Linux-Advocacy Digest #368, Volume #26 Thu, 4 May 00 22:13:10 EDT
Contents:
Re: The Dream World of Linux Zealots ([EMAIL PROTECTED])
Re: Microsoft: STAY THE FUCK OFF THE NET!!! ("Andy Locke")
Re: Call me Paranoid - Re: What else is hidden in MS code??? (Mike Marion)
Re: Linux to destroy Microsoft. (dakota)
Re: What else is hidden in MS code??? ("Erik Funkenbusch")
Re: Virus on the net? ("Erik Funkenbusch")
Re: Virus on the net? ("Erik Funkenbusch")
Re: Linux NFS is buggy (Bart Oldeman)
Re: Dinosaur Eat Blue Penguin? ([EMAIL PROTECTED])
Re: What else is hidden in MS code??? (Mike Marion)
Re: QB 4.5 in Win 2000 (Rico)
Re: Virus on the net? (dakota)
Re: What else is hidden in MS code??? ("Erik Funkenbusch")
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Re: The Dream World of Linux Zealots
Date: Fri, 05 May 2000 01:09:03 GMT
In article <8et3g8$860$[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> In article <8ephse$7na$[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,
> [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> > In article <8ep8ga$s80$[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,
> > [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> > > In article <8emusk$agm$[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,
> > > [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> > > > > It will be YOUR kids that will have to go in circles trying
to
> > find
> > > > > software that conforms to their college standards. It will be
> YOUR
> > > > > kids that will have to explain Linux to all of the other kids
as
> > > well
> > > > > as teachers in their school that will most likely be running
> > > Windows.
> > > > >
> > > >
> > > > Buzz Wrong again. I do not have ANY kids and unless there are
some
> > > major
> > > > canges, it is quite impossible for me to have any. Once again
your
> > > close
> > > > minded Wintroll(tm) assumtions prove that you are incapable of
> > putting
> > > > forth ideas that apply to MY needs.
> > >
> > > I thought you homo types prefered MacOS.
> >
> > That's *Mr. Homo* to you. I guess it's true, MS software IS the
> > software of BIGOTS! We Homos like only the best. Thus, we like Linux
> OR
> > Mac.
> >
> > Get real troll, the only preference that is affected by being a gay
> man
> > is that we prefer MEN and that would count *YOU* out!!!
>
> I'm sorry COCKSUSCKER , but being a MAN means liking wowen and later
> becoming a FATHER, not going crazy over some hairy dudes ASS.
Sorry, but being a MAN means you've out grown this kind of childish name
calling. And YOU are not NEARLY man enough for me. You are WAY too
imature for me. Go back to your sandbox little boy, I like MEN!
>
> Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
> Before you buy.
>
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.
------------------------------
From: "Andy Locke" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Crossposted-To:
comp.os.ms-windows.advocacy,comp.os.ms-windows.nt.advocacy,alt.fan.bill-gates,comp.os.ms-windows.nt.advocacy
Subject: Re: Microsoft: STAY THE FUCK OFF THE NET!!!
Date: Fri, 5 May 2000 02:27:29 +0100
What were you 'fixing' exactly....???
<snip>
How it works
Security experts at F-Secure have analyzed the virus thoroughly. Users
usually get an e-mail, sometimes from someone they know, asking them to
check the attached "Love Letter." That file is a VisualBasic script, which
contains the virus payload. As long as the user deletes the e-mail without
opening the attachment, their computer is safe from harm. Once a computer is
infected, the virus transmit itself through e-mail using Outlook's address
book.
"What makes this virus so much more aggressive than Melissa is that this
virus sends copies to all the addresses, whilst Melissa only sent copies to
the first 50 addresses," Fagerland said.
The virus can also travel through the Internet Relay Chat client mIRC,
according to F-Secure, which has analyzed the malicious code.
Unlike the "Melissa" virus, which traveled in a similar fashion, "ILOVEYOU,"
also known as the Love Letter worm, is more destructive. First, it copies
itself to two critical system directories and adds triggers in the Windows
registry. This ensures that it's running every time the computer reboots.
