ESR's Halloween XI -- Get the FUD

dave writes "In the newest Halloween Document (mirror), Eric Raymond analyzes Microsoft's 'Get The Facts' road show. The anti-Linux arguments they are using now -- and, even more, the arguments they're *not* using -- reveal how desperate Microsoft is getting. He explains why he thinks we need to focus more on government adoptions, and predicts serious ugliness during the next year."

Comments

Hey, FUD-packer.

[numbski]

Let's pretend Linux DOES have that kind of userbase. You play the clueless user, I'll play the malicious h4xx0r.

I'm going to write up a painfullly malicious script that executes when you view an e-mail.

What, that's not possible? Okay...uh...

You're a pretty dumb user, and I'll name the file Brittney\ Spears\ Nekkid.jpg.sh.

So you double click the file, and it launches. You're a plain old user.

rm -rf /

Oops. Didn't work. Why not? No permissions.

rm -rf ~

Now that might, but I want to think that launching a shell script from an e-mail attachment has some sort of protections on linux. Right?

right?

Okay, so my argument is full of holes. Sue me. :P

Re:Hey, FUD-packer.

[Enry]

So what do the people start doing? Logging in as root. That's right, they will ignore the fact that we have users (like they do w/Windows, no one wants to be anything but the administrator) and they will run everything as root.

Uhm. OS X already does this. As a normal user, you don't have write access to larger parts of the filesystem. To install applications or update the system, you have to give a password, which is then sent to sudo.

Under Windows, there's no easy way to go from "joe user" to "super user", so everyone stays as "super user". Linux and OS X make it pretty easy for the user to upgrade their priveleges temporarily.

Re:Hey, FUD-packer.

[general_re]

Under Windows, there's no easy way to go from "joe user" to "super user"...

Sure there is, but few people take advantage of it or understand why it's a good idea - runas /user:user_name program_name, where user_name is the local administrator. Enter the password and away you go. If you have a proggy that you regularly need to run with admin privs, create a shortcut and pull up the properties sheet for the shortcut - check the box marked "Run as different user". Enter the username and pw when prompted, and away you go.

Anyway, the point is, people who are confused by this, who don't understand it and why it's not a good idea to not run as root all the time, they are not suddenly going to grok the mysteries of sudo when switching to some other OS. People who are clueless will not become clueful just by switching wallpapers on them - unless and until people are better educated in safe computing practices, nothing is really going to change.

M$ vs. Linux "Roadshow"

[BigBadBus]

A friend at work attended one of these Linux vs. M$ roadshows in the UK a few weeks back. These are the basic points:

The basic messages about selecting MS/Linux for a system are governed by the following:
- Don't change for the sake of it
- Take into account what your people know (e.g. Linux possibly better if you have lots of Unix people)
- Much of the cost saving of Linux over Unix comes from hardware - i.e. using Intel over mainframe/AIX/zSeries etc.
- OS/Platform is just a tool - choose the right one for the job
- MS/Linux TCO's are nearly always within 10% for most projects by the time all costs are accounted for (this was from an independent solutions provider)
- Don't just focus on TCO - look at ROI (return on investment)
- MS is pretty well zero-development (no code or scripting)
- The People and Processes are more important than the technical solution
- Check licensing model of any platform (will any Linux development become your IP, or will it be open)
- Linux still does not have a really good desktop and the office suites available are still lagging
- security issues such as virus updates and patch management are more of an administration issue than a platform one
- Easier porting J2EE->.Net than the other way round (i.e. MS ties you in worse!!!)

Re:As always

[vk2]

No need to register.!!

Offer already expired.!! Don't waste your disposable email address.

From the linked page:
Offer good until June 1, 2004 or while supplies last.

Re:ESR, again.

[RLiegh]

Oh, good Lord, you are sniffing glue, right? Microsoft is alive and well., and the only vanilla box you can get for below $350 is a used piece of shit that has Windows ME installed. Get out of your basement, your parents need the space.

Well, strictly looking for new and under $350, I found this at Walmart's site right off the bat. They also have a 2.4gzh one for $398.

I'm sure I could have found even better deals, but I don't really have a lot of time to spend looking (and I'm happy getting a used box from retrobox).

Re:ESR, again.

[Mr_Silver]

What has ESR brought to the Open Source community?

A few things although I agree with you that predicting the future is not his strong point.

Re:ESR, again.

[mirko]

Not sure whether it has been posted here before but here's an interesting point of view on ESR : It's about things he claims and things he obviously has not done : "The Emperor Has No Clothes"

ESR, a factual case is the best case.

[e.m.rainey]

There's lots of compelling arguments in your case here, but I think you could use some edits.

1.) " Like the dog that didn't bark in the night-time, these omissions are significant, because Microsoft marketing is thorough and ruthlessly opportunistic." The first part of this statement is rather confounding. I assume that you mean that that fact that they have dropped these arguments should be indicative of the thoroughness of the marketers.

2.) "Do I even need to point out that most of the factual claims are blatant lies brought to you by the same people who got caught faking video evidence in their Federal antitrust trial?". Unless you can show that the actual forger is at work here, refrain from painting all MS employees with the brush of a criminal. This only serves to undermine your objectivity.

3.) "Hammer them without mercy -- but do it in a quiet, reasonable voice and keep control of the terms of argument. " Do it "ruthlessly" perhaps? This also serves to undermine you credibility as it shows you too are playing the word game. Ruthless is a "charged word" even though it used to mean "without emotion" it implies some bitter, hateful vengence now. You used it to describe MS Marketing before but you don't use it now, but just be consistent. The rest of the statement is good though, stick to the facts and definitions, and keep the argument in your favor.

4.) "...higher Windows TCO is forever" Please quantify "higher" with a number.

5.) "Shared source is a poison pill." Shared Source may be a misnomer but calling it a "posion" pill is just imflamitory.

6.) "Can you explain why Windows IIS websites are cracked or defaced more often than Apache ones, despite the fact that IIS runs less than a third the number of sites Apache does?" Please quantify "more often". Also, attempt to separate this into 2 questions, as the answer will undoubtably be "Hackers hate Windows, hackers attack Windows" which will only be to their advantage because it implies that they are top dog. The top dog is perpetually being challenged. Saying that they are attacked often is handing them the opportunity to say that they are top dog.

Otherwise, this is good article and it's got some great questions for MS PR about the Shared Source == Open Source nonsense.

Re:ESR, again.

[black mariah]

sarcasm
n.

1. A cutting, often ironic remark intended to wound.
2. A form of wit that is marked by the use of sarcastic language and is intended to make its victim the butt of contempt or ridicule.
3. The use of sarcasm. See Synonyms at wit1.

Re:The clueless userbase to propagates the worms.

[Knuckles]

The well respected German computer magazine c't had a spreadsheet shootout a few weeks ago (issue 12/04). Overall, OO.org Calc came out head-to-head with Excel, with particular tasks being easier on one or the other.

Aunt Tillie mods you down

[j1m 5n0w]

what has ESR brought to the Open Source community ?

The Jargon File comes to mind. I owe quite a bit of my knowledge of computer history to its print form, the New Hacker's Dictionary.

He also brought us the infamous Aunt Tillie Builds a Kernel lkml thread.

-jim