Re: Family tech support

[Drsolly <drsollyp () drsolly com>]

On Sun, 29 Nov 2009 peter () ixp jp wrote:

> On Sun, Nov 29, 2009 at 01:12:25PM +0000, Drsolly wrote:
> > Daughter.1 has picked up a nasty, that wants her to pay for an antivirus, 
> > and keeps nagging at her. She already had Norton, but that doesn't seem to 
> > want to know. I don't know if she's updated it - probably not.
>
>       Congratulations. All my daughter.1 picks up is a cold.
>
>       Modern viruses seem to take down the antivirus first. Much like
>       real life.
>  
> > I didn't fancy wrestling with the malware to try to remove it, or go back 
> > to some previous checkpoint (there probably isn't one).
> > I offered her two solutions.
>  
> > 1) reinstall XP. She doesn't have the CDs (I don't think they came with 
> > the computer). I suspect you can't buy XP now. Vista will cost her about a 
> > hundred pounds, and then she'll need to buy a new word processor, I'd 
> > guess. Probably another hundred or two. 
>
>       You can buy it still, avoid vista and install W7 instead. 
>       use open office for a word processor.
>
>       If you were nearer, I'd GIVE you my copy of VISTA ultimate, never
>       been used, never will be.
>
>       If it's a wimpy laptop, get more memory. You can never have enough
>       memory when opera slowly bloats to 1.3gb (yet process exploder says
>       its only using 130mb...) My laptop when I worked at MSN had XP running
>       (I use the word loosely) in 256mb of ram. I could use 1 application at
>       a time and cannot possibly think of anything nice to say about OneNote.
>
>       [I did peering for MSN Asia and the UK for half a year back in 200x?]
>
>  
> > 2) I install Linux. Zero cost, and she most likely won't ever see another 
> > malware. It's a no-brainer, really.
>
>       Only until you realise that you can count the number of useful
>       productive programs on linux on thumbs on your left foot.

She uses a browser and a WP. Both of those are useful and productive.
 
>       For that matter, linux has no decent games at all. No incentive there.

She doesn't play games. Well, not on her computer, anyway.
 
>       Toss in all that in your face advocacy and they are doing themselves
>       no favours. Mentioning no names, Firefox.

No advocacy needed. I just don't want to have to do all that tech support 
that Windows seems to need. 
  
> > Do the folks at MS realise what this is doing to them?
>
>       They are probably laughing. Linux is the token opposition. Like
>       the green party only not as entertaining. They provide entertainment
>       for the evil overlords on those boring nights when rain stops play.

Still, they've lost one customer. No, two - I moved ladysolly to Linux a 
few months ago.

_______________________________________________
Fun and Misc security discussion for OT posts.
https://linuxbox.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/funsec
Note: funsec is a public and open mailing list.