Windows users seeking security should move to FireFox

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Dec. 22, 2004

In this opinion column, eWEEK.com editor Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols suggests that Internet Explorer is insecure junk, and it's time for Windows users to move to Firefox if they want to protect their systems. Vaughan-Nichols writes . . .

The itsy, bitsy spider, climbed up the water spout.
Down came the rain and washed the spider out.
Out came the sun and dried up all the rain,
So the itsy, bitsy spider went up the spout again.

That was one of my daughter Alicia's favorite nursery rhymes when she was small. And it's a great fun as that, but it makes for a lousy IT policy. How many times must Windows desktop users be hosed before they start using a more secure desktop operating system?

Or, if you're not ready to shift over to a good, solid desktop Linux such as Novell Linux Desktop or Xandros or buy a Mac, the least you could do is start using more secure, open-source applications on your Windows.

Take Firefox for example. I've been using Web browsers almost since before there were Web browsers, and Firefox is simply the best browser I've ever used on any platform. In addition, Firefox is a lot more secure than Internet Explorer.

Notice I didn't say it was perfectly secure. Like any software program, it has problems. Internet Explorer, on the other hand, is a security hole disguised as a Web browser . . .

Read the full column at DesktopLinux.com sister site, eWEEK.com:

Use Firefox for a Safer System

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Use of this site is governed by our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Except where otherwise specified, the contents of this site are copyright © 1999-2008 Ziff Davis Enterprise Holdings Inc. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of Ziff Davis Enterprise is prohibited. Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. All other marks are the property of their respective owners.