Microsoft: One in 14 Downloads Is Malicious – Yahoo! News

 Ubuntu, Virus, Windows  No Responses »
May 182011
 

Well, I’m glad that I use Linux…

The next time a website says to download new software to view a movie or fix a problem, think twice. There’s a pretty good chance that the program is malicious.

via Microsoft: One in 14 Downloads Is Malicious – Yahoo! News.

I don’t download many programs from random websites, as Ubuntu has a large repository of applications that are legit.  I do reccomend being careful on where you download applications from, only download from places that you trust.

For me it also helps that most viruses are made for Windows, and thus won’t work on Mac or Linux (though I have heard of a few Mac viruses recently too…)

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Microsoft bans open source from it’s Marketplace

 Computer News  No Responses »
Feb 202011
 

Apparently you cannot get any Open Source software through Microsoft’s marketplace.

The licence, which anyone wishing to distribute Windows, Windows Phone, or Xbox applications through the company’s copy of Apple’s App Store is required to agree to, is the usual torrent of legalese – but hides a nasty surprise for those who support open source ideals.

via Microsoft bans open source from the Marketplace | thinq_.

I’ve heard that Windows 8 will include the marketplace as well…  Though I hope that Microsoft is smart enough to let people install software that wasn’t purchased through the marketplace to be installed on Windows 8, as we’ve been able to do on all previous versions of Windows.

The Windows Phone and XBox are both heavily controlled, which seems to be the way that most corporations are going with devices like these. (Apple has a similar setup with the iPhone, iPad, and iPod, Nintendo with the Wii and DS, Sony with the PS3, and PSP)

These changes are sad to see, computers are becoming a little less versatile, because their manufacturers are putting limits on what the device can do, and if you try to break those limits, the manufacturer can permanently disable that device.

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Microsoft says that Windows is cheaper than Linux

 Computer News, Linux, Windows  No Responses »
Sep 232010
 

Well, I’ve seen this many times, Microsoft saying that their $200-$500 Operating system is cheaper than the $0.00 Linux.  Their reasoning is because “Everyone uses Windows, You have to spend time to learn Linux, and if you’re in a Business environment, that time is lost money. Also Linux Administrators are more expensive in business.”

I have to go, What if you already have workers that have learned Linux, or if your people know Windows XP, but not Vista or 7, because Vista and 7 are quite different than Windows XP. Or they currently use Microsoft Office 2003, but not 2007, or 2010, you would have to spend time training workers to use the new office suite.

In the end, you can upgrade to Linux with OpenOffice, or Microsoft Windows with Microsoft Office, and often a paid Antivirus Suite.  Both ways you will have to spend about the same amount of time training your workers, so why not go for the free ones instead?

I’ve been hearing of a few businesses that are doing that, My Mom’s home company, Filbert Publishing, almost exclusively uses Linux, just a copy of Windows 7 in a Virtual Machine to run some website design software.

Oh and here are a few articles you may find interesting.
Microsoft HPC claim: Windows is cheaper than Linux
Switching to Linux picks up steam
Ten Reasons to Dump Windows and Use Linux
Large, Medium, and Small Companies Switching to Linux

Have a good day :)

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Well, time to say goodbye, Windows…

 Linux, Ubuntu, Windows  No Responses »
Sep 162010
 
The end of Windows 7 on my Desktop

Well, you're not starting up again, are you?

So, Windows on my Desktop has been unable to boot for a few days, causing some of my work projects to fall a little behind.  At least I have not lost anything, due to backing up, and the fact that my Desktop is ‘Dual Boot’ Windows 7 and Ubuntu 9.10.  Windows 7 CANNOT read anything in the Ubuntu part of the computer, but Ubuntu will easily read anything in the Windows 7 part.

Huh.  Windows cannot access anything but NTFS and FAT Partitions…  that is very annoying. Well, in the end Windows is the one that has died, which gives me a nice place to try the upcoming Ubuntu 10.10 without screwing with Ubuntu 9.10 … oh and also…

The next version of Ubuntu is coming soon
24 days until Ubuntu 10.10 is offically released!

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Appeals Court Rules Some Software Can’t Be Bought

 Computer News  No Responses »
Sep 142010
 

So when you buy software in the store, you are just paying for the license to use it. You don’t own anything, the program that gave you the license can revoke it at any time.  As one person that pointed out, It’s not like any standard system of renting, in the end you don’t own the software that you went into the store and paid for. Comment found here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/12/appeals-court-rules- some-_n_713652.html (Read the whole article while you’re at it :) )

It is of course even more strange in the Software Download world, where you don’t have any physical media that you can give to someone else.  Let’s just say don’t give your friend a copy of a downloaded program that you paid for, you can get in some trouble with the company behind the program.

In the end, you don’t own any programs installed on your computer, you’re just being allowed to use them by the company that you paid.  They can revoke your license to use the program at any time, at which point, you either have to pay for it again, or use it illegally, or move to a different program. (Hopefully Open Source, which doesn’t go by the same rules)

Man am I glad that I use Linux, and other free software. :)

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Microsoft has a new marketing campaign

 Computer News, Linux, Mac, Windows  No Responses »
Aug 112010
 

Microsoft has started a marketing campaign against Apple, http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/compare/pc-vs-mac.aspx , and the Mac users don’t seem too happy.  I, myself am a Linux Person, and I remember Microsoft’s ‘Get The Facts’ campaign, which did the exact same thing to Linux, annoying lots of Linux users.  (Well they did have the top link on the Google search page for Linux…)

Looking at their new site, it appears that this time, it’s just trying to keep people that are on the fence from switching away from windows.  Those who have already switched are not likely to change back, I know that, because I switched to Linux a few years ago, and only keep Windows around for those few games that don’t run on Linux, through Wine or other means…

As time passes, I see Microsoft becoming irrelevant because everything seems to be moving to the ‘cloud’.  I like the fact that I can easily move from computer to computer without needing a flash drive, but I still like having a local copy of my data.  On the ‘facts’ that microsoft has on their site, most of them seem to do with shortcomings in their software, which requires users of other systems and programs to do workarounds, because Microsoft Products refuse to work with Mac or Linux formats, but Mac and Linux can work with Microsoft formats.

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