by TWilliam » Thu 27 Nov 2008, 15:55:25
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('kpeavey', 'I') may be looking for a replacement if I can't fix the old one. Any suggestions?
Kpeavey I can't really comment on hardware much, beyond noting that most widely available 'mainstream' names should be pretty reliable. Dell used to be worth the extra money for their excellent tech support, but once they outsourced that to the Third World it went straight into the toilet, so I no longer see them as being worth it. I used to avoid Compaq like the plague because of their tendency to 'proprietize' their hardware, but since their merge with HP they've largely gone 'off-the-shelf'. I've been running on an HP/Compaq for a little over two years now with (knock on wood) no problems.
As far as the OS, the only reason I still have Winbloze (XP) on my system --I have a dual-boot setup along with Ubuntu Linux-- is for the occasional gaming, and because of my Audible subscription. If I wanted to spend the time dicking with WINE (a Windows 'emulator'), I probably wouldn't even need it for those, but I don't use either enough to make it worth the trouble, so I keep the dual-boot.
Repartitioning my drive and installing Linux was the first thing I did with my system when I got it home. It
does take at least some minimal tech savvy to set up a dual boot, but IMO it's the best way to go if there's any Winbloze software you just can't do without; WINE is substandard at best IMO (tho' that impression may be due in large part to my unwillingness to wade through the copious amounts of configuration details).
I've tried several, tho' by no means all of the innumerable 'flavors' of Linux out there, and I'd have to say that Ubuntu is probably at present the most user-friendly distro. You can download it from
here. It comes as an ISO file which you can burn to a CD. What you'll then have is what is known as a 'live CD' version, which is a fully bootable OS that will run entirely from the CD itself (assuming your hardware is capable) and let you 'test drive' Ubuntu without needing to install anything to your hard drive (keep in mind that it will not run as fast as it would if installed). If you decide you like it, you can install it from within the 'virtual' OS, or you can log out, eject the disk and reboot into your 'regular' system.
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Jotapay', 'Y')ou said that no virus ever penetrated your non-existent defenses, but that doesn't sound like a very good plan. It may be that you never checked and wouldn't be aware if someone did get into your computer.
Jotapay most Linux systems are 'defensive' by default, even without any firewall rules defined. The thing that makes Winbloze so vulnerable (apart from its ubiquity and general uniformity across deployments) is the fact that there are often a half dozen or more 'net aware' (meaning remotely accessible) services running after a default install, most of which users are only indirectly aware of, if at all. Linux, by contrast, generally operates with a 'closed door' policy with regard to web services, meaning that the user has to actually enable them. I know of no Linux distributions at present that produce a default installation with any 'web aware' services running. Like the system you described, I have absolutely no rules defined in my iptables, yet a check at grc.com's ShieldsUP! port probe shows my machine to be completely 'stealthed' (i.e. non-accessible for exploit), because I have no web services of any kind running.
An additional 'built-in' defense of Linux is simply the fact that there are so many different versions of it, with an effectively infinite number of configurations available. This makes it difficult for any virii to gain much traction in the Linux 'webspace'. While individual machines might be targeted for exploit, most web virii depend on the uniform configurations found on the vast majority of Winbloze machines for their rapid proliferation. Unless they believe you have something of value on your system, most 'script-kiddie' hackers simply aren't interested. They stick with the low-hanging fruit that is Winbloze...
I love the fact that I know who knocks on my front door or who comes in and out. You would be surprised what happens at 3am. Couple this with X10 and you have a pretty efficient security system that can notify your cell when doors are opened or anything you can think of. 
