You don't have to code for most any linux distro. command line and config files is not the same as writing a bash script, much less compiling something. That being said I use zorin because its great out of the box. Its based on ubuntu like mint but comes with software that I honestly sorta expect my laptop to have out of the box. That being said it uses gnome and I finally pulled the trigger and added kde/plasma and oh man I should have done that to begin with. kde/plasma is way better. Still annoys me the zorin guys don't move the distro default to kde/plasma.
this post was submitted on 17 Aug 2025
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Mint is good. It might be worth trying a few different desktop environments to see what you like - you can probably run all of the major ones from a LiveBoot device.
BUT, and this is VERY important, ypu do not need to do any programming or coding on a Linux desktop. Ever.
If you're not a programmer then you are never forced to peel that onion. You can do EVERYTHING from a GUI if you want.
You'll lose the ability to run some games and software, but between alternatives and emulation, that list is getting smaller.
You can do EVERYTHING from a GUI if you want.
Until you run into any sort of problem and all the solutions you can find are "do this command that i won't explain and that and paste this cryptic series of letters here and this there and chant this unspeakable spell to summon dread cthulhu and then run this command with these arguments. it's very human design."
Using the command prompt is not coding. You sometimes need to use the command prompt in Windows to solve certain problems, the terminal in Linux is just easier to use and more powerful so it's often an easier way to solve problems or get information.
Also, they're all explained, you just don't care to read the explanations. One of the best things about the Linux terminal is that most commands have exhaustive and clear documentation.
The command prompt is not a GUI.
I WOULD have cared to read the explanations, there just weren't any or they sent me down a billion rabbit holes. Just yesterday in fact I did try Linux Mint (after having tried various Linux distributions over the years, ending in confusion every time). I hate (HATE) just following instructions without knowing why I'm doing what I'm doing so I tried very hard to understand every step. It was nothing but frustrating because my earlier post is only a slight exaggeration.
I relate. There's a lot of people on Lemmy that feel Linux is better in every way over MacOS or Windows and it's simply not true. I'm following some vague instructions right now to bring a device up-to-date that appear to be re-compiling kernel unexpectedly. I just wanted my display to rotate correctly, and be able to play some games.
(sorry, rant incoming)
See, I'd be absolutely willing to learn that Linux is indeed "better" than Windows (in fact, I do suspect it probably is - once you know your way around it). What annoys me absolutely endlessly is how people go on and on about how eeeeasy it all is and modern distros are juuuust like your current OS, really, and there's absolutely zero need to be intimidated because it's all so very intuitive and you can't do anything wrong*! It isn't easy. And it doesn't have to be easy, I'd be okay with looking shit up - if explanations and guides didn't assume you already know your way around the OS ("do cryptic thing xYz, duh"), if they weren't out of date because they were published an entire month ago and if people didn't pretend.
* I almost broke my display tablet in my Mint experiment because while trying to get the driver to work, I followed a guide that explained nothing (so for every step I looked up another guide which lead to another guide to another guide to another guide.......). No I don't know what went wrong because I don't know what the guide was making me do. Luckily, I'm tech savvy enough to fix it on my own - under Windows.
Edit, 3 days later: lolnope trying to get the thing running under Mint did break the tablet, I just thought it was fixed, but the problem is more serious. Brilliant.
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Using the command prompt is not coding.
Ackshually, whenever you write something into the command prompt and it works, you're writing valid Bash (or whatever shell you're using) code. Bash is a programming language, so technically you are coding.
For example, try typing the following into a terminal:
for ((i = 0; i < 10; i++)); do echo $i; done
You just counted to nine using a loop and a variable!
Commands are usually just easier ways of doing the thing, so that is usually what is told to people with problems.
Like you can browse through 5 menus and find the thing or paste the command and be done. If you don't want to paste the command, then just look through settings/menus.
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I haven't once in fifteen years needed to do any coding whatsoever to use my Linux computers day-to-day.
Mint is a great distro for beginners. Coding is not required, but coders prefer Linux because it makes our lives easier in some ways.
I would like to take the opportunity to give you two advices that I think everyone who wants to use Linux should hear:
Install from package manager
In windows the way to install something is to look it up on a browser, open a sketchy website, downloading a binary and executing it on your machine. That is definitely NOT the way to do stuff on Linux. Think on Linux the same way you do Android (which is actually a Linux distro), if you want to install something you look it up on the play store, and only if it's not there you consider alternatives like downloading a random .APK from the internet. Linux should be the same, except there are several alternatives before downloading a binary from the internet, like adding a PPA in debian based distros (Mint is based on Ubuntu which is based on Debian, so this applies to you) which essentially gives extra packages to the package manager or using flatpak/snaps (two different technologies that try to do the same, i.e. a new way of packaging software for Linux)
Keep /home in a different partition
In Linux any folder can be in any hard-drive/partition. So it's possible when you're installing your system to have what you would normally think as C:\ (which is called / in Linux) in one partition and /home (i.e. the folder home inside /) in another. This is great because it allows you to reinstall or change your Linux distro without losing your personal data.
