Re: XP has no significant bugs that any significant number of users want fixed


<learning@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:425ef3d5$1$woehfu$mr2ice@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> >> Currently the biggest source of frustration comes from things like
> >viruses,
> >> worms, adware, spam, etc. These aren't exactly Microsoft's fault. The
problem is caused by degenerate elements
> >of
> >> society that have obtained excessively high levels of technological
> >> sophistication.
>
> It does not take a Harvard Graduate to create and propagate a virus. Its
> really rather easy, so don't be giving kudos to hackers who are still in
> high school.


Oh I wasn't giving them kudos. I called them degenerate elements of
society. There is however a difference between these people and your run of
the mill criminals guilty of things like armed robbery of convenience
stores. Convenience store robbers typically have IQs deep in the moron
category and are unable to master technology much more sophisticated to use
than a gun. These hackers are potentially more dangerous in the sense that
they have mastery of everyday realatively high technology products and
usually have IQs noticeable above 100. Generally speaking hackers are more
likely to be crafty and adaptable, unlike your ordinary thug.


> It is okay to say its not M$'s fault. Their goal has never been security,
> or virus free computers. On the other hand, if we bought cars that didn't
> have windshields, and our faces were pockmarked from all the rocks flying
> about at 75MPH, we may blame the rocks, but we turn to the car maker to
> fix the obvious problem and protect our faces. The car makers don't wait
> till a lot of people get their heads smashed before seeing and fixing the
> problem.


There is an important difference between your analogy and the situation with
MS products. Rocks aren't people, and they aren't adaptable. If auto
makers realize the problem and try to thwart the rocks' efforts by placing
winshields in vehicles, the rocks don't adapt to work around the barrier.
They don't increase their density and kinetic energy to puncture the glass.

Hackers on the other hand are people, and are quite adaptable. You can fix
old problems previously identified, but being adaptable people hackers can
find new ways to wreak havoc. A more accurate anology would be a patient
who has become infected with an incurable disease and blames doctors for not
fixing the problem. The doctor isn't to blame, nor is the pharmacutical
industry to blame. Neither of them created the problem, and both are in
fact working towards finding a solution. The problem is humanity doesn't
know everything there is to know about germs and they are crafty and
adaptable just like humans are. In the absence of technology that
fundamentally alters the dynamics of the situation, the germs will remain
one step ahead of those working to combat them.


> It is within their power to fix 90% (I made that number up) of the
> problems by simply configuring it out of the box to close many of the
> holes that are not design flaws, but designs on purpose.


Well I do agree that Microsoft probably could make less vulnerable products
out of the box if they spent more time and effort during the design
considering every possible vulnerability. Indeed they should probably do
this. I wouldn't suggest going so far in this effort that it paralyzes new
product development and the furtherment of human technology however. Don't
get me wrong, Microsoft isn't perfect, and they do have room to improve. On
the other hand, they aren't just a bunch of evil villians deliberately
making products designed to frustrate people's existances.


.

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