this post was submitted on 28 Aug 2026
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EDIT: Ended up going for Kubuntu anyway. Installed it with separate / and /home so in case they want to explore more there's the option.

I daily drove Linux for about 6 years and finally managed to convince some of my family members to try it!

However, I realized I don't have a lot of ideas about beginner distros. I have some requirements that led me to some decisions, but there doesn't seem to be a fit-all option:

  • Minimal maintenance -> Debian-based (stable release)
  • High compatibility -> Debian-based (.deb seems more convenient than say, AUR)
  • Familiarity -> KDE Plasma (looks like Windows, very customizable)

It's for a Thinkpad X1. The main purpose is going to be academics.

All of that points to Kubuntu, but I worry about the Canonical Snap store stuff.

Everyone recommends Linux Mint for starters, but it doesn't come with a KDE Plasma flavour. I know I can install it myself, but the integration is gonna be bad and they're gonna bug me a lot.

I use Endeavour OS personally, so I'm somewhat familiar with Arch-based system. I guess .debs can be installed with debtap, but that feels like a whole another hacky solution. I have done university courses with my Endeavour OS laptop and I know quite a bit of software comes in .deb but not AUR.

What should I pick for them? And should I get more input from them? If so, what should I ask about?

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[–] Paradoxeuh@jlai.lu 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I never had any issue. I think problems are mostly if you use it on handled devices like a steam deck. Then yes, I heard it was unstable. But on a computer for simple usage ? It's perfect. But my point was more about immutable than Bazzite. There might be better flavours.

[–] Die4Ever@retrolemmy.com 1 points 1 day ago

maybe one day there will be an immutable Kubuntu