What exactly happens when you move from a consumer-oriented technology, and try to cross over to the Linux-y world of open source, and a whole new ecosystem of free software? Or, to put it another way, what happens when an installation newbie confronts the details and nuances of a more technical world? Along the way, I documented every step, creating a step-by-step tutorial of how to make it all happen, and capturing all the new and interesting things I’ve learned, since in a way it’s not just a change of operating systems, but a change of cultures. So I set about following the Installation Guide’s download instructions. The line in the user guide that really intrigued me was its promise of “a fully-functional operating system which you can try without affecting your PC.” Everything stays on the USB stick. How hard would it be to convert it into a Linux laptop?Īfter some research, I’d thought I’d discovered the perfect distribution: Linux Mint. I’ve got a basic Dell Inspilaptop running Windows 10 that I’d bought in the summer of 2018 for $328.

How to install linux mint