If you ever needed a reason to go Linux, here you go. The noise surrounding this patently obscure Windows XP bug / patch fiasco has just reached a fever pitch, and now we've got engineers within Redmond scratching their heads, too. As the story goes, Microsoft recently patched a security hole that took care of an
antediluvian DOS vulnerability, and in doing so, some users
began to see BSODs and endless reboots. Today, we've learned that the patch has been yanked, and Microsoft is suggesting that malware is to blame. But here's the skinny -- the patch simply disturbed the malware, which called a specific kernel code that directs your PC to keel over; in other words,
any application that calls that same code could theoretically leave your machine in dire straits. And that, friends, probably explains the software giant's following quote:
"In our continuing investigation in to the restart issues related to MS10-015 that a limited number of customers are experiencing, we have determined that malware on the system can cause the behavior. We are not yet ruling out other potential causes at this time and are still investigating."
Rock, meet hard place.
posted February 13th 2010 12:33AM
@Marbles
I didn't say that. Obviously I am still using Windows. I think all OS have their strengths and weaknesses that is why I use a balance of all of them, however if Security is of concern to you and Stability then keep your real data outside of Windows if you really must use it.
Vmware runs all software perfectly except games but that is what consoles can be used for. As a matter of fact this the most exciting Console generation ever with Epic game after Epic game being released every month. I am just trying to be as real as possible about this.
http://www.vmware.com/products/fusion/features.html
I said get a Mac because OSX has more mainstream software than Linux does. Even if you don't like it, you can at least keep it as your underlying OS while running a Frozen Windows VM for maximum stability, convenience and security. Now I don't spend hours trying to fix my windows problems, I just reboot or restore a snapshot. But I do all my browsing outside of windows so I don't have to worry about malware stealing my data or turning my P.C into a botnet.
OSX can't run on a windows box unless you Hackint0sh it, but that is more trouble than I will ever care to explain here so you will have to google it.
@Eternity
I think I understand your point, but at the same time, I won't be an idiot spending $2000 on hardware I can get for $900, and i'm sure enough that the software isn't worth $1100. you get my point? why in the hell do I need so much different OS when I get everything under one windows roof?
I'm not "relying on...Windows dominance", I'm using what works best for me, and that is Windows.
@lennie22 By windows dominance I meant HUGE developer support. Before it was overwhelming the amount of software on windows that had no alternatives outside of it. Anyways To each his own.
I am just trying to help....For all you know a rootkit can be stealing your keystrokes and banking info right now.
http://www.newschief.com/article/20100117/NEWS/1175013/1009/LIVING?Title=-Rootkits-pose-another-problem-for-Windows
But if anything like this happens to you, I hope that "works for best you" too.
@Eternity
I actually laughed out loud when I read, "Mac for when I need mainstream software for certain tasks" what mainstream tasks are those? i get your point though, but there's really no benefit in your setup. just a waste of space, waste of time, waste of resources, waste of electricity powering the wasted resources, waste of money paying for the wasted electricity powering the wasted resources.
if you're not a cross platform dev then there's really no reason for that setup than to say "hey look, I have all three running", with a sort of self gratification that comes with it.
well, there's always someone in my house using one of our x360 either gaming, or Media Center or Zune videos, Netflix, or a quick facebooking
@lennie22 I'll give you an example:
Nokia PC Suite to backup my phone doesn't have a Mac version so I use windows for that, Alternatively Final Cut Pro is Mac only so I'll use mac for that. Windows I don't trust with any of my stuff due to the overwhelming experience that tells me I shouldn't. period. so I like to keep it in a "Sandbox" of sorts while still being able to use what I need from it. There is also more hardware compatibility with windows than Mac.
Linux on the other hand is for all my normal stuff that doesn't need specialized software and the reason for this is that it gives me total control of everything that the Mac can't give me and also isn't bloated, boots and runs way faster than the other two and the software is free. Oh and no rootkits or Viruses.
