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Whilst I generally agree with sentiments that Linux is more suited to those with technical expertise, I think people underestimate the usability of a modern Linux system.
My youngest sister used Windows 98 for a long while, and had all the problems associated with that rather unstable OS. She stuck with it because she didn't have the money available to upgrade to XP. After Windows broke down yet again to an unusable state, I burned a Linux LiveCD so that she could at least access the net and do her homework.
What was only meant to be a temporary solution turned into a permanent one. If all one wishes to do is to browse the web (Firefox), chat on IM (Kopete) and listen to music (Amarok), and write essays (KWord), then Windows doesn't have much of an advantage over Linux. In terms of day-to-day usability, Linux (Kubuntu in particular) seems ready enough for the average user.
The problems with Linux are, in my mind, twofold. The first is installing the thing, and one can have all sorts of problems with that, usually related to incompatible hardware. The second problem is that the majority of software in the world is written for Windows, so one may run into problems if the application you want isn't available for Linux. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't recommend Linux to someone who isn't very technically adept.
However, if you have someone to install it for you (such as a vender or an older sibling), and your needs are modest, then Linux can be a viable option.
That said, I don't think Linux is ready for general usage just yet. But in the seven years I've used it, usability has come a very long way.
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