Richard is the PC Hardware Lead at XDA and has been covering the technology industry for almost two decades. He's been building PCs since young, and when not creating content, you can often find him ...

First, you can — and should — try Linux Mint before switching to it. Fortunately, unlike other operating systems, Linux distros like Mint make it easy to give them a test run before installing it.

Get more in-depth ZDNET tech coverage: Add us as a preferred Google source on Chrome and Chromium browsers. Why would you want to switch to the Linux desktop? There are many reasons, but the short ...