Sticking with your approach, I'd exxagerate the analogy a little. Tell them that Windows is a Kia, but it's hermetically sealed and is impossible to crack open and fix. Ever. And they only sell one model. Conversely, Linux gives you the choice of a thousand different customised cars, tough as a tank, with a full set of manuals, free access to spare parts for the rest of your life, the dashboard of a batmobile, and they can fly. And they run on air instead of petrol, so those nasty, petrol-borne problems don't even touch you. There are, however, some "air" viruses, but they are few and far between, and only affect some particular tanks, not all of them. And the Windows/Kia leaves the doors unlocked by default, whereas your Linux Tank is surrounded by armed guards by default.
On top of all that, you can strip your tank down to a skateboard, or hot it up to a 747.
Bill Bennett wrote:
It's a peculiar request, so please bear with me.
I had been asked why Linux was immune to the wave of viruses that have been pillaging Microsoft-oriented machines. To be honest, I didn't have a ready reply. The best I could do was "Well, Linux is differently organised." Feeble, I know, but the enquirer was not a nurd and, if it comes to that, neither am I.
So I thought about the matter. I wanted a good analogy.
This was the best that came to mind:
"Assume someone has put something in your petrol that rots piston heads and only piston heads. Eventually the engine will fail.
*However* it's not going to affect me if my engine is a Wenkel."
As I say, the best I could do.
Can anyone do better? The issue *must* have surfaced in the past and valid analogies must have been drawn for the non-technical. My reason for wanting this is that, occasionally I'm asked why I will not even look at, or consider going back to MS. Blinding people with technicalia generally gets you nowhere.
Bill Bennett.
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