It's getting less silly every month! So many people in that boat only use the web browser anyway.

With a well-supported hardware configuration and a working web browser, even a non-techie may have a more stable experience than they would with Windows.

That has as much to do with the decline of Windows as with the ascent of desktop Linux, but still.

Why? As long as you use a regular desktop distro, it's simple, pleasant and easy to use. This was already true 10+ years ago.

It isnt silly. We did this with my 92 yo grandma back in the 2010s. She had a browser, an email client, word processor, printer.

Bulletproof, immune to all the apps and malware. She couldnt break it.