Microsoft made a little girl cry [Archive]

SiliconAddict

Aug 19, 2003, 05:17 PM

This is funny. And kinda sad at the same time and would also make a kick butt Apple ad.

I had an employee come into the IT department today. Her computer got hit by Blaster. Her 12 year old kid was on it when it went down. The kid was obviously smart enough to reboot the system. (Probably from lots of eXPerience.) And down it went again after the reboot. (That’s the Blaster worm FYI.) She went to her mom crying because she thought she had busted the family computer. (Congrats MS. You made a child cry.) I burnt a CD for her and explained to her how to clean the system and fix the problem. She asked why this is happening all of a sudden with the viruses and everything. I bluntly answered because MS can't program worth a damn and since this hole is also found is the "most-secure-OS-ever-released-by-MS" to date: Server 2003 I dang well believe it.

So when you buy your next computer PLEASE think of the children.

idea_hamster

Aug 19, 2003, 05:28 PM

Did you explain that if her mommy and daddy loved her, they'd buy her a Mac? That PC's are for bad, bad little girls... MMPH--Must..repress...evil...streak...

Whew. That was close!

ColoJohnBoy

Aug 19, 2003, 05:42 PM

If you're close to an Apple Store, call them back up and tell them to go in there and let their daughter play around on the kid's eMacs, while Mom and Pop play around on the PowerMac G5's.

Maybe then they'll help to rectify the emotional stress the evil monopoly has caused, and bring some relief through MacTherapy.

Stelliform

Aug 19, 2003, 09:12 PM

Originally posted by SiliconAddict

So when you buy your next computer PLEASE think of the children.

That could be a great apple slogan.... Protect your kids... Buy a Mac....

My 5 year old was kid cursing at my Mom's PC today.. :) I need to get a Mac for the house.... Get him started right. :D

Powerbook G5

Aug 19, 2003, 09:22 PM

Unfortunately, I had to grow up with PCs and the only thing I knew about Apples were that they made good pies...it wasn't until 1999 that I saw the light and realized that there were computers that were much better than the PCs I've had to deal with...oh how life has been so much better since I got my PowerBook!

CMillerERAU

Aug 19, 2003, 10:05 PM

Have the ads show people's PC crashing and them throwing it out into the street, like thousands of them.

Then show the indian from that old anti-trash PSA crying.

And throw in some girl crying somewhere, it'll be more wrenching than PETA ads!

Doctor Q

Aug 19, 2003, 10:20 PM

Hey, who are we to preach? Didn't you see that Apple ad (http://www.apple.com/hardware/ads/g5/)? Our G5s are going to blow daddy right out of the house, leave mommy speechless, and destroy the house too. That's gonna make little Susie cry too.

Powerbook G5

Aug 19, 2003, 10:29 PM

I almost cried when my parents bought a Dell instead of an iMac...so sad... :(

mymemory

Aug 19, 2003, 11:59 PM

Originally posted by idea_hamster
Did you explain that if her mommy and daddy loved her, they'd buy her a Mac? That PC's are for bad, bad little girls... MMPH--Must..repress...evil...streak...

If you behave bad in this life, in the next one you are gonna grow up in Venezuela.

If you behave really bad you are going to grow up in Venezuela and get a PC.

Powerbook G5

Aug 20, 2003, 12:38 AM

The last time Microsoft made me cry, it was when I saw the pricetag for Office...but then I saw the price for AppleWorks and sung for joy. Why is it Microsoft products are so much more expensive? Apple charges less for all their equivelant software, yet everyone knocks Apple for being so "overpriced" compared to PC equivelants. Quite ironic. :rolleyes:

voicegy

Aug 20, 2003, 01:43 AM

Originally posted by Doctor Q
Hey, who are we to preach? Didn't you see that Apple ad (http://www.apple.com/hardware/ads/g5/)? Our G5s are going to blow daddy right out of the house, leave mommy speechless, and destroy the house too. That's gonna make little Susie cry too.

