(Conspiracy Nation, 09/21/05) -- In "Attack Of The Zombie Bots!" (http://www.shout.net/~bigred/ZombieBots.html), Conspiracy Nation mentioned "persistent reports that the Windows operating system, whose source code is a Microsoft top secret, contains a secret back door key available to the NSA."
Thanks to a reader of Conspiracy
Nation, who forwarded links to two relevant articles. ("German
armed forces ban MS software, citing NSA," http://www.theregister.co.uk/2001/03/17/german_armed_forces_ban_ms/
and "Microsoft nein danke: snoop scares dog US IT in Europe," http://www.theregister.co.uk/2001/03/19/microsoft_nein_danke_snoop_scares/)
One of the above articles, "Microsoft nein danke" ("Microsoft, no
thanks"), talks about a "general European perception that US IT
[Information Technology] companies are too damn close to the NSA
[National Security Agency]..."
If you have any experience with the Windows operating system, you
may have wondered, "What is so great about it?" Or, you may be a
consumer of limited experience who is dazzled by your new toy. ("Wow,
you point and you click.")
Sitting on your desktop is a computer having the multitasking power
of a 1980s-era mainframe. You may not realize that, since Microsoft has
dumbed-down your machine. They assume, perhaps rightly so, that most
people don't want to be bothered by complexities.
And anyway, what choice do you have? Apple computer has announced
moving to Intel CPUs, but until that happens, if you have an
Intel-based machine you are basically stuck with Windows. Or are you??
The USA mass media keeps droning on about the great "visionary" Bill
Gates. But the true revolutionaries responsible for bringing computers
to the masses were Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs. (Call them "The Two
Steves," and no, this editor does not use an Apple computer.)
In the 1960s and 1970s, IBM had been the dominant force in
computers. IBM could have, but did not, produce desktop computers.
Jobs and Wozniak, the Two Steves, did not have much passion for
formal schooling. (This, incidentally, is often the case with the most
creative minds. Walter Scott, Bobby Darin, Abraham Lincoln... These are
a few examples of escapees from mind-numbing indoctrination.) Tinkering
around, they invented a simple computer affordable to most.
The new computer was a hit. IBM was caught off-guard by the
upstarts. They hurried to catch up with a personal computer of their
own. But they needed some sort of operating system -- fast. They
latched onto Bill Gates, who had developed a clunker called DOS. And
so, Bill Gates had arrived.
In the mid-1990s, the press could not praise enough a Microsoft
operating system called Windows 95. This editor purchased a new
computer at the time and had no choice
but to passively accept W95. And the W95 kept crashing! The operating
system did not confine various applications within areas of memory.
Those programs kept wandering into what should have been restricted
segments of memory, and the system would freeze up. There was no choice
except to press the reboot button. Then, a nagging message from Bill
Gates would appear, complaining, "You did not shut down properly" -- as
if it were your fault!
W95 was crap, but in the mass media you'd keep reading about how
wonderful the Windows 95 operating system is! It was like rubbing salt
in the wound!
Incongrously, in spite of repeated assurances about how marvelous
W95 was, there began appearing on store shelves "Crash Shield"
software. These were independently developed programs meant to
circumvent routine crashes of W95. This editor purchased one such
product, the McAfee Crash Shield, and it saved the day.
Has Bill Gates inserted little chips into the minds of journalists?
Is that why even today they fawn upon the great "visionary?"
Disgusted with Microsoft, this editor began delving into the Linux
operating system. It was a bit scarey, since the buzz was, "Only brainy
people can understand it." (Not so.) You also had to get horizontal and
vertical refresh rates right, or else your monitor might sizzle in
front of your eyes. This is still somewhat true.
For anyone contemplating a divorce from Microsoft, something called
Knoppix might be a good first step. Knoppix is a CD-ROM which
reportedly boots from your CD drive yet does not install itself onto
the hard drive. It is inexpensive, typically costing $5 for a CD.
From there, if you decide to take the plunge, the Red Hat or the
Mandriva (formerly Mandrake) distributions are easiest for beginners.
At this time, owners of laptop computers are advised that their
particular situation is a bit iffy. Because of Microsoft's monopoly
dominance, hardware manufacturers often do not take into account the
Linux community. Nanotech hardware in laptops can be especially
problematic. Device drivers, which allow the computer to "talk" with
peripheral hardware, are included with hardware components.
Unfortunately the device drivers mostly embrace the "wonderful" windoze
system and Linux volunteers must struggle to catch up and figure out
new device drivers.
But what the hay. Maybe Microsoft does have a secret NSA back door.
And maybe it is expensive. And maybe you have to buy all kinds of
software (more expense). And maybe annoying messages do keep popping up
while you try to concentrate on your work. And maybe the Microsoft file
system scatters your files all over the drive and you have to
defragment periodically. And maybe the system is vulnerable to hackers.
What the hay. It's so neat. You just point, and you click!
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