Install timeshift for auto backups, its a systemsaver.

In terms of security, IMO just using Linux, having a regular firewall setup and using common sense online and not clicking on anything overtly sketchy probably puts you in ahead of 90% of people on the internet lol. I'm also quite partial to running OpenSnitch just to make sure nothing's connecting to the internet without my say-so.

For privacy, I think it depends on your threat model but for the average person I'd say a VPN of some sort and mainly just being cautious about how much personal info you post on social media will cover a big chunk of it. Maybe a more privacy conscious email provider like Proton or Tuta over something like Gmail would help too, but none of that is strictly a Linux thing.

Kind of boring answers, sorry! But IMO the boring fundamentals do tend to cover the majority of stuff. Also there are places like privacyguides.org if you want to rabbit-hole it, but be warned that you might end up becoming one of those people who only goes on onion sites and pays for everything with Monero lol.

Also no idea about customizing Cinnamon, apologies.

If you are looking for UI inspiration, you could give !unixporn@lemmy.ml or its counterpart at reddit r/unixporn a look. As a linux novice you might be interested in the KDE,XFCE or GNOME customizations that are shared in these communities.

TBH, from a privacy perspective you're probably already pretty set -- if you wanted to be more cautious you could use disk encryption, ensure that things are a bit locked down (ssh key only auth, firewalls, or find a guide on hardening like this for ex). In terms of your UI, it really depends on what you're looking for, personally I find GNOME to be the best looking when compared to ease of use but when i made my first switch I started on i3 (but that would be Sway these days for Wayland) and never looked back.

My advice would be to get familiar with Linux as a whole first and then start tweaking things like your UI. It can be overwhelming to get used to the terminal commands (which btw are not necessary but I would heavily recommend as it can make things a LOT easier) and other weird Linux things (software installation, gaming, customization, etc)

Welcome!

I like a lot of the answers you’ve been getting so far, but I also wanted to add my 2¢.

I’ve been using Linux 2005. I’ve done some distrohopping in my time, but have I also settled into Linux Mint (Cinnamon). My system says it was installed in 2019, but I think I’ve been pretty much exclusively on Mint since ~2015/2016 after #! stopped being developed.

IMHO, you don’t have to do much customizing. I will never insult someone who wants more security but unless you’re running a server directly exposed to the web, I think the defaults and keeping your install up to date is enough. For the most part, privacy has to do more with the individual apps you run and once again comes down to personal preference.

Linux Mint is relatively lean, so optimization isn’t really necessary (I know some people will exclaim they can get a leaner setup by building up from a minimal install, and while they’re technically correct, I have no complaints with LM on a 12yo Thinkpad x201).

As for a “modern” UI, I’m not sure what exactly you’re looking for. I know on Reddit there were a bunch of distrohopping subs and other subs to share your desktop setup/customizations. Those were a good source of inspiration for me. I don’t know if there are some communities like that on lemmy. Personally, I just use the Mint-L-Dark theme, change my background, and use Conky. You can change the theme, use Desklets and Applets, or even use an alternative dock. However, I would recommend if you want to do much more than that, you should just try to another distro that’s designed with the DE, customizations you want. While you can run KDE/Gnome/etc on Linux Mint, the experience can be a bit rough. If, after trying out multiple distros, you find none quite fit your needs, you can choose the one that is closest and customize from there. Or, you can install a minimal/server build and work up from there (though that can also be painful, since you’re almost making your own distro).

Does mint ship a kde plasma variation? I find that UI to be more modern than cinnamon

i really like the look of KDE, though it's having a version upgrade right now (kde5->6) so you might encounter some bugs when it gets done.

As other have mentioned, setting up Timeshift + a firewall is a good start. I'm 99% sure that LM guides you through both of these processes on first boot, but it's a good thing to check on anyways. LM is pretty sanely put together out of the box, so I'd honestly just recommend you use it as-is and tweak things when/if you run into something that isn't doing it for you.

Other than that, welcome to the party!

Hi Linux user :) It makes some sense to define your threat model first.. That can save time and make things clear for yourself. For example, are you using a desktop computer that you will never take outside and are you living at the 13th floor ? Or do you have a laptop that you take with you every day ? In the latter case it may make sense to look at disk encryption. A nice toy to play with some security and privacy things on Linux is Tails.. Tails is also an easy way to show friends, family and colleagues some security and privacy features of Linux on a small pen drive, or to carry a few files safely with you.

@voxel @linux What desktop environment are you using? (Cinnamon, MATE, XFCE)

@voxel@infosec.exchange @linux@lemmy.ml

If you're still in the experimental phase, jumping between distress, I'm pretty partial to ElementaryOS - but haven't used it in a few years. It was the GOAT back in the early days, though, for a pretty and consistent UI.

Hello!

@voxel @linux idk, turn on a firewall and run a clamav scan once in awhile. I know that linux malware is pretty rare, but I think it doesn't hurt to run a scan. Of course you could do some hardening, but for a new user I'd say do this at your own risk. https://madaidans-insecurities.github.io/guides/linux-hardening.html

@voxel @linux Customization wise, I’ve tried a handful of desktop environments. KDE Plasma looks sleek and modern to me, but it also is a bit heavier on resources. I’ve gone back to using the Cinnamon desktop environment that ships with Linux Mint. I’ve found it to be reliable, fairly lightweight, and does what I need.

For privacy, I think choosing a privacy respecting browser and installing basic adblocking plugins meets most needs. I use Firefox with Adblock Pro.

Regarding the UI and the look and feel, I can highly recommend catppuccin as a theme in basically whatever you want. I use it on Mint Cinnamon as well, and find it very good looking!

We need a sticky for these questions. "recommend me a distro" posts are getting really old.

@voxel @linux 👋 Hi. I’ve been using Linux for about five years now and can share some of my experience.
For security, I don’t use an antivirus on my personal computers, and haven’t had any issues. I set a strong password and don’t log in as root except when necessary, and that has covered my security concerns. At work, I’ve used ClamAV, which is a good idea if you’re running a web server accessible over the open internet. But I feel it’s overkill for a desktop.

Hope this helps.

@voxel @linux I do little or nothing to optimize Cinnamon beyond looking at the Startup Applications to see if there's anything I don't need.

Linux Mint's newest release is very nice, with Cinnamon at version 6.04. It's showing the benefits of refining an existing product rather than layering on new features. (If you use touchpad gestures, the new configuration options are useful.)

Fedora's Cinnamon spin is also excellent, if you prefer something other than Mint's Ubuntu-based product.