Windows to linux

[u/Camiroso]

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Recently I have been more aware of my privacy after reading some news of apps I'm using and want to switch it up a bit and go from microsoft to a linux type, the problem is that I am currently not a professional and don't understand/get overwhelmed by most tutorials, so

Can anyone give me a simple 5 year old like explanation on how to switch and what systemto choose for thesepurpose: I have an HP laptop, I need to use office 365 and want to keep things like wallpaper engine and steam (mostly single player) also worried about one drive and most of my files. If anyone could help me I would be terribly grateful.

[u/inbetween-genders]

  I need to use office 365…

Like the online one or installed one?

[u/Camiroso → u/inbetween-genders]

I have the installed one, is there really much difference, like in functionality? 'Cause I can switch to online if it works the same

[u/inbetween-genders → u/Camiroso]

Non online youre kinda dead in the water.  Games go chrck if your games are tonna work on protondb.  Check out Ubuntu or Mint. Look up this thing called Desktop Environment. Pick one that appeals to you and install that distro with the desktop environment you chose.  Each has an install guide.  Back up your data. Good luck 

[u/Camiroso → u/inbetween-genders]

Thank you!

[u/inbetween-genders → u/Camiroso]

There’s a lot of reading ahead of you and if you’re not cool with that just stick to the one you’re using now and that’s totally fine.

[u/MrMotofy]

FYI...if you want to check out Linux it's really easy. Make an Install USB, then boot to it. May need to disable secure boot. It will boot to a full running temporary Linux Desktop...installing requires clicking the desktop icon and going through steps. Obviously you don't wanna do that to just try it. But you can at least get a feel for it. Kubuntu, LinuxMint, and PopOS and are some of the top 1st options. You can also use the temp Live Linux as a repair process. Since it’s a complete desktop you can use it, install tools needed fix the boot etc.

Another convenient related tool is Ventoy on a USB stick. Basically just burn the image to a USB then copy your OS ISO to it and when you boot it any ISO copied to the drive will show in the menu, select it and it will boot that img. Have different OS’s multiple versions or whatever. 

Best option for Windows and Linux is dual boot...use Linux on a 2nd drive. Usually you wanna disable secure boot. Install windows first if using same drive but best case is disconnect win drive. Then boot to the install USB. Then install Linux as a new full system on a 2nd drive. Set Linux drive as the first boot drive and it will then find the Win drive and add to the boot menu list automatically. Might take a couple boots otherwise can manually activate the boot update search. Then you get Best of both worlds without any real dangers to either OS. There will be little hiccups occasionally with Windows updating messing with boot and rebooting. But you can also change the default OS to Windows first at the menu after delay and no menu entry and that eliminates a lot. The boot menu is usually Linux 1 and Win 2. Sometimes the boot order will randomly switch drives etc or it will enable Secure Boot…Seems to be a windows thing with updates now they get bios access. But really depends on the exact system and age etc.

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[u/bigusyous]

Linux Mint is a good choice for first timers. Here are detailed instructions for how to install it. These instructions are for mint specifically but will work for most Linux Distros. https://itsfoss.com/install-linux-mint/

[u/ComprehensiveDot7752]

Microsoft Office 365 will run in browser. It will not run on Linux. The recommendation would be switching to something like LibreOffice. If you don't use Windows 365 for work, I would suggest downloading LibreOffice and seeing if that would work first.

Nvidia support used to be bad on Linux. It's gotten a lot better but can still be mixed depending on the exact distro and Nvidia model.
Steam will generally work without issues, not all games will work on Linux but most will. Anything that's steam deck verified will usually run flawlessly.

Installing Linux usually involves deleting everything on the drive you're installing it to. It is possible to "shrink" "windows" and install Linux to the leftover space for a dual boot system, but doing so isn't recommended for beginners. Either way, you should have backups before attempting anything Linux related.

[u/Tooladoo]

When it comes to Wallpaper Engine, it's not supported on Linux at all. There are, however, many passion projects trying to bring its functionality into Linux. The most feature-complete one that I've seen is WayWallen. If you're new to Linux, and want Wallpaper Engine, then a Distro with KDE Plasma is your best best.

When it comes to Office 365, I did hear that you can use all its tools online via browser. The program itself is a Windows application however, so if you don't want to use the browser version, then you can try a translation layer like WINE or Proton to try making it compatible with Linux, or just using a Windows VM for those types of programs. I've heard Winboat works well for that.

Steam works natively on most, if not all distros. Only thing you'd need to be concerned about regarding Steam is making sure your games aren't in a drive formatted as NTFS. Not sure how it is nowadays but I've heard NTFS can mess with games.

[u/a1barbarian]

https://mxlinux.org/

https://raw.githubusercontent.com/MX-Linux/mx-docs/master/mxum_en.pdf

MX-XFCE might be a good fit. The manual contains all the information a new user needs and is an easy read. Just read the sections you need as you need them. :-)

[u/warserpent]

Steam is fine, but unsurprisingly, Microsoft doesn't really want you using Linux, so you are only able to use web-based Office apps. I'm pretty sure OneDrive is the same way. Wallpaper Engine doesn't work on Linux. Depending on your exact needs, Windows might be a better fit for you, even though it's gone downhill. I dropped Windows, so I haven't kept up with details, but I know people have been putting work into tweaking Windows to be less bad, so using some of those tweaks may be an option.

If you are willing to move to alternative software, Linux does have several options for office software. I use LibreOffice. There are also cloud storage options, though I don't use them, so I can't comment.

[u/Ok-Expert-8150]

PopOS is nice, video drivers, steam games, etc all working without much fuss - basically install and go.

Your problem will be office 360 if you aren't just using the web version, or require advanced features. If you mean you just need to be able to open and edit most word and excel files the liux office programs will do that.

[u/warserpent → u/Ok-Expert-8150]

Pop!_OS is not what I would recommend until COSMIC gets more stable and full-featured.

[u/Ok-Expert-8150 → u/warserpent]

While it still in development, really all of Linux is. For what they were asking about. It functions properly me, and covers the areas requested. YMMV.

Edit: I run it on my gaming rigs, most everything else is Debian. One LFS machine for funzies, but does not belong in the linux4noobs sub - unless you are the type to read manuals for fun.

[u/Camiroso → u/Ok-Expert-8150]

Thank you!