More facts and less hysteria on Vista, please! September 29, 2007
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In the latest round of hysteria to be written about Windows Vista, Don Reisinger regurgitates the usual hysteria about Windows Vista mixed in with a pinch of facts here and there. Don spouts off the usual nonsense about sales, UAC, and even DRM. Despite the fact that bashing Vista is quite the popular sport these days, I’m going to see if I can set him straight with an honest and factual assessment of Windows Vista.
Are Vista sales really poor?
Everyone knows that Windows Vista retail box sales are poor, but does that matter when Microsoft relies overwhelmingly on sales to OEM PC makers? If you focus only on the retail box sales, you’re missing the real picture because Vista has sold more than 60 million licenses and ~78% of those sales are Vista Premium edition. Don complains about Windows Vista Ultimate edition and I actually agree with him that it’s overpriced and under delivers but Microsoft doesn’t need to “save itself” if Vista Ultimate fails, more like an “oh well”.
Does it matter if a few people revert to XP?
Even if a whopping 20% of computer buyers downgrade and revert to Windows XP for whatever reason, that still leaves 80% who stay with Windows Vista. That means hardware makers and ISVs (Independent Software Vendors) have to deal with Windows Vista now or later whether they like it or not if they want to stay in business. The fact that 60 million copies were sold in the first 6 months since launch pretty much confirms Vista will become the dominant OS by default.
How about Vista drivers?
There are no questions about it, a fair number of Vista drivers during the first 2 months stunk badly. Vista implements a brand new driver model which offers a little more separation between the driver and the kernel so that a bad driver is less likely to crash the entire system. The price for this is that there is a brand new learning curve and it took a few months for the hardware companies to get it right. For the most part, everything is working well but there are still some older devices that don’t have drivers and will never get drivers for Windows Vista and much of that is because the hardware vendors want you to buy new hardware. finish article here
Hackers Control PCs While Users Unaware September 22, 2007
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BOSTON – A few weeks ago Candace Locklear’s office computer quietly started sending out dozens of instant messages with photos attached that were infected with malicious software.
She was sitting at her desk, with no sign that the messaging software was active. By the time she figured out what was going on, several friends and colleagues had opened the attachments and infected their computers.
It took eight hours for a technician to clean up her computer. But because the malicious software worked so secretly, she’s still not convinced that all’s clear.
“I’d like to think that it’s gone. But I just don’t know,” said Locklear, 40, a publicist in San Francisco. “That’s what is so frustrating.”
Computer security experts estimate that tens of millions of personal computers are infected with malicious software like the one that attacked Locklear’s machine. Such programs, generally classified as malware, attack companies along with consumers.
Some are keyloggers, recording every key stroke that the user enters—sending valuable bank account information, passwords and credit card numbers to hackers.
In July, hackers used keylogging software to gather passwords to databases at the U.S. Department of Transportation, consulting firm Booz Allen, Hewlett-Packard Co and satellite network company Hughes Network Systems, according to British Internet security software maker Prevx Inc.
And other malware programs turn PCs into “zombies,” literally giving hackers full control over the machine. The zombies can be instructed to act as servers, sending out tens of thousands of spam emails promoting counterfeit medications, luxury watches or penny stocks without the PC owner ever knowing about it.
The computer that controls the zombies—known as the command and control center—is able to change the text of the spam depending on what his or her customer wants to sell
“Storm worm” adds millions of computers to botnet September 12, 2007
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The authors behind a specific strain of malware are trying every trick in the book to get users to succumb to their ill-meaning plans. You name it, they’ve used it: weather news, personal greetings, reports that Saddam Hussein is still alive, reports that Fidel Castro is dead, sexy women, YouTube, and even blogs. The group seems hellbent on creating the largest botnet to date, and they just might do it.
The “Zhelatin gang”—named after the trojan it installed—was responsible for what started out as the “storm worm.” First spotted earlier this year, the spread of the “storm worm” started via e-mails purporting to provide information on some dangerous storms in Europe at the close of January. Users who fell for it were directed to a web site containing malicious code aimed at turning Windows PCs into spam bots. finish story here
