Uh, I have to take the uni's side on this one - they aren't invading your privacy by enforcing network security on their network (key word: their). If you don't like their policies, then ask them to change them. If they don't, then that's their decision, then you should use a different network (like 3G broadband or dial-up).
Also, software like Cisco Clean Access does NOT log keys, report running programs, or even report back anything short of "This PC is clean" (it's a bit like World of Warcraft actually) so I don't know where all that crap about logging passwords and shit is coming from.
The reason the option to uninstall is disabled is because it was installed by the windows update service, which is a very high priviledge account. The account that you use to run FF on the other hand doesn't have equivalent permission so you can't remove it. This is actually a good thing.
That's not actually true. The "Uninstall" option is removed for all global extensions (Java Quick Start is another example of this) not because of the account it was installed with.
Oh bullshit. The file is located in C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\Plugins, just like Java Quick Start. Not in the registry (which is impossible anyway). This is NOT a problem with the way MS Windows is designed, and it's not the responsibility of the operating system to protect third party apps running on it from unauthorised plugin installs anyway.
It's a mistake - that's all. If you read the Google thread you linked to, you'd see that it happens because auto.search.msn.com handles "address bar search" and uses the "prov" parameter to decide where to send it. The new engine doesn't handle the "prov" parameter, which no doubt they'll fix. They're not intentionally hijacking anything. In fact, they're not even hijacking anything!
That's not true in the slightest. Here in NZ, we've had Tim Berners-Lee himself come here just to complain to our government about the state of our broadband. And I don't think Tim Berners-Lee is "noone".
What needs to happen is a app store like application explorer similar to what you see in Linux and mobile phones. It makes finding, buying, (if it's not free) installing, uninstalling and maintaining software simple and easy, as well as a way to seperate the good apps from the bad. As long as it's well regulated and rules are clearly defined, I don't see how it's hurts competition or users.
And just as good for Microsoft, they can make a mint in royalties off all the paid apps through it, like Apple does!
Actually, it sounds like a bit of a win/win to be honest.
Mate, if no one's looking into the record industry's or the petrol industry's price fixing, no one's going to look into Microsoft's. I agree price fixing is bullshit, but you're dreaming if you think anyone's going to do anything about it.
Yes, you can. You can remove IE, but Trident is left behind. Same as if you remove Safari from Mac OS X (by dragging it to the trash), WebKit remains behind for other programs to use. Internet Explorer is not Trident.
No, IE is not Explorer. Internet Explorer is a shell to Trident, same as Firefox is a shell to Gecko, and Safari is a shell to WebKit. Saying IE is Explorer is like saying iTunes is Safari just because it uses WebKit. It's wrong, and disingenious. Stop it.
If you paid attention, you'd see that Microsoft is making major headway in bringing IE up to the standard a browser should be. It finally doesn't choke on valid XHTML/CSS, and even Slashdot looks decent in it!
Microsoft IE is not a monopoly. Stop pretending it is one.
Having a choice as to what search engine to use is more important than you think. People will use the default one which is a big part of how Google got such a large market share.
(Seriusly, have you seen how many things set Google as your homepage/search now? Anything from Adobe to Winzip).
There's a long-winded document describing all the dos and dont's of Ribbon (it's patented, and the license to use it only allows you to do so if you comply strictly with the UI design).
Yes, and one of the "don'ts" is "don't use it to make a word processor or other Office competitor, or we revoke your license". And yet Wordpad is allowed to use it.
Those two DNS servers aren't public - Level3 is firewalling them off from everyone but their downstream clients, because they were never intended to be used by Random Joe Bloggs.
No, they still have a client. Clients like Array Networks and F5 Networks use a Java or ActiveX applet to install the necessary services and programs on the computer, but there is still a client, just as much as Cisco or Sonicwall - and for those ones they almost always disable split tunnelling too.
Some systems (e.g. PCI DSS controlled systems) are forbidden to be directly exposed in that sort of manner - in which case a VPN with two factor authentication would be required.
I have never seen that enforced, and only twice ever as the default setting. It is a client-side configuration option in most VPN software (Cisco, SecuRemote, most Linux VPN clients).
Actually, in the Cisco client it is NOT a client option. The server can override any and every setting in the client, including that one. Our Cisco VPN concentrator, for example, disables split networking the instant you connect.
Slashdot Mirror
Uh, I have to take the uni's side on this one - they aren't invading your privacy by enforcing network security on their network (key word: their). If you don't like their policies, then ask them to change them. If they don't, then that's their decision, then you should use a different network (like 3G broadband or dial-up).
