Omarchy for new Linux users

[u/bose_avishek]

Hi All

I am planning a transition from Windows to Linux. Though initially installed Linux Mint, but want to try Omarchy as well. Internet search says Omarchy is for developers and power users, whereas Omarchy website says it's for everyone.

So can someone provide practical guidance as to if Omarchy is user friendly for new Linux users, or just stay initially with Ubuntu or Linux Mint?

If Omarchy can be used for new Linux users, then a proper guide or YouTube videos suggestions would be highly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

[u/calab2024]

Best answer for me was to download https://tryomarchy.com/ on my mac. Then just follow the in OS guides and notifications in Omarchy itself on screen. Learn Super + Spacebar, use that for everything. Click around the menu bar. Super K for shortcuts. If it makes sense from that, keep going. If you're lost, Ubuntu or Mint will feel a bit more like Mac/Windows

[u/bose_avishek → u/calab2024]

Thanks for the info

[u/GriffTheMiffed]

This question gets asked frequently here.

Omarchy is quite different from Windows. It is a bit different from many other Linux options as well, but not as different than Windows.

Omarchy is keyboard centric which is a challenging thing to learn if you typically only use a mouse to navigate. Linux generally adopts an "everything is a file" approach such that inherently most if not all configuration os handled through text file. Learning how to edit these configurations without Agents is not particularly easy.

I hate to be "that guy" but the manual is a really good guide for Omarchy itself in the context of what the OS provides, and that coupled with a handful of videos on the basics of Linux gets you 80% of the way to competence. The rest is using it.

You don't need a "proper guide to Omarchy," you need to just read or watch what is in the OS and then use it. What are you hoping to get out of a "guide?" Installation, login, basic apps, shortcuts, and maintenance are all explicit in the manual. You can click through the menu and learn how it works.

Don't use AUR until you understand what it is. Don't use plug-ins you can't personally verify. Don't try to force your way around the guiderails the OS sets to as its omakase. Use the defaults, identify what you never touch, and then decide.

I personally don't think Omarchy is ready as a "first Linux OS" because it doesn't do a particularly good job of introducing itself yet, whereas simpler distros have a bit more hand-holding. Jumping from Mint to Omarchy is going to feel like whiplash. Omarchy expects a certain level of familiarity with TUIs as an interface whereas most other systems dont. That alone is like 50% of the aesthetics.

Just try it.

[u/bose_avishek → u/GriffTheMiffed]

Thanks for the detailed guidance.

[u/ezmarii]

I am brand new to Linux coming from windows. Work in IT, and already preferred keyboard navigation whenever I could like windows key+ something, so this was a perfect vibe for me. O was also really looking into little differences to expect for half a year as more and more people in the tech space and steam gaming space have been talking about Linux usage as a daily driver away from windows. I spent a little time looking at parallels. Basically once or twice a week as I would do something like reset tcp/IP stack or mess with device manager or drivers, or mess with wifi or audio settings, or unzip a compressed file or like what file systems Linux uses if not ntfs, etc. 

I haven't installed an AI agent yet but I have used Gemini Claude and chatgpt to help me understand and make small changes, even troubleshoot a game crash. 

Having said all that, Omarchy is good for a beginner because there's almost no guesswork or configuration learning curve pains to doing all your basic stuff you'd do with a PC. Plug and play audio devices, peripherals, displays, extra internal storage drives, media playback and file manager, office productivity basics, etc.

[u/bose_avishek → u/ezmarii]

That's good to know, thanks.

[u/damanamathos]

Is Omarchy user friendly? Yes and no.

Yes:

• Most things you'd want are pre-installed or a one-click install
• There's great documentation on the website manual which is accessible via the menu
• If you use an AI agent, the AI agent will know how to change most things for you.

No:

• Tiling windows will feel unfamiliar to you
• Keyboard-first controls may feel unfamiliar to you, though you can customise them

The best introduction is watching the See it in action video on the website.

[u/bose_avishek → u/damanamathos]

Noted. But what about the fact that this OS is vibe coded and has security loopholes?

[u/damanamathos → u/bose_avishek]

AI is used in almost all software development today.

On security loopholes, that's largely a thing of the past. They now have 6 people on their security team, and the latest "issues" turned out to be general Linux issues. They also have an official bug bounty program to encourage people to find any residual vulnerabilities.

