Visual Studio .Net: Now with more Viruses

News.com breaks the story (and 8000 readers submit) that Microsoft distributed Nimda-infected copies of Visual Studio .Net in Korea. I don't even know what to say here; nothing seems adequate, except to point out that "trustworthy computing" does not seem to have had any effect whatsoever. News.com just updated their story to point out that it probably won't infect the people who installed Visual Studio .Net, but it's still a rather nasty faux pas for a company that's supposed to be cleaning up its act.

Comments

MS VIOLATES GPL!!!

[Anonymous Coward]

To:Microsoft Corporation
From:IANAL Lawfirms, on behalf of the Free Software Foundation
Re:Infringement of copyright under terms specified in GNU General Public License

Dear Sir/Madam:

This firm represents the Free Software Foundation of Cambridge, MA. It has come to our attention that your organization is violating copyrights retained by our client through the terms of the GNU General Public License (GPL). The GPL permits developers and companies the ability to freely publish program source code alongside execuatable computer applications. Other developers and companies may use code obtained under terms specified in the GPL to add enhancements or for use in their own programs, provided the program itself is made available under the terms of the GPL.

It has come to our attention that numerous computer applications (listed below) developed and distributed by your organization, Microsoft Corporation of Redmond, WA, is in violation of copyright and the GPL through the use of GPL licensed code developed and distributed by the Free Software Foundation. Specific violations are listed below.

Under terms of the GPL and terms listed in United States Copyright Law, this firm demands immediate cease and desist of distribution of the listed programs until the specific violations are removed. Alternatively, publishing of the products on your corporate Internet website, http://www.microsoft.com/, completed to abide by terms of the GPL will be acceptable.

It should be noted this notice is being served to the open and free source software community via the website SlashDot.org for their input into the matter.

Please expect immediate action following notice of this blantant copyright violation and blatant violation of the terms of the GPL.

Sincerely,

Anonymous Coward
Attorney of Intellectual Property and Copyright,
IANAL Lawfirms

Terms of the GNU General Public License: http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.txt

List of products (non-exhaustive):

• Windows 98, 98SE, ME, 2000, XP (all editions)
• Office 97, 98, 2000, X, XP (all editions)
• Internet Explorer (all versions)
• Windows Media Player (all versions)
• Internet Information Server (all versions/editions)
• MSN Messenger (all versions)
• Visual Studio (all versions/editions)

List of violations (present in each product listed above):

• Use of the following at the start of each program: int main(int argc, char** argv)
• Use of the semicolon character at the end of each program line: ;
• Use of the following at the end of each function: return
• Use of the following in numerous instances in each program: while
• Use of the following in numerous instances in each program: for
• Use of the following in numerous instances at the top of each source file: #include
• Use of the following function: strcpy

Virus day?

[Anonymous Coward]

What's with slashdot today?

On the same day, we have a story about how virus makers hype threats, then they do it themselves!

Re:Virus day?

[goldspider]

They must have realized how well it's worked for McAfee and Symantec and decided to give it a go themselves :)

Re:What... the... hell....

[Buck2]

What kind of fucktard are you?

Verizon Guy?

Are you getting paid for this?

Re:Not to mention that

[Anonymous Coward]

LOL!!!!!! Hahahahahaha

LINUX RULES! WINDOWS IS A VIRUS!

Hahahahahaha
Hahahahahaha
Hahahahahaha

Speechless...

[peterdaly]

I have never seen so many one or two liner post after a slashdot article.

This may be the first time Slashdot readers are left speechless.

-Pete

Movin' High-Tech to India!

[Anonymous Coward]

.

"Despite decades of social change, the general perception remains that technical workers, scientists, and engineers are unusually intelligent white men who are socially inept, absent-minded nerds."

Re:Give it a rest

[MullerMn]

Of course, that's a problem with the Linux crowd. Feer of being, and being seen as, professional.

That's not something you'll have to worry about with spelling like that.

Yeah, I know. Spelling flames are the lowest form of internet wit. Blow me.

Re:Microsoft should be applauded for this

[rector]

The code of the Visual Studio is a separate peice of software under a different license. The only thing that would be GPL'd is the help files produced during localization.

Re:Microsoft should be applauded for this

[Amazing Quantum Man]

Sorry, rector, obviously I forgot the SARCASM tags.

What I posted was essentially parroting the MS anti-GPL FUD.

Re:..And in other news

[rector]

If you kill one person, you are a criminal. If you kill 1,000,000 people, you are a hero.

Re:Not entirely Microsoft's fault

[namespan]

You Eat Dog Now

Actually, in Korea, they do eat dog. Animal rights activists are consistently agitated over it.

If the reports are true that say they believe that beating the animal to a very painful and panicked death improves the flavor, I'm actually inclined to agree for once.

Re:Not entirely Microsoft's fault

[chris_mahan]

Oh, I know, that's why I put it there.

They also fornicate, as far as I can tell.

The bit about the dog: Oh well. You think that the cats, rats, and other such rodents that dogs kill don't die a very painful and panicked death?

It's the Circle of Life.

I actually think that one of the biggest reason the instinct of self preservation is so strong is because death is painful and panicked most of the time. And the instinct of self-preservation is really important for the long-term survival and evolution of a specie.

How did I get so off-topic so fast?

I've been hammered by these

[WillSeattle]

Some of my web pages have pacific keywords, so I've bounced more than my fair share of these to the FTC and other spam and abuse websites.

Sigh.

Friends don't let friends use Holey OS's.

-

Re:I've been hammered by these

[talks_to_birds]

• "Some of my web pages have pacific keywords, so I've bounced more than my fair share of these to the FTC and other spam and abuse websites."

Excuse me? What?

t_t_b

What a treat

[tagevm]

Great! Another Microsoft+virus story, I don't know why I bothered reading comments about this one, as always in these stories the first 20 highest rated stories are more or less obvious jokes about Microsoft and (lack of) security. Could we please have a separate rating system that gives more credit to interesting comments...

Win is a Virus

[Glanz]

Well, considering that Windows itself is a virus, I am not surprised........ This is just one more thumbtack in the MS user's cell padding......