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I disagree. I've been online slightly more than 15 years and I've had a total of 2 viruses in that entire time. I don't run a firewall, I don't run a virus scanner, and I don't always run Linux. I do, however, practice security:

1) I don't open any attachments until I confirm with the sender that they intended to send it. If it's from am unknown source, I don't open it at all.

2)I don't browse unknown websites from Usenet or IRC or email. If a friend of mine automessages me on IRC with a website I confirm if they intended to send it.

3)I keep the preview pane in Outlook turned OFF. Recently, I've moved totally away from Outlook and Outlook Express and use PC-PINE on Windows exclusively or Evolution on Linux.

4) I keep IE's security settings for the Internet zone to medium and sometimes high.

5) I keep Windows patched.

Some of you might disregard this. But I think the fact that I've gotten 2 viruses in 15 years is a pretty good track record. Both times were when I was 14 and both times were from a friends disk.

The firewall and antivirus industries, IMHO are a moneymaking scam. If you practice good security there really is no need for either of those.

Anthony
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I think that, as an OS, Linux is completely ready for the desktop and even has enough consumer ready applications to satisfy the average desktop user who does things like email, surf the web, a few file transfers, etc. But the main problems with Linux have less to do with the availability of application than it does to do with the availablillity of specific commercial applications on the platform. Users don't like having to learn new things. Making the jump from Windows to Linux is a big change in their lives then they are told "Oh, by the way: few of the applications you've used for the past 15 years will be available to you on Linux. You'll have to learn the alternatives". In many cases, those alternatives are just as good or nearly as good as their Windows counterparts. But it's still having to learn something new.

I don't think we're going to really see the "year of desktop Linux" until 1) More Windows-centric vendors begin releasing Linux versions of their software so the transition is eased, 2) There is more parity between Linux distro's, or 3) Open Source developers stop the "I'm developing to scratch my own itch" type of thinking and start thinking about enhancing the community as a whole and writing software because it needs to be written even if they don't have a stake in it. Then, I believe we will start to see widespread adoption of Linux at the consumer level. But it's going to take a little while. We own the server. We're reaching the desktop.

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I don't quite understand why it's so hard for YOU to understand this issue. Modding equipment doesn't take away the ability of the manufacturer to make money off of their product. It actually EXPANDS it. Hasbro can continue to make their kids content and market it to kids (that is their market you know). But by allowing it to be modded they are opening up a new sales channel: Adults who want to play specialized content. So now they have people buying the unit for kids but you also have other adults -- MILLIONS of CHILDLESS adults who wouldn't buy this otherwise -- buying it because they can mod it to play their own content.

This particular project isn't going to be something that's going to have earthshaking implications for anyone. But the freedom to tinker with the equipment we buy actually helps the manufacturers. They just need to realize that.

Tux

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Why would anyone assume or even suspect that the ISP's or other networks would be involved in this attack? It's silly to believe that reputable businesses would deliberately put themselves in line for criminal prosecution just because they're ticked off at the blacklists. There is just too much the stand to lose by participating in such an attack.

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1) Encrypt everything and place everything on a WAN that is not connected to the outside world.

2) Generate a unique/random PIN for each voter at the moment they walk into the polling station. Lock out that name/SSN from any further votes once a vote has been cast.

3) Utilize a small in-station camera that can be matched against a vote in case of alledged fraud.

While I know that item #3 will cause some privacy concerns, all image data could would be removed once the polling station closes.

Tux
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