When I started with Linux, I started with vim because the tutorials I was working off used vi and vim. Once I started with vim and learned the commands, I wasn’t going to switch to something else… there’s a joke somewhere in there about not knowing how to exit… but I’m not making it.
If I was going to write documentation now for a Linux newbie, I’d probably pick nano to start with.
Mine is running on a HP 600 G1 Micro Computer Mini Tower PC. Right now, less than $80 from Bezos. It’s over powered for Nextcloud alone, but I’ve also got other services running on it, including Jellyfin.
It zips along quite nicely, but I’ve also followed the guides for tuning the server for best performance.