The virus then starts affecting data files. Files associated with Web
development, including ".js" and ".css" files, will be overwritten with a
file in the VisualBasic programming language. The original file is deleted.
It also goes after multimedia files, affecting JPEGs and MP3s. Again, it
deletes the original file and overwrites it with a VisualBasic file with a
similar name.
<snip>
As you seem to be so anti-MS why not get your relatives to use Linux or
MAC...?? Surely this would save you the trouble of 'fixing' their
machines...
:-)
Andy
butch <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]...
>
> http://cnn.com/2000/TECH/computing/05/04/iloveyou.02/index.html
>
> Microsoft is a FUCKING NETWORK VIRUS! Microsoft has no business
> being involved with the Internet!
>
> Bill FUCKIN' Gates, go back to making interavtive CD-ROMS. The
> Internet does not need your virusware!
>
> Shit man, how many more relatives computers do I have to keep
> fixing because of the Microsoft virus of the fucking week!???
>
> This shit is getting old!
>
> Microsoft: STAY THE FUCK OFF THE NET!!!
>
>
> -*- butch -*-
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
------------------------------
From: Mike Marion <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Crossposted-To: comp.os.ms-windows.nt.advocacy
Subject: Re: Call me Paranoid - Re: What else is hidden in MS code???
Date: Fri, 05 May 2000 01:29:23 GMT
Erik Funkenbusch wrote:
> > I'm hoping that the manufacturers can salvage the drive, but
> > this was one nasty buggy. Not only did it cost me $6000 in
> > billable time (spent trying to rebuild the disk then waiting for
> > a replacement to be shipped via overnight), it also put my client
> > in a bind.
>
> Sounds like you're at fault for not making backups.
Maybe I read what he wrote wrong, but he never said he didn't have backups. I
read it as wanting to salvage data to find what caused it, and then having to
pay to get a replacement drive ASAP. He might've done a restore shortly after
that. Besides, the client might've been willing to pay more to get any data
that was saved since the last backup (whether the backup was the night before, a
week ago, month, etc..).
--
Mike Marion - Unix SysAdmin/Engineer, Qualcomm Inc.
"But these are not inherent flaws in the operating system - they don't
happen by accident." - Mike Nash, "Director of Microsoft's Infrastructure
Systems" explaining why NT has so many patches to fix crashes caused by
malicious net users.
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Linux to destroy Microsoft.
From: dakota <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Crossposted-To: comp.os.ms-windows.nt.advocacy,comp.lang.java.advocacy
Date: Thu, 04 May 2000 18:29:23 -0700
In article <8ed2mv$84c$[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, "Chad Myers"
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>Nor does he want the prize. He's a capitalist, not a
>communist, he simply wants to make money and be
>successful like any other red blooded American.
I wouldn't call him a capitalist or a communist, he's more like a
tyrant or a dictator. Look at the way M$ trys to proprietize the
internet.
>
>> After all, you have to actually help people to
>> be awarded the prize.
True.
>
>Of course, Gates just wanted to make a good product,
>sell lots of it and make money and be successful.
This may have been what he wanted but the only two he has done so
far is sell lots of shitty software and make a fortune off of
unsuspecting windows users.
>
>Linus just wants to take over the world as part of his
>master plan.
If Linus wants to take over the world that's fine with me, at
least he knows what "standards" means.
He seems bent on destroying Microsoft and
>indoctrinating all his croonies to do the same.
Good. Some people don't want to live in Gates' "perfect little
microsoft world".
>
>Simply look at the subject of this topic to see how
>ludicrous and diabolical it is.
>
MMMUUUWHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
This isn't some vast conspiracy against Gates' and his dream
world were every computer runs M$ products. Some people such as
Linux/UNIX users strive for more quality, stability & security, I
for one am sick and tired of M$. We just get mad when we're
oppressed by M$'s proprietary ways. I think its sad that most
windows users have been duped into thinking that the ONLY OS for
x86 hardware is Windows.
