Fleeing Windows ASAP - How do I switch

Hi NonGeek, I was in your position about 3 weeks ago and have now for the last two weeks been using Linux Mint 17.2 LTS (Long Term supported to 2019), There is a new Mint 17.3 LTS and I guess it would make sense to down load that also supported to 2019.
I found the the thing to do is to forget everything you Know about Windows, I found it extremely easy to convert to Mint the beauty is that all the extra software you might need are all included in the download, but if you require more there many more you can access. How I approached it was to reformat my hard drive and do a clean install of Mint as I knew that I did that I wouldn’t be tempted to revert to windows, but you can dual boot if you prefer. There is plenty of support out there such as this site also Linux Mint has its own site to assist newbys like us, but to be perfectly honest I haven’t used them until now.
What you need to do is download the file and then burn it onto a DVD you then can ether use as a vertual PC keeping Windows safe but as a virtual machine it will run slower than an installed OS. Personally I would back up my saved Documents etc to an external drive or Flash drive and do a complete re install, also you will find that Mint runs a lot quicker than Windows. Good luck and I hope you have found this reply usefull.

NonGeek wrote:

Thanks for your reply. I read other posts but I didn't want both installed. The virtual machine idea might be good to start though.

Do you know if they have alternatives to Word, Excel, Outlook, etc?

Yes Libra Office all comes with the download you as a Microsoft user will be surprised how much software is all part of the download and there are many others you can download and as a Windows user surprised to learn they all come FREE of charge.