So ive use windows pretty much for everything and ive kinda had a enough of windows. i was thinking of trying linux on an old laptop that i just upgraded to 8gb of ram and im not sure wha tos to put on it. i was thinking something lightweight maybe ubuntu mate? i need somethign like windows that will allow me to game and do other things liek gaming maybe even streaming or reading? idk. also what are some neede dsoftware, browser so rthigs needed for linux. i com efrom a family who has never trie dlinux and hates it because its “the smar advanced coders os” somethign liek that.
anyways im a noob so go easy on me please als i may have ben linux distro hopping but i still feel lost.
First, welcome to the Linux family! I switched completely to Linux on all my computers about 3 years ago and I’ve been super happy :)
I would recommend trying out Linux Mint first. Cinnamon edition, which is their default version, is designed specifically to look and feel similar to Windows and be easier for people moving from Windows to Linux.
It’s built off of Ubuntu, so you have all the compatibility with the general Linux world that an Ubuntu distro gives.
It should be fine for all the things you list. If you want to try a different Debian based distro (like Ubuntu) that’s user friendly, Pop_OS is another good one. It’s less Windows-ish, but still has a very nice user experience and is a little better out of the box for gaming, because of their app store.
hello and thanks, hopefull things fo well fo the both of us, idk im running out of things to say.