Actually, what blew that guy out of the house in the Apple ad were all 9 fans turning on.:D

<ducking for cover>

BrandonRP0123

Aug 20, 2003, 01:45 AM

Microsoft makes people cry all the time.

Seriously. I managed the all-windows-95 computer lab at my high school. Girls cried all the time when their Microsoft Word document that they'd been typing for hours went blue screen, froze, or otherwise was lost. This was before that nifty little auto recovery feature Microsoft invented as an ``ITS OK TO CRASH'' excuse to their horrible products.

An ex-girlfriend of mine called me crying a few times because she got so frustrated (a good part of this was lack of plain computer literacy, as well) that she had to restart her Windows ME Compaq 3-6 times a day and so forth. She also whined regularly about not being able to find her files, and didn't understand the whole un-install concept.

I think my last straw with her was when she was sitting next to me on my (then-new) Power Mac. She asked me what I was doing and I said ``getting rid of Internet Explorer''. I moved the blue-screen-blue E to the trash and dumped it.
To this she said ``NOT FAIR, HOW COME ITS SO EASY FOR YOU''. I looked at her and told her ``It's because I own a Mac''.
She didn't take kindly to me being smart with her and it was all downhill from there.

It's amazing that people accept this type of behavior, and deem it ``normal''. Even for servers. ``Hey it's Microsoft, it has to be good''

Powerbook G5

Aug 20, 2003, 01:52 AM

When I was a PC user, I accepted that kind of crap since I didn't know any better. I had never used a Mac before so I just assumed that all computers were that bad because we weren't that technologically able to make a better computer...until I accidentally wandered into the Apple section of CompUSA...wow, that was a wakeup call! Once I realized what kind of crap Microsoft really was, I quickly ditched them and jumped ship to Apple and the only tears I have now or those of happiness...that and frustration that I don't have a 15" AlBook yet...damn Motorola...almost as high on my ****list as Microsoft is...

BrandonRP0123

Aug 20, 2003, 02:20 AM

Originally posted by Powerbook G5
...that and frustration that I don't have a 15" AlBook yet...damn Motorola...almost as high on my ****list as Microsoft is...

If Apple made a Lead PowerBook would it be a PBook? Or a PBBook ?

Powerbook G5

Aug 20, 2003, 02:22 AM

It'd be called a PITABook since it'd be a Pain in the Ass to carry. :)

robbieduncan

Aug 20, 2003, 06:58 AM

Microsoft did not make the girl cry. You might be better placing the blame on the moron who thought that this worm was worth writing. People who write and release viri are scum. Short and simple.

Yes MS should do better. Yes MS write nasty OSs full of holes. But MS also released a patch about a month before this worm and most users failed to protect themselves.

idea_hamster

Aug 20, 2003, 09:15 AM

Originally posted by mymemory
If you behave bad in this life, in the next one you are gonna grow up in Venezuela.

If you behave really bad you are going to grow up in Venezuela and get a PC.

...or --

If you're bad in this life, you'll come back as a bug.
If you're really bad in this life, you'll come back as a MicroSoft bug.

jzieske

Aug 20, 2003, 09:28 AM

Originally posted by robbieduncan
Microsoft did not make the girl cry. You might be better placing the blame on the moron who thought that this worm was worth writing. People who write and release viri are scum. Short and simple.

Yes MS should do better. Yes MS write nasty OSs full of holes. But MS also released a patch about a month before this worm and most users failed to protect themselves.

MS may have released a patch but they release so many patches that someone who is on a dialup connection could never keep up. My mom and sister have an XP box on broadband and have to download updates about twice a week. I can understand why people just stop doing it. It is pretty stupid when you sit down to do something at your computer and can't actually get anything done for 10 minutes becasue you are downloading updates and then have to restart. In short yes it is MS's fault.

robbieduncan

Aug 20, 2003, 09:52 AM

Originally posted by jzieske
MS may have released a patch but they release so many patches that someone who is on a dialup connection could never keep up. My mom and sister have an XP box on broadband and have to download updates about twice a week. I can understand why people just stop doing it. It is pretty stupid when you sit down to do something at your computer and can't actually get anything done for 10 minutes becasue you are downloading updates and then have to restart. In short yes it is MS's fault.

