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Can Computer Tapeworms And Viruses Be Your Friends
Computer tapeworms and viruses are feared by computer users today. But the creator of the term "computer virus" conceived of them as being helpful (as well as potentially harmful). John Brunner, in his 1975 novel The Shockwave Rider, coined the term tapeworm to describe a software program that could replicate itself and travel from one computer to another.
As it turns out, the rest of the world is catching up. In a recent article in Slate, one good way to stop a virus - is with another virus. As the Blaster worm ran rampant on the Internet, someone released a worm called Nachi that was a Blaster anti-virus. It erased copies of Blaster when it found a PC that was infected, and installed a Windows update to patch the flaw.
See Fight Virus With Virus for more.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 8/6/2004)
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