After 10 years of supporting Linux, IBM continues to challenge Microsoft on multiple fronts and aims to push Linux even further into the enterprise. While IBM has competed and partnered with Microsoft over the last two decades, the Microsoft-free PC effort is perhaps its most direct assault yet. "The idea of Microsoft-free personal computing has been in the air for a while," Inna Kuznetsova, director of Linux at IBM, told InternetNews.com. "We're just partnering with Linux distribution vendors and hardware vendors to make it happen."
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Member since:2005-12-15
Why is it that having Windows means to some people malware is a certainy? I cannot remember a single time I've been "infected" with malware, spyware or virii, with the exception to the Stoned virus which was back on my 286 and it came from a floppy disk.
I practice common sense when on-line. Never a problem.
People who piss on Microsoft for this sort of thing really should take equal slashes at the guys who write this stuff as well as the end user. For any end user to say, "I'm not technical, I'm not technical" is really ignoring the fact that they were the one that 99% of the time click on the bad egg, visit some porno, warez or dodge ringtone site.
Use Firefox also. Security of other browsers aside, it's exceptionally superior to any of its competition.
Sure there has been instances in the past where just being on-line without doing anything can result in your PC being attacked and serious shame on Microsoft for missing such a stupid and enourmous problem, but the majority of the time it's ignorant end users.
And yes, the OS shouldn't have bugs in it in the first place, no arguements on that in any way, but lets face it, there are a lot of factors driving software quality than the idealogical, "don't release until it's bugfree" mantra. If Microsoft took 10 years to check every single line of code against every single possible bug then the OS would be redundant half way through the testing phase, not to mention the flack the media would serve up.
This is not a "Windows" problem, it's a software engineering problem. One only has to look at the monthly Solaris patch announcements and all the bugs, exploit and remote code patches released to see that, not to mention all the bugs that are fixed in OSX and any random Linux distro.
Member since:2005-09-28
I'm not "pissing on Microsoft". I'm saying that I have moved non-experts onto Linux without any problems, and I know that other people have had similar successes.
Malware is a legitimate worry when setting up a novice with a Windows equipped PC. It's almost no problem (for the moment) with a Linux desktop.
I'm admit that the initial setup for a Linux desktop may need some expert intervention, but I have found, and others have found, that once it's setup, it needs very little extra attention. When you're setting things up for a loved one, this means piece of mind. The user of a Windows installation would need to be trained on how to do sweeps for viruses and adware.
Do you recommend that people run Windows without adware and virus scanners?
(Writing this on XP).
Member since:2007-09-06
As the son of an IT manager, my challenge is getting Pops to give it a go. I keep leaving liveCD with him when I'm back visiting but familiarity and lack of motivation to change his primary machine keep him bound to win2k. Needing to know the popular and current Windows systems for his contract work made him purchase a Vista license with his new laptop.
Really, the only thing holding him back is not taking ten minutes to boot from the liveCD and poke around a bit. I think part of it is the concern of not having familiar programs to work with media and documents but then I've not put a great deal of preaching just get a point for converting someone. His setup supports his needs so we'll look at it more seriously when that old hardware starts to fail.
Member since:
2005-09-28
I've successfully moved a non-expert relative over to Linux as their OS without too many problems. The install needed needed a bit of expertise, but the day-to-day use has been closer problem free than Windows+OE+malware.
I know that other people have had similar successes.