Ok, wait...I thought a partition meant that it was in effect a wall between different OSs if you had multiples on one computer, not like separate folders like in Windows Explorer (which is what I'm getting from this comment, if I'm wrong please let me know).
A partition is a dedicated space on a disk. In windows there's not much use to partition a disk, but it can be done, and you would have a C: and D: drives with only one physical disk. I used to do that back in the day to have a partition for backups.
If you only have one disk and want to have multiple OS, you need to partition the disk, so that each OS can write their data without interfering with one another. Essentially what you're doing is, like you said, putting a wall between areas in the disk, but you can do that regardless of having different OS in each side.
In Linux things are a bit different, the representation of your disks is a file inside /dev, for example the first disk (non-nvme) Linux finds will be /dev/sda, the next one will be /dev/sdb so on and so forth, but since disks can be partitioned the first partition in your first disk is /dev/sda1, then /dev/sda2, etc. Then there's a file called /etc/fstab that has lines like /dev/sdb3 /home, this means that the 3d partition in the second disk will be accessible in the folder /home. You don't really need to worry about this file in general, during the installation there will be a nice GUI to let you say which partition goes where.
How is that useful? Well, if you have the system in /dev/sda2 and your /home folder in /dev/sda3 you can format /dev/sda2 and reinstall the system or change the distro entirely without losing your data stored in /home.
PS: I'm simplifying some stuff, but for reference :
- you might see partitions jump from 2 to 6 in older systems, this is due to limitation in partitioning schemes for old disks
- if you have a really old computer you will see
/dev/hda1, this is because the s in sda refers to SATA, which essentially all disks are nowadays - nvme drives are
/dev/nvme0n1 /etc/fstabhas other parameters to tell it certain flags like mount read-only. Also it rarely used/dev/sda1style naming because that might change if you swap the cables in your computer, instead it uses a unique identifier that's points to the correct partition regardless of order.- Partitions are not really a wall, instead the first bytes of a disk contain a table saying stuff like byte 0-61648716832 partition 1, bytes 61648716833-9274816418393 partition 2, etc. Old drives had limited space in that table so you had to create one partition for the rest of stuff and repartition that again, which is why partition numbers jumped from 2 to 6.
but all that's besides the point.
Linux mint is a good compatible baseline yes.
You don’t need to know how to code to use Linux. It helps to know how to use the terminal, but you don’t even really need to know that anymore either.
Mint is a great choice. Fedora is another great choice, and it’s what I use. IMHO, Cinnamon (Mint) and KDE are easier to use coming from Windows than Gnome (Fedora). So yeah, I’d agree with the sentiments you’ve read and cited in your post. You can also use Cinnamon or KDE on Fedora if you like though.
Agree with everything you're saying. I'm using Mint for a year now and never had to open the terminal. It's a great distro.
Mint is a good option, yeah. Should feel familiar if you're coming from windows.
Note that coding experience isn't really relevant. Only the most advanced users ever really need to write code for their system. 99% of linux users, including the experienced and power users, don't have to regularly code, per se. Note that I'm referring to actually writing programs, not terminal use. Using a terminal isn't coding but that may be what you were thinking of, it's similar but imo not the same. If you wanna do more advances stuff, you'll definitely want to learn the terminal, but for most stuff you'll get by just fine with GUIs like you're probably used to. Mint is particularly good at keeping stuff to GUIs.
Something to note: coming from windows, you'll be used to getting programs by finding downloads on the internet. On linux, that's generally best avoided - you should always look on your distro's package manager first. On mint is believe it's called something like "software center" or "software manager," can't remember off the top of my head but it will be preinstalled for you.
Why would it be an issue to download a program if it's not for Windows or Mac? So long as there's a Linux-based option that works with your version, that is. There is one program I use multiple times a week that I doubt would be on any basic install package and the only place to find it is online. (Not an issue for the computer I'll be trying it out on as it's not my main, but if I find a version of Linux I like a put it on my main then it's something I'd have to consider.)
It's not necessarily a problem, it just shouldn't be the first thing you try. On windows people are used to always downloading the program directly from the internet first thing, but on linux you'll have a better time if you check the package manager and/or flathub first for programs. Then, if it's not there, then yeah download direct from the internet.
