[Am-info] "always trust Microsoft" ..."revocation lists"

Tue, 27 Aug 2002 06:46:52 -0400

Worth the read.

Gene Gaines
gene.gaines@gainesgroup.com

This is a forwarded message
From: WindowManager@bdcimail.com <WindowManager@bdcimail.com>
To: pub@gainesgroup.com
Date: Monday, August 26, 2002, 1:35:15 PM
Subject: BRIAN LIVINGSTON: "Window Manager" from InfoWorld.com, Monday, August 26, 2002

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BRIAN LIVINGSTON:     "Window Manager"     InfoWorld.com
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Monday, August 26, 2002

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SNEAKY SERVICE PACKS

Posted August 23, 2002 01:01 PM  Pacific Time

WINDOWS USERS are steaming over the terms in
Microsoft's new Service Pack 3 for Windows 2000, which
was released on Aug. 1, and Service Pack 1 for XP,
which is in beta but will probably ship next month.

The licenses of these updates say, "You acknowledge and
agree that Microsoft may automatically check the
version of the OS Product and/or its components that
you are utilizing and may provide upgrades or fixes to
the OS Product that will be automatically downloaded
to your computer."

In an interview, Windows Product Manager Charmaine
Gravning said these terms are similar to "language in
the EULA [end-user license agreement] for Windows XP,"
but she confirmed that they're new for Windows 2000.

She pointed to a recent Microsoft white paper
documenting 11 components of XP that automatically
download material from the Internet.

For example, XP's Media Player pulls down upgrades and
then alerts you. If you have administrative
privileges, you can click OK to install a newer player
version. However, the app also downloads and installs
newfound media codecs without any notice, if you've
ever clicked the "always trust Microsoft" box while
browsing the Web.

To disable such downloading, see the white paper at
http://www.microsoft.com/WindowsXP/pro/techinfo/administration/manageautoupdate
.

One thing you can't get around, however -- and a big
reason for the latest fears -- is Microsoft's DRM
(digital rights management) scheme. This built-in XP
feature silently downloads and installs "revocation
lists." These lists prevent "revoked" programs from
playing DRM-encoded content.

The idea of giving any outside company the ability to
remotely turn off something that previously worked on
your computer strikes many as lunacy.

Aside from fair-use issues, users fear silent upgrades
because Microsoft has pumped out many buggy patches
that themselves needed patching. Just this June,
Microsoft shipped the Nimda worm in its Korean edition
of Visual Studio .Net.

Bruce Kratofil, my Windows 2000 Secrets co-author,
describes patch pitfalls and ways to "take back XP" at
http://www.bjkresearch.com/takeback.htm.  He notes
that Service Pack 3 conflicts with more than a dozen
Windows 2000 hotfixes Microsoft sent out starting on
July 23. (Go to  http://search.microsoft.com , then
search on Q326797.)

Kratofil is not alone. "The new Microsoft Win2K Service
Pack 3 is a loser!" writes reader Christopher Shock.
"It's ruined every machine I've installed it on so far
(five), including our entire Web development staff and
development server."

Fortunately, Shock recovered from backups, but he says
Microsoft's user-discussion forums have been plastered
with complaints from disgruntled users.

I'd like to hear your experiences. Readers whose
comments I print will receive gift certificates for a
free book, CD, or DVD of their choice.

Send tips to Contributing Editor Brian Livingston
at brian@brianlivingston.com. Get Window Manager and
his E-Business Secrets e-zine free at
http://www.iwsubscribe.com/newsletters.

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MORE WINDOW MANAGER
For a complete archive of his InfoWorld columns visit
http://www2.infoworld.com/cgi/component/columnarchive.wbs?column=window

INFOWORLD OPINIONS
Weekly commentary from the most trusted voices in
IT at: http://www.infoworld.com/community/t_opinions.html

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QUOTE OF THE DAY:
"If [Tigris] didn't deliver the product as we
agreed and if they didn't deliver the finished
product as we had defined within eight weeks,
we would not be obligated to pay them."

--Mark Steele, vice president and director of
purchasing and supply management at Kennametal,
speaking about the company's mandate to save
$35 million on supply sourcing.

http://www.infoworld.com/articles/fe/xml/02/08/23/020823fekmtcase.xml?0826mnlv

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You Can't Tell the Players Without a Program

Isn't that why we love the Web? Heavy hitters, one-hit
wonders, and lots of losers. Yet the rules to this day are
far from set in stone, and the standings change
week-to-week, if not day-to-day. For keeping up, InfoWorld's
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Advertising Sponsor - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
COMPLIMENTARY WHITE PAPER FROM BMC SOFTWARE
Looking for an affordable way to monitor your system?
Introducing our web-based remote monitoring system.
Measure and manage the QoS of your infrastructure
without the expense and hassles of building and
integrating your own management services.
Learn how GuardianAngel(TM) from BMC Software can save
your company money. Click here for our free white paper.
http://63.115.136.15/go/infoworld/4563360.html

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