So I think part of my problem is that after installing I still had ~17 GB of space left on the SSD and accidentally filled it with downloads, I wasn't able to download directly to my SD card or external HD and when I moved them in the file explorer I trashed then from the SSD but didn't empty the trash.
The Zorin download page says
Zorin OS Lite needs at least
CPU
700 MHz Single Core – Intel/AMD 64-bit or 32-bit processor
RAM
512 MB
Storage
8 GB
Display
640 × 480 resolution
So I don't know why it should need 60 GB as @StarTreker said.
Is there a way to reformat my drive to delete all the data and reinstall Zorin lite or should I just give up and try to download another copy of windows 10 to reinstall (these netbooks don't come with disk drives so no reinstall disk) ?
Those minimum specs listed look very Bare Minimum, to me. uhh...
8 gigs storage?
You can install and run Zorin OS lite and do light web browsing on that. But it running and you using it may be different things. StarTrekker stated a size for comfortable running. When I install a new copy of Zorin Lite, I then also install applications that I use that do not come with Lite. By the time I have finished, I am usually at 10 gigs or a little over.
And this does not even cover files that build up over time. From photos to downloads to system logs.
If you have an external drive- then you can use that as storage, such as setting all downloads to go automatically to the external drive instead of ~/Downloads.
You will also want to be diligent with maintenance, running "sudo apt clean" and "sudo apt autoremove" pretty often, as well as clearing out System Logs more often than the average user.
Oh yes, you can reinstall Zorin Lite, no problem. But, if Zorin Lite is a little heavy at those specs, I would certainly not consider Windows as an alternative. A better option may be a Tiny Linux. Here is a list including SliTaz, Puppy, Bodhi, Porteus and others.
Thank you Aravisian, that was exactly my point. Anytime you look at a minimum spec, that is telling you what you need, to run something, at its bare minimum.
However, if you intend on really using the OS for installing apps, downloading, multi-media experience, your going to need storage capacity to do so, 60GB I feel is a very comfortable size for basic usage of an OS.
See, I would have actually said 64gigs. LOL. These are estimations based on our experiences.
I run Cad and Blender and stuff... I mean... My needs will be more demanding than a user that runs the OS just to browse the web Chrome-book style. So, there is variation.
Minimum Specs assume Minimum usage.
And let me extend that point further. If you are a gamer, in modern day, your going to want at least a 1TB storage capacity. And if you are doing heavy production work, your going to want at least 4TB of storage or more.
This is why everybodies storage needs are different, because it all depends on what we are going to do. Basic minimum should be 60GB, or ok fine, 64GB lol.
I don't install a bunch of stuff. My typical home partition is 30 GB used. My root is typically 15 GB used but I don't dare keep that smaller than 30 GB. And I'm not even counting swap. So, fwiw, I agree with ST's 60 GB minimum suggestion, excluding swap. For 2 GB RAM, you should go with 2 x 2 GB = 4 GB swap. Which comes to the 64 GB minimum Aravisian recommended.
Ok thanks for the clarification, I do basically use this computer primarily to download media to my external hard drive so I'll try reinstalling Zorin from the USB stick and if that doesn't work I'll try one of the smaller OS' you recommended.