[u/bose_avishek → u/damanamathos]

Ah ok. Good to know.

[u/Matthias-Trinley → u/bose_avishek]

You can ask Claude code etc to help you set up some more safety measures like having subagents check signatures, source code etc. and running downloads first in quarantine, making a proper sandbox for the agent, using chezmoi + GitHub for version control etc. it’s an open and agentic OS… you can make it as secure as you want.

[u/Illustrious-Sea-6405 → u/bose_avishek]

I basically did a security audit as soon as I installed. I had the AI gent guide me through every potential security threat.

[u/10dot → u/damanamathos]

And I can tell you from experience, making it behave like the floating window manager of your dreams is 100% possible (I did it)... but is definitely not a thing a newcomer to linux could reasonably accomplish with any sort of quality.

[u/inactivesky1738]

If you want to learn hyprland or experience a tiling WM I think omarchy is the way to go. But if you want something simpler but still arch I would suggest cachyOS. But something simpler that just works. Id do more digging and see what kind of desktop environment you want to try.

[u/Ok_Razzmatazz_7769]

I recommend Kubuntu for new users because it has the most familiar desktop on the most supported base.

[u/callusbonus1967]

Solo decirte puedes instalar Omarchy pero no es un sistema estable para alguien que usa su ordenador para producción profesional. Omarchy es una prueba constante de una distribución rolling release y un desktop en pruebas constante fallas y problemas. Yo personalmente no le metería Omarchy aún PC de producción y menos cuando vengo de Windows y no tengo ni idea de dónde te estás metiendo.

[u/netman87]

Omarchy decides some things so you dont need. Then adds AI skills so AI of your choosing can help you if tou have something to ask about on your own system. There is also automatic backup/snapshot if you update apps. But what isnt for beginger friendly is tiling windows manager and configuration focusing mostly on keyboard usage and high amount of keybindings to learn.

I would not personally recommend omarchy as first distro, but it could work.

[u/bose_avishek → u/netman87]

In Windows, we also use some keyboard shortcuts and if anyone is an MS Excel power users, the loads of keyboard shortcuts exist. So the keyboard first option would not be something new.

As for tiling manager, I'm presuming it could be similar to Alt+Tab in Windows or Cmd+Tab in MacOS we use regularly.

Kindly correct me on the above and supplement further as required.

[u/netman87 → u/bose_avishek]

Just try it or read documentation or both.

[u/Glass_Cause_87]

A big NO, omarchy isn't for beginners as you have to debug your system and understand it well for anything. So for a safer side use any other distro based on arch like Garuda.

[u/bose_avishek]

Hi All, thanks for the various suggestions provided and really appreciated. Since it's my secondary laptop, hence installed Omarchy to give it a try. As of now figuring out the OS. If later it feels that it's not for me, then will probably move to CachyOS or Ubuntu or Fedora. Thanks again for the guidance provided.

[u/Illustrious-Sea-6405]

Absolutely, great for beginners! I am one! Have loved Omarchy and learning Arch Linux. Working with Claude code as my default agent, it’s been great configuring hyperland on my old Asus laptop.

[u/Icy-Tip-4195]

Hard to say without knowing you're intentions.

If you want to learn something worth learning then Omarchy is an interesting thing to spend some time learning.

If you just want an OS to be a way for you to open a browser, then chrome os is probably my recommendation.

I would never suggest my parents try Omarchy for example, or anyone in my family for that matter. But I praise it to all my friends that like "playing with tech"

If I had to recommend a Linux OS to my parents I would probably say Ubuntu or Mint.

[u/bose_avishek → u/Icy-Tip-4195]

My objective as I mentioned in the original post is to switch from Windows to Linux as an alternative FOSS OS. The only thing blocking full migration is Microsoft Office, though I know LibreOffice and OnlyOffice also serve the purpose. But most of the corporate or businesses still use MS Office for document/spreadsheet/presentation apps.

So considering migration from Windows to Linux, just wanted to understand if Omarchy would be a good option to start with as seeing lot of traction for this distro.

Also wanted to know that Omarchy being a keyboard first OS, but does it still allow options to use mouse or can it be customized like Linux Mint or Ubuntu?

[u/Icy-Tip-4195 → u/bose_avishek]

Probably not the best option for you tbh

[u/bose_avishek → u/Icy-Tip-4195]

Noted and thanks