One of the absolute best things about the Arduino IDE and platform is how easy it is to get started. The software that is installed on your computer is completely free and designed specifically for ease of use. The program is called an Integrated Development Environment, or IDE. The fancy name might intimidate you, but it runs just like a text editing program. As with any software install, you may have some peculiar things working on your computer that can hinder a smooth installation. I have loaded the Arduino several times on different operating systems and have had few problems. Once or twice I had to re-download the zip file that contains the Arduino IDE because somehow or other it got messed up during the download process. You may have to install drivers yourself for your Arduino board – this turns out to be fairly easy and is clearly explained on the Arduino.cc website. To provide you with the most accurate and up to date information about downloading and installing the Arduino IDE, I defer to the Arduino “Getting Started” page. They have done such a clear and concise job of describing the process, I see no reason to repeat it here.