* Sent from RemarQ http://www.remarq.com The Internet's Discussion Network *
The fastest and easiest way to search and participate in Usenet - Free!
------------------------------
From: "Erik Funkenbusch" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Crossposted-To: comp.os.ms-windows.nt.advocacy
Subject: Re: What else is hidden in MS code???
Date: Thu, 4 May 2000 20:44:28 -0500
Rob S. Wolfram <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]...
> Erik Funkenbusch <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> >
> >Hard disk serial numbers are not guaranteed to be unique. Two hard disks
> >can exist with the same ID. It's unlikely, but it can happen. And since
> >components that use them can be shipped all over the world, the odds of a
> >clash are even higher. Random numbers are not guaranteed to be unique
> >either. It's possible for two systems to generate the exact same random
> >number. Again, not likely, but possible. MAC addresses are guaranteed
by
> >the IEEE to be unique.
>
> I'll bet you a year's salary that I can come up with two distinct
> ethernet cards with the same MAC address. Wanna play?
If this is the case, then one of the ethernet card vendors is not playing by
the rules.
------------------------------
From: "Erik Funkenbusch" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: Re: Virus on the net?
Date: Thu, 4 May 2000 20:45:36 -0500
Bastian <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]...
> On Thu, 4 May 2000 16:01:56 -0500, Erik Funkenbusch wrote:
> >> What alias list do you mean?
> >
> >depends on what mail program they're using. But common mail programs
such
> >as Elm or Pine have well known and common names for their mail aliases.
>
> That's the strength of Linux: there isn't one commonly used mail
> client that's part of the OS. I use mutt and/or balsa, other people
> might use NS, elm, pine and many others. The alias list is defined
> for each mail client in its own config file. That's why a Linux
> Loveletter worm wouldn't be spread very fast and effectively.
A simple grep of the users home directory won't care what the files are
named.
------------------------------
From: "Erik Funkenbusch" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: Re: Virus on the net?
Date: Thu, 4 May 2000 20:53:09 -0500
Brian Langenberger <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:8esqr0$1ut$[EMAIL PROTECTED]...
> :> : No, but there's a mail aliases list in the users home directory that
> : could
> :> : easily be read.
> :>
> :> There is? Where? Surely you don't mean .aliases
>
> : Oh, of course, you keep all your email aliases in your head.
>
> I'll pretend you're not trying to assert that mail addresses
> are kept in .aliases. Where should a would-be attacker look
> for stored addresses? Should it try .addresses that pine
> uses? Maybe parse out the .muttrc and find the arbitrarily
> named address files within? .elmrc perhaps? Grepping the
> home directory for the @ symbol could take a very long
> time before anything is found and even then is no guarantee
> of finding anything. And hunting through the mail spool
> for addresses or finding stored messages in the user's account
> can take even longer.
Most users don't have a lot in their home directory, and most configuration
files begin with a dot.
greping for the @ symbol may produce false positives, but it will also
produce true positives. The virus doesn't care, it just emails everything
it finds, some will bounce, some won't.. the damage will be done.
> That's an awful lot of work for a shell script.
Not really. It could be done a few short lines.
> : Sorry, but this virus is *NOT* run automatically. It's only run by
> : executing the script attachment. The user must physicall execute the
file.
>
> Early reports stated viewing the message in the preview panel is
> enough to launch the script. This has since been proven false.
> Yet the problem persists. Why is this? Are people really this
> stupid? I don't think so. The problem is still one of
> auto-executing content. People click on something in their
> email expecting data and an program executes in its place.
> Not only does it hide and overwrite files, but it has the
> ability to mangle the entire system!
Auto-executing content is part of what makes windows user friendly, and
Linux will have to do this if it ever wants to play in the same game as
Windows. That's simply a fact. Users won't put up with it when they have
an OS which will do that for them.
> In this case, a little bit a consious thought (like actually
> having to save the file to disk first) could've saved a lot
> of grief. Another safeguard would be some actual system
> security beyond the "any app can do anything" approach
> of consumer-grade Windows.
