Is the Linux install procedure the same on a VM as it is on a physical machine?

I'm a Windows user, but have been considering a switch to Linux.

My aim is to make this transition as smooth as possible, so to that end, I've been thinking of creating a Virtual Machine and run a Linux distribution on it.

Would this be the same as installing Linux on a physical machine? Would it provide the same experience? Would I still need to install all drivers (etc.) that I would normally do, or would it somehow be different when run as a Virtual Machine?

[The Question used to start "Best way to start using Linux" but has since been edited out, now my answer is a little superfluous but still relevant.]

You could start by using the programs available in Linux to see if you like them, many have Windows & Mac versions too. Like LibreOffice, OpenOffice, GIMP, Firefox, Chromium, Thunderbird, Pidgin, VLC, Transmission?

If you can use those, trying out a few different live ISO's (CD/DVD/USB) for a few hours or days would be good to see if they even run on your computer, and if you like them. Many can run "persistent" on a USB to save changes too. There are lots of them available: Debian (Stable version should be more... stable, but older), Ubuntu, Linux Mint, CrunchBang, Puppy Linux, Fedora, OpenSUSE... at least a hundred others too.

Most with multiple different desktop environments available too like XFCE, gnome shell, Cinnamon, Mate, LXDE, K, Unity...)

see http://www.distrowatch.com for good overviews & search capability. And watch some videos of them in action on youtube (there were some videos of an Australian guy who has his mom test a bunch of different OS's that are interesting & fun).

Running in a virtual machine would give the feel, but not really test the hardware compatibility. I've used iso's in VirtualBox that completely fail to boot when run "for real." Some like Linux Mint & Ubuntu will usually "just work" but sometimes they need special "boot parameters" to work too... usually have to try & see, then search for any problems that come up.

Most of the "drivers" are built into the kernel, there are some proprietary video drivers that may be (optionally) available. Ubuntu and Mint (at least) have a "Driver Manager" type program that can find some easily.