The slating of Microsofts UAC has recently been reborn now that the early adopters of Windows 7 have found security flaws in the new version. It reminded me of the outrage that occurred when it was first introduced in Vista and at this late stage, prompts me to point out something that was conveniently overlooked at the time.
With all those people that seem to stand on their soap box and claim it was the most rediculous thing ever to have come out of Redmond, no one mentioned that UAC was just Microsoft catching up with the other major operating systems. I recall all those smug-faced OSX and Linux owners saying ‘Vista? Don’t bother. Try a decent operating system’. I even recall an Apple advert poking fun at the fact that UAC was introduced. Yet, when I boot up my Hackintosh or Linux VM and do anything that is outside the realms of everyday use, low and behold I get prompted to elevate my security level just like UAC in Vista.
I admit when I first started using Vista it confused me. Whereas before, I could put files here and there, install things with very little thought, all of a sudden I was prompted to stop and think for a second before I do. After some use, the dust has settled and I realise it makes sense. What’s more, the times I am asked to confirm my actions are relatively few, as it only occurs when I install something new, try to copy something to a system area or do anything that may affect the system configuration.
I realise that I am a bit late with this comment but I never got the chance to talk about it at the time. So please, anyone who wants to moan and complain about UAC please accept that in the long run it’s a good thing, appears in some form in every major operating system and is here to stay. So please, get over it.