Also, software like Cisco Clean Access does NOT log keys, report running programs, or even report back anything short of "This PC is clean" (it's a bit like World of Warcraft actually) so I don't know where all that crap about logging passwords and shit is coming from.
The reason the option to uninstall is disabled is because it was installed by the windows update service, which is a very high priviledge account. The account that you use to run FF on the other hand doesn't have equivalent permission so you can't remove it. This is actually a good thing.
That's not actually true. The "Uninstall" option is removed for all global extensions (Java Quick Start is another example of this) not because of the account it was installed with.
What's a Firefoxen?
Oh bullshit. The file is located in C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\Plugins, just like Java Quick Start. Not in the registry (which is impossible anyway). This is NOT a problem with the way MS Windows is designed, and it's not the responsibility of the operating system to protect third party apps running on it from unauthorised plugin installs anyway.
It's a mistake - that's all. If you read the Google thread you linked to, you'd see that it happens because auto.search.msn.com handles "address bar search" and uses the "prov" parameter to decide where to send it. The new engine doesn't handle the "prov" parameter, which no doubt they'll fix. They're not intentionally hijacking anything. In fact, they're not even hijacking anything!
Firefox? Our localised Firefox is en-GB.
That's not true in the slightest. Here in NZ, we've had Tim Berners-Lee himself come here just to complain to our government about the state of our broadband. And I don't think Tim Berners-Lee is "noone".
What needs to happen is a app store like application explorer similar to what you see in Linux and mobile phones. It makes finding, buying, (if it's not free) installing, uninstalling and maintaining software simple and easy, as well as a way to seperate the good apps from the bad. As long as it's well regulated and rules are clearly defined, I don't see how it's hurts competition or users.
And just as good for Microsoft, they can make a mint in royalties off all the paid apps through it, like Apple does!
Actually, it sounds like a bit of a win/win to be honest.
Mate, if no one's looking into the record industry's or the petrol industry's price fixing, no one's going to look into Microsoft's. I agree price fixing is bullshit, but you're dreaming if you think anyone's going to do anything about it.
It's not an IE control. It's a TRIDENT control. That's like saying embedding Gecko is embedding Firefox.
Yes, you can. You can remove IE, but Trident is left behind. Same as if you remove Safari from Mac OS X (by dragging it to the trash), WebKit remains behind for other programs to use. Internet Explorer is not Trident.
No, IE is not Explorer. Internet Explorer is a shell to Trident, same as Firefox is a shell to Gecko, and Safari is a shell to WebKit. Saying IE is Explorer is like saying iTunes is Safari just because it uses WebKit. It's wrong, and disingenious. Stop it.
If you paid attention, you'd see that Microsoft is making major headway in bringing IE up to the standard a browser should be. It finally doesn't choke on valid XHTML/CSS, and even Slashdot looks decent in it!
Microsoft IE is not a monopoly. Stop pretending it is one.
Having a choice as to what search engine to use is more important than you think. People will use the default one which is a big part of how Google got such a large market share.
(Seriusly, have you seen how many things set Google as your homepage/search now? Anything from Adobe to Winzip).
There's a long-winded document describing all the dos and dont's of Ribbon (it's patented, and the license to use it only allows you to do so if you comply strictly with the UI design).
Yes, and one of the "don'ts" is "don't use it to make a word processor or other Office competitor, or we revoke your license". And yet Wordpad is allowed to use it.
Not Word. Word will convert it to... an OLE embedded Visio diagram.
Nope.
It is open.
To its developers.
Those two DNS servers aren't public - Level3 is firewalling them off from everyone but their downstream clients, because they were never intended to be used by Random Joe Bloggs.
No, it does it for all NXDomains now.
OpenDNS does the same thing.
No, they still have a client. Clients like Array Networks and F5 Networks use a Java or ActiveX applet to install the necessary services and programs on the computer, but there is still a client, just as much as Cisco or Sonicwall - and for those ones they almost always disable split tunnelling too.
Read this comment from an hour before your post - don't use or advocate using Level3's DNS server.
Some systems (e.g. PCI DSS controlled systems) are forbidden to be directly exposed in that sort of manner - in which case a VPN with two factor authentication would be required.
I have never seen that enforced, and only twice ever as the default setting. It is a client-side configuration option in most VPN software (Cisco, SecuRemote, most Linux VPN clients).
Actually, in the Cisco client it is NOT a client option. The server can override any and every setting in the client, including that one. Our Cisco VPN concentrator, for example, disables split networking the instant you connect.