"Installing any operating system on a desktop computer, whether it be Microsoft Windows, MacOS X, Debian GNU/Linux, or anything else, can occasionally be an exercise in frustration. That is particularly true if you are unfamiliar with the installation process for the operating system you're installing or, worse yet, unfamiliar with the operating system entirely. Microsoft has conquered this problem to some extent by ensuring that when you go to a retail outlet to purchase a computer you'll be able to buy one with Windows pre-installed. Apple has solved the problem to an even greater degree by ensuring that its Macintosh computers are sold as hermetically sealed 'black box' appliances with everything pre-installed and preconfigured.
"Linux distributions do not really have such solutions. There are places you can purchase a computer with some Linux distribution already installed by the vendor, of course, but they are few and far between--and Linux-based operating systems are designed specifically with the expectation that the user may want to monkey around with their innards..."
