> -----Original Message----- > From: Gary MacDougall > <soapbox> > I'm gong to get flamed like hell for this, but I think the general > attitude of people that consider themselves "Linux Security > Guru's" sucks! > If you've ever visited #linux on IRC or talked with people in > a chat room > about Linux (in general) its amazing the amount of venom these Linux > Pundits have towards people that are "newbies".
One of the reasons that I prefer Debian-security and Debian-user, and maybe the rest of the Debian lists too, is their generally very high signal to noise ratio. For all its faults, slashdot also demonstrates the benefits of moderation. > interesting opinions (ammunition) about apt-get vs. rpm (My > reasoning was > security updates are easier etc. etc.)... My personal fuel for that fire is that there are no dependency problems with apt. Yes, it's an oversimplification, however I feel that once someone accustomed to needing several iterations with RPM's gets a taste of the "just do it" apt process, they won't notice the rare instance when there is a conflict. My hat's off to the Debian maintainers. I deeply respect their work. > I guess its a form of "geek revenge". Naa, it's simian posturing. It happens with humans everywhere. I enjoyed watching it in Good Will Hunting, and two days ago rented Finding Forrester (same movie, different actors), and sure enough lots of simian posturing. "You dare to challenge me in MY classroom?" etc. The problem is cultural and social. We've moved away from the teaching traditions that channeled such territoriality and aggression in constructive ways. Hormone-addled male teens no longer get "whupped" into shape when they really need it. I can suggest the writings of Jeff Cooper for a better exploration of the kinds of attitudes and processes that are now missing, and R.A.Heinlein for lots of fictional explorations of the issue. There's some really nasty little flame freaks out there who simply do not understand the repercussions of their words, and how they hurt people. They've never been taught how to argue with their (recently evolved) brains. Curt-
