I did too for a long time, then I started getting the “not compatible with Windows XP OS” messages from stuff. Win 7 served me well but it is about to be done for and start getting these same messages from stuff. Now this mint has answered all the questions with the ease of XP or Win7. Best thing I ever did and I will never look back again.
The huge difference is peace of mind. Everything going forward with MS gets more negative by the day, everything Linux is a positive direction. And the more who use it, the more positive and practical it will get. As it is now, it is already superior to all microsoft operating systems and getting better.
I have three expensive software packages that I which will not run on Win 10. If I want to keep using those packages, and I do, I must continue using XP. Once that becomes unusable I will purchase Linux versions.