[Epic]

Hello everyone,

Wanted to check in to this section and see if anyone has any advice or tips for my situation. I'm considering switching the operation system of my primary computer from Windows to Linux sometime in the future. Might start with a duel boot setup first until I can get things rolling.

I have a mild amount of experience with debian cli, and ubuntu desktop. Used to have a secondary laptop running ubuntu, and I've used debian for my server VMs in the past (pihole, nextcloud, dokuwiki, etc.). So I'm definitely not completely clueless, but not an expert either.

I would probably look at running Ubuntu to start out with since I have experience with it. I've already checked a lot of the games I play on proton, and they seem to be nearly completely compatible.

Mainly I just wanted to see if anyone had any advice for someone who plans to switch over in the future, or anything to take into consideration.

Thanks in advance.

[Bastille]

Hello,

I switched to Linux few years ago. I wanted to tell you to start with virtual machines but as you seem to be comfortable enough already with Linux you can definitely go with a dual boot, which is also what I'm using. I sometimes need to use software only available on Windows so it's a good thing to go with a dual boot, same for video games.

Ubuntu is a good choice, I started with it too, however I faced many issues with the latest versions of Ubuntu (24.04, don't know how the 24.10 is running however as it's new it might contain bugs, you should check on the web before), because of that I switched to Fedora and it's working very well, even better than Ubuntu in my opinion (Fedora + KDE).

Few tips :
- backup your files ! You don't know when you can break something, or if a faulty update installs and sometimes it's a pain in the ass to troubleshoot this and you end up with a fresh install
- If you're worried about your safety / anonimity don't forget to encrypt your disk during the installation process, I'm not sure that you can do it after

Otherwise Ubuntu is a good choice, lot of drivers available, huge community, lot of apps available in the store. Gnome is quite easy to handle, you're not overwhelmed by the menus and sub menus, and sub-sub menus with hidden features / options. If you're not fond of Gnome you can take a look at Kubuntu (for KDE) and other versions

[Mercury]

Can never go wrong with a debian based distro. The larger distributions (especially Ubuntu) have come a very long way in terms of compatibility; even for gamers. I'd recommend KDE over Gnome but that is just my personal opinion. I think it's alot cleaner and it's definitely more customizable. Familiarize yourself with the file system and what's what regarding that. It will go a long way for your comprehension.

Also...these things are awesome: https://www.amazon.com/Linux-Commands-Li...9hdGY&th=1

[Yani]

My advice is to jump into it head first. No dual boot and not keeping the option open to switch back to Windows. My second piece of advice would be to not try and get everything you used on Windows to be the same on Linux. Just embrace the change and it'll be very nice.

If you end up using Gnome and liked the taskbar and start menu of Windows, I suggest Dash-to-Panel and ArcMenu. For your distro I'd suggest Ubuntu or Mint to start out. Nowadays other distros also offer good out-of-the-box support, but Ubuntu and Mint have a big userbase and you'll find the most information about them online.

Have fun!!!

[Brittle1000]

I recommend (if your distro allows) having your home folder as a separate partition. If you break something, preserve your /home/ partition.

If you go this avenue, really consider how large you want your home partition to be. Things get weird if your OS partition gets full and you can't install anything else until you fix it.