Sure but a simple firewall would have protected them (in this instance). People running Windows on machines that connect to the Internet should have firewalls and anti-virus software installed. At some point people have to take responsibility for the security of their own things including their computer. Keeping your computer secure does not just mean keeping your house locked, it means keeping your connections to a potentially dangerous world (the Internet) safe.

Powerbook G5

Aug 20, 2003, 10:04 AM

Most consumers don't know what a firewall is, let alone, how to set one up. And I realize that XP is supposed to have one built in...so why doesn't it come set up by default?

And another thing, I do agree that will all these updates you have to do, it takes away from the reason you sat down at your PC...so many times I sit down to play Sim City 4 (the only reason I use the Dell at home) and I end up spending a half hour doing all these patches and updates before I can even put the dang CD in and play my game! Take the fact that after each major patch/update you have to install alone and restart before you can go on to the next patch/update and then restart again (and repeat a few more times) it gets really frustrating and really time consuming. Is it too unreasonable to expect that you sit down at your computer and it is just ready to do what you want to do? Perhaps I've just been a Mac user for too long and have been spoiled now.

rueyeet

Aug 20, 2003, 10:17 AM

Originally posted by robbieduncan
At some point people have to take responsibility for the security of their own things including their computer.

True, but there should be a balance between that, and actually putting such a thing within the reach of the ordinary, only-sorta computer-literate home users. Having to install and configure anti-virus and firewall software, and patch your system twice a week (especially when the patches are buggy), does not qualify as reasonable for the many many people who only know enough to boot their computer, use an app or two, and shut down.

I've said it elsewhere, and I'll say it again: The ordinary home user shouldn't have to become a system maintenance expert just to keep their computer running and secure. And Mac users generally don't have to.

Powerbook G5

Aug 20, 2003, 10:37 AM

I agree...I can't see my grandma configuring a firewall and installing 20 different security patches...but I can see my grandma being able to use a Mac with little difficulty.

jzieske

Aug 20, 2003, 10:45 AM

Originally posted by robbieduncan
Sure but a simple firewall would have protected them (in this instance). People running Windows on machines that connect to the Internet should have firewalls and anti-virus software installed. At some point people have to take responsibility for the security of their own things including their computer. Keeping your computer secure does not just mean keeping your house locked, it means keeping your connections to a potentially dangerous world (the Internet) safe.

Yes a firewall may protect from most attacks and my family does use a firewall but this will not protect from all types of attacks. However if you purchased a product from any other compnay that had to be fixed twice a week you would complain like crazy and demand a refund. I too used to excpet this as how computers work until I realized it is not true. If MS does not fix this problem (which it seems they don;t want to do) and more people are exposed to OSX Apple will gain marketshare and force MS to get the act together.

robbieduncan

Aug 20, 2003, 11:16 AM

Originally posted by rueyeet
True, but there should be a balance between that, and actually putting such a thing within the reach of the ordinary, only-sorta computer-literate home users. Having to install and configure anti-virus and firewall software, and patch your system twice a week (especially when the patches are buggy), does not qualify as reasonable for the many many people who only know enough to boot their computer, use an app or two, and shut down.

I've said it elsewhere, and I'll say it again: The ordinary home user shouldn't have to become a system maintenance expert just to keep their computer running and secure. And Mac users generally don't have to.

Installing a firewall does not have to be any more difficult that installing Quake! I use ZoneAlarm on my PC. It's free and the install is very simple. You run the installer. Once installed it starts whenever Windows does and does not require any imediate configuration. Whenever a program tries to access the outside world (say IE) it asks whether you want to let it and whether you want to make that a permanent or one-off decision. For your casual user that is all there is to it.

