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Re: [News] Woman Targetted by Windows Flaw

__/ [ RPH ] on Friday 02 June 2006 10:02 \__

> Roy Schestowitz <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in
> news:2379075.fTBJ2EBAeH@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx:
> 
>>>> I did read that after I posted, but certainly on PM on Radio 4 I
>>>> didn't hear any mention of Windows (mind you I was preparing dinner
>>>> so probably wasn't listening that closely) and I don't recall
>>>> anything other than computer virus being mentioned on the national
>>>> news. Kudos to your BBC local news for pointing it out.
>> 
>> Indeed. Thanks for pointing it out. I nearly gave up on the BBC,
>> particularly for narrow-minded reporting. I believe that, on the other
>> hand, they were the first deliverers of a paragraph stating that
>> Windows is popular among botnets. The paragraph was embedded near the
>> end of a long article though.
> 
> It also needs to be done in a measured way - there's been a couple of
> occasions over the last couple of years on either TV or radio where a
> Mac-head has said words to the effect of "well you should use a Mac, we
> don't get those problems". While it may be true, it is said in such a
> smug manner it makes me feel more like setting up the most insecure
> Windows box I can and using that! (This should be taken with the
> knowledge that I can be a really cranky old git!)


It is a proven fact that nobody likes to be told what s/he does wrong. The
"it's bad for you" scenarios are common in the context of drugs, alcohol,
and cigarettes. That said, telling people what is bad for them is not as bad
as telling them what _to do_. People vehemently _loathe_ being told what's
good for them.


> The point I'm making here, though, is that you're unlikely to win
> converts if you go in all guns blazing "don't use that, use this" as that
> tends to put people on the defensive and puts their back up. An approach
> more along the lines of "here's how you can improve on what you have",
> and also appreciate that some people might well have a genuine reason to
> be using what they do (my DAW runs XP simply because it runs the software
> that I like using.)
> 
> 
>>>>> FYI, 'computer virus' generally means windows, as few other
>>>>> platforms suffer from that crap.
>>>> 
>>>> *I* know that and most people in here know that. The point is that
>>>> Joe Public probably doesn't, so it gets accepted as a general
>>>> computer risk rather than a Windows risk.
>> 
>> Right on! This remains a reality. SPAM and Web attacks are also
>> assumed to be just a 'computer thing' -- a certain innate nature is
>> you like, rather than a largely-Windows-attributed issue.
> 
> Most casual users only see spam from the perspective of receiver, and as
> such they see everyone receiving spam regardless of platform and assume
> that it isn't anything to with Windows.


That ought to change, through education. Imagine how people would feel if
they thought about a cracked Windows box every time they hit "Delete".


>>> Yes. IMHO it's sloppy journalism, just as 'crackers' have now become
>>> called 'hackers' by the popular press. The only thing on the BBC
>>> website that tells you it's M$ Windows is the reference to "My
>>> Documents" folder, but you'd have to know that's a M$ thing. None of
>>> my linux distros have that particular folder.
>> 
>> True indeed. I am participating in innocent hackers lists (e.g.
>> WordPress) and people get the wrong impression out of this. But why?
>> Hacker is not cracker. I just modify code. That's what Open Source is
>> about. They still prefer to portray this as rebellious communism.
> 
> The cracker/hacker goes back some time - certainly before the
> predominance of Windows. I can remember at college we used to get
> irritated at the media using hacker in place of cracker and that was 20
> years ago.


I didn't even know the difference until 2 years ago when I was 22. The word
"hacker" has always had a bad connotation in my mind.


>>>> I try to educate the family in these matters, but their eyes glaze
>>>> over if you try to explain computer stuff to them. At least I've
>>>> managed to wean my in-laws from IE and OE to Firefox and
>>>> Thunderbird.
>>> 
>>> And that's the trouble, ignorance & apathy. IMO that's why M$ gets
>>> away with what it does.
> 
> The thing is that most people just want to switch on their computer, do
> what they want to do and then switch it off again. They don't want to get
> into any more nuts and bolts than they have too, and until such a time as
> they fall victim to malware they are likely to not even appreciate the
> potential problem.


It's the 'knock yourself out' approach. Sadly, in a networked world, everyone
suffers from one person's 'problem'.


>> It mustn't. That's the creed justifying my presence here. People must
>> speak out because mainstream media will rarely do it, unless pressured
>> to do so by its audience (readers, listeners, or whatever it may be).
>> When new facts get accepted, they are no longer a taboo and no longer
>> raise a brow.
> 
> Well I think my dad understands about the security implications of using
> Windows. And having introduced him to Grisoft he also understands that he
> no longer has to give money to McAfee every year.
> 
> I'm starting with the next generation - my daughter is starting to
> understand the problems with Windows (unfortunately she is also a fan of
> the CBBC website which has a lot of Shockwave games - you try to
> explaining to an 8 year old why she can't play them anymore). When she
> does use Linux (Kubuntu in this case) she has no trouble at all using it.


Cool. Well, Flash player 9 is coming to Linux, so issues such as Shackwave
compatibility will fade away as awareness is improved. Linux needn't mature.
It's the awareness, driven by userbase scale.

Best wishes,

Roy

-- 
Roy S. Schestowitz      |    Download Othello: http://othellomaster.com
http://Schestowitz.com  |    SuSE Linux     ¦     PGP-Key: 0x74572E8E
 10:20am  up 35 days 16:52,  9 users,  load average: 0.31, 0.17, 0.23
      http://iuron.com - Open Source knowledge engine project

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