Dual booting can be problematic. Windows is the most retarded OS ever which sometimes decides to overwrite boot partition.
FOr trying out stuff, you van install Linux as a virtual machine. Check there if your sw works there and is available.

I'm a middle-aged truck driver. I've been using Linux Mint (Cinnamon) now for about seven years as my only operating system (without dual booting) since Windows XP Pro became totally obsolete. Granted, I'm a hobbyist programmer and lifelong computer enthusiast. However, there are definitely some easy to install and use distros out there these days.

Kubuntu or Mint are great distro's to begin with when starting your linux journey. It's good to know down the road these should really be moved on from, but they're great to get the ball rollin for sure!

General tips:

• Don't look for Linux versions of the Windows software you use. Instead look for software that fulfils the same purpose.
• If you're cutting-and-pasting a lot of stuff from those articles, give yourself a check on what those things actually do. See it as a small investment of time to economise time later on, as you'll rely less and less on those articles.
• Stick to popular distros. And for the desktop environment (DE), use whatever works for you.
• Keep it easy. It's fine if you need to log into Windows once in a while, but over time you'll notice yourself doing it less and less.