[JohnR]

So instead of whinging about Windows, how about a thread posting positive experiences with Linux?

* What distro are you using? Do you recommend it?

* What apps do you recommend?

I'll start. I currently have Fedora Workstation installed on a NUC. It's surprisingly seamless, and they really have the app installation sorted. The Software app will find stuff in the repository and in flatpaks. (From memory, you need to enable the checkbox to enable third-party apps during installation.) It works with "Secure" Boot which can be helpful if you are dual booting with Windows. However, I'm going to go back to Debian and KDE, as I find Fedora/Gnome strangely boring.

Speaking of dual booting, I never dual boot. Just had too many times where Windows craps on the Linux boot loader.

For apps, the mainstay is Thunderbird for email, which also works on Mac and Windows. For browser I install Brave, for some reason I prefer it to Firefox. The rest is all also run-everywhere stuff: Sublime (text editor), GIMP (image editing), Inkscape (vector drawing), Obsidian (Markdown editor/viewer).

I use Resilio Sync to keep files in sync across multiple machines, but if I were starting again I'd try SyncThing first.

I'm not currently running "Office" software on Linux.

[SoCalWJS]

Wish I were up to date enough to feel confident about Linux.

.... I'm not. Have a HS Buddy who know this sh....errrrr, stuff inside out and wants me to convert over to Linux, but I just don't have the drive to do it. T think it's too much work to gain confidence.

I know I should. I'm sooooooo frustrated/pi$$ed off at Microsoft, and I am not a big Apple fan.  Back when I was in my 20's, I would have been all over this.

Not now. 

[JohnR]

  One approach could be to start by using the cross-platform apps. If that works out, then could be much less shock to switch.

With that said, some stuff just won't run on Linux. Say, Roon comes to mind. There are workarounds like VMs or Wine, or just keep another machine around as small PCs are cheap these days.

[mcgsxr]

I have yet to try it on a PC, but have been enjoying various Linux distro's on Raspi's since the demise of the Logitech Squeezebox series.

I have used PiCore, and currently using Volumio.  Super stable, easy to use, and so far has done all I want - Airplay, and replay of local FLAC and Hi Rez.  Easy to control from their app on any IOS device. 

[Mike B.]

I am far from being Linux savvy. I did convert my NUC to Linux Mint. I then switched from jriver media center for Windows to their new Linux offering. I somehow got it to work and like the combination very much. I also use Volumio on a Pi

[Yog Sothoth]

My entire professional career was supporting Linux/Unix environments and networking (I had to retire a bit early due to medical issues.  Organ transplants, and all that).  Primarily it was CentOS, Redhat, and Ubuntu (although SunOS and Solaris in earlier days).  For my own personal use it has always been Xubuntu up until recently.  The upcoming Long Term Support release of Ubuntu is moving to immutable Linux (which I would be ok with) and further and further toward snap based applications (which I don't think I can handle).

Instead and am abandoning Ubuntu and moving toward a straight Debian release with Xfce as the window manager.  Ubuntu is based on Debian  so the similarities are many.  So far I am very happy with it.  In fact I just today upgraded to the 6.7 kernel as it now has the new bcachefs file system included and I am anxious to experiment with it since it supports erasure codes.

I think once I am comfortable with the OS I'll look at moving my Volumio system onto Debian.