[nzlug] Observation on installing firefox to WinXP (SP3)

[Simon Bridge]

On Sat, 2008-03-15 at 10:31 +1100, Daniel Pittman wrote:
> Mark Foster <blakjak at blakjak.net> writes:
> > I've never seen it before but I have to say your report gives me yet
> > more pause on the Windows front... talk about anti competitive...
> 
> I can only say "what?!" to that; this has been a feature of Windows for
> years under any security settings.
> 
> When you download a file from the Internet with the system tools it
> marks it as "warn before running" and displays that dialog before
> allowing you to continue.

Curious - I spent some time installing third party software to WinXP
home SP1 and did not encounter this dialog. Including with the firefox
installer.

While such a dialog certainly produces an anti-competitive edge, it is
one possible responce to the strong and urgent need for MS to address
the Windows "culture". Their customers have been socially engineered for
years to install any old malware to their machines.

Something has to be done and shocking the windows users out of their
complacency would be one of the first things that would occur to them...
and easy to get past marketing.

It's the same sort of reasoning that keeps evangelists and spammers
going... they are doing you a favour.