Why I use Linux 4289

Larry Qualig

As someone who is a fairly recent convert to Linux, (dual-booting XP and Kubuntu 5.04 at the moment) and also as a Systems Accountant, there isn't really a problem with Windows per se, most of the problems are actually with the total lack of security education of the vast majority of windows users. (Rant starting!) When Joe Public goes to a computer "superstore" (and that's where most of Joe Public's IT purchasing is done, and they have no choice of OS other than windows offered to them) they get NO information on security WHATSOEVER. The numbers of times I've used a computer in a private house, only to find that the AV update subscription ran out 3 years ago or so and there is no firewall and no anti-spyware is unbeleivable. All major computer outlets should provide a short (doesn't need to be longer than about ten-fifteen minutes) talk on security, viruses, trojans etc, how to avoid them and what the consequences of NOT avoiding them are! (Rant over!) There was even an article a while ago (in Gartner I think) where the writer did some research and found that somthing like *80%* of users in a corporate environment just didn't give a monkeys and "clicked on aything they fancied" and if that resulted in some sort of virus, the IT dept would sort it!

Yes, there are many vulnerabilities in Windows and a large part of the blame for the proliferation of worms viruses and trojans can be laid squarely at the door of Mr Gates. This would of course be largely mollified by the intriduction of said education as above.

I was watching a program on one of our community tv chanels a few months back, about Internet for beginners. They went through the whole gamut of setting up the machine, connecting to the internet (using Windows XP) and setting up email etc etc. But NO REFERENCE to a firewall! (Untill I rang up the station and told them how ignorant that was)