Posted 1:49 PM

Emperors, clothing and pundits

Walt Mossberg writes the Personal Technology column for the Wall Street journal. I usually skip it because it tends to be rather basic and general. But it was just brought to my attention (in The Register) that his March 11 column (which should be here, but right now only gives a 404 error) demanded that software & OS vendors, specifically Microsoft, give all users an "effective, free, constantly updated security service requiring little or no user intervention" which would "fend off all kinds of threats and invasions of privacy, including viruses and spyware, without getting all tangled up in academic distinctions." In other words, block everything I might object to without checking with me to see if I want it blocked.

At one time I thought Mossberg had a "gift" in being able to speak to novices on their own level. Now I understand that he was (and is) simply speaking as their peer.