Linux Desktop 2017

[Geek-9pm]

This is about what Linux versions were most popular in 2017.
This might help you decide which version you want to try next.
Here is a pretentious link:
https://www.fossmint.com/best-linux-desktop-distros-of-2017/
His list stats with  Ubuntu, Linux Mint, OpenSUSE, Debian and Arch Linux.
I decline to argue. However,  others give a e list that is was very different.
Look at this from a Google search:

OpenSUSE. ...
Debian. ...
Arch Linux. ...
Deepin OS. ...
Elementary OS. .

The above does not even give a place to Ubuntu! 
Another list:
https://www.linux.com/news/learn/sysadmin/best-linux-distributions-2017%20
And lists that purport to represent 2018 before the fact:
Most Beautiful Linux Distros You Need To Use
plus...
The best Linux distros of 2018

As for me,I learned on Red Hat. That tells you how old I am. 
If you are new to Linux, start with Ubuntu. Because I like it? No, because they have a very good support community. 
This InfoWorld link is about one year old and still is relevant:
Why is Ubuntu Linux so popular?

Ubuntu Linux has been around for a long time, and over the years it has proven to one of the most popular Linux distributions ever. But what has made it so popular?
A redditor recently asked that question in the Linux subreddit and got some interesting answer...

Comments welcome. 

[Salmon Trout]

Will 2017 finally be the year of the Linux desktop?

[BC_Programmer]

I would have thought by now nobody was saying that seriously, but I was wrong:

Jim Zemlin declares 2017 the year of the linux desktop

[Salmon Trout]

I would have thought by now nobody was saying that seriously

The earliest reference we have of "Year of Linux on Desktop" is from Summa de arithmetica, geometria, proportioni et proportionalita by Italian mathematician Luca Pacioli in 1494.

"Sono sicuro che il prossimo anno tutti utilizzerà Linux"

https://www.reddit.com/r/linux/comments/3038d4/when_was_the_first_year_of_the_linux_desktop/

[DaveLembke]

At BC's link I read this and found it strange. Daily changes to the actual "Kernel itself"...  I can see other stuff edited as needed for security and bug fixes, but on a daily basis to alter a kernel to me is just strangely too frequent.

To illustrate his point, Zemlin noted that 2,000 lines of code are changed daily in the Linux kernel as the pace of change accelerates.

[Salmon Trout]

on a daily basis to alter a kernel to me is just strangely too frequent.

That's just the ongoing maintenance process, bug fixes and the like, as you said. Roughly every four months Linus releases a new kernel and there are stable and preview versions. At the moment:

4.15   28 January 2018 End of life, maintained from January 2018 to April 2018
4.16   1 April 2018 latest mainline release
4.17   20 May 2018 latest preview release

Of course, if you want the very latest bleeding edge, you can chase the minor revision numbers, which come out every few days.