Setting up Ubuntu was easy enough. But the file manager locks up regularly, switching between multiple windows of the same app with alt+tab doesn't work reliably, and I actually had to Google how to create a new folder. The stock picture viewer is lacking information such as ICC profile and when I installed the recommended Gimp, it was a mess of windows and the save dialog was horrible.
I suffer through all of it because I need docker with gpu support, but it's honestly a lot worse than what I expected.
You can activate single-window mode in Gimp under Windows -> Single-Window Mode.
I would generally recommend Kubuntu over Ubuntu -- it seems like Gnome aims for minimalism somehow, and has thrown out a lot of functionality that used to exist, and generally tends to emulate OSX for a lot of things. (E.g., OSX doesn't do alt-tab for multiple windows of the same app either IIRC.)
BTW, Kubuntu's default image viewer would likely be Gwenview -- You can get it to show a lot of information by clicking "More..." in the Meta Information panel and selecting stuff in the resulting dialog window. Here's a screenshot I found on the nets: https://www.fossadventures.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Gw...
I have not had any of these experiences with Ubuntu. Installing an OS on any new personal computer is much more difficult than when they had dvd drives. But once installed on compatible hardware, the Gnome 3 desktop use is nearly the same experience as Mac OS. Installing software is usually a matter of searching the software menu or downloading a .deb and double-clicking to run, and the New Folder button is prominent in the file window.
The office suite is easy to use. Thunderbird is as easy to setup as Mail. Networking and devices are easy to configure from the gui, and Firefox and VSCode run without crashes. Proprietary video drivers for common hardware can be downloaded and installed via the gui. It's at least as usable from an admin standpoint as Windows 10, and from a user standpoint as Mac OS, albeit with a much smaller "app store" experience.
That should be Nautilus already and you should have the "create new folder" context menu on right click. I also can't imagine anything going wrong during setup that leaves you in that state.
One thing with Nautilus is that if there is no empty space to right click on, you can't get to the context menu, because you always end up in the context menu of one of the icons. There is no dead space between them to click on. In this case you can click the breadcrumb to get the context menu or use the icon in the overflow.
I suffer through all of it because I need docker with gpu support, but it's honestly a lot worse than what I expected.