ubuntu for a neophyte?

[Colin Brace]

Hi all,

I neighbor of mine recently acquired her first PC, an Acer laptop. She
is vaguely aware of the malware issues, and  has asked me to help her
get online.

Since my experience with Windows is mostly limited to running v3.1 in
a window under OS/2 back in the receding haze of the previous
millenium, my first impulse is to wipe clean the HD and install
Dapper.

However, this would make me de facto technical support. However, if I
help her get online via Windows, I would probably end up getting calls
from her anyway, and I have zero interest in dealing with XP issues.

Has anyone had any experience installing Ubuntu for people without any
PC experience, ie, your grandmother? And I mean absolutely zippo.

I can think of various reasons pro; just wondering what the cons are,
what potential problems I should try to anticipate.

Thanks.

-- 
  Colin Brace
  Amsterdam