One other point: if you just want to dabble, you don’t actually need to install Linux. Many (if not most) Linux distributions can be booted from a USB drive as what they call a “Live USB”.

Here’s how to do it for Ubuntu: https://tutorials.ubuntu.com/tutorial/tutorial-create-a-usb-stick-on-windows

The process is similar for other distros. I tried several this way before I decided to install one that I really liked.