Fixing UAC is not possible....

Submitted by ghot on Thu, 2008-10-16 10:28

UAC and Aeroglass we're mistakes....pure and simple...fixing them will just be another.  The simple solution is to give the admin acct full privledges and have all the user accts run in a sandbox.  I understand WHY MS made UAC, I just think the chose the wrong solution to the right problem.

Sad though it is, MS has got to reealize that SOME people, those in the posistion of admin,  just don't know what they are doing.  There is NO solution for this.  Hobbling an entire OS with ANY form of UAC will never address this issue.

Maybe a prime time computer education series would work better.  No matter how you design an OS to try to avoid "human error"....it won't work....at least not in this decade!  No matter HOW refined they make UAC, some idiot or computer saavy kid is going to ignore or defeat it.  Thats simply human nature...trying to develop a UAC that will circumvent this is a waste of time with current technology.  Maybe when artificial intelligence finally becomes the norm, would such a solution be feasible.  When an OS is able to "learn" it's user and steer them away from:  Click here for free w/e or gamble on our website, etc will any form of UAC actually be useful.  

While I realize it's good for sales, I think part of the NEED for things like UAC is at least partially the fault of OEM's.  They provide a computer with an OS pre-installed, and by doing this, actually harm the customer more than helping them.  I think that if people had to actually INSTALL an OS from scratch, they not not be as ready to just click willy-nilly on everything they see on the internet.  

Further, I think MS should provide a tutorial during the install, instead of "look at all thats new".  In this way I truly believe that MS would further their own cause, rather than trying to hobble the OS after the fact.  A little education goes a long way.  This is the reason people don't just automatically "get a car" when they turn 16.....they are required to learn how to use it first.  While I grant that driving an OS improperly, will NOT kill other people or damage buildings....an OS is just as, if not more complex to "drive" than a car is and should be rolled out similarly.  The UAC is the equivalent of a new car with a governor on the gas pedal.  The solution is not to hobble the car, but rather to educate the owner before giving them the keys.  The same should be true of an OS.

I think that if the casual user were just slightly educated on HOW software functions and interacts, that we would find that the NEED for a UAC would all but disappear.

Anti UAC solution:

1. Make all users install their OS from scratch, and during that install teach them about the OS.

2. THEN, make the admin acct as it is in XP and have ALL the user accts with the option of being run in a sandbox.....aka for children, grandmas etc.  This will obliterate the NEED for  UAC.

3. Require OEM's to provide a CD/DVD full copy of the OS with the computer.

4. Lastly, simply outlaw proprietory software, or at least make the buyer sign a waiver that they KNOW that they are buying a machine with proprietory software.

I fix PC's for others and have seen "the horror" of what lack of knowledge can do to an OS.  Many of you have seen the same.....it's not the fault or the responsibility of the OS company to foresee ALL the possible ways a human being can screw up an OS.  It's not even possible! Trying to design an OS that foresees EVERY possible human failing.....CAN NOT BE DONE!  At least not yet :)

MS..... quit trying to do this... all you are accomplishing is kludging your own OS's, and pissing off those who DO understand software.  While the attempt is a noble one...at this point in time it IS NOT doable.  Until the day when an OS can "learn its' owner" and heal the damage done to itself by its' owner...this is a fools errand, and will serve NO purpose but to force those who ARE comp literate to an alternative OS.

 

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It would be nice if UAC

Submitted by Keith E. Whisman on Fri, 2008-10-10 01:07

It would be nice if UAC were smart and what I mean is that it can detect and tell you that a program that it's warning you about is Marware or a Virus or a known no good program. Also rather than just showing the file name how about giving the full path of the program that is trying to launch with an More information button that does a search on the internet for what the program really is.

Every thing at your finger tips that is easy to do in just the UAC windows and IE. That would be the most informed way of doing UAC and end doubt about what a Program is. Even be able to stop most viruses in their tracks befor they have a chance to run on your PC.

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Good for them.

Submitted by maniacm0nk3y on Thu, 2008-10-09 12:46

It seems that their finally taking customer complaints to heart. As long as there is a big overhaul on the choices you can make for warnings, then I will be fine. I just turned it off immediately the first time I installed Vista so it wasn't as bad as it could of been.

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