On Fri, 2003-06-13 at 21:00, Kaj Haulrich wrote: > Recently we had a discussion on virus (pluralis : vira). > > Now, returning from a non-networked-one-week-a-time job I > browsed my *usual suspects* and learned that Micro$oft had > purchased RAV, a Romanian Antivirus Company. Accordingly, M$ > would discontinue the antivirus capabilities for Linux. > > Although vira aren't relevant for Linux-users, it seems that > RAV made a business out of providing numerous mailservers with > a virus-filtering tool. In fact : probably the best antivirus > toolkit ever. > > Considering that about 30-40 % of all mailservers runs Linux > and can be presumed to filter out vira nearly 100 %, the > shutdown of these capabilities would increase the virus-load > to about 60-70 % on those unhappy Windows users. > > In short : Is Windows a virus ? > > Kaj Haulrich.
There was a Star Trek Voyager episode one time that chronicled the spread (onboard the ship) of a "macrovirus", which was an organism that started out as a virus but then hijacked the resources of the crew's bodies on the organ level (as opposed to the cellular level) in order to produce mature macroviruses, which then were expelled from the bodies of the crew, and had the power to fly about and travel airborne on their own. From there they would fly around and "bite" other crewmen, thus exacerbating the infection cycle. When I look at Windows, that is basically what it looks like to me; some sort of computer macrovirus that hijacks your system's resources and turns it into a host that's capable of producing or spreading more viruses. Compare this to a "normal" computer system running linux that is NOT capable of hosting or spreading viruses. The latter example is the way that computing was meant to be in the beginning, before Bill Gates threw his contamination across the computing world. The Microsoft philosophies are more hidden than not hidden. The fact that Windows systems have always been vulnerable is not an accident; the idea that a Windows system is or ever has been inherently capable of safeguarding your data is laughable in the extreme. If you realize and accept this then you must also examine the corollary thesis that this was on purpose. Why? Because everything a debugged program does, it does on purpose. A debugged program seldom does something that it was not designed to do. For instance the Linux kernel does not open ports 138 and 139 to the internet every time you connect. Why? Because it was not designed to do that! On the other hand, the Winblows kernel *does* open ports 138 and 139 to the internet every time you connect. Why? Because it was designed to do so. What do they do? They listen for incoming connections, and will accept a properly constructed incoming connect. If a connection is made, the system will not inform you of that fact or further will not tell you what is going on while that connection is in place. WHY? Because the software was not designed to do that. Why? Because obviously the designers did NOT WANT YOU TO KNOW WHAT WAS GOING ON. So, Kaj, in answer to your question; yes, I think that winblows is a virus; albeit a huge one, probably more accurately called a macrovirus. If you really want to get to an accurate anology, the whole winblows macrovirus could most accurately be portrayed as a trojan horse. The reason is because of what a trojan horse does. A trojan masquerades as a program that purports one purpose, but actually has a hidden agenda or agendas. In the case of winblows, it proposes that it will act as a fair, correct, and proper steward of your computing resources AND your data plus applications. In fact it is nothing of the sort and nothing could be further from the truth. It is NOT a proper steward of your computing resources (they are squandered), it is NOT a proper steward of your data (it is shared, corrupted, distributed, or all three simultaneously) and it is NOT a proper steward of your applications (which are prone to crash, either in the middle of a game or application, losing data or savegames). The blatantly corrupt system stewardship is only the icing on the cake, however. The real agenda of the trojan is to gather data and, in so doing, control of a large segment of the world's financial resources. Running your system's resources, playing Quake, and managing your data are only incidental secondary events (or side benefits) that may or may not happen. The real reason Microshaft is squirming so hard when countries like Peru, Brazil, or Germany decide to go Linux is because not only do they lose revenue, but more importantly they lose the data reports that those systems can give. Reports that can include what people are buying, what people are reading, what people are doing. With that "insider trading" information, Microshaft can make investments that are commiserant with that data and thus diversify, widening their financial base and thus their stranglehold. --LX P.S. One more thing. If you were seeking insider trading information from unsuspecting users, would you choose proprietary closed source or would you choose GNU Open Source. And in court, would you willingly hand it over under court order or would you "lose" the source. Think about it. -- 같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같 Kernel 2.4.21-0.13mdk Linux Mandrake 9.1 Enlightenment-0.16.5-12mdk Evolution 1.2.4-1.1mdk Linux User #268899 http://counter.li.org/ 같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같같
Want to buy your Pack or Services from MandrakeSoft? Go to http://www.mandrakestore.com
