News Microsoft patents seriously bad adware

About a year or so ago there was a program introduced by microsoft through one of it's updates to fish out the non genuine operating systems. Unfortunately for the average user it did more than just that. In fact it did just about everything listed in the first post. Bit-tech reported it to us and most on here took charge and got rid of it. Then microsoft took it out with another update about a month or two later.

Honestly, I think it's not so much microsoft taking over the world as it is helping the two worst programs of all time: Homeland Security and the Patriot Act. Remember those? If it doesn't fall through, lucky for us, for now. But they'll try again. Big Brother is always watching.

 

Over just the last year of being on these forums I have noticed a drastic increase of the number of people thinking about or switching to Linux. Including myself. Even magazines such as my personal favorite Maximum-PC Magazine have been running various articles. The process of running some distributions of Linux has become as easy or easier then Windows in most cases. The largest complaint I see is the lack of gaming support, along with a few other niche programs. (Photoshop/iMovie-esque programs, plus a variety of others I'm sure people will mention in response to this.) However, since the developers are essentially the users in a lot of cases, and since most of the users/developers are also gamers anymore-- I expect to see support for gaming on Linux platforms grow over the next year or two. With Dell selling Linux on their computers (regardless of what you think of the company themselves) and so many informal adopters among forum goers and computer users such as ourselves, hopefully nVidia or ATI/AMD will begin to support the OS and thus bring game support "officially" to Linux.

I use(d) Knoppix 5.1.1 LIVE at school during my Computer Hardware/Computer Operating Systems class. (The computers had removable hard drive bays, and the teacher wouldn't hand out the hard drives during lecture so that we wouldn't be on the Internet. One student burned Knoppix and that's how most of us in the class first learned of Linux.)

Now, since discover Ubuntu, I would use Ubuntu 7.04 (Feisty Fawn) to do the same thing. I also plan to dual-boot my new laptop with Ubuntu and Windows XP Professional. (Like most people: For games.)

Even if Microsoft doesn't go through with this patent and make it into a full product, the fact that such a product/idea was even made is crazy. It shows the direction that most corporations want to go with regards to people and their privacy.

(Also in regards to sentiments that people forfeit their rights by agreeing to use a company's OS and agreeing to their terms, I still think that regardless there should be an unquestionable reasonable expectation to privacy. Individuals should never be extorted or strong-armed by a product they're choosing to use. And hiding the software so that a common user doesn't even know its present is even worse. I get that you ARE choosing to use their product, but I would think that common sense would tell you that you would alienate your educated market base while trying to manipulate the uneducated. 'Course, when has common sense prevailed in the RIAA/MPAA/DMCA era?)

I know that France(?) changed completely over to Linux for all government computers. I wonder, if this went through if other countries would do the same? I mean I'm sure as Tim S said a while back: I doubt governments and companies want to have all their data out on the Internet, or to be covered in advertising by their competitors products. (And I'm sure that this software can't help security issues too much.)

...

That's all I have for now. Have a good day.

 

quick answer ? - no !

 

Should be fine now



Wasn't it China or Japan that changed all government computers?

 

Are you actually being serious? Do you honestly believe that Microsoft and the US Government are working together to mine data from your PC? It makes for a great movie plot, but in reality such conspiracy theories rarely hold water.

Really? In that case, I've got a bridge you might be interested in. I may even have some beach-front property, too.

-monkey

 

I think these type of patent is just used so that no one does it, as MS doesn't want it to happend on their system, or simlply don't want to see it anywhere. So if someone does it, MS can sue them and put them out of buisness or simply sell the system/idea.

 

I hope you're right. If MS put spyware into Windows, I would move to OSX/Linux immediately. I wouldn't be surprised if OSX also added similiar tech if Windows added it though - long live Linux!