I've been considering making the switch to a Linux distro full-time, this move by Microsoft might be deciding factor. It sounds like they restricted Firefox installations to force users to use Edge.....
Spending time working on side projects is a common occurrence in-between employment for devs. I've done the same in the past, and simply explained that I was working on open-sourced software. If you've spent several years working on side projects I would assume that you have something to showcase on your resume.
I don't understand what the issue is here. OP is using a Linux laptop to get a CS degree? I did that 10 years ago with less compute resources. At this point I would assume that a majority of CS students are using laptops (with a significant amount on a tighter budget). In my experience at 2 Universities, compute resources are supplied to complete the required course work (cloud or lab).