[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

This guy must have a pair of brass ones....

BUT he is absolutely on target!

[manwiththehands]

Maybe I'm lucky, but my XP Home Edition is the most stable, reliable and useful version of Windows I've ever owned ... and I've been at this PC stuff for 20 years. Security is a concern, sure, but taking precautions (firewall, anti-spyware, anti-virus) seems to keep things secure.

[John Jorsett]

Microsoft will assure that Vista is accepted by its usual tactic: you want an operating system with that new computer? Then take this copy of Vista and shut up.

[general_re]

Hmmm, he doesn't look like Will Smith...

Maximum PC editors have had spyware infestations on their machines.

Q: What's the difference between a tech writer and a used car salesman?
A: The used car salesman knows when he's lying to you.

[HAL9000]

Microsoft Windows is a bowl-shaped operating system, with security as strong as a New Orleans levee.

Evacuate immediately.

[Flightdeck]

Maybe the people at this dude's office should quit looking up porn four hours a day.

[Niteranger68]

This guy is an f...ing crybaby metrosexual! "But I want to see Windows XP fixed first." Or what? You will pee yourself? I have put my XP-Home OS thru hell and have never had a virus, worm or trojan. If I had, I still doubt I would have blamed MS.

[rdb3]

When I reviewed Windows XP, way back in October 2001, I declared it the best Windows yet, awarding it a perfect score of 10 and the coveted Kick Ass award. Oh how times have changed!

From XP's beginning, I was underwhelmed. I still think that Windows 2000 was the best Windows to date (although I liked how NT 4 was so customizable that I could lock it down tighter than Ft. Knox.).

To this date, there is still no "there" there with XP, in my opinion. XP Pro came with this box, so that's what I'm using for now.

Vista is going to be interesting, and I can't wait to see how secure by default it's going to be.

We shall see.

If you want a Google GMail account, FReepmail me.

[Peelod]

Where do you want to go today?

http://www.msboycott.com/media/microsoft_ad_office_bra.mov

[sittnick]

So THAT'S what happened to Pugsley Addams!!

[js1138]

I'm a subscriber to MaxPC, and I saw that editorial last week. I wondered at the time just what he was talking about. I maintain about fourty pcs with XP or Win2000, and none of them have been infected with anything after I installed a few reasonable, and mostly free preventives.

The XP firewall works. If you don't like it, there's free ZoneAlarm. If you don't like those, there are others.

MS Anti-Spyware works. It's free and self updating.

AVG anti-virus is free to non-commercial users.


The other really odd thing about the editorial is that Vista fixes the one thing Linux users say needs to be fixed, mainly root privileges. Anyone running Vista has a private copy of the registry and the programs directory. If a virus corrupts the registry or the programs, it doesn't corrupt the OS. this is important, because most modern viruses and spyware are installed with the explicit permission of the user.