[117017] in Cypherpunks
Petro's Mom (was Re: Black Bag Jobs VS Shopping Bag Jobs)
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (David Honig)
Wed Aug 25 10:46:43 1999
Message-Id: <3.0.5.32.19990824181720.0080b2c0@pop.sprynet.com>
Date: Tue, 24 Aug 1999 18:17:20 -0700
To: Petro <petro@suba.com>, cypherpunks@cyberpass.net
From: David Honig <honig@sprynet.com>
In-Reply-To: <v04205502b3e865ef5b67@[208.176.30.20]>
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Reply-To: David Honig <honig@sprynet.com>
At 08:11 AM 8/24/99 -0700, Petro wrote:
>
> THE FUTURE IS OPEN SOURCE! Hopefully, in another 2 or 3 years, I
>will be rid of MS and be running Linux only. Linux
It *is* open source already, for the pocket protector set.
The issue is getting your Mom to 1. use a sufficently slick/familiar
GUI on top of the open OS 2. bother to use (or listen to) the
system-verification
(OS signature verifying) daemon that some future paranoid will write.
(If Mrs. Petro has installed an open source OS or is trained in INFOSEC,
apologies
to her.)
The point is: mass deployment and ease of use. TCP took off because W95
included
a stack. HTTP took off because a decerebrate monkey could browse. Ease of
use cannot be underestimated.
(Yes, there are other factors involved in these deployments...)
\begin{meander}
The only time an awkward gizmo is *ever* used is when it is so much better
than what
exists that people will put up with it. E.g., first-gen spreadsheets.
The next
generation sells on features, after that its all UI and marketing and costs.
(Yes, I'm oversimplifying.)
And users, which we can neither live with nor without, will always chose
convenience
over security.
\end{meander}
