Help me kick the Linux habit

It is more common for people to want to kick the Windows habit, but for me it's the other way around.

I waste too much time struggling with hardware issues on linux distros, such as getting Zoom meetings to work smoothly with my bluetooth headphones, or getting my dual-monitor setup to work with different resolutions and refresh rates for each monitor. Plus all the issues involved with running a virtual machine, since some of my work-related applications need Windows. And the headache of boot failures after cloning a linux installation to a different computer. Et cetera.

On Windows, everything works. I can do everything I need to do, although with a lot less personal pleasure and satisfaction.

Yesterday I deleted all my Linux system images and flash drives so I can't easily restore my multiboot. But today I found myself dreaming about Fedora, which I never tried. There is always a distro you didn't try.

How to kick this addictive, time-wasting habit?

 

I hear you!
I'm not doing anything "serious" with Linux at home, so I can't help with a more robust and versatile distro.
CentOS maybe?

 

Most of the things you mentioned are one-time action (or one-time per a few years) and as such don't waste that many time.... unless you have Distro-hopping syndrome.
I don't know how to help. Maybe don't spend that much time sitting in front of desktop/laptop?

 

I personally don't feel you're missing anything there. I'm no fan of Fedora/Red Hat/CentOS. I've had too many seemingly random situations where something just stops working and can't get it fixed without a reformat.

 

what works best for you

 

I know that suggesting to spend less time before a computer may be irritating.
Psychologically speaking trying to not think about something, in general, doesn't work. Generally focus on something else.

 

Maybe that's the problem.
@shmu26 Have you tried settling with something more conservative like Mint or MX-Linux?

 

I tried them both. MX is actually pretty stable.

 

It's Windows that drives me crazy. Linux as a whole has been nothing but stable for me. Stable in both the sense that it doesn't freeze or crash and also that it's consistant and the GUI doesn't get rewritten with each new version that comes out. I just updated this Debian system from Stretch to Buster and the change on the outside is nil, nothing to learn or readjust to. A lot of how you view OSes depends on how you use computers. Windows assumes that you are going to have one main computer and spend all your time with one or two machines. I have more than 10. I compartmentalize my use and some don't get turned on very often. With Windows, the OS immediately starts an update cycle that pretty much takes over the machine and I might of just turned it on to edit a photo and I don't want my workflow interrupted by the OS. So all of my legacy Windows computers are left offline not due to security concerns, but just so I can work without interruption. There's a price to pay for the convenience of being able to just plug anything into a computer and have it work and the price is usually stability at some level. Even in Linux, I find myself going for the most stable distros which have been Debian and CentOS for me.

 

Install virtual software in Windows or MacOS and run the Linux distro of your choice virtually.

 

Linux Mint stopped my distro hopping.

 

I've had good luck with Mint. It's been the most stable over the long haul.

 

I'm also a fan of Mint, just not sure it can do all you want effortlessly.
It's based on Ubuntu.
LMDE is based on Debian. (Buster at the moment)

 

Which DE/WM do you use?

 

It sure is.

Resistance is futile. And this is why you can't give up on Linux.

 

I tried it a couple of times. It never lasted long before it blew up after updating. It's been a while and maybe worth another look but the Ubuntu version has been good enough for a while that I haven't felt the need to experiment much.

 

I don't know. Once I escaped the M$ hegemony I really didn't miss anything. Well, maybe the 'Virtual Moon Atlas' (I'm an amateur astronomer), although I believe it can be run on WINE. I think MisterB summed it up well above. I've ran Ubuntu for years and find it far less problematic and troublesome than Windows ever was (especially Vista ).



Ubuntu updates are not a problem. M$ updates were a nightmare.

Ubuntu security is not a problem. M$ security was a nightmare.



Admittedly Linux has its limitations but I find Ubuntu LTS releases reliable. However, my internet needs are fairly basic.

 

It was issues with Windows 7 updates that wasted half my life and finally convinced me to use Linux full time.

For stability and usability a few things come to mind although user experiences will always vary. Steer clear of rolling releases, don’t use something designed as a server for home desktop use and pick a distro that exclusively uses your preferred DE rather than offering a choice. I’m a KDE fan and for your scenario I’d recommend ALT Kworkstation 9.2. The ALT team is a highly experienced group of developers and the distro is designed for corporate deployment. It uses Synaptic for package management or you can just double-click downloaded .rpm’s.

 

Thanks to all for the helpful input.
I am giving it a try with MX 21 KDE, fresh installation. So far, I am favorably impressed.

 

I once lost an entire weekend with Win 7 update issues. I was looking forward to a relaxing weekend. Win 7 had other ideas. I don't miss Windows.

 

My experience with Windows 10 updates has been much better than it was with Windows 7 updates.
In any case, if I can get one linux distro working the way I want and avoid distro hopping, I should be good. I am on a freshly installed MX 21 KDE but the problem with MX is you can't upgrade when a new version comes out, you need to reinstall. You can keep the home partition, that helps, but still...

 

I found that Win 7 updates started off OK and over time became progressively more of a borkfest. It came to a time when I was more worried that Win updates would brick my desktop than any malware. Linux is not without problems. The best thing is to find a stable long term support distro that is compatible with your individual hardware.

 

Mate with Debian, Cinnamon with Mint and Unity with Ubuntu. CentOS I've used mostly as server OS but I did try the Gnome desktop version. I've also used Debian as a server OS. I'm planning on trying Cinnamon with Debian. I like Mint but I've had some freeze issues with it that I've never had with Debian.

 

That's a Sunday morning every (roughly) 2 years; nothing dramatic.

 

Procedure: Image Win||Install update||If Borks - initiate restore image||Have lunch with Guiness||Win now is okay so resume diddling||(2 weeks later) rinse, repeat