{"id":147985,"date":"2025-09-09T00:06:56","date_gmt":"2025-09-09T04:06:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/?p=147985"},"modified":"2025-09-09T00:06:56","modified_gmt":"2025-09-09T04:06:56","slug":"checking-out-linux-a-comparison-with-windows","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/checking-out-linux-a-comparison-with-windows\/","title":{"rendered":"Checking Out Linux: A Comparison With Windows"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"daves-3597710440\" class=\"daves-single-post-before-content daves-entity-placement\" style=\"margin-bottom: 25px;\"><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-7205184075006101\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-7205184075006101\" \ndata-ad-slot=\"2700504761\" \ndata-ad-format=\"auto\" data-full-width-responsive=\"false\"><\/ins>\n<script> \n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); \n<\/script>\n<\/div><p><strong>For Linux newbies<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;ve been singing the praises of Ventoy, a free and open source tool for creating multi-boot drives, for some time now. In what&#8217;s been a barren freeware landscape, Ventoy has been like a breath of fresh air &#8211; innovative, simple, and highly effective for checking out multiple Linux distros.<\/p>\n<p>So far, I&#8217;ve shown you how to create a multi-boot flash drive with Ventoy and how to try out multiple Linux distros from a single USB flash drive created by Ventoy. If you&#8217;re new to Ventoy, I strongly suggest you check out those two articles first:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/ventoy-create-multi-boot-usb-flash-drive\/\">Ventoy: Create Multi-Boot USB Flash Drive<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/how-to-try-multiple-linux-distros-from-single-usb-drive\/\">How To Try Multiple Linux Distros From Single USB Drive<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In this article, I&#8217;m going to take you through one of the most popular Linux distros, <a href=\"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/linux-mint-cinnamon-a-beginners-guide-part-3\/\">Mint Cinnamon Edition<\/a>, and compare various aspects with Windows.<\/p><div id=\"daves-2672810386\" class=\"daves-single-post-in-content daves-entity-placement\" style=\"margin-bottom: 25px;\"><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-7205184075006101\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-7205184075006101\" \ndata-ad-slot=\"2700504761\" \ndata-ad-format=\"auto\" data-full-width-responsive=\"false\"><\/ins>\n<script> \n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); \n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n<hr \/>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>You also might like: <a href=\"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/best-linux-alternatives-to-windows\/\">Best Linux Alternatives To Windows<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>What To Look For In A Linux Distro<\/h2>\n<p>Obviously, those transitioning from Windows will want their distro to be as close as possible to the Windows experience. Here is the Mint Cinnamon desktop:<\/p>\n<p>(<em>click images to enlarge<\/em>)<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Desktop.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-148031\" title=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Desktop-640x360.jpg\" alt=\"mint-desktop\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" srcset=\"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Desktop-640x360.jpg 640w, https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Desktop-350x197.jpg 350w, https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Desktop-150x84.jpg 150w, https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Desktop-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Desktop.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>As you can see, it&#8217;s very close to the same layout as the Windows desktop. The System Tray includes:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Bluetooth<\/li>\n<li>Removable Drives: only displays when a <a title=\"How To Check The Speed Of A USB Drive\" href=\"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/how-to-check-the-speed-of-a-usb-drive\/\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"192\">USB drive<\/a> is connected<\/li>\n<li>Internet Connection<\/li>\n<li>Volume Control<\/li>\n<li>Battery Indicator: for laptop users<\/li>\n<li>Time &amp; Date<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Let&#8217;s take a closer look at the <a title=\"How To Disable Start Menu Recommendations In Windows 11\" href=\"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/how-to-disable-start-menu-recommendations-in-windows-11\/\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"191\">Start Menu<\/a>:<\/p><div id=\"daves-2252689931\" class=\"daves-single-post-in-content-2 daves-entity-placement\" style=\"margin-bottom: 25px;\"><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-7205184075006101\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-7205184075006101\" \ndata-ad-slot=\"2700504761\" \ndata-ad-format=\"auto\" data-full-width-responsive=\"false\"><\/ins>\n<script> \n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); \n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Start-Menu.png\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-148032\" src=\"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Start-Menu.png\" alt=\"mint-start-menu\" width=\"524\" height=\"574\" srcset=\"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Start-Menu.png 524w, https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Start-Menu-350x383.png 350w, https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Start-Menu-137x150.png 137w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 524px) 100vw, 524px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Down the left-hand side, we have: Firefox (shortcut), Software Manager, System Settings\/Control Center, Terminal, Files (same as File Explorer in Windows), Lock Screen, Log Out, Shutdown\/Restart.<\/p>\n<p>The center panel lists shortcuts to various applications and accessibility options. The software is listed in categories, and hovering the mouse cursor over an item will display all software relevant to that specific category.<\/p>\n<h2>Linux Software Manager<\/h2>\n<p>All popular Linux Distros come with a wide range of software pre-installed, so you&#8217;re good to go right out of the box. However, they also come with a built-in Software Manager (aka the repository), which opens up quick and easy access to dozens of additional applications:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Software-Manager.png\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-148036\" title=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Software-Manager-640x583.png\" alt=\"mint-software-manager\" width=\"640\" height=\"583\" srcset=\"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Software-Manager-640x583.png 640w, https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Software-Manager-350x319.png 350w, https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Software-Manager-150x137.png 150w, https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Software-Manager-768x700.png 768w, https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Mint-Software-Manager.png 798w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Simply click whichever software you want to install and&#8230; bingo!<\/p><div id=\"daves-852282279\" class=\"daves-single-post-in-content-3 daves-entity-placement\" style=\"margin-bottom: 25px;\"><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-7205184075006101\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-7205184075006101\" \ndata-ad-slot=\"2700504761\" \ndata-ad-format=\"auto\" data-full-width-responsive=\"false\"><\/ins>\n<script> \n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); \n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>BOTTOM LINE<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<p>Forget the old Linux days when the Terminal was king; modern distros are very much GUI-driven, in the same way that Windows is GUI-driven.<\/p>\n<p>The comparisons in this article are very similar across all popular distros, so once you&#8217;re familiar with one, you&#8217;ll be pretty much familiar with them all. The main difference being which particular desktop layout suits you best.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left; padding-left: 40px;\"><em>Important note: when you boot into Linux for a look around, you&#8217;ll see a shortcut to &#8220;Install&#8221;. DO NOT CLICK THAT SHORTCUT.\u00a0<\/em><\/p><div id=\"daves-376170739\" class=\"daves-single-post-in-content-4 daves-entity-placement\" style=\"margin-bottom: 25px;\"><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-7205184075006101\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-7205184075006101\" \ndata-ad-slot=\"2700504761\" \ndata-ad-format=\"auto\" data-full-width-responsive=\"false\"><\/ins>\n<script> \n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); \n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n<p>&#8212;<\/p>\n<div id=\"daves-1648035938\" class=\"daves-after-content daves-entity-placement\"><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-7205184075006101\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-7205184075006101\" \ndata-ad-slot=\"3225321574\" \ndata-ad-format=\"autorelaxed\" data-full-width-responsive=\"false\"><\/ins>\n<script> \n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); \n<\/script>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>For Linux newbies I&#8217;ve been singing the praises of Ventoy, a free and open source tool for creating multi-boot drives, for some time now. In what&#8217;s been a barren freeware landscape, Ventoy has been like a breath of fresh air &#8211; innovative, simple, and highly [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":148041,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"default","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[10793],"class_list":["post-147985","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-linux","tag-linux-mint"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/147985","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=147985"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/147985\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/148041"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=147985"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=147985"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/davescomputertips.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=147985"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}