I don't know why the basic WinXP firewall is not turned on by default. But then I do not understand why a basic home use install requires a RPC interface which is open to the outside world. Under what circumstances is a home user going to want other computers making remote procedure calls against their machine?

patrick0brien

Aug 20, 2003, 11:33 AM

Originally posted by robbieduncan
Sure but a simple firewall would have protected them (in this instance). People running Windows on machines that connect to the Internet should have firewalls and anti-virus software installed. At some point people have to take responsibility for the security of their own things including their computer. Keeping your computer secure does not just mean keeping your house locked, it means keeping your connections to a potentially dangerous world (the Internet) safe.

-robbieduncan

Absolutely correct.

I'm a very experienced computer user, and am aware of the methods one must employ to protect one's machine - and stay on top of it.

What I have a problem with is the fact that I have to. I'm spending my time and my wetware cycles, just keeping my machine in working order. I find this unacceptable. When I want to use a computer, I want to use the computer. The computer is supposed to serve me, hand and foot. I strongly dislike holding its hand while trying to wring work out of it.

This is why I own two Macs - and get my work done on them. The do what they promise, and I don't have to think about it.

I am of the attidude that I'll pay a few pennies more for piece of mind.

SiliconAddict

Aug 20, 2003, 11:41 AM

Originally posted by robbieduncan
Microsoft did not make the girl cry. You might be better placing the blame on the moron who thought that this worm was worth writing. People who write and release viri are scum. Short and simple.

Yes MS should do better. Yes MS write nasty OSs full of holes. But MS also released a patch about a month before this worm and most users failed to protect themselves.

The patch for this hole needs to be installed on NT4, 2K, XP, and 2003.

What does this tell you? It tells me that this hole has been around for 7 years and 4 major OS revisions. That is total BS plain and simple. No more FUD. No excuses. Total BS. Yes the virus writer is to blame for the virus. But MS is more to blame for recycling code for 4 OS’s enough to allow this hole to survive so long. My current percentages for blame:
60% For MS not fixing this problem between NT4’s release and Server 2003’s release.
34% For the idiot that put out the virus in the first place.
5% on the person for not keeping up with the patches on Windows.
1% Because Bill Gates is the antichrist.

I still stand firm. Microsoft made a child cry.

SiliconAddict

Aug 20, 2003, 11:43 AM

In regards to a firewall. No one ever thinks about firewalls when they have a dial up connection and that's what they have.
Honestly I never did when I was on dialup.

robbieduncan

Aug 20, 2003, 12:05 PM

Originally posted by SiliconAddict
The patch for this hole needs to be installed on NT4, 2K, XP, and 2003.

What does this tell you? It tells me that this hole has been around for 7 years and 4 major OS revisions.

Just a little nitpick. This is actually only 3 major revisions (maybe only 2 as I don't know the internal version number of 2003). NT 4 is 4.x 2K is NT 5.0, XP is NT 5.1 (a minor revision). I assume that 2003 is 6.0, but it may actually by 5.2 Now I agree that MS should have fixed this. Especially as 2003 was their most secure OS ever. It was meant to be so secure that all these patches would not be needed. Kind of bad karma for MS.

For all of those that have said that they use a Mac because of these reasons I use a Mac too. But Worms and other Viri are not the reason. The OS and hardware are the reason. I normally use Linux on my x86 hardware anyway.

idea_hamster

Aug 20, 2003, 12:09 PM

Originally posted by SiliconAddict
The patch for this hole needs to be installed on NT4, 2K, XP, and 2003.

What does this tell you? It tells me that this hole has been around for 7 years and 4 major OS revisions. That is total BS plain and simple.
I couldn't agree more that such a big flaw should have been caught long ago. But we might keep in mind that, while not as great a risk, the last OS X security update from Apple corrected the similar fb_realpath() function flaw -- and that might have been around since the release of FreeBSD!

I think that programmers in general may have only recently realized how powerful a hacking tool that buffer overflow problem was. I my mind, if the *nix world just caught on, I'm not so shocked that MS hadn't. (Exactly how responsible MS is due to their history of writing patches that cause problems leading system administrators to avoid patching? Whole different topic.)