Hmmm …
Well …
THERE’S a bit of brewing news: and one I think is going to run, and run, and run, and RUN!
Say’s I, laughing!
Over the past few day’s, we’ve seen the news that technology giant, Google, declare that — after Gmail accounts belong ing to Chinese human rights activist were hacked, apparently by the Chinese government — they were thinking of pulling out of China.
Which — from some of the news items I’ve seen — can probably be blamed on the Great Satan, itself, Microsoft.
Well …
Indirectly …
It seems that the hackers who launched the attack, exploited holes in Internet Explorer. Specifically in Internet Explorer 6.
Now, various spokespeople from Microsoft have taken pains to reassure people that more recent versions of IE are fair more secure.
Where they haven’t been helped, of course, is in the simple fact that — in the past couple of days — government spokes-persons from both France and Germany have spoken out.
And told people to NOT use Internet Explorer.
You know, I’m patriotic enough to not usually pay much attention to countries that don’t speak English: whilst admitting I like the odd bit of Beethoven and Jean Michel Jarre.
•••••
Just as an aside, here, did you know the French used to call syphilis, ‘… the English disease’?
But I can’t help but think the name would more accurately should be given to the habit of us — as a nation — really only speak one language: I mean, it’s not like we’re encouraged to learn another …
Which I can’t help think is to our national discredit: Kevin Z spent a lot of university years on the continent, and was always pleasantly surprised to see how many people in his host nation spoke English and at least one other tongue, as well as their native language.
•••••
Now, where was I?
Oh, yes, France and Germany …
Usually I’m patriotic enough to have a dig at the French and Germans, as I’m half convinced that the French and Germans will have a dig at both us, and each other.
But in this case?
Armchair tech news watcher that I am, I can’t help but think “Boy, I’m glad I got a Mac, especially if the French and German’s are coming out with that … !”
But I really shouldn’t be crowing too much.
It’s a touch undignified, isn’t it?
But I can’t help but notice that Microsoft immediately had one of their European executive’s go on the BBC’s news channel, pointing out that other browsers will have security issues.
And that the exploited loophole was in the older — and better known — IE 6.
Now I can’t help but think that’s due to the fact that may just be down to its commonness.
After all, most of the people I know using PC’s, are using one’s running XP: the version of Windoze with IE 6 as it’s default browser.
It’s only recently that versions 7 and 8 of IE have got more common.
And — the computer market being what it is — vulnerabilities in those will be spotted before flaws in Safari, Firefox, or Opera …
They’re going to be far more common …
•••••
Actually, can I make a confession, here?
Can I?
I’ve had Channel 5 on in the background.
Nice to see it, again.
Ok, granted the love story between Gary Oldman’s beautifully played — and, BOY, did he look like he was having fun, making this one — Dracula, and Winona Rider’s Mina Harker wasn’t in the book.
But it is a fun, entertaining and gorgeous-looking take on the story.
And worth watching, just for Tom Waits Dribbling Loon routine, as Renfield!
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