PopOS is based on ubuntu with some QOL. Def recommend. No better time to start learning - LLMs can he|p you figure out how to maneuver and learn the system and give you pretty good commands to solve your problems. 

 Thank you, I'll keep that in mind.  I've been playing with  @Unleashed.Chat as my LLM of choice, could be fun! 

 I have installed ubuntu recently on old and new hardware and had very little hardware problems. (I like KDE:  Kubuntu) The most frustrating thing is kernel upgrades jacking up display drivers or the grub boot loader.  All fixable but require patience.  

For installing apps:  SNAP is CRAP... I suggest Installing apps using apt repositories or binary files (built from source when you can!)

Tails is great if your objective is to run tor and a proxy, otherwise will not be a very good experience.  

 Thanks for this.  I appeciate the note about Tails.  I just like it because it lets me cypherlarp when the closests I ever came to that was figuring out how to turn the ads off my dialup netzero internet back in the 90s and circumvent the time limit.   

 Funny!  I remeber using netzero and circumventing the timeout.  You are showing your age. :) 

 I am an ancient one, but I also got into computers early.  I remember installing sound blaster sound card and going into ultima 8 with sound for the first time and adjusting my extended memory to get it to run.  It was mind bending.  I felt like a master of the universe. 

 Another thought about this:  Some of the challenges for installing linux is that older hardware uses BIOS where new hardware uses UEFI firmware.  Some setup utilites allow 'legacy' BIOS fallback, but newer hardware is UEFI only.  Make sure you image install media for BIOS or UEFI specifically.   

 Thank you I wasn’t even aware of this. I’ve only known the concept bios. I appreciate it.