It's interesting for me to see this challenge, because for the most part, I went through the same challenges that Linus went through, so to me, this seems to be a common pattern with new folks switching over to Linux from Windows.
If you think about it. When we switch from Windows to Linux having never used Linux before, we all try and use Linux the way we use Windows because in reality, that is really the only reference we have on how to use an OS. But the one thing you learn early on, is that the way Windows works is different from the way Linux works. And as soon as you realise this, you start to understand Linux better.
I've been a desktop Linux user for about 4-5 months and I started using Linux full time about 3 months ago. So for me, it's been more than a month, but still not enough to consider myself a veteran Desktop Linux user. Yes, I am technical, I can figure out most of the issues on my own without much help, but I know I am the minority as most people are not as technical. We can actually see this when we have new users on the forum trying to install and run Linux but get stuck and ask for help.
I think the best thing to do, when switching to Linux, is to prepare yourself to spend some time learning the terminal, understanding how package management works, how to look in logs for errors, etc.. the basics.
I also feel like most Linux distros, are not beginner friendly. Yes you have Ubuntu, maybe some other distros that are based on Debian that could be used for the most part with a GUI, but let's be honest, Linux vs Windows debate is always going to be a debate, there are positives and negatives to both experiences, what matters is what you enjoy using.
I use both Windows and Linux in a dual boot fashion where I game mostly on Windows, but then everything else I do is on Linux. Gaming on Linux has come a long way, but it is not where Windows is, the experience on Windows for gaming in my eyes is a lot better. It's not just about installing and running the games, but actually game performance where most of the titles, especially new titles, just run better on Windows with less stuttering, more fps, and less crashes, at least from experience so far. I have been able to get games like WoW, FF14, etc running well on Linux, but I had to do a bunch of tweaks and download some packages to make it run this way. You dont typically deal with these types of issues on Windows. Yes you might need to download some minor packages, but that is usually done by the installer of the game. In the case of Linux, the same thing needs to be done, only you'd need to use Lutris and a script to pull this off, on top of that, you still might have to do some tweaks to make it work smooth.
All this to say, when it comes to Gaming, Windows is just better, when it comes to being able to use your OS a lot more efficiently, with less spyware, and a less malware/viruses, and lots of customisation, Linux is definitely better.
Another interesting observation that I noticed, is that Windows typically seems to run smoother, it is snappier, seems to launch apps pretty quickly with smooth animations. With Linux, I find that this is something you have to tweak, configure, etc. Out of the box, I feel like Linux Desktop is not as smooth.
However, even with all the "jankiness" of Linux Desktop (GNU/Linux), I still love it, and will continue to use the OS as my primary, there's just so much tweaking and customisation that I can do, it's just awesome.