The reason it took me this long to use Linux at home were my so-so experiences with Gnome and its derivatives and other DEs I had used: the devil is in the detail. Linux _worked_, but there were always small things that made using it as a daily driver unnecessarily painful. The Gnome save file dialog highlights the file name as being selected, which suggests it is in focus. But when I start typing, a search in the current folder is started instead. Likewise, when typing anything in the file browser, a search in that folder is being started (as opposed to jumping to files and/or folders matching what I'm typing).
This and many other small bothersome things kept me away from Linux as my daily desktop driver for a long time. Microsoft's decision to require a Microsoft account for even the professional version of Windows 11 made me finally decide to switch, and the first DE I had tried (because I had heard so many good things) was KDE. And what a surprise that was, because as it turns out: KDE got all of those little details absolutely right. The file dialogs are heaps better than Gnome's/GTK's, Dolphin (its file browser) is an absolute bliss to use, and so much more.
So, looking back, all it took (at least for me) was just KDE. Better late than never ;)