I'm a Linux desktop user since 2004.
Try CloudReady:
https://www.neverware.com/
Which would make the laptop a ChromeBook.
I'd also recommend Xubuntu
https://xubuntu.org/ which is the very popular Ubuntu linux distro with the lightweight XFCE desktop interface. [According to the site: "To install and use 64-bit Xubuntu, you need an Intel or AMD 64-bit processor with at least 512 MB of memory. You can also try Xubuntu with a USB or DVD with the same amount of memory. Keep in mind that running the system from a USB or DVD will be slower than an installed system. When you install Xubuntu, you need about 8 GB of free space on your hard disk."]