I'm new to Linux and I have an old laptop currently running Windows 10. I'm looking to switch to an operating system that feels familiar like Windows but is open source. Since it's an older device, what would be the best Linux distribution to use? Any suggestions would be appreciated!
4 Answers
If you can run Windows 10, you should definitely be able to run Mint Cinnamon. Installation is quite simple, often easier than Windows, and the experience should feel pretty similar. You can easily create a bootable USB with Rufus and give it a go!
For beginners, Mint is usually the go-to choice. Once you're comfortable, you can think about switching to other distros like Fedora or Arch down the line. But start with Mint, it's a great way to ease into Linux!
Just a heads up: Linux isn't Windows, so don’t expect everything to work the same way. If you really want something that mimics Windows more closely, you could check out ReactOS, but it’s still in early development and might not be stable enough for daily use.
It really depends on how old your laptop is. If it's relatively recent, I'd recommend Linux Mint Cinnamon. It's user-friendly and has a user interface quite similar to Windows, plus you won't need to use the terminal much. If your hardware is a bit older and struggles with performance, you might want to try the Xfce version of Mint, which is lighter on resources.
Cinnamon is definitely more feature-rich, so start with that unless it feels slow. Then you can switch to Xfce.
Yeah, ReactOS can run Windows applications but be careful. It’s best for older hardware, and you might face some major bugs.