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File Extensions And Monopolies

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the stuff-to-think-about dept.

A_Non_Moose sent us an article from Salon that talks about how file extensions are one of the tools used by Microsoft to extend their mind and market share. It's a very simple idea but its honestly something I'd never thought about. Definitely worth a read, and a few neurons to realize how its really the simplest of things that will guarantee that this monopoly isn't stopped even if Microsoft's deep pockets didn't let them buy the law.

2 of 881 comments (clear)

  1. Why hold down shift? by GeekLife.com · · Score: 1, Redundant

    Do you get something cool that I'm missing from holding down shift?

  2. Re:File Extension ".WTC" by TheMidget · · Score: 0, Redundant
    A file appeneded with file extension ".WTC" will crash your system when double clicked...

    This applies to Win32, Linux, and Mac OS...

    USERS BEWARE!!!

    Actually, on Linux, this misfeature is quite easy to disable. In order to crash the system, the extension invokes the program /bin/laden. Simply removing that nasty program makes your system immune against this exploit:

    rm -f /bin/laden