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Running Windows Viruses Under Linux
ResQuad writes "Everyone loves Windows viruses, right? Well, the crazy people over at NewsForge (owned by the same people that own Slashdot) decided to try running Windows viruses with Wine. So next time you receive an email virus, strike up Wine and see what you can do (or not)."
Will this run on a Lexus?
Oh my god, how many times do we have to say it? People, running Windows software under WINE is not a solution. I say all Slashdotters should boycott these software vendors until we get a serious commitment from them to do true, native Linux ports of their products.
And for that matter, why aren't their open source alternatives to this software already? The open source community won't stay competitive by resting on its laurels.
Breakfast served all day!
Brilliant work guys!
When things get complex, multiply by the complex conjugate.
Programmers these days, don't they even CARE about cross-platform compatability!?
This is one of the reasons why Linux has a hard time to catch up with Windows. Viruses are one of the Windows applications that need to be ported to Linux.
Someone finally found some use for WINE...
Its nice to see someone finally exploited this long missing aspect of linux. What better way to make a windozer user feel more at home than with their old virus friends.
Nice article, and congrats matt on your first article.
-Craig
Solitare. It's the only game I care about.
"Who are in control, they are not in control of anything - they don't even control themselves!" - Glen Beck
The wine developers get a non-compliance notice from Bill forcing them to comply??
Now, how can you claim full compliance unless you run my viruses too..goddamn it!!
Rapid Nirvana
I run Linux on my desktop and I was feeling a bit left out.
I run Windows spyware under Wine. I also emulate IE6 so I can use CoolWebSearch and other cool searchbars! I have this cute Bonzi Buddy and a system tray icon which tells me the weather!
...to stop Wine-ing
Geeze!
It's such a fine line between stupid and clever.
What would RMS say?
Is that virus Free Software?
LedgerSMB: Open source Accounting/ERP
Though it's good to know that WINE will do what it's supposed to do--execute code written for Windows, it's kinda silly to think it wouldn't.
/ to see what happens!"
Maybe they'll post a story about, "Why do dumb users get to have all the fun? Why shouldn't Linux admins get in on all the insanity, too? Today we'll be doing rm -rf
Let's not go to Camelot. 'Tis a silly place..."
I might know what I'm talkin' about, but then again, this is Slashdot...
Solitare. It's the only game I care about.
...but obviously not enough to spell it correctly.
This article ran fine under firefox and delivered interesting content. The methodology was fundimentally flawed as viruses use obscure problems in Windows. Nevertheless, I'll give this article four meta-penguins, for a score of 4/5.
Since when has this country used intellectual elite as a pejorative term?
I can believe all the people complaining that this is a waste of time. Don't you know how much FUN viruses can be?
Take Magistr: I'd spend HOURS chasing my icons all over the desktop. Or what about the one that would crash my system every time I shot a rocket into a wall in Quake 2 (I'm not joking, I really had one that did this)?
Come on, this is quality entertainment!
"Sometimes you have fun, and sometimes the fun has you"
Whine is Hazardous, even If Not and Emulator
"Flyin' in just a sweet place,
Never been known to fail..."
Mod parent up Informative. Mod this post Funny.
Not necessarily... it might be a wooden witch...
"Faith: Belief without evidence in what is told by one who speaks without knowledge, of things without parallel." - A.B.
Obviously work is still needed on Wine to make it more Windows compatible :-)
Yup, I run VPC on my Mac; I *only* fire it up to double-check website code on IE for compatibility, then shut it down again. Don't do ANYTHING else with it.
Today, out of curiousity, I installed AdAware and ran it through. Sure enough, at least 19 spyware doo-dads scattered around.
Jeeezus...I know I'm biased as a Mac guy, but Windows has truly become COMPLETELY toxic at this point; it's like plutonium, infecting *anything* that it comes near.
Yes
Hello, fellow Slashdotters,
I use Microsoft Windows XP, Professional Edition, Service Pack 2; yet my computer is missing the viruses mentioned in this article. Where did I go wrong? My Web browser is Mozilla Firefox 1.0, and my e-mail client is Mozilla Thunderbird 1.0. Should I change these? Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 SP-2 is resident on my computer for testing my websites in this popular program. Should I browse more freely with it? I prefer to use open-source-licensed software on my computer when possible (except the OS itself, although I do have an underutilized Debian partition). Should I start downloading random programs without being sure they do not contain any kind of malware?
I just want to get along better with my fellow Windows users! Please, help!
On vit, on code et puis on meurt.
I suspect I may have a virus on my Linux system. The other day I switched the computer on, and it took a very long time to boot - and kept spewing out all this cryptic text as it did. After I logged in, I noticed that my desktop menu had a lot of strange, poorly documented programs in it, some of which didn't seem to do anything useful. The configuration system was strangely flakey, popping up tabbed windows that wouldn't go away when I clicked on other options. Various programs worked partially, but in some of them the clipboard didn't work properly and in others the windows widgets and controls looked wrong. A few would randomly open shell windows when I tried running them, even though they were GUI programs. The windows theming/skinning system worked partially, at best. I tried running a graphics program, but it just opened up lots of windows all over the screen and I couldn't get it to do anything reasonable, so I gave up. I suspect it was the cause of the virus infection, in fact, because it was called some insulting and childish name that had nothing to do with Graphics or Image Manipulation Programs or anything else. Oh, and there's this picture that shows up everywhere, of some kind of anatomically improbable cartoon bird with an eating disorder, which is either a symptom of virus infection or else a failed attempt at coordinated branding by a lot of uncoordinated programmers.
In general, my Linux system seems to be totally hosed. I think I'll go back to Windows.
I have discovered a truly remarkable
That statement is illegal under the DMCA. Prepare to be sued. And no, there aren't.
Yours, the RIAA.
Free as in mason.
Don't mod this post, nor any further replies.
Which ironically is probably an insightful solution to this rediculous runaway thread. Damn geek metahumor.
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- - You can't take something off the Internet! That's like trying to take pee out of a swimming pool.