Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!seismo!sundc!pitstop!sun!amdcad!ames!ptsfa!ihnp4!homxb!mtuxo!mtune!codas!killer!usl!elg
From: elg@usl (Eric Lee Green)
Newsgroups: comp.arch,comp.unix.wizards,comp.os.misc
Subject: Re: GNU Security (was Re: FSF et all)
Message-ID: <287@usl>
Date: Sat, 10-Oct-87 19:27:49 EDT
Article-I.D.: usl.287
Posted: Sat Oct 10 19:27:49 1987
Date-Received: Thu, 15-Oct-87 01:41:51 EDT
References: <1494@geac.UUCP>
Organization: CACS, Univ of SW La, Lafayette, LA
Lines: 38
Xref: mnetor comp.arch:2631 comp.unix.wizards:4876 comp.os.misc:288

in article <1494@geac.UUCP>, daveb@geac.UUCP (Brown) says:
> Xref: usl-pc comp.arch:752 comp.unix.wizards:1316 comp.os.misc:156
> In article <893@mcgill-vision.UUCP> mouse@mcgill-vision.UUCP (der Mouse) writes:
>>In article <2117@eecae.UUCP>, lawitzke@eecae.UUCP (John Lawitzke) writes:
>>>> Minix is v7 - (things you didn't know about, and don't want even if
>>>> you did), the GNU kernel should be 4.3BSD + (things) - (security features).
>   May I rephrase you to "minus @#%!$$!?&*! security features"?
> 
>   The important things about security are:
> 	1) its pervasive (you can't get around it)
> 	2) its transparent (you don't need to get around it)

RMS has come up with a sure-fired way of doing BOTH of those in the
GNU Kernel. Specifically,

1) If there is NO security, then there is nothing to get around, and,
2) If there is NO security, then there is DEFINITELY no need to get
   around it.

Remember, RMS's background is not commercial high-security data
processing, but, rather, academia, research, and program development,
where security is actually an IMPEDIMENT to productivity, because it
impairs the sharing of code, algorithms, test data, and other things
of that sort. In his view, at least as expressed in various books and
articles that included interviews with him, security features are
unnecessary and are a Definite Evil for various reasons also mentioned
in the GNU Manifesto (needless to say, Multics would not be his
favorite OS :-).  

Call him a Utopian if you will, for believing in the Better Nature of
Man. But hey, since he's doing it for free, and providing complete
source, you can do whatever the heck you want to once you get the
stuff, including, of course, adding your own security features to it.

--
Eric Green  elg@usl.CSNET       from BEYOND nowhere:
{ihnp4,cbosgd}!killer!elg,      P.O. Box 92191, Lafayette, LA 70509
{ut-sally,killer}!usl!elg     "there's someone in my head, but it's not me..."