This may be controversial, but in addition to hardware shipped with it installed, the Linux desktop needs an advertisement push to see major success. Years of misinformation have harmed its reputation for the average person that has heard of it. The lack of advertising makes it so that not enough people have heard about it.

People know about Windows 10 & Surfaces, macbooks, etc. because they have marketing. Major vendors like elementary need to start getting their stuff into the minds of common people.

However, in keeping with principle we don't need to be invasive about it - no banner ads, no emails, no tracking. Just things like short TV or YouTube ads. Something to bring people curious enough onto platforms that respect them.