On the mini-PC I gave up and installed Linux Lite, the last 32-bit distro. That runs acceptably fast, so I think someone who isn't looking to play a lot of games can use that machine to do word processing and e-mail.
I'm learning more than I ever expected -- or wanted -- to know about Linux.
The USB WiFi dongle I have, from TP-Link, doesn't work. The box says it works with Linux, but it's version 2.2, and TP-Link says only version 3 works with Linux. I found a different brand on Amazon that's supposed to be plug-and-play with Linux, so I have two on order and all fingers and toes crossed.
Meanwhile, other than the WiFi dongle I have to laptop to a point that I'm satisfied. It's not great -- even at extremely low resolutions videos are choppy, but that's a function of the computer, so it is what it is. So, while awaiting the arrival of the WiFi dongles, I went back to the mini-PC ... and found that things I was able to figure out on the laptop don't work on the mini-PC. Things like installing additional fonts. I'm seriously considering dumping the Linux Lite I have on the Mini and installing the same Debian Linux with Xfce desktop that I have on the laptop.