Is Microsoft Sliding, Is Linux Rising?

Hot news these days (at least for me) is a new, major security leak in Vista, the .ANI vulnerability. Even the latest, fully-patched Windows is vulnerable from the .ANI vulnerability. With the release of Vista, Microsoft promised a lot of things, including great advancements in security. But as always, Microsoft fails to deliver. Apparently, this vulnerability was present since the ’90s, “in all versions of Windows up to and including Windows Vista”. So for anyone whose eyes are still wool-covered by Microsoft, I think this would be a good time to reevaluate your choices. And for those of you who can’t live without your Windows, switching to a non-IE browser should help protect you. But long time Windows users know, you won’t be protected for long.

Meanwhile, Dell has started offering their customers a choice over the pre-installed OS that comes with their purchase, by offering to its customers Linux desktops. Is this an indicator of things yet to come? Indeed, Dell’s decision to offer Linux was prompted by their customers themselves (read: those consumers want Linux rather than Windows). I believe so, but as with all things OS, we’ll just have to wait and see. In the meantime, what this offers us is choice–something Microsoft is still struggling to give. And unless Microsoft decides to shape up, they’ll soon be struggling to maintain their monopoly.

A quick review of what you get with Vista:

1. A $200-$400 OS (included features depends on price)
2. Twice-install limitation
3. Slow adoption and Limiting Premium Content
4. The need to buy a new PC

Yup, I know there’s more, and I’d love to hear of it, by posting your comment down below.

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