> I find the distinction between “issues” and “discussions” annoying

The benefit is that all users who just ask for help, assistance, or are unable to install or use the software now have a place to ask.

You shouldn't create an issue just because you get an error when installing, but it might be beneficial to still ask for help.

If it is indeed a bug, then create a ticket, linking to the discussion.

Normally, too many issues are user errors.

I personally don’t like discussions either. I treat issues to be issues experienced by the user. It doesn’t mean that there’s an issue caused by bugs in the software. User creates an issue that turns out to be caused by user not following instructions? Just help the user and close the issue.