First and foremost, you don't have to stay on the distro you start with. You can try a few, spend a week running it, and then reinstall with something else. Distro hopping is the process if changing distro frequently and is in my opinion a very useful start for learning Linux.
Second, Ubuntu is a perfectly fine distro. I don't like or use it, but I also don't really like chocolate but love licorice, it really is a matter of preference. If you never try it you will never know if it is good for you.
I think the best path would be to either use virtual machines on your main system or try a few distros out on your Windows 8 machine. I would recommend trying a few of the most popular distros including Ubuntu, Mint, Fedora, EndeavourOS, elementary, and maybe Pop!OS. That should cover most of the different desktop environments, packaging systems, and overall design methodologies and give you a really rounded sense of what is out there. It should also give you opportunities to have things break a little and for you to try to solve those problems. I find that different distros present failures a little differently and their solutions also work differently, so finding one that works well for you is key.
I personally ended up switching from a vanilla Arch install to EndeavourOS a year or two ago because it had great sane defaults, good packaging, and fantastic performance. The clarity of the logs was better in my mind than what was available in Ubuntu based distros and while I love Arch it was a bit too demanding of my time to figure out each and every choice of package. EndeavourOS gave me good solid defaults and reduced my work load.
Just remember, your choice of distro is like your choice of underwear. You have to wear it, make it comfortable for you and your junk, not for someone else's.
The sound of virtual machines on my main doesn't sit well with me. If I do something and brick my main laptop I'm fucked and I can't replace it and some of the programs I use won't run at all/run well on my old Windows 8 machine because it doesn't have the processing power. (I got a gaming laptop so I could have the video processing I needed for video editors to not take a day to render a 15min video on Windows 10, never mind and older Windows 8 laptop. sigh) Experimentation and tech FAFO'ing will happen on the Windows 8! lol
I've seen Pop!OS come up in a few comments here, so if I don't end up liking Mint maybe I'll try that one out next. :)
I would ask how many times you have bricked your Windows machines in the past? That said, if you did stop it from booting it would be the same as it not booting a native Linux install.
That said, I would recommend installing first on the older machine. New life for that machine will feel good and it is very low risk. Once you have done a few installs and not botched anything too badly you could give it a go on your new machine. I find the performance boost from using Linux over Window is enough to out weight significant hardware differences most of the time.
A Windows computer I had got massively fucked once like, 15ish years ago. No idea what happened. No new downloads or installs, I hadn't done anything different from any computer I've had before or since, just one day it stopped and it wasn't even that old, two years tops. Not a custom build, straight outta the box from Best Buy (maybe even Future Shop it was so long ago). My friend couldn't tell me what happened when they figured out how to get it at least booting up again. Only time it's happened. It was weeeeeeeiiiiird.
Glad to know about the performance boost. :)
Yeah, I've had bad random things happen with tech, only with systems that are closed though. When they are more open you can get logs, see what is happening, and eventually modify things until they work again. I had a phone that just wouldn't stay online for more than 5 minutes if the screen turned off. Screen on, internet working just fine. Screen off for 4 minutes, perfectly happy most of the time. Then suddenly around 5 minutes it would just die. It was running Android so I could see some stuff but I simply couldn't get the information I needed to figure it out. Linux is much more forgiving with logs and such giving actual error messages which with a simple copy paste can get you to a reasonable next step.
The only coding I ever did was like, some very light HTML on stuff like LiveJournal 20 years ago (because I'm ancient in internet years, haha) and even that I barely remember.
Hi,
Fear not: I switched to Mint when I was already in my 50s... and before that I had been a lifelong Apple user (got my first Apple computer back in the early 80s).
I tried a few distro before settling on Mint and the only reason I picked it up was because, back then at least, it was the only one that would let me use my... Airpods, seriously. Fast forward a few years, to this very day, and you can be assured I would not want to go back to Apple. And I still am using Mint, as I never had any issue with it, not a single one (beside me doing stupid things, but hey that's how one learns :p). It works perfectly well for me.
Not saying that as way to push you to use Mint. I mean, like others have already suggested there are plenty excellent GNU/Linux available and Mint is just one of them, but to let you know there is no need to be an expert in order to use it.
BTW, Mint is based upon Ubuntu (which is based upon Debian), the hate towards Ubuntu is because they force certain tools/choice onto their users which, unlike with Apple or Microsoft, is not something a lot of people in the Free Software world will agree with (I certainly don't, as that's the main reason I quit using Apple ;). Ubuntu is still an excellent distribution, just their policy doesn't sit well with the freedom & choice Linux is supposed to be promoting.
I don't like how certain things are being forced onto us through almost every goddamn tech thing so yeah...I get that sentiment. Good to know that about Ubuntu.
