zdnet[.]com/article/how-to-run-a-windows-app-on-linux-with-wine/
Wine is compatibility layer that lets you run Windows apps on Linux. Because there are so many applications for Windows that don't have a native version for Linux, it became necessary to create the means to run them on the open-source operating system.
We've got 1 year to figure out what to do with our Win10 devices. Most of them can run Win11 today -- the inflated hardware requirements are for stuff most home users & gamers will never use [VBS, BitLocker etc.] -- but that *might* not be the case a year from now, as the easiest hacks to install Win11 on non-compliant hardware are starting to disappear. You can find, download, and install Win10 LTSC [Windows 10 Enterprise long-term servicing channel], or the identical IoT version [the difference is in the activation code used], which will give you a few more years of updates. Microsoft will offer an Extended Security Updates [ESU] program for 3 years, but details are scarce. It might extend updates for free like it did with XP, it might be expensive, in which case there might be hacks available like there were for Win7, or it might cost $7, which is what they're charging EDU customers. Or we can replace Windows with another OS, like Linux. IMHO it's not as easy running Linux as it is running Windows, *When Windows Is Working Properly*, but it's tremendously easier than it was back in the day.
The easiest way to take a quick look at Linux is to create a bootable Linux USB stick -- restart, select the USB stick as the drive to boot from, and in a couple few minutes you'll be running that distro of Linux. Because Linux is open source, loads of people have created different versions [distros] that use different desktops and include different software by default. Google and you can find info on which distros are best for whatever use case you can imagine. The only real caution is that not every Linux distro supports Secure Boot, which is on by default for most Windows machines. Some, like Ubuntu have their own setups to create those USB sticks, while with others you might have to use Rufus or UNetbootin.
rufus[.]ie/en/
unetbootin.github[.]io/