# Ubuntu still the most user friendly distro?



## PaulieG (Apr 6, 2021)

So, I'm looking to use a linux distro on 2 of my WCG crunchers. I haven't tried anything Linux in 7-8 years. Is Ubuntu still the most user friendly when moving away from windows 10? Just an fyi, I don't even know enough about Linux to be dangerous. Any help is greatly appreciated.


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## TheLostSwede (Apr 6, 2021)

Mint maybe?


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## Ja.KooLit (Apr 6, 2021)

I also think it is mint but you could try Pop OS as well. Still ubuntu based


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## PaulieG (Apr 6, 2021)

Sorry guys. I was skipping over words this morning. Fixed.


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## R-T-B (Apr 6, 2021)

I'd say yes, that or one of the official alternative desktops (kubuntu, etc).


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## bug (Apr 6, 2021)

Ubuntu is all Gnome3 now, which is quite alien coming from Windows. You may want to look at OpenSuse instead.


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## R-T-B (Apr 6, 2021)

bug said:


> Ubuntu is all Gnome3 now, which is quite alien coming from Windows. You may want to look at OpenSuse instead.


hence me advising kubuntu.  I agree gnome 3 was made for aliens.


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## bug (Apr 6, 2021)

R-T-B said:


> hence me advising kubuntu.  I agree gnome 3 was made for aliens.


Kubuntu is still a strange beast. If you want Ubuntu with a KDE face, Neon is the way.


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## R-T-B (Apr 6, 2021)

bug said:


> Kubuntu is still a strange beast. If you want Ubuntu with a KDE face, Neon is the way.


I honestly did not find it that strange.  But I suppose I am more adaptable to weird desktops, lol.


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## abactuon (Apr 6, 2021)

Ubuntu was a promising "startup". But it didn't work out. Now it's just a regular Linux distribution. No better than others.
Arch Linux the most ineresting.


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## bug (Apr 6, 2021)

R-T-B said:


> I honestly did not find it that strange.  But I suppose I am more adaptable to weird desktops, lol.


It's not strange visually, but under the hood. It eats a lot more resources than Neon (I've read once it's because it doesn't get rid of unnecessary leftovers from Ubuntu - haven't checked myself). Ubuntu also packages ancient Qt versions which are always a good source of bugs. Neon trims all the fat and packages the latest Qt, making it a much better distro overall. Fwiw, I've used Kubuntu for over 10 years, Neon for about 2.


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## WatEagle (Apr 6, 2021)

also manjaro kde is good... installing it on my laptop while writing this


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## PaulieG (Apr 6, 2021)

I appreciate how some of the distros are more interesting etc but what I'm looking for is ease of use coming from Windows. I want it to require as little as possible to get comfortable with it. Visually, I'm fine having the desktop looking different etc., but I want to avoid needing to do extra work to have the OS be functional for everyday activities.


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## bug (Apr 6, 2021)

PaulieG said:


> I appreciate how some of the distros are more interesting etc but what I'm looking for is ease of use coming from Windows. I want it to require as little as possible to get comfortable with it. Visually, I'm fine having the desktop looking different etc., but I want to avoid needing to do extra work to have the OS be functional for everyday activities.


Ubuntu can do all that, if you can get to terms with Gnome. If you can't, the best KDE distros are OpenSuse and Neon (Ubuntu derivative).
Manjaro mentioned above is also nice, but idk whether it fits your "everything should just work" requirement.

I think that's the gist of it.

Edit: Tbh, many things are easier to do in Linux than they are on Linux (e.g. setting up a VPN connection, updating all your stuff with a simple CLI command). But not all. And there will always be peripherals that are no more than paperweights on Linux, because of lack of drivers.


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## PaulieG (Apr 6, 2021)

bug said:


> Ubuntu can do all that, if you can get to terms with Gnome. If you can't, the best KDE distros are OpenSuse and Neon (Ubuntu derivative).
> Manjaro mentioned above is also nice, but idk whether it fits your "everything should just work" requirement.
> 
> I think that's the gist of it.
> ...


When you say "if you can get to terms with gnome", what do you mean?


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## SomeOne99h (Apr 6, 2021)

I guess he means if you have no problem with having gnome as a desktop environment.
Pop!_OS (a Ubuntu-based one) is easy and simple too. It is my choice when I am going to install Linux, I just need a laptop.





						Pop!_OS by System76
					

Imagine an OS for the software developer, maker and computer science professional who uses their computer as a tool to discover and create. Welcome to Pop!_OS.




					pop.system76.com


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## ZenZimZaliben (Apr 6, 2021)

Ubuntu is still the easiest to use. A nice mix/cross between Mac OSx, Windows, Android.


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## Liquid Cool (Apr 6, 2021)

PaulieG,

+1 for ubuntu if you're looking for ease of use.  I'm not a fan of the desktop(since leaving unity) environment, but use it anyway ~ for that very purpose.  

Everything..."usually" just works.  

Best,

Liquid Cool


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## Solaris17 (Apr 6, 2021)

If you want Ubuntu with enough interesting can give ubuntu budgie a try.









						Ubuntu Budgie
					

Ubuntu Budgie is a community developed distribution, integrating the Budgie Desktop Environment with Ubuntu at its core




					ubuntubudgie.org
				




Ubuntu in general I would say is the go to if you want simple in a lot of aspects, its pretty friendly and very well documented.


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## bug (Apr 6, 2021)

PaulieG said:


> When you say "if you can get to terms with gnome", what do you mean?


