Ventoy is easy, but not perfect. I tried multum of unique images and it struggled hard. From openwrt to freedos to reboot of Hiren's boot cd, it just couldn't load them correctly.
Other than some autostart apps, you are free to do whatever you want. I actually like having at least 2 DEs, one generic with default settings and one customized for everyday use. Also, they should use different backends. Then if I completely mess up with my config, I've got a fallback.
I do everything in my head. I write only the outcomes of parts of my calculations, to not forget them or do errors.
I use lots of gimp and with time, surely you can get used to it, but generally, it's not a simple photo editor.
QubesOS is most likely overkill and it's probably not a good choice for beginners. Try Fedora, Manjaro, Pop OS, Elementary, Mint, Garuda or other more friendly distros. Just avoid plain Ubuntu & it's flavors. It's cancer nowadays.
@Redo11
@szmer.info