Besides deploying a huge one this weekend, I've installed 3 more completely brand new instances in the last 24 hours.  None of them had any issues, nor have any of the others I've done in the last year.  I started in the same boat as you, where I had no clue what the heck I was doing or how it all worked, but I followed through the exact same manual/instructions that is out there right now and was up in no time.  They mentioned that 4.5.3 has a new wizard for the installer, I finally took a look at it last night with one of the three I installed(one was 4.4.1 so it wasn't available, the other one I had it use the "legacy" method).

As with the other posts, you do not have to use Visual Studio (and in fact, would recommend NOT doing that unless you are planning on developing modules for it).  Go with the "install" version as previously mentioned.

You can knock the software based on your own experiences, that is fine and that is your own opinion of course.  But agreeing with what others said, if there are really as many portals out there using DNN, it can't possibly be a flaw in the software but on the end-user's side of things.

Okay Okay I have heard enough of your bashing.....I love DNN and so do many people and I am just a house wife that is self taught with no formal PC training at all and I have been using this as I said earlier since inception.  If a housewife that has no experience and no programming skills can load this thing and you can't....hm what does this say about you. 

Now DO NOT BASH DNN because it isn't the DNN it is something you are not following or your computer isn't set up properly.  You have to install things in the correct order and that has nothing to do with DNN.  There are host providers that off DNN to attract customers so it must work just fine.  Every single problem I have ever had was my fault or a beta version and someone helped me because I posted the error and asked for help. And this awsome software is FREEEEEEEEE and comes with free support! So get on to something else if you do not like DNN, it's your loss.  If I were you!@#@!!! I would re register with a new name and try again and this time give more information, the people here are very nice and they take time to help anyone they can.

Janet
A house wife with attitude!

There's an entire community that knows, loves and lives DNN on this site. We're passionate, polite (most of the time) and hold a vastamount of knowledge in almost every aspect of DNN. Not one person in the community knows it all, but as a community, we do collectively.

I am sure if you took a step back and instead of a negative post as to the quality of our beloved software, took the time to explain the environment in which your trying to install DNN, then you would have recieved more than one reply to assist you in getting your environment up and running.

This software has tens of thousands of installs, quite possibly over a hundred thousand. The install and the overall quality of the software itself is not the issue here.

What's usually at issue in a failed installation is:

• Lack of preparation
• Lack of knowledge of the process
• Lack of knowledge of the environment

So explain your setup, tell us what the errors or problems were that you experienced.