Got a Virus? Get the Cure!
A friend of mine has just asked my advice: it seems his computer has picked up a virus and he doesn't know how to get rid of it. When I asked him what he used his computer for, the answer was "just some emails and Ebay, nothing else" (which does beg the question "so how did you get the virus in the first place?", but let's just add a pinch of salt to his answer, take him at his word and continue).
My advice to him was to run a full virus scan on his computer, at which point he got a little vague as to whether the virus allows him to start it or not.
In the "old days" a virus could be removed with a virus scan - or just processes killed and files deleted. Things are a lot harder now. I have had viruses that rewrite themselves into various places on disk once I have stopped their processes, removed files, scanned for root kits and not even rebooted! It's just not cricket. So I know he may be in for a bad time. Seeing as how he uses his PC for so little (and had no issue reinstalling, though he wasn't sure if he had the Windows CDs, and wasn't sure what to do to reinstall), if the virus scan does not work for whatever reason then I suspect a reinstall will be his only option (he doesn't know about safe mode, so manual intervention is out).
I then realized that the mere fact he does so little with his PC puts him in an awesome position to try a new way of computing that will prevent future virus infections: Linux (Ubuntu, to be precise). You can download for free (they will even ship you 5 CDs for a fiver), installation is a breeze and if all you want to do is look at a web site and check some emails, Ubuntu will allow this with no problems, even for those who have only ever seen computing life through a Window. Obviously it will do far more than that (indeed, I would suggest it is a better fit than Windows for 90% of home user needs), but in this particular instance Ubuntu screams out saying "TRY ME!!!".
I know there is no such thing as a virus free environment, but the fact is that currently the vast majority of Viruses are not for Linux. If he will have to reinstall anyway, I shall cut him a CD and see how that goes for him.
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Image credit: Salvatore Vuono
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