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[-] MonkderDritte@feddit.de 191 points 6 months ago

Never understood why Windows' explorer hides extension by default. Does MS fear it would confuse their users?

[-] TrickDacy@lemmy.world 139 points 6 months ago

Yes, they think their users will be confused by and accidentally remove extensions. To be fair that might happen sometimes but it's nowhere near worth it

[-] marcos@lemmy.world 61 points 6 months ago

They already have a confirmation box when you try to change the extension. And could just as easily move it into another column where it's harder to change (explorer was like this once, a long time ago).

And yet, they keep hiding the on the rationale that it confuses the users. The most common thing on explorer is some user being confused because they can't understand what clicking on a file is supposed to do, but that's not an argument for showing them...

So, yeah, that's the surface-level explanation. But there's a deeper reason.

[-] Almrond@lemmy.world 31 points 6 months ago

You seriously underestimate the stupidity of 80% of windows users. They could put multiple warnings and people would still click past them without reading then bitch to their IT team when they break something.

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[-] MonkderDritte@feddit.de 16 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

Ah, right, in the context that Windows determines filetype only on extension.

Btw, there's a bunch of mimeopen implementations for Linux. Is there something like that for Windows too?

[-] TrickDacy@lemmy.world 19 points 6 months ago

I don't think that anything like that exists in Windows. Generally that's my least issue with windows honestly. It's a POS on so many levels

[-] potentiallynotfelix@lemmy.ml 12 points 6 months ago

Iirc there's a massive warning popping up saying it might fuck the file

[-] Zehzin@lemmy.world 16 points 6 months ago
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[-] rtxn@lemmy.world 185 points 6 months ago

What do you mean? linkin_park_-_numb.mp3 clearly has an extension, it's all the other files that don't!

[-] magic_lobster_party@kbin.run 96 points 6 months ago

One time I struggled debugging a program on a clean Windows machine. For some reason it seemed like it couldn’t find a JSON file that’s obviously in the system. I could even open the file on my own and view its contents.

Turns out after much frustration that the file was actually a json.txt file. I didn’t notice because the extension was hidden, so I only saw .json and thought it was fine.

[-] MonkderDritte@feddit.de 46 points 6 months ago

Step 5 in meme: add '.txt' to seemingly text files.

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[-] PerogiBoi@lemmy.ca 77 points 6 months ago

The OS designed to prime the population into bad cyber security practices so they are more easily able to exploit and scam later on.

takes off tinfoil hat

[-] Sanctus@lemmy.world 21 points 6 months ago

You have a point though. Why hide file types by default unless you believe the users are too dumb to ever learn what a few letters mean.

[-] magic_lobster_party@kbin.run 29 points 6 months ago

Hate to break it to you, but most users are that dumb.

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[-] abcd@feddit.de 69 points 6 months ago

You can’t imagine how much I hate this setting. A couple of weeks ago I helped a guy install some specific software on a windows machine provided by the customer. It’s like one exe with a config file. Pretty basic. My instructions were:

  1. Copy the exe to a specific path
  2. Create a new text file in the same path and copy paste this provided text into the file
  3. Rename file to abc.xml

The exe was throwing errors because of the missing config file. Of course the filename was abc.xml.txt 💩

[-] GreyEyedGhost@lemmy.ca 37 points 6 months ago

This is part of what helped the I love you virus to spread. Not too many idiots would open a file titled ILoveYou.txt.vbs, but even some smarter people will turn their brains off if they get a file titled ILoveYou.txt, possibly even me, except the first thing I do with a new computer is unhide file extensions.

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[-] DrGunjah@lemmy.world 65 points 6 months ago

It's not like I want to defend windows, but If it needs admin permission you usually can't start it without confirmation.

[-] r00ty@kbin.life 83 points 6 months ago

Here's the problem. So many legitimate things need elevation, and often multiple times in a single install. Guess what most Windows users do, when they see an elevation prompt. What do you reckon?

[-] DrGunjah@lemmy.world 40 points 6 months ago

Honestly I don't think it's that bad. I have to use sudo just as often on linux as I have to accept the elevation box on win. Win11 has some serious issues but UAC is harmless.

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[-] ExfilBravo@lemmy.world 14 points 6 months ago

Everyone knows most people turn UAC completely off after it nags them for the 10th time and they get frustrated and dump it.

[-] lightnegative@lemmy.world 18 points 6 months ago

I turn UAC off before it nags me for the 10th time.

The only nag I want to see is the one right before it gets turned off.

I hate things that just throw up nag screens that users get desensitized to and just click through anyway. It hasn't increased security at all.

