I have used Windows my entire life, but I am ready to switch because I dislike Windows 11 and its bloatware. My Linux experience is still fairly basic: I understand the general differences between distributions, desktop environments, window managers, stable and rolling releases, and tools such as Lutris, but I have never seriously used Linux.
I am interested in learning how Linux works rather than choosing the easiest possible option. BunsenLabs and Archcraft caught my attention because they are lightweight and come with a preconfigured desktop, while still offering plenty of room to learn and customize. I am also open to installing Arch manually or using something more beginner-friendly if that makes more sense.
My computer is a ThinkPad with a 10th-generation Intel Core i7, integrated UHD 620 graphics, and 8 GB of single-channel DDR4 RAM. I mainly want to play older games and do some game development. Which distribution and desktop environment would be a sensible starting point for this hardware and my goals?
3 Answers
Archcraft may fit your interest in customization, but remember that a preconfigured system hides a lot of the setup you said you want to understand. Installing Arch manually can teach you about partitions, bootloaders, packages, and services, but it may be a frustrating first experience. EndeavourOS is a reasonable compromise: it uses the Arch ecosystem while providing a simpler installer.
BunsenLabs is lightweight, but its older base and packages may not provide the smoothest experience with newer laptop hardware. Your UHD 620 should work well with current Mesa graphics drivers, so a distribution with a reasonably modern kernel is preferable. For game development, Godot should run comfortably, and older games should work through Steam Proton or Lutris, though the integrated graphics will limit performance.
I would not choose solely based on how low the idle RAM usage looks. Pick something you can maintain and troubleshoot. Fedora KDE is a good balanced starting point, while Fedora XFCE or LXQt makes sense if you want to conserve resources. If you are determined to learn every layer, try a manual Arch installation later after you have tested Linux and confirmed that your hardware works properly.
Before committing, try several options from a live USB without installing. Check that Wi-Fi, graphics, audio, sleep, and external displays all work properly. Ventoy is useful because it lets you keep multiple installer images on one USB drive and choose between them at startup.
For your hardware, Fedora KDE, Fedora with XFCE, or Debian with XFCE or LXQt would all be reasonable choices. Fedora generally provides newer kernels and graphics support, while XFCE and LXQt use fewer resources than heavier desktop environments. KDE is also perfectly usable on 8 GB of RAM, especially if you prefer a more full-featured and familiar interface.
The window manager itself probably will not make a dramatic difference. Browsers, IDEs, game engines, and game assets will use much more memory than the difference between a lightweight window manager and XFCE. Good memory management, such as zram, may help more.