I mean I've tried for years and it still feels awkward to me. Last I tried it took me like 10 minutes to figure out how to make the file explorer go to the root folder.
It's not a bad desktop environment, many people are fine with it. I just think coming from Windows, you won't feel at home with it.

Still, you can download whatever distro you want to try, put it on USB stick and run it from there. That should be enough to figure out if Gnome is made for you or not, before committing to a full-fledged install.


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## ThrashZone (Apr 6, 2021)

Hi,
Forget about the little linux spawns stick with the bigs like mint mate or I use 20.1 mint cinnamon 
Linux hasn't gotten any easier sadly.


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## WatEagle (Apr 7, 2021)

bug said:


> Still, you can download whatever distro you want to try, put it on USB stick and run it from there. That should be enough to figure out if Gnome is made for you or not, before committing to a full-fledged install.


whithout the hassle to create a live you can also use https://distrotest.net/index.php to try it live really fast and easy


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## PaulieG (Apr 8, 2021)

WatEagle said:


> whithout the hassle to create a live you can also use https://distrotest.net/index.php to try it live really fast and easy


I've never seen this before. It's perfect. Thanks!


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## vectoravtech (Jun 2, 2021)

Linux Lite OS is nice also ubuntu based https://www.linuxliteos.com/ https://betanews.com/2021/04/01/ubuntu-based-linux-lite-54-stable/
[Ubuntu-based Linux Lite 5.4 is here to replace Microsoft Windows 10 on your PC] https://distrotest.net/Linux Lite/5.4​I have it on a usb stick.


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## PaulieG (Jun 2, 2021)

vectoravtech said:


> Linux Lite OS is nice also ubuntu based https://www.linuxliteos.com/


I may have to give this one a try. Thanks!


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## las (Jun 2, 2021)

abactuon said:


> Ubuntu was a promising "startup". But it didn't work out. Now it's just a regular Linux distribution. No better than others.
> Arch Linux the most ineresting.



Arch for a beginner? No, not a user friendly distro at all, more for people who like to customize and mess around

Ubuntu and Mint are among the easiest to install and use


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## bug (Jun 2, 2021)

las said:


> Arch for a beginner? No, not a user friendly distro at all, more for people who like to customize and mess around
> 
> Ubuntu and Mint are among the easiest to install and use


Those and OpenSuse.
I'd look no further than those 3 if I were a beginner.

Arch has recently received a no-frills installer that makes it much easier to install. But it's still not a good place to start. On the other hand, if you just installed your first distro and are looking to learn how to configure it or how things work, Arch's documentation is second to none. (Yes, save mostly for some file paths, all distros work more or less the same under the hood.)


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## Ja.KooLit (Jun 2, 2021)

las said:


> Arch for a beginner? No, not a user friendly distro at all, more for people who like to customize and mess around
> 
> Ubuntu and Mint are among the easiest to install and use


I would agree with you on the installing part of Arch but using Arch once up and running is way very easy than you thought.


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## Mindweaver (Jun 2, 2021)

I use vanilla Ubuntu the most lately. I still check out the random distro now and again but still go back to ubuntu for my main distro. I do like Mint as well.


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## bug (Jun 2, 2021)

night.fox said:


> I would agree with you on the installing part of Arch but using Arch once up and running is way very easy than you thought.


Find a Linux newcomer that manages to install Arch as their first distro and then get back to us, ok?


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## Ja.KooLit (Jun 2, 2021)

bug said:


> Find a Linux newcomer that manages to install Arch as their first distro and then get back to us, ok?


That would be impossible. But like I said, I agree on the installation part.  But use, nope, just like any other distros except for the command of course


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## bug (Jun 2, 2021)

night.fox said:


> That would be impossible. But like I said, I agree on the installation part.  But use, nope, just like any other distros except for the command of course


Yes, it's been rock solid for me too. But being so bleeding edge, you can still run into bugs and then you'd better have a LTS kernel installed as a backup. Another feat you can't expect a newcomer to do.


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## DanglingPointer (Oct 21, 2021)

There's just so much more stuff, literature, videos, blogs, stackoverflow sites (e.g. askubuntu or others quoting how to get stuff done in Ubuntu ), etc, etc etc using Ubuntu-centric stuff.  In other words, it is by far the easiest to get help or DIY help if you google your problems.

Here's to wet your appetite if you like to game (copied this from another post of mine today elsewhere)!  This is Shadow of the Tomb Raider...

Ubuntu 20.04 on linux kernel 5.13.19
On-the-fly Feral propriety Vulkan translation over DX12 (So Vulkan translation overhead)
Open Source Mesa drivers using RADV for Vulkan (This runs faster than AMD's own propriety drivers!)  Basically what Valve will be using in there Steam Deck.
VSYNC off
AMD FidelityFX on max
SMAAT2x AA
Highest Graphics settings for everything (well whatever is available on linux)
6900xt Liquid Devil Ultimate stock
Ryzen 5800 all core OC at 4.6GHz
Test on 1080p and 1440p
However all that said, the age of Linux gaming is WELL and TRULY HERE and has ARRIVED! basically anything over 60 FPS is good! You can arguably play almost every single game from DX9-12 with ease due to Vulkan on the fly translation either through Proton on Steam, DXVK, or propriety ones like from Feral or Aspyr. 

So for those that want to bugger off Window$, now's the time if only games are what's holding you back!

*1080 Graphics *





*1080 Display*




*1440 Graphics *




*1440 Display



*


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