Armoured Wizard

What Linux to use?
For booting off USB (Have Windows running internal - for now)
Ryzen 5 5500
32gb RAM
GeForce RTX 3060

Blender
Godot
GOG
Steam

Will need:
Image editing (I've been using Paint dot Net

If folk could give reasons for a choice, rather than **"Why don't you just ARCH?!?"**, that would be nice.

I am quite familiar with Windows, and prefer GUI/Mouse over CLI.

#linux

Mar 15 at 3:51pmWeb
Show threadHedders3d ago
@ArmouredWizard Zorin OS is specifically designed for people switching from Windows. It’s based on Ubuntu LTS, but has a bunch of quality of life stuff on top of that, like simple nvidia driver installation and clever Wine integrations. My computer is similar to yours and it’s been my daily driver for a couple of years now.
Show threadHedders3d ago
@ArmouredWizard For image editing, the GNU Image Manipulation Program is the equivalent to Photoshop, and Pinta would I think be closer to Paint.Net. There’s also Krita for illustrators and artists.
Show threadArmoured Wizard3d ago
@hedders I'll have a look at Zorin. Not a name I've heard
Show threadHedders3d ago
@ArmouredWizard it’s a smaller distro, but it’s really slick and I’ve not found a reason to move away from it.
Show threadScherzog von Beast Oil3d ago

@ArmouredWizard Since you have an nvidia GPU, one of the more gaming focused distros such as Bazzite is likely easier to get started with as they tend to handle the proprietary drivers more automatically.

And if you are familiar with Windows then KDE Plasma will typically be an easier desktop environment to adjust to than GNOME, which is modeled more after macOS. (IIRC Bazzite gives you KDE by default so it should be good in that regard too)

Show threadArmoured Wizard3d ago
@scherzog I don't need much in the way of "Gaming". GPU is mostly for Blender (with very little animation. Decent rendering)
Show threadScherzog von Beast Oil3d ago
@ArmouredWizard The issue is the drivers for the GPU, which you do kinda want to have for Blender. Many distros don't dare to install the proprietary drivers from NVIDIA by default due to licensing questions. And the open source drivers are still a fair bit behind those in terms of performance. You can fairly easily install the proprietary drivers on most distros but it's manual and the way it's done varies a bit by distro.
Show threadMorqendi3d ago

@ArmouredWizard

I heard people switching from Windows quite enjoy Linux Mint.

I personally stay away from Debian-based distributions cause they include very old packages leading to instabilities in my experience.

I use Fedora which includes some of the newer packages but not Arch level - unstable - new. Patches are good for graphics drivers and steam (newer games work)

Image edition: pinta (simple) or gimp

PS: also have a look at "Glorious Eggroll" plugin for steam. Fixes lots of games.

Show threadJake in the desert3d ago
@ArmouredWizard my first thought was Mint, which is the first I tried, after using Windows forever, and I liked it a lot.
Show threadArmoured Wizard3d ago
@jake4480 Yeah, I hear Mint is good.
Show threadErik3d ago
@jake4480 @ArmouredWizard +1
Show threadFireye3d ago

@ArmouredWizard Mint or Fedora. Mint will have older packages due to the Debian base but will be more stable as a result. If you like the windows desktop environment, mint's cinnamon will be very similar to that.

If you like messing around with different desktop environments (GNOME, KDE, or something more esoteric like Niri+DMS or Sway) or want newer packages than mint, fedora would be my recommendation. It's still quite stable and has a large community if you're looking for resources.

If you really want up to date packages, there are quite a few arch-based distros like Manjaro and Cachy that provide a more user friendly experience on top of arch, though I wouldn't necessarily recommend them over more stable alternatives, unless you really want to get into the nuts and bolts. Arch's rolling release is really good for up to date software and drivers but also really sucks when you need to update your system and something breaks.

Show threadArmoured Wizard3d ago

@fireye I don't know why I got turned off Fedora, years back. Possibly my Debian-obsessed friend didn't like it...

I won't be wanting to play around and experiment, just have a stable system to run my day-to-day Apps on. Godot seems to be rapidly updating, but some of what I'm doing is broken in the newest version anyway! :D

Show threadFireye3d ago

@ArmouredWizard back when I was on mint, I just maintained my own Godot installation as I wanted to be as up to date as possible on it; I'd just install the binary off the website & modify the Godot desktop file to point to the new version. Not ideal, but it worked haha.

I'd say just try a few desktop environments out to see what you like, then. I'd recommend setting up a bootable media with ventoy and putting a few ISOs on there.

Show threadAvoca3d ago

@ArmouredWizard

I think you would be safe with either Linux Mint or Debian 13.

Reasons:

Good out-of-the-box usability that still allows plenty of opportunity to learn, grow and expand your abilities as required.

Good support communities.

Sensible update cycles.

I just like the UX/UI.

Caveat:

No idea how they perform as a 'live' OS.

Maybe a MATE distro is a better option... never tried one though.

Suggestion:

I find YouTube is my friend in these situations. Lots of opinions on there.

Show threadArmoured Wizard3d ago

@avoca Thanks.
Mint is looking likely.

"Lots of opinions" is a double-edged sword... :D

Show threadAvoca3d ago

@ArmouredWizard

Haha...yup, purposely left vague...