Stay with 10.
I have to use 11 for work and it sucks. The change to the right click menu is the best reason not to change.
Whit this thing you can get back to the 10 version of the annoying changes if you have to use 11: https://github.com/valinet/ExplorerPatcher/wiki old rightclick, old taskbar, etc...
Sadly last time I messed with that stuff on my work win 11 machine it broke some compliance and virtualisation features of 11 and I had to get my system reimaged.
I used it last time a year ago, and it worked for me, but I just needed some minor things, I'm ok with changes usually if they are sane, I can get used to it. Making a convoluted right click menu more sane is a good goal, hiding most of the items semirandomly is a bad solution.
I used wsl2 back than a lot, and didn't mess up anything for me.
Does it let you set a vertical taskbar? I've been using StartAllBack for this and a few other things, but it's non-free.
Winutil by chris titus + rufus for flashing the image with local account.
Winutil can even remove Edge using some cool script. Then tweak performance and upgrades, debloat with Bulk Crap uninstaller, install 7zip, VLC, Some more and you are done.
Its really personal preference at this point. Windows 10 support will officially end for enteprise users in 2024, not sure about home versions. Add that the most recent update to 11 has enough features for people to jokingly refer to it as Windows 12 and I at least think its "safe".
Better is subjective. But it does have some improvements that I think are worth it. The UI changes (rounded corners , center task bar) are nice but you can change it back to left aligned if you want.
Settings for simplified a tad , esp for things like static ip and dns. Y
Windows remembers your monitor and window locations upon docking and undocking.
Windows explore tabs are nice too.
Overall I wouldn’t go back (I’ve tried) but if you look at the features and they aren’t worth jt then 10 is all you need.
If you don't consistently use open with options in the context menu and are an average user go for it. There won't be much difference for you besides modern visuals. Otherwise, don't. In fact, with how easy Mint and Fedora are, its about time to jump ship all together from windows. I've been setting up my tech illiterate friends on Mint (they don't game) and they love it.
I have been wondering about whether I should make the jump... but there's just nothing that it particularly improves for my current use case for my PC. Just incremental changes and UI changes for the sake of UI changes.
I switched to Linux Mint on my personal computer because I wasn't happy with Windows 11 on my work computer. But honestly, after having time to consider the big picture, I think what I disliked the most was being arbitrarily forced into OS updates which didn't really seem to benefit me at all. And which would eventually lead to the software-based obsolescence of my hardware.
After I'd installed Mint, I was browsing for new desktop themes. I noticed that some of them were up to seven years old, and they still worked just fine, were compatible, and felt modern. And that's exactly what I want: if I don't feel like changing my desktop theme for seven or ten years, I will be infinitely more able to do that with Linux than with Windows. I have other things to worry about than keeping up with whatever Microsoft or the computer hardware manufacturers are expecting me to do.
It's kinda glorious to think about, tbh.
I haven't had any issues with Windows 11 after running a debloat script (which I also use to install my 3rd party apps)
in-place upgrades are a one-way trip to pain and suffering, if you're curious about 11 you're really better off doing a fresh install on a separate drive.