@Eternity
haha, I get your sarcasm, funny. but I'm running windows 7 x64. every 6 months my systems go through a full refresh, all my data are saved on a low powered community server in my house which serves data to all my other machines and xboxs, it's easy to interact with that data using my windows phone Remote Desktop built in when I'm not in the home. I loose no data that I don't want to loose. that's my setup. there's no reason for me to have a million+1 OSes installed. one works best for me and my household.
I'm not sure if you interact with your systems remotely but how do you do so? how easy is it for you to connect to all those systems? startup seems like a pain in the ass: this is how I see your setup:
boot up linux, boot up macOS, boot up windows......wait for them all to finish.....wait some more.....use windows software that works best for that particular task, finished with the task and save data, switch back to primary OS linux, surf net, find some additional data I wanted to use in the previous task, i can't copy and paste from linux to windows so I have to save that data then switch to windows and then try to access that data....hmm, I didn't setup a shared folder between windows and linux, but the macOS and windows have a shared folder, so then send the data from the linux box to the MacOS box and go to the macOS box and put the data into the shared folder, then go the windows box and access the data from there......
....that is why I said your setup has no real benefit.
@Eternity
too many steps. my friend, it's counter productive.
and this is why I think you're just in for the "look what I can do" because you said you use linux on a regular then you would of ran the nokia pc suite through wine without a need to run windows for such a trivial task. there are many windows alternatives to final cut pro....
so again you fall in the "look what I can do" category.
@lennie22
No I just boot into the boot loader almost instantly:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZQmQex0I6s
Except I don't have a windows partition like he does...
Also, Drop Box keeps my files synced all across the board.
https://www.dropbox.com/
I do surf the net on Mac OS which is running Windows inside a VM so it doesn't exactly happen the way you think where I am constantly switching and rebooting. They all play their respective roles well and I don't have any headache. I never have to do a system refresh either because Linux doesn't slow down over time or decay. OSX either because I don't use it as primary. Windows I just have to press the restart button and it reverts to day 1. Oh and I can do remote desktop too via VNC from smart phone to any of the 3 but I don't really have a need for it. Thanks to torrent clients that have web interfaces built in, I don't have any other use for it.
@Eternity
you talk of windows superior hardware compatibility, that is benefiting my point, not yours. there is no need or logical reason for me to through away my windows boxes as your original point stated. again I wonder how easy it is for you to log into your mac or linux box from your mobile.
can you be half way around the world and shoot a video with your mobile, connect to your computer at home send the file to your computer at home, edit the video file on your home computer through your mobile, then send back the finished product to your mobile? can you do that on your linux box? can you do that on your mac OS box?
@Eternity
Why all the trouble?
On Windows 7 I have never had a crash or virus problem, I can run games and access all of my work apps (Photoshop, Dreamweaver etc) without carving up my RAM and running VMs or rebooting.
If Linux could run Photoshop and my games I would be there in a shot. Kubuntu is my desktop of choice without question. Sadly it doesn't so I will stick with WIndows which does everything I need it to, and very reliably.
@lennie22
That's just the setup. However, screwing over windows in that scheme of things is pretty easy for a mac user. Then, you eventually decide you don't need the mac anyway, jump off the luxury-tax-ridden train, and go linux-exclusive, plus possibly a tiny Hacintosh partition.
@lennie22
I believe it's very possible. Just go to the Ubuntu One page, upload the file, and Voila! Happy Birthday present to your wonderful computer. Plus, I believe there's an option to configure automatic download and delete for the home configuration.
To the remote-in comment, it should be fairly easy to configure, as I've been able to set up shared folders visible to the windows computers on the network without difficulty, set up a password for it, and the like. I really can't say I know it works, not wanting a windows mobile phone anyway. It should be fine, though.
