Two ways Microsoft sabotages Linux desktop adoption (warning: long rant follows)

[Claude Jones]

On Tue February 14 2006 7:15 am, Tim wrote:
> I do take issue with these sorts of statements.  It looks like a
> technophobe can use Windows, but they can't.  They don't know what
> they're doing, they have a PC infested with malware.  Every PC I've seen
> used by someone who doesn't know about computing is like that.  They
> have programs that crash all over the place, or just don't work.
>
> Windows DOESN'T "just work".  Consider yourself lucky if it does.

As someone who has to support around 100 Windows machines, mostly operated by 
computer luddites (otherwise extremely intelligent people - they seem to 
regress as soon as they touch the keyboard), I have to second this statement. 
I've got an office manager who is notorious. She manages to destroy her 
machine on a regular basis - before I took over, she'd gone through three 
machines - it just got cheaper to replace than fix was the the reasoning, 
(commingled with arguments about 'needing' a faster machine...)  I just put 
vmwareplayer on her box a couple of weeks ago, and she is under strict 
instructions to never go out to the net except through her new sandbox. So 
far, so good... This week, we're dealing with Microsoft's Antispyware Beta - 
in recent updates, it has definitions that ferret out parts of Norton 
Antivirus as malicious, and ask to remove it!!! If someone clicks yes, it 
takes registry hacking to get back - 
-- 
Claude Jones
Bluemont, VA, USA