[...]
All of the major Linux distros have made this point and click painless
(and see my other post, they all work just fine without a mouse in a
point and click world). FreeBSD hasn't updated their install process
in decades. It is literally stepping back to the 4BSD era. Painless,
it ain't.
I installed BSD and Linux many times. As you state, the BSD installs are incredibly poor. It is amazing to me. I believe that it would be simple to fix if one person who cared and had some common sense fixed it. It's all pretty basic. The first thing someone sees when they try BSD is their incredibly poor installer. That sets the stage for the Linux preference.
I know. I know. The answer is "why don't you fix it and submit a patch". Answer is - I already work nearly 12/7 on other responsibilities (some of which are open-source projects that benefit the public).
Blake McBride