Where work mandates specific apps or its a niche app without Linux version or equivalent, then that may be reason not to switch or to setup a VM. I manage to avoid Windows 99% of the time at work, but have a Windows VM for whenever I need to use the one work app without version/equivalent on Linux.

Aside from games with anti-cheat, gaming is largely a non-issue now - with some games running better on Linux than Windows. Though best to check for info on any specific games. Where you have choice of apps for work, then you may find suitable alternatives for ones not available on Linux.

Desktop that is most familiar & accessible, Linux Mint. Desktop that is quite a bit different but with some customisation options to reduce that somewhat, Ubuntu. Desktop that is less different with plethora of customisation, though some find the customisation options overwhelming, Kubuntu.

People over-complicate the options. Unless already interested in a more niche distro/desktop environment due to its design philosophy, I'd argue you can reduce it to three options - especially if just wanting something to replace Windows without needing to learn too much.

Later you can also install additional desktop environments - like Plasma and GNOME - without changing distro. That can cause some quirks, but there is a new 'Mending Wall' flatpak that aims to fix those. Again you'll save time and motivation staying on a distro you like rather than hopping about.

Longer-term, I would recommend giving Plasma another try. Most of what folk find odd at first can be fixed through customisation. That though can be overwhelming when first trying Linux, where Mint is much easier path to a 'just works' distro once figure out any initial post-install issues.

Linux Mint is based on Ubuntu, so any install issues will likely be solvable. Most initial issues when using Debian, Ubuntu, and Fedora based distros will just be initial setup issues / random quirks that only need to fix once. Mint remains best 'just want something similar to Windows' distro.

What complaints did you receive trying to install things on Mint? If you liked it, it'd be better finding solution to the issue than trying other distros. A common way people lose motivation moving to Linux is through distro-hopping in hopes of finding distro without any issues.

If contributors ain't willing to sieve through the slop they generated then they shouldn't be submitting any changes. With the slop folder in gitignore everyone is also spared from seeing other people's slop.

One thing I've been considering is creating a "slop" folder that is added to .gitignore and in Agents-md file instruct LLMs that it cannot edit the main code base but it can spit out example code & explanations into the "slop" folder with checklist the user needs to go through.

Tasks.org

Worth noting that Todoist makes $14m per year, whereas Tasks.org is one guy with contributions from others who are volunteering their time. You can use the main app for free, get 'pro' features which is basically icons for lists/filters & more sync options for as little as 99p a year.

On the todo list is moving my personal website to Quarto, so will probably make setting this all up the first blog post once that's done.

Be fairly easy with Python and custom attributes to then create Kanban boards. Ridiculous amount of extra features can then slowly add over time, like auto-add links to tasks to open:
- PDFs for reading list tasks
- Project in nvim for programming tasks
- Article draft for writing tasks

Then when I run 'the plan+' command:
- Everything from the plan with;
- Any tasks with deadlines due this week or next
- For each show any smaller tasks need to do towards completing the deadline task

Then 'the plan++' all the above and tasks I've marked 'any' or 'quick' can do if find spare time.

Then each time I run 'the plan' command:
- Tasks due today sorted by urgency followed by;
- All my planned tasks in manual order I specify.
- A wee count of 'tasks completed today / this week'.
- Number of tasks with 'deadlines' (i.e. non-negotiable) due by end of this week / end of next week.

With TaskWarrior, aliases, and wee bit of Python, I can setup a 'planning' report that shows mix of most urgent, in progress, and up next from across all my projects.

Contexts switch between this showing just work, personal, or programming tasks. I can then select which are part of the 'the plan'.

Got few urgent work deadlines before can set it all up, but should be able to fix all my annoyances with Todoist via the two - and more!