Great write up, but OP stated they’re not computer savvy. I’m sure more ppl have used flash drives than used VMs. They are also building a new pc so gotta get those distros from somewhere/another machine.
Another option would be to grab a couple of 4GB or more flash drives and try each one by booting from the flash drive before committing to one.
•download something like balena etcher •download Mint, Ubuntu, PopOs, Aurora, whatever else •use etcher to burn distros to the flash drives • pop in the flash in new pc & have at it