To summarise: use a terminal server system if you can, using a desktop for the end user that can be made to behave like windows (or another concept that works for your demography), and have the whole setup in a NixOS configuration that you manage in git.
I see that https://github.com/ltsp/ltsp is still going strong.
I believe you want to look into libki. Works on Windows and Linux.
Linux Mint with this serves our local library.
The public library in my city uses OpenSuse
I don't know if there's a distro made specifically with libraries in mind, but I would lean toward the Cinnamon DE because it's the easiest to fool people into thinking it's Windows out of the box.
The main issue would be folks coming in to use MS Office. LibreOffice compatibility with MS office's formats isn't perfect and sometimes it'll mangle formatting.
You people jump on wild rumors like crazy. Windows isn't going to be subscription based on 12.
They could do a thin client type of deal and just virtual desktops that get deleted at the end of the session. If they are on 32bit hardware that really limits options on operating systems but a single backend computer hosting virtual desktops can be a donated 64bit PC/Server.
The sad part is it seems that there isn't much of any thin client solutions that don't require a gigantic licensing fee that negates the savings of doing the thin clients
Also from my experience working helpdesk at an organization that was all thin clients, they're a pain to support because if anything happens the first thing people try to do is reboot it which tends to cause orphaned sessions on the server. For the public computers at the library that would matter less since very few people would need their profile that got disconnected, but it's still extra friction
Puppy Linux and easyos have those options... It's been a bit since I've used them tho..
I always thought Deepin Desktop looked close enough like Windows 10 or 11 that some people might not notice, may be worth trying.
Generally instead of starting off with all your eggs in one basket, it might be worth running say a different distro every week and recording the experiences patrons have and what the people who are doing IT support have. This kind of approach is scientific in nature and gives you relevant data (though only a small amount) for your current environment. It's also small scale and doesn't require huge start up cost to begin.
Wish you the best!
Does it need more then a webbrowser and a rfid card reader? I dont know how those library backend systen work but most systems save data in a plain ol database.
I don’t see a reason why they cant already use a limux based OS except that someone will need an employee or volunteer to set it all up and support.
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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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