macOS Monterey version 12 is a stable, lightweight upgrade that works great on older Macs, and you can use the direct DMG or ISO links to download, install, upgrade, or downgrade your system easily.

Topher, an avid Mac user for the past 15 years, has been a contributing author to MacFixIt since the spring of 2008. One of his passions is troubleshooting Mac problems and making the best use of Macs ...

I think the reason we haven't heard many complaints about the doing away of physical media is exactly this. As long as power users can make their own offline media, there's nothing to complain about.