Getting the general public on board with open source applications and the model at large is in many ways easy and in others more complex. The easy part, for the average Joe, is 1) this softare is oftentimes easier to use and superior to proprietary software and 2) heck, it's free as in beer.
A big problem is getting started. There are many exceptions to this: firefox and other mozilla products, OpenOffice, many p2p applications, a web-based WordPress, etc. But say I wanted to use a MS Publisher-like program. Scribus is a great way to go, but let's see part of the process – or this could be a really long post – one has to go through to install it:
1. Try the download page
There are many options to choose from. Releases, scripts, etc. compromise the 74 downloads in 14 categories on this page. Which do I choose?
Assume that the prospective user goes to the latest release – granted, somewhat intuitive.
2. Off to another download page with another dozen possible downloads. Suppose the user again chooses the most downloaded option or something else that might make sense to get what he or she wants
Now, the user has an .rpm file. What to do with it? It's not an executable file; what is it?
The person really wants Scribus, so let's look it up. Google the definition for RPM and the last possible definition is:
rpm or RPM may mean: * Revolutions per minute* RPM Package Manager (originally called "Red Hat Package Manager")* RPM (movie)* RPM (band), a Brazilian rock band* RPM (magazine), a former Canadian music industry magazine* In firearms, Rounds Per Minute: how many shots an automatic weapon can fire in one minute* On roads in the United States, RPM stands for Raised Pavement Marker.* Revolutions Per Minute, an album by punk rock band Rise Against. …
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RPM
Ok, so it's a file that was originally called "Red Hat Package Manager."
3. Figure out how to use an RPM file
Google for Red Hat Package Manager and two click later and we are in the how-to section, which reads more like War and Peace than it does a how-to. An average user has to traverse such technical jargon just in the outline as: spec file, changelog, source directory tree, optflags, and macros. Perhaps the logical link is 'using RPM.' It is if you want to read Greek:
Using RPM shows what it can do, installing a file:
rpm -i foobar-1.0-1.i386.rpm
Uninstalling a file:
rpm -e foobar
Etc. If you're still reading, perhaps you should get out more, but let me just get the point. Perhaps in the search for flexibility, applications that can run in all any environment, that there has been too much of a sacrifice on the ease of installation and use end. If you're going to create a type of program that generally computer-using public may enjoy such as KOffice, Scribus, a host of great database software, it would be a great investment to create installation files that are quick and simple.