OT because this is more about Windows than Linux, but
I think some people might be interested in the environment
comparison.
Holden Hao wrote:
What applications do you have on WinXP? I recall that I had Win98
boxes before that were "stable enough" but the applications installed
were minimal. I guess normal users who do not practice prudence in
the type of software they install in their systems would not have
the same experience as you have.
You can stuff your Windoze PC with as many apps and drivers as
you like, 2K and especially XP, will do a good job of protecting
the system even if you are Administrator (which is essentially what
you want to be running as unless you're a bloody masochist).
I just don't like their automagical way of doing it, since when
things do go wrong (as they almost inevitably will except it just
takes a long time and the impact is usually a lot less crippling
than it used to be on Windows 9x), you are at a loss as to how to
fix it.
You trade off the loss of low-level awareness and control (which
you would have with a proper Linux distro like Slackware, Debian
or Gentoo) with the convenience of an vastly more application-rich
environment and a somewhat prettier, friendlier, more consistent
desktop.
Oh yeah, two more cons of Windoze are you gotta part with a lot of
hard-earned moolah and MS' activation process is a biatch such that
even if you have a legit key, you will often feel that a raped
version is still more convenient to use.
For your 'Doze system to stay stable requires some safe practices
and alterations to the default way of doing things (something I
believe users of 'Window-fied' distros like RedHat and Mandrake
also have to go through to some extent) like:
#1. DON'T use Outlook Express and Internet Exploder. I use
Mozilla and Firefox for all my mail, news, browsing needs. They
are already far ahead of the Microsoft alternatives in terms
of features.
#2. DON'T ever install ActiveX controls unless abso-f*king-lutely
necessary (like if your bank's lame online site requires you to
install an ActiveX plugin). And even then keep in mind what
you allowed to install, so you can track culprits if problems
later arise.
#3. Use a real firewall, not the built-in one - Sygate seems pretty
ok... or even better, use a hardware firewall.
#4. Be conscientious about security patches. With a firewall, you
can get away with not updating for months, but when a virulent
threat comes along that attacks an unpatched exploit on your
machine, you better make sure you don't accidentally turn off
your firewall for even a few seconds.
I have observed it took all of 45 seconds for an unpatched
PC to get attacked with Blaster once it got on the net. Firewall
was up, but I didn't recognize the firewall message for what it was
and accidentally typed yes to an RPC and a TFTP connection request.
I got Blaster infected in an instant, but luckily I recognized it for
what it was and cleanly removed all traces of it within a few
minutes...
#5. I actually believe that an antivirus program is kind of redundant
nowadays. Virtually all virus attacks are from email attachments,
so as long as you're not clueless enough to click on 'em, your
antivirus program will not really be of use.
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