funkajunk

1. The actual time needed to wipe out Windows and install is under 30 minutes.
2. See above.
3. Prebuilt machines use OEM keys, which are $10-$20 at best - whoever you buy the system from is definitely getting a volume discount. In my opinion, a small sacrifice to be free of M$.

Too many sweats

Pretty much all modern Linux installers offer to wipe the existing drive and overwrite. Just prepare a USB drive and boot from it, then follow the steps in the wizard.

Create bootable media - Linux Mint

I just said what works best for me. Use the command line and compose files if you want.

Yep, Debian and then add Portainer - for me this is the easiest setup to manage.

One of the few things that accursed software actually got right!

Same. How are some people so unaware of just how “average” they are?