What’s the Best Linux Distro for Someone New to Linux but Experienced with PCs?

For a visually appealing experience with lots of customization options, check out KDE Plasma. Things like Kubuntu or KDE Neon offer beautiful interfaces right out of the box and are very user-friendly. Plasma is quite customizable, so you can shape it to your liking. It also performs well for gaming and has an active community for support.

If you're interested in graphics and smooth user experience, I'd recommend giving Fedora KDE a shot. It's got a great mix of stability and fresh software which you might find appealing.

I recommend looking into Zorin OS as well—it's designed for ease of use and looks fantastic right out of the gate. Plus, it's based on Ubuntu, which has a ton of community support. If you're adventurous, Arch-based distros like CachyOS offer great performance and gaming optimization, but they require a bit of setup. It's great if you like customizing your experience.

All major Linux distros are pretty much equal when it comes to gaming; the differences in performance are minimal. Focus on the desktop environment and how often the distro gets updates. Personally, I've found Fedora with KDE Plasma to be really solid for gaming—everything just seems to work smoothly. But don't overlook options like openSUSE, especially if you want a rolling release with a lot of control over packages.

Welcome aboard! Linux is generally more private compared to Windows, as most data collection requires explicit opt-in, and you can always track what's being sent. You can feel more secure using any standard Linux distribution because they prioritize user privacy over profit.

As for gaming, there's no specific distro that universally supports more games—most Linux distros face similar compatibility hurdles because many games are developed for Windows. Using compatibility layers helps, but you'll still run into issues with some titles. Just keep in mind that performance varies depending on the game and your hardware setup.

When it comes to aesthetics, the look of your desktop environment (DE) varies and is separate from the distro itself. You can customize or even switch DEs as needed, regardless of which distro you choose.

The choice is more personal preference than anything else, so try a few distros out and see what vibe you prefer!

Considering your experience level, both Zorin and Fedora make excellent choices! Zorin has a very user-friendly interface, and if aesthetics are important to you, Zorin's customization options can really enhance your desktop experience. Fedora is a little more cutting-edge and might be better suited for your gaming needs but typically has a steeper learning curve.