Getting Ready for the Microsoft XP Meltdown

[MCWebsite.Staff]

** This thread discusses the article: Getting Ready for the Microsoft XP Meltdown **
** This thread discusses the Content article: Getting Ready for the Microsoft XP Meltdown **
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[Guest.Visitor]

Getting Ready for the Microsoft XP Meltdown

** This thread discusses the article: Getting Ready for the Microsoft XP Meltdown **
I am not one to side with the software giant Microsoft but come on. Your article is pinning the blame on XP for the all the problems caused by the net gangsters that write viruses in their spare time. The problem isn't Microsoft. Any product on the market has the same loop holes as Microsoft the problem is that there are not enough people using it to make it worth the virus writers’ time. Remember these people like to see number of infections to make them proud of the havoc that they cause. Quote: "This is the second hole in its security, a long-standing security hole in the IE browser. Microsoft has known about this hole for two years but has not yet fixed it." Ok basically what the security hole entails is that it runs java script and if it fixes this hole half the websites in the world stop working right. If Microsoft was more secure then no other software would be compatible with it and then all the vendors and web designers and coders out there that write legitimate stuff would be screaming. You are nothing but a yellow journalist preying on the security fears of all the helpless users out their. You should be ashamed of yourself.

[T.Stockwell]

Getting Ready for the Microsoft XP Meltdown

** This thread discusses the article: Getting Ready for the Microsoft XP Meltdown **
Your comments are a little off the mark. You said "Any product on the market has the same loop holes as Microsoft the problem is that there are not enough people using it to make it worth the virus writers’ time. " This is Microsoft hype. AIX does not have these holes. Unix does not have these holes. Linux does not have these holes. OS/400 does not have these holes. Mozilla does not have these holes. Opera does not have these holes. These holes are the result of a lack of a real security model during the development of the Microsoft products. Microsoft's strategy of "embrace and extend" with proprietary code on its operating system, its Web server, and its Web browser -- a proprietary strategy that pushed cheap, initially inexpensive code out into the market place as a bundled part of its desktop environment -- set the groundwork for exactly this kind of hacking. The value of proprietary OSs and software should be that there will be security and support against security threats. (In fact, that was a key argument in the DOJ vs. Microsoft lawsuit in the 1990s.) In actuality, Microsoft provides little or none. It released code that it knew was flawed, believing that no one would discover the flaws because it held the source code as a secret. This strategy is now coming back to haunt all of us. You said: "If Microsoft was more secure then no other software would be compatible with it and then all the vendors and web designers and coders out there that write legitimate stuff would be screaming. " What?!? You must be kidding! How is it that IBM, Sun, HP, and others have managed to write applications all these years, with superior security, fewer hacks, and greater performance and customer satisfaction. Take a look at the virus/trojan announcements at McAfee and Semantec. Over 90% are related to Microsoft products. The argument that Microsoft is a target because it is so popular is probably correct. But if you were a professional hacker (and these security breaks are not the result of hobbiest, but professionals) wouldn't it make more sense to hack large organizations where the money resides, instead of desktops and smaller systems users? Microsoft is a target not because it is the most popular, but because it's so darn easy to break in. You say: "You are nothing but a yellow journalist preying on the security fears of all the helpless users out their. You should be ashamed of yourself. " Had I written the code, I would indeed be ashamed. Were I a product support specialist at Microsoft, I would indeed be feeling queasy and a bit green around the gills. Microsoft has done a great service by making productive PC applications available to you and me and the rest of the world. But its security is flawed, its support mechanisms are frighteningly ineffective, and its "Not my fault" stand with the public is unacceptable. If these facts color my journalism, then its because Microsoft has taught me this jaundiced perspective. I would suggest that you investigate the security mechanisms of other operating system software before making further assertions. I would suggest that you investigate other operating systems generally. Your particular perspective is ignoring some basic problems with Microsoft's products, and you may be taking risks with your company's information assets by beating up on reporters instead of complaining to Microsoft. Thomas M. Stockwell Editor in Chief MC Press, LP

[David Abramowitz]

Getting Ready for the Microsoft XP Meltdown

** This thread discusses the article: Getting Ready for the Microsoft XP Meltdown **
There would be something satisfying in the ability to let an "I told you so" message go out to all the shops that abandoned OS/400 for a strict windows approach to the IT center. But I don't see that happenning. What I do see is MS IT centers going down for several hours, and then coming right back up again like nothing had ever happenned. Talking ROI, and TCO, and lost man-hours, and lost productivity doesn't make a dent. IMO, the inmates are indeed in control of the asylum. Dave