I’m not a beginner anymore, but I’m much less interested in technical tinkering for its own sake than I used to be. These days I just want my computer to work properly without too much intervention from me.
I’ve been using Kubuntu for a number of years, but I’m also hearing increasing complaints about how Canonical is running things. I don’t think I’m ready to switch to a new distro yet, but it wouldn’t hurt to know what’s out there.
Is Kubuntu still a good choice for an “it just works” KDE-based distro, or has it been surpassed?
If you don’t mind having some outdated packages (or using nix for the few you want to be most up to date) then you may find Debian works best for your needs. Manjaro’s also a solid choice but the team behind it have been in some drama over the past few years so more people are saying to avoid it these days.
You could use Arch, its installation is nowhere near as difficult as people often state (it’s also got much easier in recent years) but I don’t think it’d fit your “it just works” needs. It does “just work” once properly set up, but the issue is making sure it’s properly set up. If it’s your first time doing that extra bit of configuration then you’re bound to miss a few things