Does Linux support hybrid drives?

The answer is simply yes

The question should be,
what does linux not support?

Hybrid drives operate transparent to the operating system. They store the most accessed blocks on the internal SSD so they run faster, but it's all done internally and the OS doesn't need to know. Anything that supports SATA will benefit from an SSHD.

I'm looking to go to college as a computer science major. I know I am mostly CLI, but when I open LXDE, I use it like crazy. I will have GIMP, Firefox (multiple tabs), and fontforge open at the same time in addition to my 3-4 VTs. I'm thinking of a Lenovo Z50-70... good?

If the price is right, that will do you really well. I do suggest opting for an SSD, though. The performance and reliability, especially in a portable computer, is something you should value. HDDs are not meant to be moved around, but they put them in mobile computers. SSDs are the way to go.

how are sshd? I was thinking of maybe 4 in a raid 10, or just get 2 ssd in raid 0 and 2 8tb helium hdd in raid 1

@zacpool
I have thoose in my server, failry cheap and does what they should do.

@zacpool SSHDs are overrated and overpriced, in my opinion. Go SSD in raid 0 and have a proper backup solution. Buy more of smaller ones to get better performance, like 4*120GB instead of 2*240GB. You'll notice a huge difference that way, especially with the random io. Acronis is a decent backup solution, it can do incrementals, too.

@sheeponmeth
SSD in raid0 is something I would not recommend.

RAID0 overall. no

@Linux With a proper backup solution there's nothing wrong with it. I'd never run a server on it, but a workstation is fine.

@sheeponmeth that's what what my original plan was either 2 240s or 2 500s. then get 2 hdd in raid 1. mind you this will be my personal rig setup.

Well, true.
I am that type that runs everything in RAID1, or RAID5/6/1/50/60.
But that's me

@zacpool Yeah, sounds like you'll have a nice setup. I have a single SSD in my laptop and it makes a world of difference. I could just imagine what a pair or PCIe one would be like for a daily driver.

@Linux Hah, sounds like you have money. I would mirror if I could, especially with Btrfs striping the reads on mirrors, that would be awesome.

@sheeponmeth
Well, I am just very cautious. I lost every Picture from when I was a kid thanks to no backup or redundancy. Im quite paranoid when it comes to it.

@Linux Yeah, I hear that. I've dealt with people that lost everything from ransomeware. It's a shame when things like that happen.