Posts by Phillip Dixon

FCC tells Comcast to unblock P2P

Can of worms

I've struck a nerve with the P2P users.

My original question was "does anyone use if for legitimate stuff?", so a yes or now would have done. Then I posed the question "if you are downloading stuff illegally why shouldn't you be stopped?", maybe what Comcast are doing is not legal or right but is it right to turn a blind eye to illegal use?

@Solomon Grundy - You sound like a serial killer and a little paranoid, maybe you should reconsider your smoking preferences. If only I were a spy my desktop job would be a whole lot more exciting. If it's not contributing to a discussion then don't bother commenting.

@Mark Otway - Posting illegal DVD's, should the royal mail stop them? Chances are they'd lose them anyway but what it the package contained Anthrax? Should the royal mail deliver it to it's destination?

As it happens I'm a big fan of P2P but every now and again I like to have a discussion to keep me entertained. Nobody can deny P2P has a future; online gaming, patch distribution, iPlayer, etc but until someone sorts the good traffic from the bad more and more ISP's will use sledgehammer tactics to solve "the P2P problem"

P2P Pirates

Can I pose the question...

Does anyone actually use P2P networks for legitimate stuff? Or is it just the illegal file sharers?

If you're downloading dvd's, music, games, etc then why should you have any right to continue to do this? Should it be the ISP who is the gatekeeper of the Internet? Who should the music industry be chasing?

HMRC coughs to more data losses

Lessons learnt?

I find it hard to believe that any lessons have been learnt or "more stringent rules" were applied; what did they do before? Give the data away with a box of corn flakes?

This government can't even get the basics right and yet the want everyone to have an ID card with everything stored on it. ID fraudsters must be licking their lips.

Quantum scientist wins Euro computing prize

What are you on about?

Joerg, you're a good example as to why it's not good to use drugs.

Stop smoking crack, the paranoia is getting to you.

Unwanted e-card conceals a Storm

Why is this a Windows Fault?

How come we keep coming back to the same old argument that every virus is a fault of Microsoft?

I'm so tired of hearing the same argument over and over. Windows isn't perfect but at least when it does get a virus the average end user stands a good chance of removing it. When Linux gets a virus (despite popular belief it does happen) the average user can't get rid of it.

When the days comes that Linux is as easy to use as Windows (and one day it will happen but not just yet) then we can have this discussion. In the meantime rather than blame Bill Gates each user needs to take responsibility for their own computer. System administrators in particular need to take responsibility for those who are unable to take responsibility for themselves.

No system is perfect and it's a difficult task of risk management but if a system gets a virus it's a shortcoming of the system design, policy implementation, user training and ultimately a sign of a lazy, unmotivated or just poorly trained system administrator not Bill Gates.

The IT sector has far too many nerds and not enough people who are good with the other side of things. The policy creation, the user training, the proactive monitoring of things, the implementing new procedures and aggressively getting off their comfortable seat that has moulded to their backside and understanding the limitations of general users.