I was looking for an easy and good alternative for Windows 7 on a laptop used as a media station to watch Netflix and Crunchyroll and I choose Elementary OS.

This GNU/Linux distribution is based on Ubuntu and it’s relatively easy to install. Anyway, it needs some steps to work great as media station. Here we go:

1. Make AppCenter Work
   1. Click on Applications on the top left corner of the screen
   2. Click on Terminal
   3. On the console type these commands:

      sudo dpkg --configure -a
      sudo apt update
      

2. Update your system
   1. Open the AppCenter moving the mouse at the bottom on the screen, then click on the store icon
   2. Click on Updates on the top of the window
   3. Click on Update All and wait until all packages are installed
   4. When finished, click on the Power icon in top right corner of the screen and restart
3. Update language (if different than English)
   1. Go to the System settings on the bottom bar
   2. Choose Language & Region
   3. A yellow box should appear telling the language installation is not complete: click on Complete installation
   4. Type the user password you’ve choosen during the installation
   5. Click on Unlock
   6. Select your language, region and format
   7. Log out using the top right power button and log in again. The OS is now translated.
   8. Click on Update names to change home directories names according to the selected language (or keep it in the English version)
4. Install VLC
   1. Go to AppCenter
   2. On the top right corner of the AppCenter search “vlc”
   3. Click Install
5. Install your preferred browser
   1. On the top right corner of the AppCenter look for your favourite browser:
      1. If you’re looking for Firefox, type “firefox” and install it
      2. If you’re looking for Chrome, type “chromium” and install it. It’s the open source alternative of Chrome.
6. Make your browsers ready to watch streaming shows:
   1. If you’re using Firefox, go to Menu > Preferences > Content > and flag Play DRM content checkbox. It will allow services using this meh technology.
   2. Optional: Install Flash Player for Linux if needed (automatically installed in Firefox):
      https://get.adobe.com/it/flashplayer/otherversions/
7. Optional: Translate your browser
   1. On Firefox, type about:addons in the address bar
   2. Search for your language and install
      1. Language pack
      2. Dictionary
8. Optional: Install Office Productivity Tools:
   1. On AppCenter, search for LibreOffice, LibreOffice Writer and LibreOffice calc and install them (one by one) to open Word and Excel files or Open Office files.
9. Optional: get new wallpapers automatically
   1. In the AppCenter search for “Variety“
   2. Install and configure it
   3. You can add nice quotes and a clock to the desktop editing Preferences
10. Switch the sound to the TV when the HDMI cable is plugged into the port:
    1. By default, when you plug the HDMI cable to the PC you can hear the sound coming from PC speakers
    2. To solve this issue open the Terminal and type

       sudo bash
       

       And type your password.

    3. Follow this howto to automatically redirect sound to the TV when it’s plugged in. To create or edit files you can use:

       nano /path/to/file
       

With these steps your brand new media station is ready for watching streaming relying on the strong security implemented in GNU/Linux systems.