From: Mike Fletcher <fletch@ain.bls.com>
Date: Fri, 22 Sep 95 07:06:55 PDT
To: tomw@cthulhu.engr.sgi.com
Subject: Re: Netscape closes up 1 3/8 today!
In-Reply-To: <199509211846.LAA04164@orac.engr.sgi.com>
Message-ID: <9509221401.AA26983@outland>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain



	I've been lurking for a week or two, but I wanted to say
something about this:

> I think it probably has more to do with the fact that the name
> "Netscape" has been on the front page of every major newspaper in the
> US.  I guess bad press is better than no press at all.  And the press
> hasn't even been that bad.

	And you have to take into account that a good chunk of the
population has no clue about how either encryption (well, basic math
for a good chunk :/ )  or software works.  Just heard something on the
radio (Niel Bortz, if you're curious) about how California public 
schools have started giving credit for wrong answers on MATH tests.
So the students don't _feel bad_ about being wrong.  I want to trust 
my life to an airplane designed by someone who got the right answers,
not to someone who has artificially induced high self-esteem. 

	The casual Joe Sixpack at most may now that if Microsloth 
Doesn'tWorks has a problem he goes out 9 months later and shells out 
more $$$ for the next buggy release. Start mentioning 128-bit IDEA, 
entropy, or pseudo-anything and their eyes may just glaze over.  With
the state of public education, it'll be amazing if Joe Sixpack can 
figure out that he has to plug in his computer first; nevermind 
understand why trusting his financial secrets to a secret "proprietary"
encryption scheme that the gubument has the back door to is a bad idea.

	Sorry, I'll end my ranting now.

---
Fletch                                                     __`'/|
fletch@ain.bls.com  "Lisa, in this house we obey the       \ o.O'    ______
404 713-0414(w)	     Laws of Thermodynamics!" H. Simpson   =(___)= -| Ack. |
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