Forums | MacLife

ConnertheCat wrote:

Macskeeball wrote:

DevoDoc wrote:

I installed Ubuntu on my old Dell (P3 500 mHZ, 256 KB RAM) last night.  This machine takes well over a full minute just to open Internet Explorer in XP, but it's really zippy running Mozilla under Ubuntu.

One thing I was very pleased with was how easy Ubuntu was to configure.  I installed a wireless card in this PC last year, and it took me an hour to get XP configured to recognize my home network.  Ubuntu immediately recognized my wireless card.  I just entered my WEP password and I was connected.

I think I'm going to offload whatever files are on the Windows partition and repartition the drive as a Linux only volume.

You do realize that WEP can easily be cracked in three minutes, right? It is not good protection at all, and you should really be using WPA instead. I also recommend listening to the older episodes of the Security Now podcast, which you can find in the iTunes directory.

And MAC filtering is even better.

A packet sniffer easily reveals the valid MAC addresses, and there is a lot of software out there that will let you spoof your MAC addresses with ease. Many routers even come with this spoofing functionality out of the box. MAC address filtering is not security. At all.

I should have said that!

The Cynic wrote:

digisane wrote:

Half of the time we do with the Dell machines at my office is removing viruses or trojans and stupid spyware. Because we take in customer CDs or memory cards, the machines are constantly under attack, even with updated virus definitions, viruses or malware sometimes win.

Not all machines we have are Dell, but they all taste the same. The thread might as well be "What do you use your PC for?"

I don't have anti-virus software installed on my pc, but it still acts fine all the time.


WHY!?!?!?!?

no internet connection:lol:

Macskeeball wrote:

Again, subscribe to the Security Now podcast and make sure to listen to the older episodes as well.

Or you can not be paranoid.

DudetheCreator wrote:

256 KB of RAM?  I assume it's the minimalistic, command line version then?

His BIOS has more than 256kB of RAM... He meant 256MB

ConnertheCat wrote:

Macskeeball wrote:

Again, subscribe to the Security Now podcast and make sure to listen to the older episodes as well.

Or you can not be paranoid.

A healthy dose of paranoia can be a good thing when it comes to security, because you are better safe than sorry. Security is a matter of layers, and a false sense of security is worse than no security at all. Keep in mind, too, that Steve Gibson is the person who predicted and named both viruses and spyware. We already have Bluetooth viruses. What if a WiFi virus were to emerge?  I've taken a few steps to protect myself and my network, because I value them.

As for the combination of MAC address filtering when combined with good encryption, I agree. I do just that. As I said, I use WPA + SSID hiding + MAC address filtering + software firewalls + the right tool for the right job (wired for desktops, and WiFi for laptops). All of the above, but with WEP instead of WPA could still be easily broken in three minutes.

PS- WPA is actually easier than WEP in the sense that you can set a good (long and random) password once and then not have to worry about changing it.

hawaiian717 wrote:

Macskeeball wrote:

As I said, I use WPA + SSID hiding + MAC address filtering + software firewalls + the right tool for the right job (wired for desktops, and WiFi for laptops). All of the above, but with WEP instead of WPA could still be easily broken in three minutes.

This is called Defense in Depth, and is considered a Very Good Idea.

Macskeeball wrote:

PS- WPA is actually easier than WEP in the sense that you can set a good (long and random) password once and then not have to worry about changing it.

You should still change it regularly.

I do, but I don't have to change it on an hourly basis like I would with WEP.

Macskeeball wrote:

ConnertheCat wrote:

Macskeeball wrote:

Again, subscribe to the Security Now podcast and make sure to listen to the older episodes as well.

Or you can not be paranoid.

A healthy dose of paranoia can be a good thing when it comes to security, because you are better safe than sorry. Security is a matter of layers, and a false sense of security is worse than no security at all. Keep in mind, too, that Steve Gibson is the person who predicted and named both viruses and spyware. We already have Bluetooth viruses. What if a WiFi virus were to emerge?  I've taken a few steps to protect myself and my network, because I value them.

As for the combination of MAC address filtering when combined with good encryption, I agree. I do just that. As I said, I use WPA + SSID hiding + MAC address filtering + software firewalls + the right tool for the right job (wired for desktops, and WiFi for laptops). All of the above, but with WEP instead of WPA could still be easily broken in three minutes.

PS- WPA is actually easier than WEP in the sense that you can set a good (long and random) password once and then not have to worry about changing it.

Oh just throw it all away and drop a few $Grand$ on a Cisco VPN and use that for your wireless security.

ScifiterX wrote:

WPA isn't always an option.

It's apparently not supported by Ubuntu, either, so it looks like I'm stuck with WEP for now.

MacBoy4139 wrote:

I'm not concerned, as I am in range of 3 other open networks in my building alone.

Yep.  I'm picking up an unsecured network, too.  Probably my neighbor.  I figure anyone wardriving in my neighborhood would hit him and not me.  Besides, you would probably have to park in my driveway to get a signal.

Last edited by DevoDoc (2006-03-23 10:04 am)

You may be able to use WPA with Ubuntu, as long as your wireless adapter supports it.

My Dell at work is used for typing reports, assessments, data entry, emails, some web surfing and not much else.

Can you say glorified typewriter?

willywalloo wrote:

Dells at work often come in because of windows repair problems. Virus's/ad-aware/spyware plague them. There is no real physical reason why this is a real relationship; but if you have a dell and it BY CHANCE runs windows, you either have some virus's or so much spyware you don't know what to do with.

Im pretty sure that kind of stuff is limited to people who dont know how to take care of their computers.

Which reminds me, I need to complain about Chevy more because their cars suck and break all the time, disregarding that I never change the oil.