For your file transition: there’s a tool out there that will convert an NTFS filesystem into BTRFS, which you can install Linux to. I’m not 100% sure what the risk for data loss is, but for basic data disks it could be a quick and easy solution.
You could on theory install Linux, copy the files from your Windows home to your /home, and then get rid of all the Windows folders. You may even be able to keep some programs installed and run them under Wine if you’re lucky!