@Marbles
It's certainly the solution to suffering from Microsoft's security incompetence. If you aren't comfortable running a VM for "trivial apps" that you can't get on Linux, then defecting to a Mac is definitely the way to go. Apple has always been better at making end user systems (than Microsoft). Now that Macs are relatively cheap, most people no longer really have an excuse not to.
Although there is of course that old problem of obscure bits of software that only run on Windows.
I guess it all depends on where your pain points are.
My old Dell running xp just went nuts. As soon as I log in, I'm immediately logged back out. Could this have some correlation?
@Cnizzle
Nope shouldn't be related. The auto logout thing is usually caused by a corrupt userinit.exe file located in the windows system32 folder. Just copy a valid one in and it should be able to login. But try safemode though, which might get you in without having to do anything.
@jakey
Yeah, I tried it on safemode, but no luck. So how am I suppose to copy a file in given my limitations? Are you suggesting removing the harddrive and docking it to another pc?
Sounds like a good marketing strategy to get those fence sitters to upgrade to Windows 7.
kerplunky, already on ubuntu, now with N-game operable!
No issues here. 5 year old XP install with Avast & Spybot S&D, clean as a whistle.
I thought all problems with Windows were made up by the EVIL Apple to scare us and they didn't actually happen?
iPhone app.
That's two patches which have broken peoples PCs which Microsoft have now blamed on malware....is it a wonder that people are moving away
The Daemon is a hoax.
Microsoft _suspects_ malware? Unless this is malware that isn't detected by current scanners, they should be able to scan the hosed drives in an unaffected system and say exactly what malware is causing the problem. Perhaps the FBI's Computer and Internet Protocol Address Verifier (CIPAV) or some other "permitted" malware?
Linux sucks exactly as much as Windows does. It has yet to leave the hobbyist stage, so unless someone is prepared to really work at getting which ever flavor of Linux to work for them, they are far better of keeping XP. However, those afflicted with this DOS/patch/bug/malware/whatever are likely screwed.
My BSD box says lul, and my XP box says i neglect it =(
If you are still using XP instead of Win7 64-bit...you deserve to have machine reboot over..and over..and over...and over again
I'm using XP Professional 32 bit SP 3 Build 2600 and the patch had no adverse effects on my system whatsoever; However, I clean my system regularly. I think MS is correct, that the patch triggered some latent malware in some systems.
From my observations in the past few days, it's not just a Windows XP problem. I've spent the past 2 days trying to build a new Windows Home Server (Server 2003 based) as a VM on my Ubuntu 9.10 Server (Karmic Koala). After going through HOURS of patching, I went into the wonderful cycle of BSOD and reboot. Not too painful for a VM, but still, rather anoying wasting hours of work and re-work and getting nowhere.
Key point here is that the patch affects more than just XP.
I was an IT consultant for years supporting primarily Windows, I am now corporate IT supporting windows, linux and OS X. In my experience it isn't that we mac users are paying any "luxury taxes"... We are paying what any person should expect to pay for an enjoyable, safe, stable computing experience. The PC industry just lowered the standard to sell more units, now the common end users (not eggheads like us) have bad experiences when using computers, and they don't connect the dots that if they want a better experience, even in a Windows-centric world that they will have to pay more for superior hardware & support.
@kobioshi
It has nothing to do with "luxury taxes". It's simply a matter of applying sound software practices that were well known before any modern version of Windows was ever created.
A Mac benefits from being built on top of a solid design, not it's price tag.
The development costs of any widely used software is going to be spread out among enough people that the per unit cost will approach zero. You just need a company willing to build something robust. If you have an entrenched monopoly, there will certainly be less competitive pressure pushing them to make a good product.
I'm reading this on an XP machine in safe mode (with networking)...
Microsoft is killing me
by the way i was able to fix this problem on my netbook by buying a usb external disc drive and booting from it. i didnt have to register it with the comp before hand as it was brand new. so although it sucks, you can get your notebook back
Reading this in Firefox in Ubuntu Linux.