Well, not really... Win 10 and HDD are not a good combination... I was throwing around downgrading this one to Win 8 as an option, hence my question about Win 8 above. I can feel my beard grow as I watch this one boot up... Thank you 

For the old laptop yeah, Linux alone is okay. About Office, it is depending on how much you are using it. LibreOffice is a fine alternative. But if it is a Win7 laptop, you are probably using an old version of microsoft Office anyway. Yeah, don't leave nerds unsupervised, or they'll create something overly complicated. I don't think that's really an issue, it is easy to use the flatpak, which is up-to-date with alpha 27. https://www.linuxmadesimple.info/2024/10/how-to-install-0-ad-on-linux-mint-22.html?m=1 https://flathub.org/apps/com.play0ad.zeroad

@Outis As mentioned, try the Linux Mint XFCE edition on your old laptop. Backup all important data first onto a USB drive or external drive, then install over the Windows 7 partition (wipe everything). You really don't need it if you only use that laptop for playing 0 A.D. Don't try using Endeavour OS, it's not really for total beginners. Once you install Linux Mint, set up Flatpak and install 0 A.D. using Flatpak's repo. That will give you the latest version for cost of a little more HDD space.

That's ok. This is really an old and low-end laptop but it should still work with Linux Mint, just choose the XFCE edition. Yeah it is much better. You can keep using Windows 10 after the end of the support. The only issue is with the integrated OneDrive, but that's all. I understand, it should still work for a while, 0AD requirement is quite low. Congrats! I see. Indeed I would look for a new laptop for your wife, even a second-hand. You could also force the Win10 laptop to upgrade to Win11 but it requires several manipulations. If I were you, I'd try to switch to the laptop with Windows 10 in the near future. The OS will still be stable for several years, at least for recreational use. The other option is to share the Windows 10 laptop with your office, which can handle easily two accounts. Depending on how much you are playing. In the meantime, if the old laptop isn't being used for other things and personal data has already been backed up, then I think it's worth trying a Linux OS. I won't even try to make two partitions on the old laptop.

|Do you need help? I can hep you, i would like to design buildings for Millenium A.D

So, I understand the Linux world is quite wide compared to Windows... Which distribution would you recommend for old laptops? By the way, I am looking to run A27 as I have no problems running A26 with Win 7.

Youre very kind indeed.   Hmm. Well... Prepare to be mindblown... Im playing with my laptop, Intel Core i7 Q720 1.60 GHz with 2GB RAM, NVIDIA Geaforce GT 335M graphic card.   I have half a mind to appropriate my wife's laptop because it runs Windows 10, cannot upgrade to Windows 11, and after Windows 10's end of life, she will not use it. Specs are: Intel Core i5-5200U @2 20 GHz with 8GB RAM,  NVIDIA GeForce 820M graphic card   I only play 0 AD with this machine nowadays.   Well, as mentioned, I only use this for 0 AD. I keep it disconnected from Internet. I use my work laptop or my wife's laptop in case I need a Windows device for any other task. Why so old? I did not upgrade to Win 8 because Win 7 is great and Win 8 is... well... Win 8. Win 10 was out of question due to the specs as you might have guessed. I took good care of it and it served its purpose until now. I have both, but soon I will have none... because we are having a baby!!! Well, I might want to buy a new laptop for other reasons. As I mentioned, my wife will want a new Windows laptop after Win 10's end of life this October. Also it is when the baby is due, so she will be home without the work laptop and may need a personal laptop more. My laptop is too old now and having other problems like loud fan noise, broken keys, dead battery etc. Another option is to install Linux to my wife's old laptop and use that, but dual operating system won't work because it can't handle Win 11. I have never used Linux, but I am open minded. Would you recommend going with Linux alone? I mean I think Microsoft office programs won't work and that may be a deal breaker...