Thank you for the advice! Before I start (because I only have this one computer) what commands will I need to know? Will an install of arch linux also come with drivers for things such as wifi, or will I need to get those separately?

Oh Im hoping to get rid of GNOME, I hate everything about it.

I dont know if my reasoning for wanting to use linux is common, I just want the customization aspect

Thanks I'll check it out. Are there applications to help customization, or do I need to use terminal??

So I can use this dotfiles with most WM's?

I'm just using an HP Probook from like 7 years ago, I dont really know what wifi chipset it would have. Unfortunately I dont have access to my router (shared internet, I'm in a boarding school).

With virtual machines, what program am I best off using? I've used virtualbox for windows XP and whatnot in the past.

Also thank you for the link (what do they call the lemmy equivalents of subreddits? Communities?)!

I dont understand exactly how WM's work with things like browsers. Does it all work fine?