Security is not much of an issue here. Chances are, a user on a workstation
will have write access to most data files on his machine. And may or may
not have access to files on a server. The same is true of Windows, since
network resources can be restricted.
> But until people on the street start getting more proactive
> towards security (like demanding a standard installer program
> that can check digital signatures prior to installation - ala RPM,
> for example) these sorts of attacks will continue to occur.
> So far, people still aren't sick enough of Melissa and ILOVEYOU
> to change their attitude. I wonder how much more it'll take.
The windows installer in Windows 2000 (which also will be part of Millennium
and is useable in 95 and 98) does check signatures and other things.
------------------------------
From: Bart Oldeman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: Re: Linux NFS is buggy
Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Date: Fri, 5 May 2000 00:55:07 GMT
On Thu, 4 May 2000 [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> I am not taking your post personally, I react strongly to anyone that
> would take a problem with something like NFS's poor standards (ON ALL
> PLATFORMS) and label it as a Linux ONLY problem. It is a problem with
> the current implementation of NFS, period. It is unlikely that Linux
> developers could fix the problem WITHOUT becoming incompatible with the
> CURRENT NFS standards. Linux NFS compling with current standards (BROKEN
> OR NOT) does NOT make Linux NFS buggy. If there is something wrong with
> the STANDARD, there is something worng with the STANDARD, not the
> software that is standard compliant.
>
>
> To fix this NFS problem, the NFS STANDARD must be changed, THEN linux
> NFS must be changed to meet the new STANDARD.
Fair enough. It was not my intention to state and label it as a Linux
only problem. You are right in stating that the subject does not cover the
contents in this way, as is not unusual in UseNet.
Bart
------------------------------
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Re: Dinosaur Eat Blue Penguin?
Date: Fri, 05 May 2000 01:42:04 GMT
In article <CamQ4.505$[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,
"ax" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:8enu65$eip$[EMAIL PROTECTED]...
> > In article <27FO4.777$[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,
> > "ax" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> > > People are chatting about what the two new Microsoft Dinosaur will
do.
> > One
> > > speculation I heard is that Windows' Dinosaur will buy out Corel
to
> > pick
> > > fight with its twin Office Dinosaur. Is this just a speculation?
Any
> > > rationale behind it?
> > >
> > > If Dinosaur likes to eat Penguin, why it choose PERFECTly DRAWn
blue
> > one
> > > instead of the Red?
> >
> > No, no, no. What would be _really_ interesting is if Corel or Red
Hat
> > bought one of the baby Bills. Now that _would_ be something to get
all
> > worked up about.
> >
>
> Corel is running out of cash and Red Hat is in "Red" in its name.
> They don't have deep pockets to buy any one of the baby Bills.
> If anyone wants to collect more Penguins, Corel is cheap now.
>
Considering the creative accounting that MSFT uses, it may all boil down
to whose worthlesss stock is printed on the heaviest paper....
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.
------------------------------
From: Mike Marion <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Crossposted-To: comp.os.ms-windows.nt.advocacy
Subject: Re: What else is hidden in MS code???
Date: Fri, 05 May 2000 01:56:49 GMT
Erik Funkenbusch wrote:
> For instance, the claims of MS embedding a GUID in order to violate your
> privacy are grossly exagerated. The GUID was there as a way to uniquely
> identify documents for indexing, but it was later discovered that since the
> GUID has the MAC address of the machine it was generated on embedded in it,
> this could be used to trace the origin of the machine the document was
> created on. This was a side-effect and not an intended purpose. Microsoft
> also quickly moved to solve the problem once it was identified.
They just happened to pick MAC addrs, which are one of the most unique
identfiers for computers, to aid in indexing?!? I don't buy that.
If it were true, why did they "fix it" once found out.. why not just state what
it was for?
> I might also mention that Microsoft did not invent the use of MAC's in
> unique identifiers. The OSF did when they created RPC.
