Even to use hair dryer you need to know some things about electricity or even physics otherwise you may not use it efficiently or securely. Luckily we teach children early how to securely use tools. So it is common knowledge.

The thing is that hairdryer is simple machine with 2-3 functions easy to learn and use. Comparison in this fashion is not right. Computers, regardles of OS, perform thousands of different functions with possibility to install new ones. I wish to see some hairdryer on which you can install new features and functions.

Anyhow, user education is important, user ignorance is present, yet when pushed to finish their job they will invent workaround system, this is not to blame. I cannot blame someone getting to root if he cannot do their job in another more secure way.

Classic view is that users are stupid, and IT knows everything. If we want that IT comes back as healthy industry we need to change this culture. The fact is that users are creative and IT should look in the mirror and see base of their frustration (and may figure that there is plenty of frustrations there).

I believe that article was aimed to stir the discussion. There are some interesting observations however it could be less flaming.

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Link to this comment: http://www.securityfocus.com/comments/columns/188/23133#23133