Linux 101 stuff. Questions are encouraged, noobs are welcome!

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Linux introductions, tips and tutorials. Questions are encouraged. Any distro, any platform! Explicitly noob-friendly.

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Best distro to start with (feddit.uk)

submitted 1 year ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Hi!

I’m a long time Mac user, but I want to set up a laptop or mini desktop (something not too old but powerful enough for image editing, really just for photography workflow), and try a Linux distro with FOSS tools for this purpose. I’m done with Adobe.

I’d like to scale one day to having a NAS of some kind.

I’ve experimented with Ubuntu before but it felt a little noddy, I just didn’t like it. Any recommendations? I’d like something with a decent community that would tolerate my noob questions.

Many thanks.

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (2 children)

What desktop environment were you running? I usually recommend GNOME to people who just want an OOB experience and KDE to people who want to invest into a more personal experience.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (3 children)

gnome is hell for people coming from windows though

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

That’s really only true of some users. Most people now are used to at least 2 OSs. GNOME acts a bit more like a mobile OS in my opinion, and KDE behaves more like a desktop OS. Ultimately if you’re moving to linux of your own volition, you’re usually going to be more tech friendly than anyone staying on windows.

To be honest, I personally disliked GNOME, but not because it didn’t match Windows. It just didn’t have the level of customization and accessibility that I expected from linux.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (2 children)

OP's a long time Mac user. I don't think he will have issues with gnome. Hell he might find it more familiar than kde

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Yep, as a Mac user for 34 years, KDE is too Windows-like and Gnome felt pretty similar to Mac.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

Oh, in that case, absolutely.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

I hate Windows with an unbridled passion. I’m forced to use it lately for work and it absolutely sucks (Win 10 anyway).

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I don’t actually know. It was Unity I think, whatever that is. Felt a bit, um, amateur and not very polished. Best way I can describe from what I remember.

I will be seriously researching every response here. Very grateful for the help.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Unity was abandoned for a few years by Ubuntu, so I’d assume it’s behind most other DEs in terms of development. Most of what users experience in a distribution is the DE, so using a bad one can ruin it.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Makes sense and stacks up against my experience of it as seeming unfinished.

Is it Gnome / KDE as standard or are there other environments available?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Those are the two most popular DEs. There’s also MATE, LXQT, Cinnamon, XFCE, and Pantheon, but I have no experience with those.

Additionally, some users opt to use window managers in lieu of a DE, so thats also an option.