RE: Administrivia & Request: Aloha, the moderator is back

[Tim Bolton <ltb () armedicalboard org>]

My biggest headache in all of this (I would be the friend in question who
tries to fix their PC connected via cable modem) is that after finally
convincing people to purchase at the minimum Firewall Software, such as
Norton's Internet Security, and getting it set up to provide as much
protection as possible (along with the appropriate XP security settings) I
come over to find it disabled because their kids couldn't download Kazza...
If I was not the one that would have to rebuild it for them (we are friends
after all) I would just leave the door open so that they would get what they
deserve, lesson learned...


Tim Bolton 
Systems Administrator

[Ed. Ok, we've strayed pretty far off topic here (and elsewhere).  Let's please
declare this thread completed.  Thanks to everyone that responded to my 
request.  I'll post a separate follow-up shortly. KRvW]

-----Original Message-----
From: jnf [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sent: Monday, March 29, 2004 11:31 AM
To: Fernando Schapachnik
Cc: Kenneth R. van Wyk; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Re: [SC-L] Administrivia & Request: Aloha, the moderator is
back


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> But with personal computers there is this conflicting belief, stating in
one
> hand that the computer should need no maintenance, so there's no need for
> understanding its inner works, and on the hand, if something happens, the
same
> unknowledgable user should take action. Note that the pairs (problem, user
> action) range from (personal firewall popup window, choose allow/deny) to
(RPC
> buffer overflow found, install patches/deploy firewall/turn off service).

> And most often the end user will take their computer to their 
> neighbor/friend/whatever in hopes they can fix it and often that person is 
> little more than (ill nab a word from windows here) a power user.


> Again I really feel the issue most needing to be addressed is user 
> education, as I said its the year 2004, things are not going to get less 
> complex, only more complex, a basic knowledge of computers and network 
> (imho) is necessary, and will only become more neccessary as time 
> progreesses.