Looking at you "do you trust the authors of the code in this workspace folder" VSCode. Yes I effing do, that's why I opened it to begin with!

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[-] ftbd@feddit.de 43 points 6 months ago

Don't forget: Files have execute permissions by default!

[-] vanderbilt@lemmy.world 18 points 6 months ago

Windows moment 🤗

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[-] Cassa@lemmy.blahaj.zone 36 points 6 months ago
[-] frippa@lemmy.ml 39 points 6 months ago

50% of being a Linux user is hate towards Windows so I'd say it fits

[-] Kerb@discuss.tchncs.de 13 points 6 months ago

the other 50% is hate torwards nvidia

[-] TrickDacy@lemmy.world 15 points 6 months ago

And 100% of it is fair

[-] TrickDacy@lemmy.world 11 points 6 months ago

You say that like it's a bad thing

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[-] smileyhead@discuss.tchncs.de 14 points 6 months ago

You know a more fitting comminity to post it?

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[-] Evil_incarnate@lemm.ee 34 points 6 months ago

Just hijacking a discussion about security. I would think that Linux users would be more security conscious. But I found in my buildings trash a bunch of HDDs, some 1TB and a 5TB, so I took them to see if they were ok (and recycle properly if not).

All ext4 formatted and with lots of personally identifiable information including emails and photos and stuff.

The previous owner was an early Linux dev, wrote stuff that is still in the kernel. Yet unencrypted drives just thrown in the trash.

I've cleared the drives and now use them for myself, after I searched for a wallet.dat file.

[-] mac@infosec.pub 12 points 6 months ago

Maybe he knew none of the information could harm him if someone got hold of it?

[-] Evil_incarnate@lemm.ee 13 points 6 months ago

I could have brute forced his password, there were SSH keys to various servers, I probably could have done something to him.

[-] Crozekiel@lemmy.zip 41 points 6 months ago

Possible they passed away suddenly and a tech-illiterate family member threw them out while cleaning out their place. Not great there was no encryption but people often overlook making plans for their eventual death, we mostly just don't like to think about it.

[-] iiGxC@slrpnk.net 28 points 6 months ago

At a conference recently, one person accidentally sent the organizer a pdf of their presentation with their notes underneath each slide, instead of the presentation itself, but it was super confusing because the file was "presentation.pptx.pdf" which of course got displayed by windows as "presentation.pptx". The person who decided to hide extensions by default must be so proud of pulling off such a wide reaching prank

[-] Godnroc@lemmy.world 28 points 6 months ago

I'm literally trying to get into Linux and one of the first things was installing software, which involves copying and running random bits of code from whatever website has the highest search result. I would say a lot of software is running code you have no idea what it does.

[-] irmoz@reddthat.com 32 points 6 months ago

I ask this with full sincerity - are you unaware of the package manager?

[-] szczuroarturo@programming.dev 15 points 6 months ago

He has a point tho. The amount of copy pasting random shit from the internet into the console is way too comon if you go down the rabbit hole on some issues with the system and find a solution on some abandoned by god itself linux forum. To be fair its usualy just a comand that does shit for you in 5 seconds so you dont have to use gui buuut it does happen and i can tell what this stuff does but the average user likley dosent . Alghtough it might be less common today. Its been quite a long time since i last broke my system.

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[-] TheRedSpade@lemmy.world 24 points 6 months ago

Installing software on Linux almost never involves "copying and running random bits of code" unless you have a need for some really obscure program. Learn how to use your distribution's package manager.

[-] billiam0202@lemmy.world 21 points 6 months ago

Learn how to use your distribution's package manager.

Also

sudo apt update

sudo apt upgrade

covers what, about 60% of Linux desktops?

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[-] smileyhead@discuss.tchncs.de 18 points 6 months ago

Those are just tutorials showing how to install something. Typing flatpak install firefox is one and the same as going into the app store, searching for Firefox and clicking "install". Tutorial websites would just show terminal as it's more universal.
If they ask you to actually download some file there is something very wrong.

I often see people overwhelmed by universality of some things. Instead of searching "How to install Firefox on Linux?" what should be learned is "How to install software on Linux?" and, unless met with something badly ported, never do the search again.

But what my meme is about is Windows-only style of having some file and by default having no idea if that's going to run in some program or be a program.

[-] ego@lemmy.dbzer0.com 17 points 6 months ago

While I totally agree with you about package managers, I still run into a lot of apps that the only install option is a .deb downloaded from a webpage. Which is comparable to running a .exe on windows.

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[-] Titou@sh.itjust.works 17 points 6 months ago

Spoderman.mp4.exe

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this post was submitted on 03 May 2024
994 points (97.0% liked)

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