Re: Is Firefox a Good Thing?

[Andy Green <andy warmcat com>]

Christopher Aillon wrote:

> The kernel has more vulnerabilities[1] than this user-space application 
> does.  Let's reconsider having that in the distro, too.

With respect this is not a good response to my question.  How many 
kernel problems are remote-exploitable?  Does the kernel of itself visit 
random external "scripts" on the Internet and execute what it finds 
there?  No.  But a browser is designed to do such actions.  If we really 
do talk about code of such complexity that "MASSIVE changes which took 
several architects months to perfect, and it STILL caused 10-20 
regressions" it's a lot more frightening to hear that about usermode 
code that exists to go out to a potentially hostile Intenet on behalf of 
a logged-in user than it is to hear the same about a kernel where the 
vast bulk of vulns are local only.  Objectively, looking at your 
description of security fixes on the beast, shouldn't people take pause 
at a creature that is so complex and poorly understood, but is our main 
proposed way of interfacing to the good and evil of the external world?

-Andy