Hello, Windows 10 user of about a year now. I would like to switch to Linux (Ubuntu or Debian), but have a couple of questions.

  1. Is there a way to play steam games designed for Windows on Linux?/What are the drawbacks of doing this?
  2. Is there a way to transfer files from my old OS to the new one without using external drives (i dont have one ;-;)
  3. Is there a distro more suited to a Windows user going into linux rehab?
  4. Is there anything else I should be aware of?

TIA as always comrades and good day.

  • PZK [he/him]
    ·
    11 months ago

    As a total newbie I have been trying out Pop OS this weekend and love it. I was kind of shocked that my wireless gaming headset was automatically recognized, as well as a wireless printer I have. For the couple games I have tried so far, they both seem to have excellent performance. So far I have used NO terminal commands to get things up and running, which requiring them was always a buzzkill for me because that is the whole point of a user friendly GUI. It is nice to see Linux distros have made great strides to try to make things plug and play, and not require you to understand programming or the Linux kernel or filesystem to get things running. This has been a source of contention among Linux users because many of them sort of treat getting things to work as part of the joy or hobby of using Linux and gives them a sense of pride. Granted, they have a point given the small install base, it is kind of expected for you to be self sufficient. But the community is still very willing to help you solve any issue.

    For your questions:

    1. Absolutely, but sometimes there are some hiccups here and there. For example Valheim runs great, except if you try to build something the game window doesn't keep your cursor from floating onto the other monitors as you try to aim around, and then it doesn't register clicks if your cursor is "not in the game window". This is an example of something that might be imperfect, and I am sure there is a work around but that is when you have to look up how to fix it, likely with terminal commands.

    2. Yes, it requires mounting the hard-drive. This should be pretty simple depending on what you are trying to do.

    3. There definitely is. I would say that Linux Mint has always been one that is stylized to be like windows. However from my experience, it is inevitably a different operating system so things work differently. I would encourage you to try something that is more focused on user friendliness first and foremost, as you will find many of the distros actually have different flavors of intuitive organization and commands. You may find something you like MORE than windows if you branch out and try something.

    4. My understanding is that generally you can get most things working with enough tooling around. A lot of basic functions you use a computer for will probably work out of the box and its going to feel very refreshing. If you have some patience and are will to put some work into it, you will likely find you don't need windows any more and you will be better off.