haha....'at minimum and adequate computer user'.
I have been doing development for 4 years (which may pale in comparison to
some, but in that time I have seen a lot).
A lot of the developers I have worked with in the past could barely install
software on their machin without messing something up. As a whole most of
the developers Ive known have been very careless.
I do fnd that some of the best developers are the ones that have done it
all, System Administration, Networking, as well as Development.
I think its all comes from having to have served many purposes in the past.
Developer, Sales Person, and at times Admin, Network Architect. Diversity
leads to enlightenment....=P
My point in all of this was to point out that sometimes its the developers
that are the BIGGEST offenders and not just the end user or Sales/Marketing
people down the hall.
-chris.alvarado
[developer] - VerticalNet
-----Original Message-----
From: Dave Watts [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Monday, February 12, 2001 5:47 PM
To: CF-Talk
Subject: Dave's Burning Rant (WAS: virus comments)
> > Anyone dumb enough to open attachments like this deserve
> > everything they get...
>
> I think that�s a bit harsh considering that the ultimate
> source of the error is the software developer that refuses
> to stop producing software with these moronic security
> holes in it.
I feel compelled to respond to this.
Admittedly, the openness and interrelatedness of Microsoft Office, Outlook,
IE, and WSH make it easy to write relatively powerful viruses, the ultimate
responsibility for safe computer use, like safe driving and safe sex, lies
with the one behind the wheel. Microsoft, and sysadmins everywhere, can
minimize virus problems with better software design, stronger security,
better email filters, etc., but in the end, just like with computer
security, computer virus protection boils down to common sense at the
end-user level.
How many people have received legitimate messages from someone they know
(but aren't already in a relationship with) saying "I love you"? Are we all
that desperate for love, that we'll just double-click blindly for it? How
many people regularly receive salacious pictures of female tennis stars from
their coworkers? If you want to look at that kind of stuff, the internet is
filled to the brim with it - more free hardcore porn than you could ever
look at. (Although personally, I feel that porn technology kind of peaked
with VHS/DVD.) Why is it that we can expect adults to understand manual
transmissions and 401K plans, but can't expect them to be smart enough to
know, "Hey, this email I just got from Joe down the hall looks like it was
written by a third-grader, and has a dirty picture attached. Maybe this is a
virus, like the last thing I got from a coworker like this. Maybe I
shouldn't double-click on the attachment."
Microsoft software does what it always does - it tends toward openness at
the expense of security. Guess what - that's what people want on their
desktops. As someone who's done a bit of sysadmin work, I can tell you they
don't want security. They want to be able to do whatever they want. The cost
of that power is end-user responsibility.
This goes even further for the people on this list. This is a developer
list. We write network applications, which tie together very expensive web
servers used by millions of people to even more expensive database servers.
We use the same technology that makes these viruses work. Being a good
developer means knowing how software works. Being a good developer means
being, at minimum, an adequate computer user!
Dave Watts, CTO, Fig Leaf Software
http://www.figleaf.com/
voice: (202) 797-5496
fax: (202) 797-5444
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