive is a mix of increasing disillusionment with the enshittification of tech generally, wanting to be less dependent on big tech, and more recently US big tech in particular.  And yes, I'm well aware of how the world basically runs on US big tech. 

I occasionally think about doing this, but some of the stuff I use (games, mostly but also some photo and video software doesn't run on Linux, so I've never bothered. 

There are versions of win 10 (still supported by MS) and Win 11 without all the bloatware and privacy concerns, google LTSC windows - might be another consideration ?

I swapped to linux nearly twenty years ago. Absolutely no regrets.

Posted by: IvanDobski

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And just to be awkward - absolutely not this.

I've no idea what people think installing and using a newish Linux distro is like but even for people reasonably familiar with windows the Linux process is much easier than playing AI/bullshit whackamole on windows 11. 

... in your opinion.

I know my way around Linux but I have 35 years experience with Windows at a technical level.  Installing Linux can be fairly painless but I know where my confidences lie.

Posted by: IvanDobski

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Also, whilst you can try before you "buy" with a usb live disc I'm increasingly of the opinion that you should just pick one of the four distros I've listed, at random if needs be,  install it and go from there - you'll get full performance and if you want to try installing a new distro it still only takes 30mins max.

And if you don't get on with Linux at all, you've just nuked your Windows partition.  Which isn't a showstopper but is a consideration.

"you've just nuked your windows partition"

Yes. Yes you have.

And this is why recommendations from fanboys is problematic.

I tried Ubuntu years back and it was ok but I couldn't update my Garmin satnav because they didn't have a Linux program. Ended up binning it off as the convenience of Windows was too strong. 

I've just installed Zorin on an older laptop that the child is using for homework etc and it's soooo much nicer, smoother and quicker to use.

I have a 2012 i7 MacBook Air that can't run anything secure in the macOS world. After a few distro's today, I've settled on Fedora. It's a nice UI, pretty nippy compared to the Mac OS, and has most things I need- libra office, Firefox, etc. Can connect it to onedrive and the home NAS if I want to. It's just going to be sat in my shed at the moment for those "how to" video moments.

It's different enough tho from what I'm used to, I wouldn't swap my other devices over. But it's a great use for an old machine.  Apart from some fenagling with WiFi support, it was really easy. Loads of help on the web. And I am not a unix expert.

Another thing to consider is any unix distro (from what IU've read) is pretty heavy on battery compared to native OS. This is a tired old batt but I'm getting 2-3 hours v 4-5 when I had it running macOS. Not an issue for me, but...

Posted by: Cougar

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And this is why recommendations from fanboys is problematic.

Lol, I've never been a fanboy before - it's exciting!

linux is fine if you want to produce documents and browse. step off piste though and you're in to a world of forums. which is fine if using computers is your hobby. i've been admonished for posting links to 'dodgy software' before, so here's a link to an article on a reasonably well respected website : https://www.theregister.com/2025/04/22/windows_10_ltsc/

Posted by: MrSalmon

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I've always been a Windows guy, but the latest stuff from Microsoft about integrating AI into Windows has started me thinking about alternatives. Apple will surely be thinking along the same lines as Microsoft, which leaves Linux. 

Does anyone have any Linux distro recommendations? I'm mostly interested in ease of use, and I would probably keep a Windows machine for things like Zwift.

Obviously it depends what you want to do.  If you're just browsing the web, reading emails and running a word processor (open/libre office) then it's very straight forward.

If you have any weird requirements or a printer that won't work on Windows, you'll have a less fun time.  eg you want to run a specific windows program and can't use anything else.  It'll probably work on wine, but it might be a pain to get working.  

Make sure you take backups of anything before you do any installing.  In fact take backups, it's a good idea regardless.

As for the distro, just stick with Ubuntu, it's the most popular by a long way.  It's also the easiest to get support for due to it's popularity.

At the risk of sounding like a fanboy again - Zorin will make suggestions for software alternatives if you search their app store for something they don't have a native version of.

This is usually what people mean when they say they "can't" do something on Linux, it's generally more like they won't use an alternative because they're used to a windows only option. Obviously some people are forced to use something by work etc but for a lot of people it's just habit and inertia.

Posted by: thepodge

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I've just installed Zorin on an older laptop

Zorin looks interesting.  It looks to be pitched as a Windows / MacOS replacement.  I'll have to have a play with that.

Posted by: IvanDobski

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Lol, I've never been a fanboy before - it's exciting!

It's the difference between objective and subjective advice.  

Posted by: Del

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here's a link to an article on a reasonably well respected website :

If you want to stay with Windows 10 - I did, mostly - then there are options.  The El Reg article there is a reasonable pros & cons overview of a couple of them.

At this point in time I'm seeing less and less compelling arguments in favour of W11 at a general use level and more reasons not to; I do not believe that history will be kind to it.  I have W11 machines here and there are areas where I need W11 (ironically its WSL2 integration is a lot cleaner), but for me personally I'm using W10 or Linux wherever practical.

"It's the difference between objective and subjective advice."

It's preferences on an OS inc ethics, corporate ownership and a multitude of other factors - it's pretty much subjective by definition.

Kinda my point, yes.

Posted by: Cougar

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At this point in time I'm seeing less and less compelling arguments in favour of W11 at a general use level and more reasons not to; I do not believe that history will be kind to it.  I have W11 machines here and there are areas where I need W11 (ironically its WSL2 integration is a lot cleaner), but for me personally I'm using W10 or Linux wherever practical.

For me 11 has been a bit of a step backwards.  I really really like certain things on it - tabbed Explorer, more window snapping options, better HDR support, but other than that, not great.

I'm taking some liberties leaving out the NT line I guess but there does seem to be some truth to the meme...

95 good

98 dud

98SE good

millenium dud

xp good

vista dud

7 good

8 dud

10 good

11 dud

@IvanDobski - thanks for the Zorin plug. Installed on the old macbook air and selected the theme closest to macOS.  Seems slick and fast. Even using the native Brave browser over FireFox. Battery life is at least 2x the other distro's I tried.

Well I'm very happy with Zorin. Running some kind of hooky whatsapp, youtube and a browser. Installed as Shed-AI 🙂

Even works with my Sonos Roam in there. 

@Alex - good to hear you're getting on with it, I'm looking forward to finding out why you're wrong though 😉

If you've not already done so, have a look at the Zorin Connect app - some of it's like witchcraft.