Ah yes, but RPC is designed to do calls (hence R standing for Remote) amongst
different machines on a network. In that case using the MAC makes sense.
--
Mike Marion - Unix SysAdmin/Engineer, Qualcomm Inc.
Whoever came up with the idea of sending email as HTML should be shot,
hung, drowned, poisoned, eviscerated, decapitated, drawn and quartered,
burned at the stake, impaled, crushed, flayed, asphyxiated, and sodomized
with a three-foot-long, foot-diameter jagged, red-hot poker. All at the
same time.
------------------------------
Crossposted-To: alt.lang.basic,alt.destroy.microsoft
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (Rico)
Subject: Re: QB 4.5 in Win 2000
Date: Fri, 05 May 2000 02:03:10 GMT
In article <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, [EMAIL PROTECTED]
mentioned:
>On Thu, 04 May 2000 23:05:16 GMT, in alt.destroy.microsoft,
>Rico <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
>| I'm missing your problem here, if you want to stick to a particular
>| version of a product, buy an open license. Then if MS stops selling, so
>| what, buy a new computer in what ever year you pick, install from the same
>| old CD you installed every other copy in the office from. Better still
>| stick the CD in the CD server and log the 'new' PC into the lan and run
>| the install script. Let 3Com and cat5 wiring do the work.
>|
>| For an individual, as you upgrade computers, just install your original
>| license on the new machine.
>
>But if the new computer isn't a replacment? Now you have two
>computers and one Office 5 license. What do you do?
Open license
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Virus on the net?
From: dakota <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Date: Thu, 04 May 2000 19:06:31 -0700
>Linux-machines can be affected, but only indirectly, for
instance by
>- exporting writable samba shares to Windows-machines. ILOVEYOU
can
> destroy files on those shares
>- using wine to execute Outlook (if it works) and set it up in a
way that
> damage can be done (but I can't imagine anyone being this
silly).
>
Your forgetting something, Linux machines can also be affected by
all those crashed exchange servers that can't seem to handle more
than a few hundred emails at once (they won't receive any
email).
* Sent from RemarQ http://www.remarq.com The Internet's Discussion Network *
The fastest and easiest way to search and participate in Usenet - Free!
------------------------------
From: "Erik Funkenbusch" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Crossposted-To: comp.os.ms-windows.nt.advocacy
Subject: Re: What else is hidden in MS code???
Date: Thu, 4 May 2000 21:14:46 -0500
Mike Marion <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]...
> Erik Funkenbusch wrote:
>
> > For instance, the claims of MS embedding a GUID in order to violate your
> > privacy are grossly exagerated. The GUID was there as a way to uniquely
> > identify documents for indexing, but it was later discovered that since
the
> > GUID has the MAC address of the machine it was generated on embedded in
it,
> > this could be used to trace the origin of the machine the document was
> > created on. This was a side-effect and not an intended purpose.
Microsoft
> > also quickly moved to solve the problem once it was identified.
>
> They just happened to pick MAC addrs, which are one of the most unique
> identfiers for computers, to aid in indexing?!? I don't buy that.
No, they picked GUID's. And GUID's have embedded MAC addresses. GUID's
were developed by the Open Software Foundation for use with DCE RPC. They
are guaranteed to be unique if they are generated on machines with IEEE
validated NICs. There is no other stand-alone mechanism to guarantee a
unique number on PC hardware.
> If it were true, why did they "fix it" once found out.. why not just state
what
> it was for?
Because it was discovered to be a privacy risk.
> > I might also mention that Microsoft did not invent the use of MAC's in
> > unique identifiers. The OSF did when they created RPC.
>
> Ah yes, but RPC is designed to do calls (hence R standing for Remote)
amongst
> different machines on a network. In that case using the MAC makes sense.
You have to understand how commonplace GUID's are in the Windows OS. They
are used for virtually everything, especially COM related (which uses RPC
for distributed networking). It's so commonplace that the OS will generate
GUID's for you by calling a simple API. Thus, if you want globally unique
numbers, use a GUID.
------------------------------
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