Open trackers irc.opentrackers.org Digital irc irc.digitalirc.org Corrupt net irc.corrupt-net.org
I would recommend Manjaro. Very beginner friendly, has access to the AUR and a great community forum where you can find the answer to any question or problem. I took the leap years back from Windows to Linux and it was one of the best things i ever did.
https://github.com/evan-buss/openbooks