I don’t understand coding either and I’ve installed different Linux distributions before! You can do it! Are you perhaps confusing coding with running commands in the command line? Because even running commands may not be necessary for a graphical installations like the aforementioned Linux Mint, Pop OS or similar.
I will say the nice thing about picking a popular distribution like Ubuntu, Mint, or Pop! OS, is that it’s easier to find solutions to problems, because it’s more likely that someone has posted about it online and found a solution
Linux Mint is a solid place to start I'd say.
Ubuntu/Canonical has..issues to say the least.
- A primary concern being the ever eternal cursed Snap packages.
- Second being the replacement of existing tools with Rust alternatives without the proper FOSS licenses, so Ubuntu becomes less reciprocal over time and more proprietary over time.
anyways, choosing Linux Mint is a great place to start🤗👍 and I say this as someone that's tried:
- Ubuntu Server
- Raspberry Pi OS
- Linux Mint
- Arch Linux
- NixOS
- Kali Linux
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I think the Ubuntu haters are overly enthusiastic. It's perfectly fine. Actually pretty good.
Mint is extremely popular as a recommendation for good reasons as well.
Both have excellent support communities, which is important. Linux in general has become a lot more "plug and play" in recent years, meaning that it will do more of what you want right out of the box. In all likelihood, you will want to do something with it that requires help, so having a robust community makes a big difference.
The only time you might have issues with Ubuntu is when it comes time to update/upgrade it. I've seen people on Mastodon, every time an update rolls out, say that its broken something. But I think those cases are few and far between.
Mint is a good choice to get your feet wet. Install it with KDE Plasma so it will at least feel familiar to you. Cinnamon is fine but I always found it a little bit wonky. When I first started on linux I got kinda carried away with customizing Cinnamon and it totally just wrecked my install.
There's a lot of documentation and support for Mint/Ubuntu so you can pick up stuff pretty quickly. Once you get comfy with it you can always switch your distro to something else. But yeah there's nothing wrong with starting on Mint to get a feel for it.
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You don't need to do any coding or have any experience in coding. Linux is for everyone and doesn't need any special skills or knowledge to use it. Everything can be done with a mouse and keyboard just like Windows.
You can install Linux exactly as you would Windows - stick in a USB stick and follow the prompts. You can even try Linux using live USB sticks although it'll be a little slow to load compared to an actual install (as USB sticks are generally slower than hard drives).
Linux Mint is a good place to start. It's user friendly and stable, and there are lots of guides out there if you need help, even just to install it.
So anybody that I've ever personally known that I can think of and uses a Linux-based OS is either a programmer by trade, a CompSci grad that didn't go into the field in the end (but understands it if they were able to graduate obviously), or programs as a hobby. I personally know of no people outside of the realm of those that understand coding on some level that use Linux anything. So hopefully you can see how I would make that link in my mind.
I could have been confusing seeing somebody on Linux using the Command Box thing as more intricate coding, but for somebody in my shoes, with limited tech knowledge, it all looks like coding and is a little intimidating.
And yeah, the plan is to do an out-and-out install, not what I'm assuming a live boot is (I have a comment in a thread above). What I'm thinking feels very beyond me. An install feels like the better option for me. :)
I could have been confusing seeing somebody on Linux using the Command Box thing as more intricate coding, but for somebody in my shoes, with limited tech knowledge, it all looks like coding and is a little intimidating.
It is, I will agree with you. But it's not that complex . It's just... different and require we learn to use it, like when one learns a new foreign language of some sort..
And, btw, I did learn to use it that command prompt... not because I was forced to but because I realized how effective it was. It's incredibly useful even though I barely use it at all, compared to experts. I run some scripts to prepare content for my website... First, I was doing everything by hand, which was a real pain, but it's so much simpler and faster to let a script do all the work. And, like I said in my previous comment, I'm anything but a coder ;)
I'll go against the grain here and suggest Kubuntu. It's an official variant of Ubuntu which swaps out the GNOME desktop environment for KDE Plasma. KDE feels much more Windows-like than GNOME, so it's a great migration option for Windows users.
KDE also really focuses on creating a cohesive desktop environment, much more than other DEs. There are over 200 applications built specifically for KDE (https://apps.kde.org/) which try to maintain a common look and feel. You can of course run any Linux application on KDE, but there's something quite nice about having applications built specifically with the DE in mind.
Some great responses here. One thing I'd add is while Mint is considered "beginner friendly", it's still a Linux based os. If you decide you want to get into more advanced topics in the future (programming, networking, etc.) you can absolutely do those things with Mint if it's the distro your comfortable with. You wouldn't be stuck with an os with limited functionality in that regard.
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