From: youmustbejoking@lan.invalid
On Wed, 27 Jun 2012 20:24:52 -0400, Jim Beard wrote:
> On 06/27/2012 12:37 PM, Dan C wrote:
>> On Wed, 27 Jun 2012 09:10:38 -0400, Jim Beard wrote:
>>
>>> On 06/26/2012 11:19 PM, Moe Trin wrote:
>>>> On Tue, 26 Jun 2012, in the Usenet newsgroup alt.os.linux.mandriva,
>>>> in article
>>>> , Jim
>>>> Beard wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Moe Trin wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>> I suppose someone can create a BIOS root-kit that will run on O/S
>>>>>> other than windoze - but wonder how much damage it would be able to
>>>>>> do. It can't count on finding suitable libraries on disk - heck,
>>>>>> it may have a problem just reading the filesystem (which is this?),
>>>>>> and then what is it going to do? Phone home? Well, it's got to
>>>>>> figure out what NIC driver to use, as well as the little problem of
>>>>>> what IP addresses to use to get "out" ("me" as well as the default
>>>>>> router) never mind having packets coming back in. So you're talking
>>>>>> about a mini-O/S that's statically compiled and fits in a... no,
>>>>>> we're not using 27256s any more.
>>>>
>>>>> Not exactly. It waits for an arriving signal to tell it to wake up,
>>>>> and it then does something subtle and nefarious to make it easier
>>>>> for the impending exploit to put its hooks where they are wanted.
>>>>
>>>> That sounds more like an application level than a BIOS.
>>>>
>>>> [refurb'd computers]
>>>>
>>>>>> The units I've seen (mainly HP, but also Lenova, Toshiba and Sony)
>>>>>> are in manufacturer labeled boxes specifically stating that it's a
>>>>>> refurb. Two of the people in my department have bought them, and
>>>>>> neither had a problem.
>>>>
>>>>> May I list pros and cons as I see them and request your opinion?
>>>>
>>>>> The HP refurb is a dv7-6163cl. I like the keyboard, like two hard
>>>>> disks, like 8GB with slots to expand ato 16GB, like ATI Radeon 6770M
>>>>> card, and like 9-cell Li batteries that will run the thing for maybe
>>>>> 10 hours. I do not like the second-generation 2.2GHz i7-2670QM cpu
>>>>> (quad-core), and more fundamentally do not like the idea of buying
>>>>> obsolete technology (the model is no longer made, though it
>>>>> apparently was being shipped in December).
>>>>
>>>> The main reason my people bought then was the price. The units were
>>>> not that obsolete (thought that was a while ago and I don't recall
>>>> how much earlier they had been made) but they were priced well below
>>>> the "current" stuff.
>>>>
>>>>> The Dell [...] is the latest thing out of its class, and is brand
>>>>> new for warranty and other purposes, which I like.
>>>>
>>>> And yet the prices are comparable?
>>>>
>>>>> The keyboard is ok but not as good for my fingers as the hp and the
>>>>> graphics is intel - which I expect will work ok.
>>>>
>>>> Hmmm... One thing I wound up doing is going into the desktop setup
>>>> and disabling several "we want to help you" features, and setting up
>>>> a keyboard remap file to fix a few others. I was having trouble with
>>>> the Esc and F1 keys being so close (the F1 key brings up a "Help"
>>>> dialog box on several applications) and I had swap F1 and shift+F1 to
>>>> avoid accidentally getting that dialog box.
>>>>
>>>>> It looks to me like a trade-off of technical superiority of the Dell
>>>>> versus a very nice old machine. To say I am ambivalent is to put it
>>>>> mildly.
>>>>
>>>> A lot of it is personal opinion of course. I threw a casual question
>>>> at a department meeting yesterday, and the response indicated that
>>>> the low opinion of Dell still prevails here (though no one seems to
>>>> have purchased a Dell in more than five years) - I dunno.
>>>
>>> A special arrangement between Dell and the retailer makes a big
>>> difference. The Inspiron 5720 I see on the Web generally has an i5
>>> cpu (maybe been in stock for a while?) but the one I am looking at is
>>> an i7, third-generation, and a couple hundred below MSRP. The hp
>>> machines from the same retailer have the same discount from msrp if
>>> you take an i5 cpu and less-desirable other components, but the i7 cpu
>>> machines are back to full msrp. The refurb, from MicroCenter, is
>>> right at the discounted Dell price and a couple hundred or more below
>>> the comparable (but slightly newer technology) hp machines.
>>>
>>> The last think I looked at was the display. All have LED displays,
>>> but the Dell has 900p HD, an improvement over the hp HD displays for
>>> the specific models I found and checked.
>>>
>>> The Wall Street Journal's columnist on computers has been recommending
>>> that purchases of laptops be put off until later in the year, when
>>> machine more compatible with Winblows 8 will be available. Prices on
>>> currently offered machines may drop before then. I just don't want to
>>> wait for lower prices only to find that all the ones I like are out of
>>> stock...
>>
>>
>> If you buy a Dell you will regret it.
>>
>> The only sensible choice is Lenovo.
>>
>>
>>
> There is only one proper response to the final sentence above.
>
> plonk
>
> No cheers.
>
> jim b.
LOL! REally?
Okey dokey, you'll see.
I'm assuming you'll unplonk me then and let me know that I was entirely
correct and that you regret not following my advice.
You really should learn to listen to those who know much more than you do.
--
"Ubuntu" -- an African word, meaning "Slackware is too hard for me".
"Bother!" said Pooh, as the warp core breached.
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--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)
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