what linux distro to choose first

Linux is an operating system like windows or mac os but it is open source and there are hundreds of versions called distros. That is kinda confusing at first and I have no idea what distro to choose first.

I am very new to linux. Back in school we had ubuntu on some pcs but I barely remember anything. A few weeks ago I put kali linux on my raspberry pi 4 just to try some wifi hacking tools (I wrote about it here -> how I hacked my wifi) but that was mostly following tutorials without really knowing what I was doing.

Now I found my old pc that I do not need anymore and thought this would be a good time to try linux properly. I do not need windows on it so I can just wipe everything and play around. At first I was really interested in arch linux because people say you learn a lot by setting it up yourself. It looks cool but also a bit complicated if you have no clue what you are doing, as you have to essentially set up everything yourself. So I think I will start with something easier and later move to arch when I know more.

researching some options

I looked around and three names came up a lot: linux mint, ubuntu (or pop os) and fedora workstation.

Linux mint looks like the easiest one. It is based on ubuntu but more beginner friendly. People say it feels a bit like windows which might make it easier to get used to. It also just works after installation.

Ubuntu is probably the most popular linux distro. It has a huge community and tons of tutorials. Pop os is like ubuntu but with a different design and some tweaks.

Fedora workstation seems a little more advanced but still ok for beginners. It has newer software and feels a bit more modern.

why these three

These distros are well documented as they are really popular, so they get recommended alot because if you run into problems you can just look into the documentation or ask on reddit or other communities

They also have everything ready when you install them, like a desktop, drivers, software. You do not need to set up everything by hand. With Arch on the other hand I would have to set up everything myself, like bluetooth, wifi, etc. as it only comes with the bare minimum.

Since my pc is old I also need something that works on older hardware. Mint is supposed to be light and fast. Ubuntu and fedora are fine too.

what I plan to do after installing

When it is installed I just want to explore and find out if its the right one for me. Not sure how I would really test it but I think I will just click through the menus, change settings, try themes. Then I might want to get used to the terminal as that is like the main thing of linux. I will start learning some simple commands to move around all the directories, create folders and files and just try to delete them again.

I will also try installing some software that I usually use on my day to day laptop. Stuff like VS Code, a browser, video editing software, thunderbird, etc.

And of course I want to have some fun with it. Customize the desktop, change colors, install some weird terminal tools like the bonsai thing I saw.

Conclusion

This article is mostly my prep notes. I want to record the real installation and first steps in a video so this helps me plan. I am sure I will break stuff and make mistakes but that is fine. I just want to learn and see what linux is about.

After exploring those "easy" distros and getting more comfortable with linux I would love to try out installing arch and configuring everything myself.