Microsoft is facing an early crisis of confidence in the quality of its Windows Vista operating system as computer security researchers and hackers have begun to find potentially serious flaws in the system that was released to corporate customers late last month. On Dec. 15, a Russian programmer posted a description of a flaw that makes it possible to increase a user's privileges on all of the company's recent operating systems, including Vista. Update by Thom: Ars thinks the situation is hot air, mostly, something I agree with (a cracker already has to have login credentials for the flaws to be of any use).
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Member since:2005-11-11
//They are not too concerned about Linux yet, as the DRM'd CD's and DVD's will not be able to play. //
How do you figure this?
If a CD plays on a normal stand-alone CD player, then it should play on Linux.
Linux will ignore any DRM Windows/Mac executable info on the CD and just skip straight to the CD tracks just as a standalone player would.
For CDs, manufacturers have two choices ...
(1) Give it files for DRM that Windows and Mac computers will honour, but allow it to play on existing standalone CD players and therefore on Linux as well, or
(2) Encrypt the entire CD with DRM so that it won't play on Linux but also won't play on any existing CD player.
AFAIK, all existing "protected" CDs follow (1) above. The market represented by existing satndalone CD players is just too large to ignore.
Linux also can play any DVDs that will play on stndalone players.
Edited 2006-12-28 08:16
Member since:
2005-12-02
"If it was the RIAA or MPAA, they would also be pushing DRM on OSX users and Linux users."
They are not too concerned about Linux yet, as the DRM'd CD's and DVD's will not be able to play. OS X has had DRM for a bit already, ever hear of iTunes? The RIAA and MPAA are the ones pushing this. They will deliver content that requires the DRM.
"No.... Microsoft are pushing DRM, then, they will be the only system capable of delivering the goods."
No, they are not pushing it. OS X will be able to run it as well. See above.