THE OFFICIAL BLOG OF THE SBS DIVA

I don't want Rolex watches.  I don't need V_agra.  I don't need P_nus enlargement.  I don't want an IBM laptop.

When I go to the HP web site and look at the 3d version of the zd7000 notebook, I didn't give you the right to suddenly load something called Viewpoint.

If I load up AOL's IM client, I also didn't allow you to load this up or whatever else you allow to tag along.  You have this ad campaign on that says you care about stopping malware.

To whatever software....I didn't give you the right to install Wild Tangent.

I didn't give you the right to install WexTech Answerworks either.

And ZDnet, after I specifically opted out of newsletters and email, I still ended up with junk mail from you guys.

Apparently you as vendors think that we're stupid enough just to put up with this?  Maybe we are because we aren't putting up the fuss we really should be doing.

And the sad part is how much effort we put into cleaning these boxes up.  We can't trust them anymore.  Yet we spend so much time and energy in malware tools when we should be flattening them and rebuilding the systems.

I was just chatting online with a guy who just rebuilt a system yesterday, loaded up AOL IM [for friends and family] and ended up with Viewpoint.  So I'm recommending that he loads up Trillian instead that plugs into multiple IM clients.  Mind you he's re-flattening a system he just built because he's in an industry were security is important and having programs “do thing” that he didn't authorize is just not his way. 

Maybe that's the thing to do.  “Vote” with our feet and walk away from vendors that do this.  Or email them.  Or talk to their representatives.  Or.... well you get the idea.... start speaking out against this.  If we don't, we won't “own” our systems anymore.