Seeking recommendations from the Plug brain trust:

[joe at actionline.com]

Dear Plug friends ...

After using older versions of Linux Mint for many years,
I now need to "build' a new system.  Because, what I have
relied on, and what has worked perfectly for many years is
now causing some problems.

So, I am seeking your recommendations for system choices.

I quit using hardware "boxes" years ago and switched to
using Thinkpad laptops exclusively; all running different
versions of Linux Mint: two T-420s, two T430s, one T530.
All are kept running 24/7 (all but one in sleep mode) and
none of them have ever "failed" or had a major problem,
until now.

Thinkpads seem to be amazingly reliable.

I work mostly on one of the T-420s with an external monitor,
keyboard, and mouse ... and I rsync backup all of my data
to each of four other Thinkpads weekly.

However, I have never been able to get any of my backup Thinkpads
to work as completely as that one old-reliable T420 with Linux
Mint 17.2 based on Ubuntu 14:4 ... which is no longer supported.

So, I am now considering purchasing a refurbished T460 ...
but I am open to consider other models. And, I need to decide
which version of Linux Mint (or what alternative distro) to use.

Also, I am no longer inclined to try to do the installation
myself because I remember almost always hitting obstacles
when trying to complete a new installation, and having
difficulty getting everything that I need to work correctly.

So, I hope that I can "hire" one of my Plug friends to install
whatever y'all recommend as the best version of Linux Mint (or
some alternative) and help me get everything that I need working.

In addition to what is included in a standard install, I want it
to start without requiring a password required every time I restart
and without that startup "wallet" nuisance.

The apps that I use most are: kwrite, Libre Office, Google docs
(mostly Writer), Firefox, Chrome, Apache, and Wine with which
I use Paint Shop Pro 7.0. And, I want 4 desktops with different
wallpaper on each one (so I know where I am). That I was only able
to get to work on my one old T-420 with KDE and it is something that
I have been unable to get to work on my four backup Thinkpads.

I will also want all of the other applications that I currently have
on my old T420 installed and working; and I need to know how to extract
list of what all is installed.

Please tell me your recommendations and questions; and contact
me privately if you would be so kind to provide a quote to help
me build a new system.  PS: Whatever happened to installfests?
(covid seems to be mostly a non-issue now.)

Joe at Actionline.com

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